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Just scored a Quadrajet

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Century, Jan 28, 2011.

  1. Century
    Joined: May 28, 2009
    Posts: 177

    Century
    Member

    I need a new carb for my 322 nailhead. A friend of my had this in storage. He said it was off a 327. I decoded the numbers and found that it was from an 81 Chev.

    What are thing chances that this thing will work without a rebuild? Where can I buy an adapter/spacer for my Buick manifold?

    Btw, This is my first post from the iPhone app... very convenient.

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  2. KoolKat-57
    Joined: Feb 22, 2010
    Posts: 3,073

    KoolKat-57
    Member
    from Dublin, OH

    I wouldn't use it, late model Q-jets can be a problem especially if it has been sitting for a while. Find yourself a Edelbrock 500 cfm 4 barrel. Bolt it on and go have fun!
     
  3. 62nova
    Joined: Jul 13, 2008
    Posts: 348

    62nova
    Member

    You'll never know untill you try it. Two problem areas are bad accelerater pump seal and leaking well plugs. Free is good.
     
  4. harrington
    Joined: Jul 22, 2009
    Posts: 421

    harrington
    Member
    from Indiana

    Rebuild it and run it. I love quadrajets.
     

  5. Deep
    Joined: Oct 29, 2010
    Posts: 11

    Deep
    Member

    Another problem when using this carb on your '56 Buick is that the original Buick manifold flange is the early "square" type and most if not all available adaptors won't bolt up to this manifold. You may be able to modify an adaptor for this Qudrajet unique throttle base to fit your original manifold?
     
  6. merf
    Joined: Jul 24, 2008
    Posts: 105

    merf
    Member
    from new joisey

    It's off of a Chevy truck,you should knock out the plugs over the mixture screws before you install it so you can adjust it on the motor.
     
  7. Johnny1290
    Joined: Apr 20, 2006
    Posts: 2,834

    Johnny1290
    Member

    I'd look for a way to bolt the thing on first off before doing anyhthing with the carb.

    *if* you find one, then you can always spray some carb cleaner on the sucker and give it a try.

    odds are it looks gross as shit inside though like someone puked in there.

    it looks dirty I don't see any particular reason why it *would * work. I just cleaned up 3 dirty old holleys I got free and you wouln't believe the crap inside them.

    rebuild kit will be $25 at least and an adaptor pshew $25-50 plus total hassle and who knows the cfm of that thing...

    ebay it, and buy a good used edelbrock 500 and save yourself the trouble

    that said I like qjets a lot, but then it might have been put on a shelf because someone else couldn't get it to work, either.
     
  8. Century
    Joined: May 28, 2009
    Posts: 177

    Century
    Member

    Wouldn't I need an adapter for an Edelbrock?

    I know the 1406 600cfm elec. choke one I was looking at does.
     
  9. carcrazyjohn
    Joined: Apr 16, 2008
    Posts: 4,843

    carcrazyjohn
    Member
    from trevose pa

    ebay pics 336.jpg Spreadbore to squarebore ,15.00 + shipping need your zip if interested pm me ...........
     
  10. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,861

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

     
  11. FoMoCoPower
    Joined: Feb 2, 2007
    Posts: 2,490

    FoMoCoPower
    Member

    An emissions era quadrasuck is a score?
     
  12. carcrazyjohn
    Joined: Apr 16, 2008
    Posts: 4,843

    carcrazyjohn
    Member
    from trevose pa

    Any carb is score There becoming obsolete.
     
  13. Ratroddude
    Joined: May 15, 2009
    Posts: 1,027

    Ratroddude
    BANNED

    make sure the throttle plate has no slack in the linkage , if it moves back and forth in the aluminum plate , time to trash that baby , it'll suck air and wont run fer shit...., on the other hand , the Quadrajet is one of the best performing , maintenence free street carbs thats out there , I would run over a field full of 600 cfm Holleys to get to a rebuildable q-jet.....:D
     
  14. onedge
    Joined: May 25, 2006
    Posts: 999

    onedge
    Member

    and the beat goes on.
     
  15. The Shocker
    Joined: Dec 30, 2004
    Posts: 3,538

    The Shocker
    Member

    Take that POS to Oreiley's as a core for an older QJet.I have done it a few times to get an older one.Tell them you need a rebuilt one for a 68 or so Chevy pickup and use that one as the core.I dont know where they are getting the older ones to rebuild but they are .The older one will have the mixture screws for the primaries .Be sure to JB weld the plugs on the bottom as they are prone to leaking .As said by other the emissions ones are no good for a hotrod .Next to a Holley i actually like them and they are easy to fix or rebuild on the side of the road, atleast they are to me ...
     
  16. 61falcon
    Joined: Jan 1, 2009
    Posts: 772

    61falcon
    Member

    rebuild it, they are easy carbs and the kit is cheap. if it doesnt work, you wont have but a few bucks invested and gained some valuable experience. but i think it will work and you should have at it.
     
  17. as long as its not a computer controlled one it will be fine.. if it has sat for any length of time then it needs a rebuild.. if you haven't rebuilt one, send it to someone who has.. quadrajets are great carbs for performance and economy. but the worst thing about them is the people working on them.. that and the throttle shafts can wear out too.. and get rid of the hoses with screws in em as vacuum caps.. get real ones.. q-jets are very dependant on vacuum signal to work the best..
     
