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73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => Engine/Drivetrain => Topic started by: Grim 82 on June 14, 2010, 02:22:50 pm
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I just had a quadrajet rebuilt to replace my edelbrock 1406. I picked up the carb over the weekend, installed it on the pickup and got it running. Immediately I hear a terrible whistle and know that there is a vacuum leak somewhere. Everything is capped or hooked up so I mess with the throttle a little and find that the shaft bushings are sloppy, and if you move it around the right way the whistle changes pitch and goes away if you hold up on it. My question is this:
Have any of you guys had luck with the bushing kits?
http://www.summitracing.com/search/brand/JET-Performance/Product-Line/JET-Quadrajet-Bushing-Service-Kits/?autoview=SKU
http://www.tinindianperformance.com/Qjet%20parts%20and%20services.htm
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Did you take it back to get it fixed instead?
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If you paid to have it rebuilt I would send it back. They can be a pita to replace in some cases. It's not that it's difficult to do but things can go wrong if you catch my drift.
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I think they did a "how to" once on one of the powerblock shows on Spike TV.
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I tried to help out the old hometown shop guy by throwing a little business his way, and had him rebuild the carb. It's 260 miles away so just stopping in for warranty isn't so easy. He will make it right for the fact that I paid and didn't really get what I paid for. When I talked to him today he said they don't make such a thing as a bushing kit. Well, a quick google search called BS on that idea. It would be cheaper to make that one work by putting new bushings in it if I can, but after this type of work I know I won't trust the rest of the rebuild to be any better. The guy that's building my 700r4 says buy a Holley, and he'll make that pickup run circles around a Q-jet or an Edelbrock. I know a statement like that stirs up a hornet's nest, but I have the ok from the better half to pony up the cash for a Holley if I want, or try to go cheap and put bushings in the Q-jet. Two factors in that decision is the fact that every time I tried to get by cheap with this project it has cost me more in the end, and this guy will sell me that new Holley at his cost. Suggestions?
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I would try to replace the bushings before anything else.
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You can read the article here http://www.powerblocktv.com/site3/index.php/magazine-articles-musclecar
it is the Dec 2009 issue. pgs 18-27 from musclecar.
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Thanks for the link; they make it look easy. Like Vile said, things can go wrong, and I don't want to end up throwing another $70 at it and have nothing to show for it, but I think now is the time to become proficient with carbs, because I'm never parting with this pickup. I have 3 Q-jets in addition to the one I just had built, so I can practice a bit. I'm going to order up one of those bushing kits and give it a go. I'd rather run with the Q-jet, cause if it ain't broke....
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check out www.cliffshighperformance.com. Cliff is the best at tuning quadrajets. I recommend getting his book as well. He sells a throttle shaft bushing kit with the self aligning drill bit. He can also help you tune your quadrajet for your specific application.
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Well, I just ordered the kit from Cliff. His kit was a little cheaper than the other ones. Thanks guys, I'll let you know how it turns out.
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Buy cheap buy twice...Try to save pennies start spending dollars... What other analogies can I use??? By a new carb rebuilt ones in my experience no matter who or what has been done always have a few "glitches"
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Clifford has great products.
I never had a problem when I rebuilt my carb...
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Buy cheap buy twice...Try to save pennies start spending dollars... What other analogies can I use??? By a new carb rebuilt ones in my experience no matter who or what has been done always have a few "glitches"
I was thinking the same thing when I bought the new edelbrock, and it's been nothing but trouble. Either way, the parts are in the mail so we'll see how it goes.
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Someone on here when I was havin problems with my quad suggested SMI Carburetor? I never used them I just did myself and it all came out good.
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I got the bushing kit and installed them last night. Drilling the plate and installing the bushings was easy. Snapping the heads off of the little screws made it a little more involved than it needed to be, but overall a pretty simple repair. The tolerances feel good now, and it no longer has a vacuum leak there. It still runs really rich and smells like pure gas at the exhaust, and I haven't been able to adjust that out of it by turning the mixture screws. It still has a pretty good whistle to it, but if you put a hand over the front like you were going to close the choke it muffles the sound, so it's not an external vacuum leak from a hose, etc. Does that sound like normal air flow or is there something else wrong there? Like I said I can't get it to lean out and I have no confidence in the rest of the rebuild.
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Carbs can have a natural whistle without the air filter. A stock ford carb and my edel both do, but not much.
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Yeah the whistle isn't bad with the air cleaner on it, and I sprayed around and couldn't detect a vacuum leak. So, from there I took the carb off and seperated the newly rebuilt top end off from the throttle body plate that I just put new bushings in. You could see pools of gas in the intake. Then I took the old dirty portion of one of my other carbs and put it on the good throttle body plate and hooked it all back up. It fired right up and ran good. It doesn't stink like gas, and it doesn't sound like its drowning. I took it for a spin and it's making good power. So, the nasty old spare carb runs better than the one I just had rebuilt. >:( I am going to order up a rebuild kit for the one I just put on, and rebuild it myself.
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Well, the quadrajet rebuilding is going to be a winter project. I am going to buy the book that Cliff sells and study up before I try it. I want to get the truck up and running properly before swapping in the 700r4, and impatience is getting the best of me. I can use the q-jet on a different rig when I get that far.
Buy cheap buy twice...Try to save pennies start spending dollars... What other analogies can I use??? By a new carb rebuilt ones in my experience no matter who or what has been done always have a few "glitches"
You told me so :-\ The new Holley should be here in a day or two.
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you're still going to have to re-jet that Holly. I doubt it will be set up anywhere near where your engine will need it to be. Any carb you use will need to be propperly calibrated. A propperly tuned quadrajet will outperform a Holly any day, and get better mileage too. Good Luck.
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It's all being set up and tuned by the guy that's rebuilding my 700r4 right now, and he is going to dial all that in to go with my motor. I wouldn't have expected great performance right out of the box. Like I said, I'm not throwing the quadrajet in the scrap pile, but until I have more time to learn how to properly set one up, its going on the shelf. Thanks for the link to Cliff's. The bushing kit worked perfectly and I look forward to getting his book.