Are they black when you pull the plugs? Do they smell like gas? They may be fouling because you are running too rich.

 

Describe "burned up" - ground strap burned away??, center electrode burned away??, porcelain melted?? What color are the plugs??

What are your current ignition timing #'s??

What kind of plug wires are you using??

 

Spark plugs burning

Yes sure they smell like loads of gasoline and are black. Can I clean them? Or should I get a new pair?

 

You can clean them with a wire brush. Get most of the black carbon off and then use 220 grit sandpaper to clean the area where the spark happens. Finish by blowing the loose material away with compressed air.

Are all of your plugs black or just a couple? If they are all black then you are probably running too rich and need adjustments to your carb. If only a couple are black it may be other problems.

 

Timing numbers

The timing on my cam and crank are set to zero and the Distributor i'm not sure. It starts on a dime though when I got good plugs lol.
Thanks
jd

 

All plugs are wet fouled

Yes all of the spark plugs are black with gas. Since you mentioned to rich,
I'm almost certain it could be the Carb. It's a double pumper. I had one before on a trans am and it bogged the crap out of it. Can I run a higher voltage coil to solve problem? The car doesn't blow smoke or bog down.
Thanks,
JD

 

plugs

What heat range plugs are you using? Instead of buying plugs for a 93, try A/C's for a 70 LT-1 370 hp camaro. Might be closer to what you need.

 

Geez, get the fuel pressure under control. No modern 4-bbl carburetor needs more than 5 psi fuel pressure. More pressure than that will blow fuel past the needle and seat right into the intake manifold.

 

If your plugs are gas fouling, it doesn't matter which plugs you use, if even if your ignition is nuclear fission powered, it's still gonna foul them. Like Techinspector said, gotta get your carb and fuel pressure sorted out. I seriously doubt your timing is helping either. With that cam, you probably gonna want about 12° to 14° of initial timing. I'd definitely do that next, then bead blast or replace your plugs, and see what's up with the carb/fuel pressure.

 

At this point, I would get it started and be looking down the carb and see if fuel is driping from the boosters (float level high) if not, I would check the power valve or check ball missing from the accelerator pumps.

I can give you an old troublshooting card from holley to give you some ideas
to check out. You'll have to enlarge it a bit~! Hope it helps.

 

Fixed the spark plug problem

It was the fuel pressure. There was so much pressure that the gas was leaking into the intake after the car was off. Plugs were fine after about 2hrs of sitting. Car started right up fine after I fixed the pressure problem.

Also about the heads GenII on GENI, it can be done. The setup that I have is a 4-bolt 350 out of a 77 chevy truck, converted to a newer roller style sbc. I welded certain water ports closed and redrilled them to the proper size for the GENI gasket style. If you do not do this, then water will drop directly into the lifter alley. I have 1.6 rockers for the LT1 heads and higher poundage springs. The heads are ported all the way. and gasket matched. Gasket is regular felpro standard size. I have a holley contender intake, and 10:1 Hyp-pistons. I got very good results! I got great torque! I punched the gas last week on Tuesday and CRACKED my tranny housing LOL.

If you guys are interested I can give you more details on the build.

Also for the 1985 Chevy 350, Honing is a very fast procedure and is very very easy, and not to mention ALOT CHEAPER then machine shop.

Details on my build:

Heads $40 from craigslist
Porting did myself
Intake $30 craigslist
Rockers new $60 craigslist
Valve covers $10 junk yard
Pistons and piston rings new and gasket kit for 350 sbc $156.23 ebay
Carburetur $100 from craigslist
Honing tool and piston compressor tool ~ $23
Cam ZZ4 $50 craigslist
Roller lifters and push rods about $65 ebay

Total around $550 machine shop over $2.2K - $3k because of custom welding and misc bull! LMAO!

 

No solids

I think the tranny just had it coming lol! It cracked near the tail. I think car was a dust collector until I got a hold of it. Probably sized up while I punched it and cracked not sure. I got a new tranny b&m specs and can burn tire with gas not pressed down far at all. I did a dyno last week and Torque was 463.
I have v belts, alternator, pwr stering, ac pump, fan clutch. I plan to gain at least 15hp more taking all this to electric.

 

How did you figure it was the fuel pressure and what did you do to fix it?
Why was it so high?

 

Solution

I figured it out by taking air cleaner off first and looking into carb when someone shut off the car for me. The carb was just literally dropping the a little bit of gas for about 15sec after car was turned off.

