swapped my 750 eddy for a 600 and.....

[shadango]

.....<sigh>

Thats all I can do right now.

.........<sigh>

I went to carlisle and picked up a edelbrock 600 performer.....cheap, at $75.  Figured it would be a cheap way to maybe finally lick the issue.....whether it was an internal problem with the 750, or maybe that the 750 was just too big as some say.

Took the top off, made sure everything was clean, bolted her in......

At first I thought I had found the solution for my idel and driveability issues.

The hotter she got the less smile I had on my face.

Now, she seems to run "better" around 2k or so.....but she still wants to jump to a fast idle.......I have idle set at about 850 in park.....drop into drive and she goes to 450-500.

Over all, she doesnt stall......but if I go into neutral or park she still wants to jump up to around 1300-1500.

And worse yet --- seems that I now have an issue up top.........if I hammer it and hit 3k, she backfires and misses.......

Would this indicate a too-high timing up top or too-low?  timing in park is around 14-16*. Like it was before.

But now my total timing tops out at around 48 with vacuum.  I know thats toooooo high, right?

WIth the vac advance unhooked it runs to about 32*.   I tried driving without the vac advance and no way.   Bogged and spit and stuff.....

When I first fired up the engine, I thought I had the problem licked.  Timing was at like 8-10* and total was 36 or so.....I tweeked up the idle to 14 and found that the total was too high and now if I drop down the timing back to 8-10* it wants to die.

I think I am going to get rid of the car and take of crocheting........

[72bluNblu]

The timing doesn't sound too far off. If nothing else, it shouldn't bog and spit with the vacuum unhooked with that timing, I have mine set at 18* timing at idle and around 38* all in with no vacuum hooked up and it pulls like a beast.

What size jets and rods are in the 600? I set my 625 cfm Carter AFB up with .098" primaries, .100" secondaries with .0700/.0600 rods and its pretty close. No bogging or popping thats for sure, maybe a touch rich still. The Edelbrock 600 and the AFB 625 are pretty much the same design, the jets and rods should be pretty close between the two.

What kind of condition is the 600 in? Is it pretty clean? For $75 I would think it would need a rebuild. 

[Changin Gears]

All these timing numbers, ideal or not, would not cause the engine to misfire.  They would either cause you to be down on power or pinging.  Maybe your fuel pump is going away.  You could try one of these carbs on a buddies car.  Is the timing stable at 3k  or 4k (keep your face out of the line of fire with the fan belts)?

Ignition problems usually show themselves at higher RPMs.

[ChallengerGary]

Sounds like you may have a vacuum leak.  Have you checked for leaks around the intake?

[72cudamaan]

have u looked at the dist. as a possible problem?

[shadango]

Just got back from another ride.....befor this one I swapped out the coil to cap wire and double checked the others...two were a little loose at the cap.....tweaked those some....I got her to pull hard up to 4k and no missing.backfires......still idles like crap and have to baby the throttle off the line some....the extremely low idle is something the auto-tarmmy doesnt like.....so I cant jam on it..have to baby it...

I probably should have made this post in my other one but it was getting to 5 pages.....

I have swapped out the distributor with a reman...its a stock-style distributor though.....some have suggested my advance 9wither mech or vac) could be bad with the first dist, so I just got the reman... checked a thousand times for vac leaks.....

I do have some engine vibration ...at around 1200 it is an oscillating type.....does it at idle so I know its not anything but engine....

Timing is steady, TDC seems to be where it should in relation to rotor, etc.

Manifold pressure is down around 5"hg at idle in park, lower in drive...........I think that is my big problem.....

I havent yet tried the two tricks that others have suggested on THIS carb (but I did on the 750).....namely drilling the primary throttle plates (tried 1/16" holes) and plugging the idle air bleed holes.....neither made any real dent in the issues.....

Not sure if I should try drilling the primaries on this one or not......Was going to try and see if I can manually open the secondary plates a bit and see if more air helps at all....

Maybe I should just rip her down and tear the cam out and measure it and know for sure.

Maybe this is what this cam is SUPPOSED to drive like....I was told the engine ran good and was used for shows, etc......

I either have something way wrong, am missing something, or I was BS'd.

I think what I need to do at this point is to find an experienced tuner locally who can listen to it and tell me what they think.....I must be doing something wrong or missing something.,

My next step I think is to pick up some gaskets and take the valve covers off and see what is there....someone thought I might have adjustable rockers that need adjusted....

I love this car....and have really been proud of getting this far with it....but I feel like I am going in circles now and its VERY frustrating.....

Went to Carlisle this weekend (great time by the way!) and that made me want to get this running "right" even more!   

[wally426ci]

Did you mess around with any wiring? I went through something like this and it wound up being a voltage loss problem. Same deal. I solved it with a $105 harness from Evans.

Maybe someone can walk you through where to check for how much voltage.

[shadango]

New wiring harnesses from Bill Evans.

I did some snooping...pulled the valve covers.....

Pics to follow, but here is what I found:

Heads have the following markings on them inside:

Right side --        AAWJ  360 (the 360 is big)
                     05050                 8418915

Left ide  --          AAWJ   360  (the 360 is little)
                    04270                 8418915


The springs are read in color

The rockers are solid -- each is marked with either a  18LH    or  34RH

Here is the left side....

E#1 - 18LH
I#1- 34RH
I#3- 18LH
E#3- 34RH
E#5- 18LH
I#5- 34RH
I#7- 18LH
E#7- 34RH

Right side:

E#2- 34RH
I#2- 18LH
I#4- 34RH

I didnt get the rest...but I think they alternate that way...

What do the "18LH" and "34RH " mean?   

Everything else looked ok under there far as I could see...

[Chryco Psycho]

the rockers are in pairs left is left & right is right the #s are basically meaningless
 the 915 head is the 70-73 J head

[shadango]

Thanks Chryco.

Realized this morning that I still can try changing out the rod springs in the carb...running the oranges right now.....changing the springs had no effect really on the 750 but maybe with the 600 it will help...

Also didnt try blocking the holes you pointed out to me yet....again, no effect on the 750....

really hate to start drilling the plates on the 600, seeing as it did nothing for the 750......

I am wondering if maybe I am at a crossroads here:  change the cam, springs and lifters out or change the torque converter to get more room at idle......

Would rather get the thing running right as it sits, but maybe I am fighting a battle I cant win...LOL

[73Chally]

Is there a shop close by that could take a look at the car?  Before you start throwing more money at it it would be wise to first spend a few bucks to pinpoint the problem, or at least isolate it to carb/engine/TC, etc.  Rather than pulling your hair out, it would be nice to take it somewhere and get it fixed once and for all.  It could really be a simple fix for someone that knows what they are looking for.

[Chryco Psycho]

that is the big problem though most shops do not have people who know what to do with these older cars & when they set up by the book they run poorly

[73Chally]

I know what you mean, but hoping he's got someone who does know what he's doing close by.  I've got a friend who built my car that can pretty well diagnose any type of running issue in just a few minutes (ie idle problems, tuning, ignition, etc).

[Chryco Psycho]

If I had more time in the area I would be happy to drop by but I am on the way home

[shadango]

Thanks...I understand....I wish you could stop too....LOL

This is one reason I was seriously considering trailering my car to Carlisle...I am sure that an experienced ear could figure this out way quicker than I will....but in the end I didnt....