Is your Holley carb giving you all sorts of impossible to troubleshoot problems? Is your fresh rebuild a dud? Then watch this. We've probably got your fix.
I have had the same issue on some Six Pack carbs. Stapled some sandpaper to a bench and worked it back and forth till it was flat. Also had a accelerator pump that always leaked until I did the sandpaper trick.
Yep, those accel pumps ALWAYS get warped from people over tightening the screws. You can get aftermarket ones that are almost 1/2 an inch thick to help that.
After driving one Chevy with an Eldelbrock (and no problems) for years, I just got another truck with a Holley that doesn't run right/ needs carb rebuilt... I think you convinced me to buy another Edelbrock 😎
Edelbrock carburetors are a great choice for a daily driver, the biggest problem with them is the accelerator pump will go out if you let them sit for long periods of time.
This video came at the right time for me just put a set of 450 cfm mechanicals on my tunnel rammed 302. Stuck those blue gaskets in and can get it to idle below 1800 rpm. This is my first motor im 19 years old
A similiar thing happened to me, but in my case rhe baseplate was warped. Tried to fix it with with RTV, don't really need to say it didn't work. Will tell more of that story and others in my upcoming book "How to make bad problems worse and waste money while doing so"
Well, this explains why a friend of mine many years ago swapped to an Edelbrock carb. on his Chevy pickup's slightly warmed over 350. He could not get the truck to idle for crap after doing a rebuild on the Holley carb. that came with the engine when he bought it to rebuild. He fought with it for 2-3 weeks trying to get the truck to just run, let alone do anything else. He bought an Edelbrock, rebuilt it, slapped it on and the truck idled fine. A bit of adjustment, some slightly bigger jetting and the truck ran AMAZING. Was awesome hanging out with that guy too, his parents were LOADED, lived in a beautiful house with a 5 car garage, full of all kinds of tools. My friend, worked for Walmart as a cart pusher, bought the truck, the engine, paid for the machine work and parts for said engine, all himself. Put the engine together at home, and had one bad ass, long bed regular cab 1980 Chevy truck when it was all said and done. Never asked for a bit of anything from his parents :)
I get the same gas mileage out of my 750cfm Speed Demon as I did my 600cfm Edelbrock. Can't really complain about it but something just wasn't right with the Edelbrock. The slightest elevation change made it idle so differently. Both of these carbs are brand new.
I've ran Holleys on my daily drivers for years. Never had a problem. Starts first try in 0 degree weather and has never vapor locked or failed to start in 115 degree weather. Doesn't quite get the same gas milage while cruising town that my Q jets did. But they get the same on the highway and interstate so it's hard to complain. Tune them right and run clean gas through then you'll never have a problem.
Never had any problems, once it was tuned I've ran holleys at 45 degrees sideways and straight up hills. The one time I tried an edelbrock, it wasn't happy unless it was perfectly flat. And even then it just wasn't very happy. Or didn't make me happy anyway. Holleys just seem a lot easier, maybe it would've worked better if I'd put the time and effort into learning them like I did holleys. But why bother?
My newer eldelbrock does great in 110 plus in Arizona and when winter comes does great in the cold no complaints. Only thing I need to do is run a return fuel line but to damn hot right now
An old guy showed me that years ago. I’m only 34 years young but it amazes me how much you can simply learn by shutting down your ego, shutting your mouth, and opening up your ears. I use a piece of 3/8” mild plate steel I cut down to size with sandpaper and welded a piece of tube steel underneath to clamp it in the vice to achieve the same goal. That is way more flat than any of my files 🤣🤣
2:45 I surfaced an engine deck and head for a generator out in the middle of nowhere with a file. The customer said it would pop head gaskets about every 2yrs. It was obvious when I lifted the head , the gouges on the deck would catch a fingernail. Someone call the factory and tell them to change that cutting bit! That was about 8yrs ago, I haven't heard from the guy yet. That's a little on the nutty side, but the old file works great for stuff like finding a warped flange.
