Hi folks!
I hope you folks can help me - I have a stock '49 3100 with a 216 engine.
It has been running very rough and getting worse lately. I was driving it 5
miles one way to work and then to our surprise middle Tennessee tuned into
Indiana with snow coming daily and not melting. There wasn't much depth to
the snow but the fact that it hung around is pretty impressive to us.
I got old Jake running today but the idle is awful and under mild
acceleration or mild cruising there is a miss that wasn't around much a few
weeks ago.
Today I set the timing and the dwell/points (about .016" right? what would
that translate to in dwell?) and fiddled with the carb.
I cleaned out the fuel filter and tried several settings on the mixture
screw. It seemed to run best almost backed all the way out.
The carb is a Carter and I have a spare that came from a '50 216 that is a
Zenith. Are these carbs interchangeable or is one wrong and one right?
The other thing that caught my attention is a recollection of several folks
mentioning postive grounds on the batteries. So is my negative post
supposed to go to the frame or the starter? Right now it goes to the frame.
A long time ago someone told me that they chased an elusive poor idle
problem to a reversed coil (wrong side + going to the points). I know alot
of British cars are positive earth. Also my '72 Beetle would run with the
cables in either position though I'm thinking it wouldn't charge if the
leads were reversed.
I replaced the spark plugs several weeks ago (AC Delco) and replaced the
ignition wires many weeks ago (a very cheap set).
I did not set the plugs as I didn't have my gapper then but it did seem to
run pretty good then - but it has always idled a little rough.
Every once in a while it will sneeze through the carb.
I have not pulled the carb down or drained the bowl (no easy way without
turning the carb over or the truck...).
I have a second late model filter in line between the pump and the carb.
I'll replace that soon.
Have not done a compression test.
It's hard to start lately but wasn't before. It alternately seems flooded
and starved for gas - there isn't a pattern that I've noticed.
I want to get this fixd as now my starter sounds sick (excess effort on
it's part I guess) and I don't want to wear that out too.
Hope you all got great toys for Christmas. My family enjoyed our time
together and we ate very good...
CHRIS in Tennessee
scmills@tntech.edu
ICQ: 5944649
'78 Westy (maybe some CIS injection,Corvair, turbos --- hmmmm...)
'65 Beetle (Type IV powered)
'99 CR-V 5 speed
'49 Chevy 3100 Pickup
'81 Honda CB900C
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