HELP!!!!!!! Truck acting fussy!!

[69DISASTER]

Ok, here's one fer you technical guys. I have a 72 with a 305 four barrel and it is acting worse than my ex wife!! Here goes. Normally the truck works fine but every once in a while it will just cut out and act like it wants to quit. It seems almost as if it is running out of fuel. It wont idle and I have to keep the rpm's up to keep it running. When it does quit the only way to restart it is to hold the accelerator to the floor and crank it . When it does restart it belches black smoke like crazy. It did this today and i kept driving it to get home and by the time I got home it worked fine!?!? I have replaced plugs, wires, checked the dist cap and rotor, it has a new fuel filter, everything seems OK. I even changed carburator still to no avail. Any ideas?

[oldblue1968chevy]

timing maybe idk really lol

[71swb4x4]

It sounds like it is flooding out. What style of choke do you have on it? Did you change the choke out when you changed the carb?

[Mayo]

I am in no way a mechanic, but I would say it sounds like it is flooding. My truck does the same thing. Last spring it would cut out on me every so often, and then I would have to jiggle some wires around and hold the accelerator on the floor to start it. I had some bad connectors on some wires, so my brother re-cripmed then and everything was fine. Then, yesterday, it cut out on my so I did the same thing I did last year and got it started again. It did it to me twice today in a matter of minutes so I re-did one of the connections on a wire to my MSD and it started up fine. I drove for about two minutes and it cut out on me again. I then got it fired up and drove in a parking lot until it cut out again. I ended up replacing the battery bolts and was able to drive it home without any problems. Hopefully it was just the loose connection at the battery, but I am stillgoing to have my carburetor gone through because it starts flooding if the truck is idling for too long.

[69DISASTER]

PS this is a brand new carb!!

[69DISASTER]

Choke is wired open all the way.

[cdowns]

have you checked cleaned sparkplugs have you cleaned replaced air filter? changed fuel filter?checked pcv valve for proper operation?

[john02fxdl]

Brand new doesn't mean it will work. They make mistakes at the carb assembly plants too. Is it a holley, q-jet, or edelbrock or...? I know, I know, we're all armchair mechanics but it really does sound like a float is sticking and flooding the carb or dirt is in your needle and seat.

[john02fxdl]

Sorry, just read your post again. So, you're saying that this was happening BEFORE you put the new carb on and still does it? Check your fuel lines, even the smallest cut or crack in the line will suck air in the line and cause it to stall and act fussy. Trust me, been there, done that.

[69DISASTER]

Funny you should mention fuel line because when I let the truck sit the fuel seems to drain back out of the fuel filter (it is a clear galss filter) I was thinking possible pinhole in fuel pump diaphram but engine doesnt miss a beat under hard or normal acceleration. Plugs and plugt wires are all brand new. Sticky float does sound interesting as the truck did sit all winter but the truck did the same with other carb as well. Some sections of the fuel line are new but one metal section is new.

[69DISASTER]

I checked the needle and seat and they appear fine. Would sticky float make it run rich, cuz I got some black smoke too.