I just finished a head gasket repair on a Suzuki 4WD (alloy block) where I had to draw file 10 thou from the block deck to get it flat, the labour involved was way less than pulling the engine and disassembling for the machine shop and the surface was true to 2 thou. Most mechanics these days wouldn't even know how to check for flatness let alone draw file a block.
I remember watching pops whittling on a piece of aluminum out in the dirt driveway , and when he was done with whatever , he would usually get a comment like : who machined that it looks good 🤣
@@2secondslater Same here. To pull that engine off the generator would be probably 6-8hrs , and probably another few hours to wheel it thru the woods to get it on a truck. So let's take a gamble and roll the dice and see what a file and a couple hours can do. Granted , I wouldn't do it to a Ferrari but it got everyone out of a jamb.
Thank you very much Tony. This is the kind of invaluable information to us younger guys who never had the chance to grow up with and learn about. Keep on keeping on.
THANK YOU UNCLE TONY! You seriously are a lifesaver when I'm working on my 68 camaro. This video is EXACTLY what happened to me. Doubling up the gaskets allowed me to drive it. I guess I need a big file!
Great tip Uncle, just one thing to pick you on, the face on the Holley body are usually not flat from brand new, even the Quick Fuel carbs have more waves than the ocean on the metering block mating surface. It's almost as if the carbs bodies have been left "as cast".
@@livewire2759 we put our Holley on the bridge port and machine the body and metering blocks perfectly flat. It makes such a huge difference in idle quality and throttle response I almost didn't believe it
Yeah, really... Definitely ain't rocket surgery. Aluminum filings, blast em out... Air, carb cleaner, gas. Or just leave em, it's soft, kinda like graphite... 😉 That last bit was a joke, in case some idiot doesn't get that.
Thanks for this information Unc! I used a dremel with a small abrasive polishing wheel to clean those stuck gaskets off my holley carb body, while doing this I noticed a lot of shallow craters and uneven surface being brought to light and clearly visible to my not so good eyes. I was concerned the dremel was ruining a factory-applied finish that was meant to fill those surface imperfections or something. But I finished the rebuild, made sure to use blue gaskets wherever I could, and slapped it on my engine and did all the adjustments, good as new! Or in this case, better than new!
I did not realize how many haters there is on your channel and there's a separate guy that was bad-mouthing you to that created his own channel this is crazy they have nothing better to do except for bad mouth you you're a good guy and you have lots of valuable information to share so have a good day
That is why I never reuse those re-useable metering block gaskets... Also people will put an unbelievable amount of torque on those bowl screws!! They must think it is a Main bearing cap bolt... Lol Great Video like always! Andy
I've never been a big fan of the reusable gaskets. I always preferred holley gaskets but we use chapstick lip balm on the gaskets so they don't weld themselves to the carb body. Who knew chapstick was impervious to gasoline. Try it works great.
@@superrodder2002 oh yeah that's a racers trick from way back... Another thing that works well is WD40 just rub the gasket down with a damp cloth and it will work just like the chap stick
That's usually the first sign that the body is warped. They tighten the crap out of the bowl screws to make it stop leaking, not realizing they're only making things worse in the long run. I see the same thing with the accelerator pumps all the time.
This video sure takes me back. Yes I do remember doing all of this and more. I did find out that you don't work on them when they're hot. Always let them cool off before taking apart. I always had a spare carb or 2 if it couldn't wait. I had one that I just couldn't get sealed. It worked fine but had a whistle-a loud whistle. Scared the crap out of some folks.
Just a thought here, You really should make sure your file is flat/straight first. It would sure suck to file for a couple hours and realize that you've just duplicated the curve in your file onto your carb body! Cheers all. Thanks for all the great videos Uncle Tony.
