My car used to run fine.. I did this, now it don't start!

[lsixt]

Let me start by saying I'm only a wrench turner, so don't go technical on me.

I have a 1974, with dual 40 DCOE's. Car ran fine until....

I tried to "adjust" the carburators. There appear to be only TWO adjustments on the carbs (that you can adjust with a screwdriver - I'm not talking about chokes or any other "internals").... The 40's are the old style, not 151's. Looks like just the idle adjustment and then the air mixture are really the only two adjustment you can make.

I had the thing running rough at idle, so I was mucking with the air/fuel adjustments, and the idle adjustments.

Somewhere along the line, I lost power alltogether, and now I can't even start the car.

Q. The idle adjustments at this point are fully out... meaning they are not making any impact on the idle settings. That screw only appears to move the throttle idle up or down... It doesn't do anything else - does it?

Q. I've tried settting the air/fuel screw to 1/2, 3/4, 1, 1.5, and 2 turns (each) cylinder... and no matter what I can't get the car to start.

Timing is "shotgunned"... meaning it's not right on, but close enough to fire the plugs (this I verified)...

How easy / hard is it to get the carbs so wacky that they would cause me to have a hard time starting the car?

Once in a while the thing will fire for about three or four revolutions, but if I try to give it any gas she stalls, same if I don't give it any gas.

BTW - I'm using a 3.0 mech fuel pump, not the stock 02.

Any suggestions at this point would be welcomed. I've recharged my battery about 5 times already.....

Thanks,

Len

[KFunk]

No matter how much you mess with those screws, it should start if you give it gas. It might not idle on its own, but it should go if you give it some gas.

It sounds to me like the ignition timing is too far out of whack. Sure it'll spark, but is it sparking at the right time to get it started? I'd rotate the distributor back and forth and keep trying it again till it starts to go, then adjust the timing later.

If you advance the timing too far, when it fires it will kick back against the starter and instantly kill the engine. Thats when you know to go back the other direction to retard it.

When you describe it dying when you give it gas, that sounds like the mechanical advance of the distributor is kicking in way too early and throwing things out of whack, thus killing the engine. i.e., your ignition timing is too far advanced, so back it off, and allow the timing advance to use its full range.

[ray_]

Check and be sure the plugs are not gas fouled by now, too.

Ray

[PeteinMissionViejo]

Along the lines of fouled plugs as Ray mentioned - if they are fouled take them out and clean and dry and turn the car over with them out and not giving any gas. I went through a period with side draft Webers where I carried extra plugs for when I flooded. Turning over without plugs to clear and putting in a fresh clean set was what it took to get started.

Pete

[ingraham]

(nt)

[lsixt]

Don't know if anyone still following this... but....

Changed out plugs, cap, rotor (had to wait for parts to come in)... adjusted the timing a bit and poof - she started... problem solved...

and oh, BTW, I was almost out of gas too

Thanks all!

Len