Jim, GREAT NEWS! Congatulations. Even baby steps are wonderful things.
My 73 Saga has some tips regarding the TQ but as I remember it, my carb guy
told me to take the top off, and hold it upside down in my hand and set the
top of the float (actually bottom) to be 1 INCH above the upside down carb
top. He said to forget what the manual said, anything else will allow the
carb to overflow when the carb heatsoaks and flood the engine.
If you have everything screwed down, somewhere you either have a pretty good
vacuum leak or the float is stuck open and gas is somehow being drawn into
the manifold.
Fwiw, I wouldn't put much effort into a TQ. I think they are crappy carbs.
I'd bite the bullet and get a carter spreadbore.
BTW, are you coming to Carlisle in July?
KerryP
Patch panels fabricated
Pinkertonk@xxxxxxxxx
dte.net/57imperial
Imperials -- 50 Limo, 57 roadster, 61's, 62, 68 Convert, 73, a 66 300 and a
bunch of lesser marques
----- Original Message -----
From: J. Stacey <jstacey@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Imperial Mailing List <mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, June 01, 2003 9:31 AM
Subject: IML: '73 resto' project - TQ carb question
> All,
>
> For those who don't care about the background to my request, I've put that
> part at the end of this note.
>
> I am doing a shade-tree, ground-up restoration of a '73 4drht. I've now
got
> to the point where the completely overhauled 440 was first started up this
> weekend (Friday).
>
> I also put a kit in the Carter ThermoQuad carburetor myself. The engine
> finally started after several failed attempts, (too embarassing to say
what
> things were preventing it from starting at first!). All in all,
everything
> is quite satisfactory, and it is a real pleasure to hear her run after all
> these years, but there is still one small problem....
>
> The engine continues to run at about 800 - 900 rpm even with the primary
> throttle plates COMPLETELY closed and the idel mixture screws turned
> COMPLETEY in against the stops!!! I am wondering if this could be caused
by
> the float level being too high? I have conflicting specs between the
> instructions that came with the carb kit and the FSM. I went by the kit
> instructions and set the float level at 1.0 inch (height of the bottom of
> the float above the inverted bowl cover w/gasket). After I had the thing
> assembled, I noticed the FSM says 1 1/16 inch, which would be a LOWER
level
> of gas in the bowl.
>
> Are there any TQ experts out there that could comment on this? I don't
> really want to take the carb apart again, but obviously I will if I have
to.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jim Stacey
> '73 4drht slowly going back together
> Near Toronto
>
>
> BRIEF BACKGROUND
>
> I started this in the early '80's at which time I gutted the interior
> (except dash), removed all the front-end sheetmetal, etc. and stored all
the
> parts in the attic of my garage. What was left of the car in tact - body,
> doors, glass, subframe, engine & tranny - was stored in various friends
> garages, delapidated sheds, etc, over the years until the fall of 2001
when
> the old girl finally had to come home at which point I could not ignore
her
> any longer.
>
> I had the engine (which turned out to be a '68 high performance 440)
totally
> rebuilt professionally with special cam and pistons. I removed and
totlaly
> disassembled the stub frame, front suspension & brakes, steering, rear
> springs, axle and brakes and sandblasted and painted all these components.
> I removed all the dash, wiring harness, heater & A/C, steering column,
> parking brake, etc., from the interior - all that is left is the headliner
> at this point.
>
> I have re-painted all inside the cowl and air plenums, the firewall, and
the
> floor (inside & outside with undercoating on the outside as well), back to
> about the rear of the transmission. (Only went that far back for now to
> accomodate installation of the engine & tranny).
>
> I now have the stub frame, front suspension, rad yoke, radiator, engine,
> tranny and first part of exhaust back together - all that is required to
> start the engine.
>
> I picked up some used rear quarter panels, and a bunch of other parts from
> Kerry P. in Feb '02. My son is good a MIG welding, so after I finish
> painting and undercoating the underneath side of the floor pan and trunk,
I
> will start on putting in the new quarter panels. After that I'm going to
> study Kerry's latest 300 painting saga and start on the body work and
> priming. Don't think I'll ever have the nerve to try painting the car
> myself.
>
> I think MAYBE by the end of next summer I might just have her driveable.
My
> goal is to take her to Carlisle in July '05.
>
> Thanks for taking the time to read my story.
>
>
>
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