I know this video is older, but glad a came across it to try this trick. I have and old Holley 2300 economizer that I just rebuilt with all new jets, gaskets, and a power valve and yes went through that dreaded cork gasket scraping followed by an hour an the Chem dip can. Carb then Sat in my garage for a year after rebuild until this last weekend when I went out to finally sit it on my slant six intake. I hooked everything up to include the knock off Lokar cable set I picked up off EBay and low and behold could not get my truck to idle to save its life; could only get this thing to run rough by holding foot on the pedal. As soon as I let off pedal, engine dies. Tried all the normal initial setting adjustments to start engine and no bueno Lol. Going to try this filing tip and see if this makes a difference. I know timing, fuel, and spark are all good as I took off a reman Carter BBD that was running fine but wanted to put on a larger carb for slightly more power. Went to garage to run a straight edge across the main body and sure enough found low spots with a straight edge and a .025 & .004 feeler gauge. Would have never thought about doing this tip during the rebuild process, again great tip!
Ive been modifying and building holleys for long time for race, street/strip and fuel mileage and consider myself very well-versed w them and never knew why they used them damn things,,,love always learning.
Wow. That makes sense why my replacement remanufactured Holley 2bbl I bought years ago for my '77 Mustang II 2.3l car would not idle worth a flying f...... but would actually make the car spin the tires and had all sorts of power. Exhibited the exact issues Tony described. Learn something new every day....
Congratulations to uncle tony ! Almost to 150k subscribers. Ive been watching for 2 years. Cant wait till you hit a million subs so you can have a bigger project budget
I use to give them a coating of Pam let the gasket sit a while before installing them. That greatly reduced the time to clean the surfaces off from stuck gasket material. I didn't have any gas leaks either.
That's why everybody has swapped to carbs all of a sudden, cause they can make more power. Wait, it's efi they're going to, to make thousands of horsepower on relatively mild engines. Carbs just aren't as efficient. Not as accurate. And really not as reliable. Compared to proper efi... Not saying ever engine with efi comes a proper setup. Done right, with quality parts, it'll last just as long. Likely with less problems. But when those problems come up, they will likely be more complicated and probably expensive. Not arguing that point. It's just ignoring the facts to say that carbs work better, always. Carbs definitely still have a place. And simple easy to work on reliability, yeah. Because tuning, which you eventually have to do with a carb, is kind of a problem you don't have with efi. It's automatic. And even just taking the bowl off cause you got some trash or funk in it. If you leave efi sitting, they don't have a big bowl of fuel to go bad and varnish. But when you do have small problems, you can fix them on the side of the road with a hammer and a pocket knife in a pinch. Which you can use on efi, but it's probably just gonna bring more problems. But might make you feel better beating it with a hammer cause you can't really fix it on the side of the road. Just saying, carbs are just not really capable of doing what efi can. And since it all has to be spelled out, or somebody will chime in... Yes, there are setups where the opposite can be true. But the best carb vs the best efi is no comparison really. How many big power guys still use carbs? Yeah... And again, not knocking carbs. I like em. I understand em, and I will use em. But not when I already have a good buildable port injection system. That's just dumb. Now tbi or some other crap like that, yeah. It's junk, and you're really better off with a carb. Cause you're already getting all the drawbacks of a carb, with none of the benefits. And all the worst parts of efi, again with really none of the benefits. And it may not even be worth investing in a swap if you already have a bunch of carb specific stuff. I'm not saying it's night and day in all applications, some. But you could spend a ton of money on converting, and not see much of a real gain for it. And not saying ya have to. Obviously. Do what ya want. I hope carbs stick around forever. But I doubt they will. When all the old timers go, there's only gonna be a few of us left that don't have to break out Google or RU-vid to learn how to change a flat... Let alone mess with a carb just cause. Efi is getting easier by the day, more affordable, and reliable. And it's a good thing. But there's always gonna be a place for carbs. It may be a post apocalyptic wasteland... (fingers crossed, finally get to live my mad max fantasy)
@@salvadordollyparton666 my trucks has carb and started ever time with flick of the key if you no what your doing carb makes as much power and run just as good as EFI
@@deerslayer5863 yeah, facts don't support that... Again, just cause a carb works fine, doesn't mean they're perfect. Carbs have to be choked, if you change altitude, you have to retune. I'm not going into the million ways that is wrong, cause it's not the point. Fuel injection is more precise, which is better, when it's done right. Yes it costs more, no you don't necessarily see a benefit. But they are better at atomozing fuel than a carb. Argue all ya want, I know you people will... 😒 I'm not saying they are better for you. But they are better at putting fuel into an engine. You can say you don't need them, that most centainly can be true. But carbs are not better. That's like saying a civic is better than a Ferrari because you don't need to go 200mph, or be competitive on a road course. By design, they are inferior. Deny it all you want, facts are facts.
