Need some help

[vernsters]

Hey everyone I've lurked here for the past few months after getting my hands on a 68' quadrajet that I rebuilt for my 283. I'm having trouble with setting the idle mix. I've read that the initial setting is 4 turns out but to get a reasonable idle my screws are 1 1/2 turns out based on both best vacuum and rpm. After setting idle this way my eyes still burn after 5 min of idle in garage, rich right? I did have to replace the air restrictions in the air horn as they were absent and used the idle tubes off my junk California 2 bbl. Tubes were cut to .1 length and held in by green sleeve retainer goop, haven't moved after 1 month and 2k miles. Whats the actual size of of these restrictions? Do i need a spring on the accelerator pump check ball? Other relevant specs:

Carb Number 7028244 KA
Carb spec'ed to 66 327cu
67 main jets for my altitude at 6000 - 5000 (replaced the 69s)
45 early rods
AK secondarys
13" vac at idle
PP opens at 10"
can idle at 400 rpm for a min or two before stalling, set at 600
PCV valve is new (68' 350")
Idle screws are steel

204/214 cam installed straight up
20* initial 40* total at 3500 no vac
305" 601 heads at 9:1

[Cliff Ruggles]

Idle tubes from a junk 2bbl carburetor, held in by "green sleeve retainer goop"?  I'm a bit confused here, got any pics of what you installed and where they were installed at?.....Cliff

[vernsters]

The pick is pointing to my redneck fix. 

At first I diagnosed this carb using information I gleaned from your forum and found the true cause of my problem with the missing restrictions. The car is my main means of getting around and did what I could with what I had on hand. The tubes were idle pick-ups off a Rochester 2bbl. Permatex Sleeve Retainer was used because the tubes had only a slight compression fit, I didn't want them to fall out. I jury-rigged this because I couldn't find a seller for the actual restrictions.

[novadude]

You are pointing to idle air bleeds.  The size of the holes in these is not "fixed" and varies from carb to carb.  If the holes in the parts you pirated from the 2-bbl are much smaller than what you need to match the rest of the idle calibration (down channel restriction, idle tube, lower idle bleed), the idle will be rich.  If they are too large, the idle circuit is likely too lean.

Can you kill the engine by running in the idle screws?  How much of the transfer slot is exposed at your idle throttle plate setting?  Do you see fuel dripping from the boosters when you look down the carb at idle?

My suggestion would be to pull apart the carb, and document the sizes of all metering orfices.  Compare to a "recipe" in Cliff's book, and adjust accordingly.

[omaha]

the check ball does not use a spring. the air bleed look slightly large but not too much, however, these are very sensitive orifices and very minor change in size can make a difference.  I would think that 20 degrees of initial is a bit much even at 5000 ft altitude even the 40 degrees seems a bit much. The extra timing is telling me that the mixture is not right. You should be able to run at 15 and 35 total mechanical. Now what direction you need to go is a good application for an O2 gauge OR maybe can be determined with some basic tests. No 1: While the engine is idling, try removing a vacuum line (sometime 2 small ones). does the engine sound better or worse. if it sounds better that would mean that you are running rich and just the opposite if it sounds worse.  Cupping your hand over the choke housing could be another test to determine if you are running lean. same deal as the previous test. Make note of the vacuum readings and rpms while doing the testing, these are the best indicators of idle mixture quality.

[vernsters]

I need to get Cliffs book from the sounds of it, which I will do later today. I'm saving up for a quality A/F wideband but have to do my best with the simpler tests. To answer your questions:
I can kill it by bottoming out the mixture screws
The idle speed adjustment screw is only in 3/4 of a turn after touching to get 600 rpm
No fuel coming out of boosters at idle
Pinching PCV line causes engine to drop 200ish RPM
Cupping air horn doesn't do beans
Pulling plug off of other full manifold vac causes 50-100 rpm climb
At 15* she sounds crappy. At idle I can go to around 30* before she starts bucking.

[Cliff Ruggles]

Our book would be a good idea.  We also sell drive in airbleeds, down channel restrictions, and idle tubes, plus every other part you could possibly want to completely/correctly rebuild/recalibrate your Buick carb exactly for what you are doing.....Cliff