[LT1Silverhawk]

Hey 777stickman,

Originally Posted by 777stickman

I should probably stay out of this, but what the heck.

I greatly welcome and very much appreciate all help.

Originally Posted by 777stickman

After 30 minutes of trying to read thru all your info I just went back to the 1st.

Since I have never dealt with carb’d vehicles before, I am trying my best to describe everything as best as possible. I am 100% carburetor illiterate but I am also hoping to change that with this project. I hope I wasn’t confusing or too wordy because I wrote everything with the intention that someone in a similar situation and lack of knowledge may find this useful someday.

Originally Posted by 777stickman

I feel that all your issues are related to the Q-Jet choke system (and possibly internal stuff).

Originally Posted by 777stickman

1st off is the "canister" you have circled. It's called the "choke pull-off". Once the motor starts with full choke it opens the choke to a set position from engine vacuum. If this unit is not holding vacuum the choke will not open to the set position!!

Yes, someone pointed that out on another forum. From the first video (it’s the daylight one), it can be seen engaging at once when the truck started at what I assume is the proper speed. I actually refered to it as a canister for the other forum since they responded first and i am linking the same images to both.

Originally Posted by 777stickman

2nd is this is not a manual choke. It relies on a heat sensitive spring that is mounted on the intake below the carb on the passenger side. If this spring is broken the choke will not set properly to the fully closed position!!

You are correct again Sir. Someone pointed out that it is the older choke stove style.

Originally Posted by 777stickman

3rd is that I saw somewhere in all this a mention of checking the dist points?? '77 dist's are HEI and don't have points.

Yes, that was a crew up on my part.

Originally Posted by 777stickman

RE points 1 & 2: All adjustments on the choke system have to be made manually by bending the rods that attach to each of the choke components.

Originally Posted by 777stickman

Lastly, older Q-Jets are known for worn throttle plate shafts (major vacuum leak) and leaking main jet bowls (flooding).

That is good to know. I will be buying a carb kit and a float for this carb as soon as I can. At this point, I will confess I don’t know if that will be enough to fix a potential problem like worn plate shafts and leaking main jet bowls. Any guidance in the right direction is much appreciated.

I am strongly considering using a Holley 4150 carb that I’ve got sitting around (provided it fits and works with no issues) while I tinker and fix this one.




Thank you again!