370 V8 4bbl carb truck always started well but after stalling it on an incline in my driveway I hit the brakes to keep it from rolling back and it jerked a little. After that, it didn't want to start. I gave it new plugs, cap, and rotor - the wires look good. It started - barely - but still ran like **** and doesn't want to idle much below 1000 rpm. I drained out all the gas and rebuilt the carb that was cleaner inside than any carb I've ever opened up before. The spark on a pulled plug was white but could be bigger and brighter. I was thinking about reattaching the coil connectors. It has the one piece collar that slips on. Do those terminals come out? Anyone have any ideas? Thanks.

 

So the stalling incident--did that cause the engine to reverse rotation even a little bit? Rolling backwards in a forward gear is what I'm suggesting.

If so, maybe, just maybe you have a timing chain issue. Pull the distributor cap. Rotate the engine with a wrench. Reverse rotation and see how many degrees of crank rotation you get before the rotor moves. Much over 5 degrees means it's time to think about replacement. A lot more could allow the chain to jump a tooth, which will cause the problems you describe.

Just a wag.....good luck with it.

 

That's a good idea, thanks. It's a possibility I can't rule out so it can't hurt to check it out. I'll try that tomorrow.

 

9 times out of 10 a tired chain will jump upon shutdown (when the engine
does that little rock back). All it takes is one tooth and runs like crap
if it runs at all.