What about this caulk...?

[Dawn Michelle]

Lexel Sealant

I was looking for a clear caulk to use around my exterior marker lights (for the future - the white I used sure stood out against the beige) and was told it's hard to get a water-based latex in clear.  I do like the idea of protecting the butyl tape even though I suspect it's not necessary?  Many of my exterior fittings don't seem to have a sealant.  Anyway saw this and it says it's better than silicone, is paintable, doesn't yello, and gets good reviews from at least one of the guys there at the hardware store for weatherproof longevity.  They said after a couple years it came off glass well, but less well off the auto paint (they used it to seal a windshield) - but no worse than latex.

Any thoughts?

[Dawn Michelle]

Getting the carb adjusted is a definite necessity - and we knew that.  She was great when she left Denver and all went to pot in Kansas (I wonder if the change in altitude had something to with it?)  Anyway the Kansas guys said they suspected a faulty accelerator pump (bad stall off of idle - left him stranded once - worse in extreme cold).  And where it had been starting beautifully in Denver after the mechanics there added the electric choke and fixed vacuum lines and various other adjustments it was back to this difficulty starting.  So my starting it hasn't changed.  Obviously she starts better if I do it every day :-)  But I'm trying to keep good neighbors and only starting it once now on weekends and running it about twenty minutes.  So less gas in the bowl I assume.  Just haven't found the sweet spot.  Thought maybe the issue was I didn't have the ignition in on position but I think you are telling me that doesn't matter.  What about the pumping speed? I remember just pumping normally - but some vids on youtube said you let it out slowly...

[david craft]

what i remember regarding this. one pump, then part way down a second time to set the fast idle cam. that should give you a fast idle till it begins to over speed a little where you then tap the throttle to idle down. my 2 cents...but it may take 2 pumps if its real cold...

[Dawn Michelle]

My mechanic (sight unseen) said 5-6 pumps but I think he was thinking it was a stock carb and can't remember now if I had told him it had an electric choke.  The carb has Weber stamped on the side - maybe an Edelbrock?  Dunno - sadly no paperwork on that either.  Don't know how I feel about it - the PO said he put a thousand into the carb, I've put in $600 and we still are messing with it.  High performance as the PO describes it sounds like high maintenance to me!  Thanks for the input.  I think it's going to be a matter of trial and error trying to find the sweet spot, that's for sure.  It's part of the charm though, right?!

[Rick Faunce]

Pumping speed will make no difference if the accelerator pump is in good condition. Like David says above, that is a perfect description of how to start a carbureted vehicle. Then you just modify that to suit your particular vehicles tastes. Has the carburetor been rebuilt? If not you may need to look into a rebuilt one. One thing you can look at is the throttle shaft. You will probably need to take off the air cleaner to get room to see things and with the engine off and cool so you don't get roasted, open the throttle just a little bit and then see if there is and play up and down, forward and back in the shaft. What you are looking for is to see of the throttle shaft bushings are worn. If the holes are worn then you will have a vacuum leak at the throttle shaft and that can affect starting some. It usually is not an issue unless the holes are really worn bad. It can also affect idle quality. If the bushings are good then you can get a rebuild kit and some carburetor cleaner and rebuild that carburetor. If they are bad I would recommend a new or rebuilt carburetor but if you get a rebuilt as soon as you get it and before leaving the store check those bushings! Rebuilders nowadays are not in this country and do not do quality checks on the cores they use and sometimes you will get one that is worse than the one you are turning in for a core.

[Dawn Michelle]

That's a great description of what to look for.  Even I could figure that I bet.  Thing is I don't know if the carb was new or rebuilt.  No paperwork.  The guys in Denver, a carb shop that works on vintage/classic cars said their biggest concern was that whoever put it in hadn't accounted for parts outside of the carb not being upgraded to match the high performance carb I had.  I did find an old fuel filter back in the toolbox which I guess was replaced 'at some point' and someone has zip tied the side hose in the fuel filter in a crimp.  Sent a pic to my dad said, well that's a problem.  Showed it to my mechanic and said, no, that wasn't fuel but air and to leave it until they looked at it.

