4 barrel Carb question

[leftybass209]

I think everyone above pretty well covered the topic, but to lend my opinion-

The Edelbrock carb in and of itself is negligible as to how much fuel it would save you over a well tuned Quadrajet, or how much performance it could offer. For every post I've seen where someone says they saved fuel, I've seen one where people claim it was a waste of money.

I have an Eddy 1406 on my crate 350, backed by a 700r4, and i'm certainly not sipping gas. The Edelbrock isn't just a bolt on carb for most people. It is very sensitive to fuel pressure, usually requiring a regulator or an Edelbrock fuel pump that can consistently put out pressures below 6psi. Also, they are sensitive to heat and can experience carb boil/vapor lock issues, so often they need an insulator gasket and/or a phenolic carb spacer. So that $xxx.xx priced Edelbrock carb often needs to be coupled with new fuel lines, pump, and carb spacer. The Quadrajet however, can be rebuilt for under the base price of the Edelbrock, and still offer equivalent performance and fuel economy.

I think it's important to note that once you factor in the cost of the entire transmission swap and whatever carb or fuel delivery system you choose, you'll have to put thousands of miles on your truck, just to break even on the amount of fuel you'll save. With an OD transmission, You'll only start to save gas in 4th gear. Being super generous and optimistic, you may gain 5-7mpg over an equally tuned vehicle not using overdrive, using hyperdrive characteristics. That's A LOT of 4th gear driving mileage to recooperate the cost of the transmission and fuel delivery system.

The swaps you are considering are best justified for personal enjoyment, and the benefits of going EFI over carb (ease of starting, elevation driving etc.)

Best of luck with your decision!