One thing that I almost never do, is work on ignition and carbueration problems at the same time, unless I have no choice. It sounds like you had no choice since mice had chewed your plug wires, but under the same circumstances, I would have fixed that first, then run the car again before changing the carb gasket. Since you had known about the carb problem for sometime, you would have been able to start the car right after the plug wire change, or possibly had a better idea of what to check if it didn't run.
Problems with these two separate systems mimic each other, and are very difficult to distinguish during diagnosis. Often, the way it ran before, and the way it runs after is the most useful clue to figuring out what is wrong.
Is the carb gasket the correct one & is it positioned as to not restrict the carb from opening? It wouldn't be a bad idea to check the ballast resister & the coil & also any vacuum lines from the carb.
John
----- Original Message ----- From: <
kmoore12@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <
mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tuesday, December 06, 2005 3:46 PM
Subject: IML: 1970 starting problems
> Happy holidays everyone!
> I believe I have the answer to this but I was wondering if someone can > verify this for me. I started my Imperial last week after sitting for > awhile. It started fine and did its usual crappy idle which is caused by > the ancient carb base gasket that I never replaced after I rebuilt the > Holley. So I decided to replace that and noticed that
mice chewed-up my > plug wires : ( So a few days later I replaced the wires and the gasket and > it won't....start :( I replaced the wires one-by-one so as not to > mess-up. But non-the-less I triple checked 'em. On the third checking, I > busted out my 1972 Motor's Auto Repair Manual with the idiot proof plug > wire diagram ( so help me God if it is the wires). So, I am left with the > carb gasket and my theory is this: Since the base gasket leaked I had to > compensate by running rich and now that I have proper amounts of air; it > is way to rich and belches flames. It actually started for about two > seconds and idled real high. But I keep getting flames out the carb every > time I try to start her : (
>
> Burpin' fire,
> Keith
>
>
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