  18. hot rust
    Joined: Sep 18, 2007
    Posts: 779

    hot rust
    Member

    actually in my opinion, this is one of the better q jets to rebuild, its a non electric control unlike what someone else posted, these carbs have the electric choke instead of the manual and the fact it isnt another 10-15 years older the carb itself is probably in better shape. the only drawback to them is the throttle linkage hook up as it has the one that requires the linkage with the eye on it instead of a hole to attach the linkage. and as far as the vacuum rear butterfly pull off, i just remove it and dont use it. just my .002
     
  19. 3onthetree
    Joined: Feb 25, 2008
    Posts: 161

    3onthetree
    Member

    Putting that carb on and hoping it will run well is like rolling dice or flipping a coin. Maybe it will, maybe it won't. If you do decide to run it, it would be worth your time, and would save some headaches later on, to just rebuild it now since it's already off the vehicle.
     
  20. caseyscustoms
    Joined: May 15, 2005
    Posts: 1,031

    caseyscustoms
    BANNED
    from st.joe, MO


    kinda thinking that myself. you can get those in that condition at any swap meet for 10 bucks.....
     
  21. easy!? maybe compared to umm.. performing a triple bypass heart surgery.
     
  22. The Shocker
    Joined: Dec 30, 2004
    Posts: 3,538

    The Shocker
    Member

    Actually they are pretty easy to rebuild IMO .I have done a few in the past.The only thing that is kinda tricky (until you get the hang of it ) is putting the top back on while holding the acc. pump in place ,and lining up the air bleeds.I have heard from lots of people that its hard to get one to run right after a rebuld kit ,but the ones i did ran great once adjusted properly :)...
     
  23. Rudebaker
    Joined: Sep 14, 2007
    Posts: 1,598

    Rudebaker
    Member
    from Illinois

    That is an M4ME, you done good, it is one of the best Q-Jet models for performance use. DO NOT trade it for an older one but if you decide to listen to the "QuadraJunk, QuadraBog, QuadraSuck" crowd and get rid of the "piece of junk" send me a PM.
     
  24. I love Q Jets too; small primaries for good milage, big secondaries for acceleration. I agree they are pretty complicated, though. I never tried to rebuild one myself; I have a few, maybe the time is now?
     
  25. 61falcon
    Joined: Jan 1, 2009
    Posts: 772

    61falcon
    Member

    they arent complicated, you will be suprised how easy they are. and there are plenty of books available to help.
     
  26. Johnny1290
    Joined: Apr 20, 2006
    Posts: 2,834

    Johnny1290
    Member

    I've rebuilt a few, they actually worked, when I didn't break a post for the float , anyway! :D

    More complicated than a holley but what isn't

    I actually just bought a book on how to rebuild them, an SA book from JEGS, lotta pics, good stuff
     
  27. The Shocker
    Joined: Dec 30, 2004
    Posts: 3,538

    The Shocker
    Member

    Not to argue with you ,but what makes this one a performance Qjet ?I like Qjets for a street carb and although i know that lots of people have and still do use them for the strip ,i'd go with a Holley or Demon for balls to the wall applications for the ease of adjustability alone .Im guessing with the guy wanting to put it on a Nailhead he is not after every tenth he can get in the 1/4 ,but more for trouble free reliabilty and gas mileage ,which a good working Qjet with its spread bore design has .The reason i suggested to trade it in on an older one is im guessing he has never been inside a Qjet and the older one is alot easier for the beginer to work on and adjust IMO ...
     
  28. weldtoride
    Joined: Jun 14, 2008
    Posts: 260

    weldtoride
    Member

    I mean no disrespect here: If you can bolt it on, and if your engine does start, ask yourself: do you want to bet your car that the needle won't eventually stick, and/or the float won't get heavy and sink, and/or that all the seals and gaskets will work after the 2011 version of gasoline has its way with 30-year old materials never designed with modern fuel additives in mind? Having been around the block more than once, I will attest that carb fires in the driveway are a nuisance, on the road they are exciting, and in a garage attached to the house they are absolutely thrilling.
    Rebuild it before it burns you.
     
    Last edited: Jan 28, 2011
  29. Henry VIII
    Joined: Mar 30, 2009
    Posts: 272

    Henry VIII
    Member
    from Tulsa OK

    Carburetors of that era used as original equipment on new cars had small jets to lean the air/fuel mixture and help meet emissions requirements. After a few hundred miles the gasoline residue build up in the carb made the mixture to lean out even further and caused hesitation when starting from a stop. If your car hesitates you can cure that with slightly larger main metering jets and corresponding needle valves, if you can find them.
    If it was me I'd rebuild it and give it a try. The jets may have already been changed.
     
  30. Retro Jim
    Joined: May 27, 2007
    Posts: 3,854

    Retro Jim
    Member

    When I was in my teens with my first Chev with a 283 and 3 speed on the floor . I got a Q-jet intake and carb . I used a couple cans of carb cleaner and repainted the intake orange . Got it all done and put onto the car . It started up after a couple turn overs to get the gas to the carb . I really loved my Q-Jet . There were a couple different sizes and I had the big one off the BBC engines which were like a 750 , 780 cfm . Well what was so great about them is they were easy on gas on the primary but when you laid into it , boy did that little 283 jump up and run like hell !

    Get the carb rebuilt . They are great carbs and have those huge secondaries to boot !
    Now if you have never rebuilt a Q-Jet maybe find someone that has . They really aren't too bad but can be confusing . I always had good luck with mine for many years and even used them in drag racing . Also you will get that bog when the secondaries open . Once you get the carb rebuilt , there is a kit that you can get that will take the hesitation out when you open up the secondaries .
    I am not a big fan of the adapter but I think you should get an old Q-Jet intake to match . They really aren't hard to come by and they are usually as cheap as the adapter plate .

    Have fun with the Q-Jet !

    Retro Jim
     

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