I hinted carb when I had pulled out a spark plug and smelled gas on them. Reason I pulled spark plug was because I had no start. I also noticed that If I kept cranking engine it would start in long run but hesitated when I accelerated.

I bought a fuel pressure regulator at autozone and walla! I also took time to tune carb while I was at it.

 

flooding

Good deal, glad to hear you got her fixed. I don't know how long this has been going on but, might want to think about changing the oil. Raw gas dripping down the intake finds it's way into the oil pan, contaminating the oil.

I've heard a lot about "vacuum controlled fuel pressure regulators" That reduce pressure at idle (high vacuum) and cruise and increase pressure under load and WOT (low vacuum) mostly from guy's with TBI and port injection. Not sure about carbs though. I'm curios about what you got as I'm looking to upgrade my fuel pump to electric from manual to my 600 CFM but don't want to overwhelm it with too much pressure. Can you tell me what kind AZ sells and the cost?

Thanks! SQZBOX

ps; DAM TECHINSPECTOR IS GOOD, AIN'T HE? Sometimes I think he has a crystal ball or something.

 

Fuel Pump

Yeah this guy can nail it right on the spot no questions asked!! Thanks Mr. TECH! The pump at autozone costs $39.99. Brand is by Mr. Gasket. Small in size and not bulky. It even has it's own little gas filter with it but I still adapted my own filter.

Thanks,
JD

 

I figured it out by taking air cleaner off first and looking into carb when someone shut off the car for me. The carb was just literally dropping the a little bit of gas for about 15sec after car was turned off.

I hinted carb when I had pulled out a spark plug and smelled gas on them. Reason I pulled spark plug was because I had no start. I also noticed that If I kept cranking engine it would start in long run but hesitated when I accelerated.

I bought a fuel pressure regulator at autozone and walla! I also took time to tune carb while I was at it.

I know this thread is old but i have the same problem. Only thing is i have a mechanical fuel pump. Is that what you have as well. I didnt think one would need a fuel pressure regulator with a mechanical fuel pump.

 

I know this thread is old but i have the same problem. Only thing is i have a mechanical fuel pump. Is that what you have as well. I didnt think one would need a fuel pressure regulator with a mechanical fuel pump.

Temporarily mount a 0-15 mechanical fuel pressure gauge on the grille-work of the cowl, directly in front of the windshield and monitor the pressure through the glass as you drive. Use copper tubing for a temporary, cheap install to plumb between the gauge and the carburetor inlet point.

 

Ill have to try that. Just wanted to say that this is just a aftermarket fuel pump. No performance brand or what have you. Also the engine is from a 76 Chevy 3/4 ton Pu. I installed it in my 83 Chevy Pu 1/2 ton. I wasn't to sure what to set the timing to. When i called for specs. I was told a 76 Pu engine was something like 8 degrees btdc then i was told a 83 was set at 10 or 12 degrees btdc. Depending if it was a California model. I'm from Texas so i set it at around 9 Degrees if that makes sense. Not sure if this is my problem. I read somewhere that the mechanical fuel pumps have a spring by the arm and that when it goes bad it will shoot up the fuel pressure.Also i purchased this truck form a guy that had it parked for 2 yrs. Already resealed the whole engine. It is basically a stock 350 engine with a rv cam and a quadrajet. Thank you all for your time.

 

I attached a fuel pressure gauge.When i start the engine. The gauge just bounces back and fourth.Looks like from 5 to 10. Would someone please help. Thanks.

 

I attached a fuel pressure gauge.When i start the engine. The gauge just bounces back and fourth.Looks like from 5 to 10. Would someone please help. Thanks.

You need to monitor the gauge while driving.

 

shouldn't i still have a steady pressure of around 5-7 psi at idle.

 

At idle it shows your pressure regulator is working. Really need to take it for a ride and monitor pressure at cruise and WOT. I'm guessing you have a 2 line fuel pump?

 

I don't have a regulator on it. Its a mechanical pump from the parts house.Didn't think i needed a regulator. Not hi performance. As for how many lines. I need to check it again tomorrow. Its 2 or 3. Its a 83 1/2 ton Pu.I didn't think these trucks came with regulators originally,correct. Thanks.

 

Sorry I thought you had one on there. I needed to read back to the first post I guess. It didn't come with a reg, though. Get back with results tomorrow ok?