It seemed like @keith had found a potential issue with your ignition circuit when the key’s in the start position.
Have you checked if your spark plugs are firing when it won’t start? A timing light will tell you (if you don’t have one, get one, you’ll need it).
@keith - would using a remote start switch with the key in the ‘run’ position be one way to test your idea?
OP, have you checked if the carb pumps gas first thing, before trying to start it?
How long had the car say before you started it? A day? A week?
I believe this is a fuel problem and not an electrical one. Sooo…
If it was a day, I’d suggest the carburetor needs to have the choke checked to make sure it is closing before you crank the car…work the throttle by hand while looking down the carb throat… the choke plate should set and fuel should squirt into the forward barrels. If these is no fuel, the carb needs a rebuild as the float bowls are leaking fuel away.
If it sits a week and this happens… same thoughts, carb rebuild and possibly a fuel pump replacement. Easy to check… remove the fuel line from the carb, direct it into a quart container and crank the car fuel should pump right away.
If you are friends with John, I am guessing you are in your 40s which means carburetors were mostly extinct by the time you got a license to drive, let alone work on cars! So find a gray haired old mechanic at a tired old shop that actually knows how to rebuild and adjust a carburetor.
First thing in the morning, open the hood and remove the air cleaner cover. Work the throttle by hand its full movement in one motion and make sure two things happen; the choke snaps shut and the accelerator pump shoots a brief stream of gas into the carb throat.
I wish i was in my 40’s but I’ll leave it at that. I will try again tonight but i expect it will be a problem to start.
I am confident fuel is getting to the carb. I can smell it and i added a check valve. The check valve has been removed but it made no difference. I also had a clear piece of fuel line so i could see the fuel just before the carb. Whether the fuel is getting atomized properly is an unknown. However i have considered that the jets could be getting blocked or the floats getting stuck. Those are more invasive investigation that worry me. I am an engineer but an EE. I can’t risk removing the carb when i need to garage the car for the winter very soon.
You’re smelling gas? That could indicate a leak draining the carb. We’re not asking you to remove the carb, just the air cleaner cover and look into the carb (keys out of the ignition!) while you hold open the choke and move the throttle to activate the accelerator pump. You should see two small jets of gas squirt out.
If this is not practical for you to do, is there any teenager in the neighborhood that might want to learn about classic cars that could help you?
We’re trying to establish two things: do you have fuel into the engine, and do you have spark.
Your carb has an unpressurized bowl that should be filled w/ fuel all the time. The level is controlled by a float/valve gadget inside the carb, similar to how a toilet tank’s water level is controlled. The fuel level in the bowl is the most important factor for controlling the engine fuel/air mixture, when driving, at idle, and during starting. Since you report the engine runs good after it starts, that suggests the float/valve is set correctly and working. But the fuel level could still be low after the car sits, which would make it hard to start until enough cranking occurs to refill the bowl. When the engine is cranking, that also operates the fuel pump which eventually will refill the bowl. If the bowl is completely empty, it can take a minute or more of cranking to refill the bowl. The easiest way to verify the bowl isn’t empty is the advice above, make sure fuel squirts out the accel pump holes at the top of the carb while operating the throttle. The only way to verify the fuel bowl is filled to the correct level is to remove the fuel bowl cover and check visually. On my truck’s carb (different design than yours) it is maybe a 10 minute task to remove the air cleaner, pop the top (fuel bowl cover) off the carb, and inspect the fuel bowl.
No worries to wait on that until the car is inside the garage. Suggest however you may be walking on eggshells there; for example say you remove the carb and can’t get it back on & configured so the engine will start. If a winter storm is approaching, just ask a couple of friends/neighbors to help push the car into the garage.
There’s a problem with the accelerator pump.
Tester
Which jets should i see fuel coming from when i perform this manual test?
I think it would be the two on the left side of the photo, those are the primaries.
Here’s a question for folks here that know Edelbrocks - why is there a flapper over the secondaries?
Agreed
I got it started after 3 cranks and let it run for a minute. Turned it off. Now it wont start again.
On my truck’s carb the fuel pump outlet holes are near the top of the venturi assembly, those round circle-shaped gadgets. One hole on each. If gasoline is coming out of those holes when operating the throttle, it should be pretty obvious. I suspect you’ve discovered an important problem. Could be the accel pump, or could be the fuel bowl is empty.
If it won’t start immediately after running for three minutes, seems unlikely the fuel bowl is empty.
btw, I note some terminology confusion, could make it difficult when speaking to your shop. “jets” are the small holes at the bottom of the fuel bowl. No idea why they are called “jets” as they have nothing to do w/jet engines. But that’s what mechanics call them. The fuel pump outlets are not commonly referred to as “jets”.
@quig_at_home_187298
I’m not convinced it’s the accelerator pump (yet). That’s because you say the car runs fine once it starts, and it restarts fine shortly after you shut it off. If you had a faulty accelerator pump, you’d also get hesitation when stepping on the gas while it’s running.
Question:
In the above post, where you state that you didn’t see any fuel (squirt out of a port in the middle of the carb air opening), was that after the car sat for a while, or immediately after you shut it off.
If it was after the car sat for a while, and if you do see a squirt when doing this test right after you shut it down, it may be your fuel bowl has an internal leak. It wouldn’t be the first.
Here’s a video showing what to look for when checking for healthy accelerator pump operation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xm94ED4sCfU
I watched the video and that is NOT happening in my car. I had the car running 15min ago. I shut it down. Now i can get it started again. I looked into the carb while manually adjusting the throttle and there is nothing happening. I have a mechanical pump so i assume it doesn’t matter that the ignition is in the OFF position.
The car doesn’t leak and fluids. Never a wet spot under the car.
If the fuel bowl leaked out, you’d never see it, as it would leak into the cylinders.
However, with the new info in your last post:
That does point to a faulty accelerator pump.
It is like a Quadrajet carb. It is an air valve that opens with pressure drop. As the primaries reach their flow limit, the pressure drop opens the air valve. It takes the place of the vacuum diaphram on a Holley.
Is 1801S the edelbrock p/n?
Yes it is.