Boy, I sure wish I'd watch dad work on cars when I was younger.  I think my mechanic charges extra for me to look over his shoulder - lol - not actually he's a great "good old NC boy".  Used him for years and he never overcharges or fixes anything that ain't broke.  I just need to get it over to him.  If he can't fine tune it he says his brother is a magician on carbs and he'll see if he can get him in.  If it has to be rebuilt, well, so be it.  

[Rick Faunce]

Those good ole farm boy mechanics are the best to have. If it is an Edelbrok carb then it may be a matter of jet changes. Someone may have been into it that did not know what they were doing. Those carbs are fantastic carbs and are usually perfect right out of the box but for some reason some people just have to play with them and 9 times out of 10 they screw them up. Best thing to do is have your buddy check the carb and set it completely to the stock settings and see how it runs and then work from there. I am assuming your engine is stock so you want the carb right as it came from the box. That fuel filter was used on older Dodges and AMC products and the side hose is a vapor return to the tank. If you have the vapor return line to the tank then that is where it should hook up, this is for protection from vapor lock. In that scenario that nipple should be facing up towards the top. If you do not have a return line then that is the wrong filter and blocking off the fitting will do no harm. Where does the that hose go that is clamped?

[Dawn Michelle]

Not sure where it hooks to - I'll do some investigation this weekend.  Nice to have a nod to that carb - I get the feeling maybe the original installer, folks the PO had work on it maybe didn't know what they were doing.  The folks I found in Denver seemed to feel really good about what we had, as did the mechanics in Hays.  But like I said, something went awry.  It did leave Denver running amazing.

[Rick Faunce]

Can't reply to your last post so I will insert here. Here is the carb you probably have if it is an Edelbrock. http://www.jegs.com/i/Edelbrock/350/1406/10002/-1?CAWELAID=17109055...  If so you have a fantastic carb. You might want to get a performance kit for it which has all of the jets and springs you might need to tune it in case things have been changed or if you plan to spend any amount of time at high altitude. http://www.jegs.com/i/Edelbrock/350/1487/10002/-1.

Check Summit.com for prices also, and Amazon, you can get anything at Amazon.

[david craft]

if that fuel filter is making contact with that radiator hose thats a big no no. it can cause the fuel to vaporize...

[Dawn Michelle]

And I'll reply here - probably should have started a new thread as we've veered off of caulking.  Hmmm.  I'm not seeing that Edelbrock label like this image shows - and it isn't that pretty and shiny.  I may have sent you off on a wild goose chase, apologies.  Just went off on the "weber" stamped into the body and several different mechanics now saying something about performance.  Better wait til I get a better idea of what I have.  Darn engine is so big I have to get a stepstool to just get in there to look at anything and I'm afraid I'm going to be like Alice falling down the rabbit hole :-)  

[Rick Faunce]

Just get a picture of it and then we can figure out what you have. Weber and Carter went in together on a lot of projects and the stock carb on there should be a Carter so you may have the original carb. Will wait and see what you are working with. Once you find out start a new thread and we can start anew from there. Way back in the dark ages when I had my own business I was a certified master mechanic and my specialties were electrical and carburetors. Most of the surrounding shops would send me their electrical problems since they just did not want to deal with them but carburetors were not that big of a deal back in the 70's and early 80's when they were first going to fuel injection. Most mechanics, Sorry, "Technicians" nowadays don't have a clue what a carburetor even is.

[Rich Thomas]

Hello Dawn, if you haven't already, you can take the dog house off the inside between the seats  you can get a much better look at what you have. I do this even when I change filters and so on. I'm 6'2" and find it difficult to do much under the hood from out front unless I have my trusty little step stool at hand.