I did the same thing when i was 16 took a holley apart on my camaro wanting to freshen it up. Could never get it to idle after the rebuild , threw the damn carb away. Thanks uncle tony i have been thinking i was a complete idiot for 20 years, now its fact
Man I'm with ya... I'm wishing I could turn back time to 15 years ago when I slapped a rebuilt carb on my car and had the same issue! I took it back it idled soo bad. At least my old carb idled!
Hey Tony, how would a guy know if a carburetor is too small, or restrictive? Found your channel about 3 months ago..... love all your content. Keep up the great work!
Never had a problem with holleys except when they started pushing those silver ones back in the late-90s, early 2000s. Ended up keeping that silver 3310 as a back-up carb. Never sat on an engine for long.
I had an old 2bbl that used a cork gasket between the fuel chamber and the vacuum inlet. When it shrank after sitting it could still do everything but idle. I was in Apache Junction, Az. at 11:00 pm when it quit. I was traveling from L.A. to Odessa, Tx. Welcome to the world of classic cars. BTW, it was on a 58 Ford Tudor Custom, 292 CID and a C4.
Great info!! FYI: I caught about 15 minutes of your Sunday Night Spectacular(livestream)...You mentioned about the 1950's cars,and speeds...They did handle good at 60-80 mph...In 1958 the state I was in limits were 60 mph but 1963 it was upped to 70 mph..Some were higher. It only went to 55 mph in 1973 for the scaredemic of no gas(you know that)..55 to save gas! Heck the mid 50's Mopars would drive easily 90 mph! The Chrysler 300's were rockets and did 150 mph even performance Plymouths and Dodge D-500 models! True mid 1960's and especially 1971 up cars are more like a modern car(unless you get a beat up example)..I let people drive my old Mopars and they cant believe how good they drive..way better than any new car,especially if you want smooth ride! Thats All!!
Hey Tony I have been fixing these Holley warp problems for over 20 years. I have a RU-vid Channel addressing this problem Harold Demes channel name. It is not only the face of the body to metering block that is warped it is the metering block it self. They warp in opposite directions. When I restore Holley carburetors I surface the body 3 sides on a milling machine. I surface the base plate both sides. The metering block I straighten in a jig in a oven. Also the new metering block gaskets are like bricks. No give. I soak them in a chemical to soften them before assembly.
You really know your stuff. I only drive pre airbag era cars, and I deal with carbs often, but I could never do anything to the extent of building my own carb from scratch. I can adjust the screws and even take it apart and rebuild it, but I couldn't tell you what any of those parts are called or what they do
At least they achieve greatness, rather than spending eternity in mediocrity. I don't get where this holley hate is coming from all of a sudden. I've never heard this many people complaining about them, and cheering edelbrock. Quadra jet people have always been nuts.
The brand new main bodies come cast 1/32+ out of flat on the metering block surface right out of the box. Brand new they need to go on the mill and get flycut on every surface. Flat to .001 in about 5 minutes.
What about those little raised lines that go around all of little holes and around the border? Aren't they they for better sealing with the gasket? Or it doesn't matter?
