Electric vs Manual Choke

[enaberif]

Now this isn't about your everyday which is better than the other but more of a I need a honest opinion on what I'm thinking.

With where I live in the winter time it can be a balmy -15* Celsius and other days it can be a tropical +13* in the middle of winter.

Now I know with the way a electric choke works is that you set it then the timer slowly opens up the choke plate to allow the truck to warm up so it won't flood or choke itself off. Now here is my dilemma.

Say I set the electric choke to run perfectly when its -5* Celsius but the next week its going to be +12* Celsius. I know that between spring and winter most people will adjust their choke to lean or richen the mixture when its cold. But when I have such wild temp changes would it better for me to go manual choke?

Or when I have it set for really cold temperatures will it behave ok for those days when it warms up to +13* Celsius? My other thought is that with a manual choke the only thing that I would have to adjust if anything at all is the fast idle.

Thoughts?

[Don5]

Well I used to drive my truck every day for 10 years. I have the divorced style choke with the metal coil spring and rod hooked up to a Edelbrock Performer intake. I have a Q-jet carb also. Now I live in western WV along the Ohio river. It gets cold but not like 25 degrees below zero. My truck has set out every day of it's life also until lately when it made it in the garage for the tear down and rebuild. I never had any problem with the choke. I never adjusted it either. I always started it and stayed with it until the fast idle kicked in. After a while I would tap the gas pedal and it would idle just fine. I never moved the truck until the thermostat opened. The heater would be blowing hot air also. I never had any issues at all with the manual choke in cold weather.

[enaberif]

Well I wouldn't worry about the choke to much except for like I said the temps can swing so wildly in the winter time that using a electric choke in my mind would be counter intuitive because you adjust an electric choke for the temperatures at hand so it will lean out or richen the mixture.

But with a manual choke I no longer have to worry about leaning or enrichening the mixture as I do that.

[werewolfx13]

I've had thermal, electric, and manual chokes. Never, not once, adjusted the former two once they were set up for the first time, the manual, required constant adjustment on the carb, as the cable would be too stiff to move easily when REALLY cold, and the outer jacket would slip in the bracket. Winters here vary from -15*F to +40*F...

[bd]

Here's a cracker barrel opinion.  Assuming you are using a QJ, the electric choke should work fine as long as you power it through an oil pressure switch off of switched ignition.  Initially, index the choke state using the factory tab and notch.  Deviate from the factory setting only if necessary.  But the choke by itself will not compensate for truly frigid air.  In such cold climates you will also need a properly plumbed and functioning TAC and exhaust heat riser to control throttle plate icing and promote atomization.  A block heater is also a plus.  At -20° or lower I would consider a winter fuel heater.

[VileZambonie]

Agreed, They put all of the EFE components on these trucks originally to help complete the warm up cycle and reduce emissions in the process. Now starting your truck with the manual choke stuck on will generally run the engine too rich too long and can result in excessive engine wear. The automatic choke is the way to go or even better, find a TBI system.

[enaberif]

Yes but will the choke compensate for those days when its -20 or when its +20. My understanding was you HAD to adjust the choke based off temperatures to keep from running to lean or too rich when the weather changes.

[VileZambonie]

If you need the choke on time to be increased you simply rotate the housing. BTW where do you live? I think for me I would move! 

[enaberif]

I wish I could move and would if I honestly could. But this is the weather I get when you live in Calgary Alberta home of the chinooks.

[bd]

Yes but will the choke compensate for those days when its -20 or when its +20. My understanding was you HAD to adjust the choke based off temperatures to keep from running to lean or too rich when the weather changes.

That's where the other players come in (TAC, heat riser, block heater).  You should not need to deviate much from the factory choke setting, if at all, as long as the other components of the "complete system" are present and functioning.  A block heater will moderate temperature extremes of the oil and coolant, providing quicker warm ups.  As the engine runs during the initial minutes of operation, the exhaust manifold will quickly heat.  Then, while the choke gradually opens, heat produced by the exhaust will warm the incoming air (TAC) and the intake manifold floor (heat riser).  The rich mixture required for initial cold start up and running will transition to a leaner mixture demand as the choke relaxes, in time with the enhanced atomization resulting from the heated air/fuel charge.  As the TAC and heat riser continue to open, hot oil splash against the underside of the intake will maintain atomization of the fuel.  The colder it is, the more gradual the transition between the various components of the 'system.'  Take care not to short-change yourself by eliminating or defeating pieces of the system and you should be okay.  A more drastic approach begs consideration if the fuel is exceedingly cold, arbitrarily, <-20°.  Under conditions that severe, I would seriously consider a heating blanket for the fuel tank or in-line heater similar to those used on diesel rigs - JMHO.

... this is the weather I get when you live in Calgary Alberta home of the chinooks.

The fish can have it!   

[enaberif]

Hrm so I need to find a air cleaner with a functioning tac door and a heater hose which is the next to impossible thing to find around here. Also another reason I'm thinking of doing manual choke.

PS.. Chinook is a type of weather front not fish

[bd]

See?  That's the result of being a lowlander.  I totally forgot about that meaning of the word.  It's a relatively moist warm weather front isn't it, that results from cool air quickly dropping to lower elevation where the Rockies greet the plains in the greater Northwest?

I rather enjoy the "warmer" weather of the lower 48 - fish aside. 

[Kren420]

Fun Fact: Chinook means "snow eater" in Inuit.

[Stewart G Griffin]

My opinion is that you're on the right track with the manual choke idea (especially if all the factory EFE components are not there anymore.)

But the problem is finding a cable that works well without binding.   Most of the manual choke kits leave a lot to be desired in this area.

[Militiaman55]

I'm not sure the make of my manual choke gear (cable & bracket), but it works very well.  It never sticks and I can put it exactly where I want.  I can get some pics if you'd like.

Rob