help adjusting carb

[gotdust57@yahoo]

i have a edlebrock 4 barrel i think it is a 600 or 650, what is best way to adjust it, i do have a vaccum gauge any ideas? thanks

 

[moper]

Perhaps the best way to approach this is what is the problem? Why do you feel you need to?

 

[gotdust57@yahoo]

just switched from 318 to 360 with mild cam, edlebrock intake, headers and a little more horsepower, it just smells a little rich and just not right. thanks

 

[moper]

Smells when...at idle, or going down the road? Did you swap in fresh plugs? (not the ones it first fired with) Pull one and loo at it. Black=rich. Lots of black or wet=way rich, or weak spark. I find most Edelbrocks are naturally lean, but have too much lift in the step up springs for the metering rods. So it goes overrich very easy while driving. You will find the strip kit for that carb number very helpful. Rich at idle may be the cam, or the mixture. The mix can be adjusted with a vaccum gage and screwdriver.

 

[C130 Chief]

Smells rich? Does it smell like CO or excess Hydrocarbon? A hint, if you can smell it, it is hydrocrbons. But it could be from poor ignition at idle due to a lean mixture, it happens. But smelling the tailpipe is a pretty inaccurate method of tuning an engine.

Does the engine idle smoothly?

How many turns out are the (IDLE) mixture screws now?

DO YOU HAVE, AND HAVE YOU READ THE OWNERS MANUAL FOR YOUR CARB?

To answer your first question, the BEST way to tune the carb is correctly. Now a 1406 Edelbrock should run pretty well on a mild 360 in it's stock configuration. And 99% of carb problems are ignition related (or owner caused).

 

[gotdust57@yahoo]

dont have manual for carb, it was on car when i bought, when i switched from 318 to 360, the carb was on 318, only thing i did was add edlebrock preformer intake, i run a pertronix ignitor 2 with flame thrower coil, with no ballast resistor, i did notice the turn screws are at different positions, i dont know how much the screws are turned in now, i was trying to find out how to adjust it first before i do any screw ups, and idea what the turns should be? thanks

 

[mullinax95]

I don't have a manual either when I got my car but I did find this:

http://www.edelbrock.com/automotive_new/mc/carbs_acc/carbs_access_main.shtml

 

[gotdust57@yahoo]

thanks

 

[340mopar]

C130 Chief is right, you can smell fuel from a tail pipe if it is too lean just as easy as if it was too rich. If it is too lean the spark can't fire the mixture at times so it passes thru the exhaust as unburnt fuel. If you are on the rich side the mixture can't burn all the way so it pass thru the exhaust as incomplete burnt fuel, both will smell the same to the naked nose but not an exhaust gas analyzer.

Chuck