Is the correct throttle body to main body gasket in there? Those surfaces have to be filed also. They notoriously are uneven. 850 is big for a 318 unless big gear big cam big ports big compression. Fix the vac secondary carb. Needs heavier spring not lighter. Just trying to help. If you had to warranty a Holley at Ramchargers in late 70's early 80,s at our taylor store i may have fixed your carb.Happy hot rodding. Oh yeah, soak the gasket material left behind with penetrate for a few and it makes getting it off much easier.
Oh them gaskets are like concrete I've pulled brand new hollers apart to jet them and had to beat them apart ive learned that a good helping of Vaseline helps in some warpage situations but is b only a temporary fix
I think my Rochester B has this problum, runs but the mixture screw does nothing and I have an off idle stuble. Everything else in the carb is good and working.
Bad needle & seat O-rings are a very common problem causing fuel by-passing the needle and seat and flooding the engine. I wonder how many carbs have been tossed by folks who don't know these basics. Remember, Holley has been around for over 100 years. They are not hard to maintain if you take the time to learn about and look after them. Good luck!
My brother had a mustang with a fresh 347 in it. Put a 650 speed demon on it. Went to fire it up, damn thing flooded, and then a little carb fire happened, no biggie. Took the needle and seats out and sure enough there was a burrr in there..... Replaced with a new Holley needle, but varified they were clean. All good. When I built my engine I also put a speed demon on it. Guess what the first thing I checked on it was? Sure enough, I had to swap them out with Holley needles again... 😉😉
Thank you, Tony. I am a big Holley fan. Got any idea on how to get a Holley 1920 Carb. choke to work for a 72 Slant SiX Swinger? I removed the well thermostat and choke linkage - set up a manual cable --- that doesn't work either. ARG! It's okay in the Summer, but Winters are a pain (Calif.).
when I got my city job in 1981 the mechanics were cursing the carter thermo quads on the dodge trucks. as they draw filed the case in attempts to get it to stop leaking fuel. so warping is not confined to the holly. you might consider showing how to get a thermoquad to work if you have not already. I like quadrajet carbs as they work great if you know how to deal with them.
Thanks for your video, I have Holley 4175 List 8679, it has idle/mixture screws that controls air amount not fuel amount and I can not make it stop dieseling, constantly. I need to open main throttle plate a lot to keep it idles above 500. No Idea what to do, have you seen this type of carbs? The engine is 355 rebuilt and base timing is 10.
I've filed a Dominator 1150, and 850 vacuum secondary...both were warped, and running rich. it takes a LONG time to file those bodies flat. and the bottom of the main body surface as well is usually warped too, where it meets the throttle baseplate. if you can find someone with a bridgeport, it's a lot easier and faster, and more accurate, to mill those surfaces flat with a milling machine. then you can lock it down level and just buzz it off perfectly flat. something cheap ass Holley Inc. should have done themselves for the past 75 years, and what Barry Grant did do- which is why he kicked their ass so badly when he was in business.
I remember helping my dad rebuilt a Holly as a kid and I thought he was mad at me, making me clean this gaskets. So trueing up those surfaces won't cause any issues like a head would and rinsing compression?
Hey Tooony! I hopes ya not gunna putz that 850 on that baby teen, that thing will go backwards. Put a 600 on it and it will go quicker than it does. Or better yet, put a small Thermy on it and toon it properly. Zee's tip for the day.
When you by a used Carburator, wiggle the throttle shaft, loose no NFG. Thanks Tony on the Vacuum location for the Distributor. (Side only). Had at the base of the Carb, sucked.Stinky exhaust, even my wife said how stinky it was ..Uncle Tony fixed my Car!!
I want to hear the car idle after your done Tony. I have a problem with a Holley idling. It idles high for a few seconds after I let off the gas then settles down to normal idle. Tried everything and can't get it to idle right.
And that's one reason why I don't like Holley's on the street. Many, many heating/cooling cycles is often detrimental to the health of those carbs. Edlelbrock/Carter have more mass for the base and warping is really not a problem. I know, I know. a bunch of you will say, "well, I've had an 850 Holley on my car, xxxxxx miles, xx years and zero problems'. That's not been my experience.
