302 engine issues.
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
Are you using the stock heat range plug? That's generally what you want to start with as a baseline. The ground strap should have a color transition about halfway up when the heatrange is correct. The idea is that the plug gets just hot enough to be self cleaning, but no more.
The base ring is jetting. Can't really use porcelain color to determine jetting. For wide open throttle AFR need to look deep inside the plug, where it transitions to the outer shell. There will be a fire ring or color ring there. I agree that looks pretty good!
The base ring is jetting. Can't really use porcelain color to determine jetting. For wide open throttle AFR need to look deep inside the plug, where it transitions to the outer shell. There will be a fire ring or color ring there. I agree that looks pretty good!
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 664
Likes: 2
From: York Pa.
Are you using the stock heat range plug? That's generally what you want to start with as a baseline. The ground strap should have a color transition about halfway up when the heatrange is correct. The idea is that the plug gets just hot enough to be self cleaning, but no more.
The base ring is jetting. Can't really use porcelain color to determine jetting. For wide open throttle AFR need to look deep inside the plug, where it transitions to the outer shell. There will be a fire ring or color ring there. I agree that looks pretty good!
The base ring is jetting. Can't really use porcelain color to determine jetting. For wide open throttle AFR need to look deep inside the plug, where it transitions to the outer shell. There will be a fire ring or color ring there. I agree that looks pretty good!
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
Right, that's what I was wondering, it looks like a hotter plug. I would use a stock heat range plug before making any AFR or jetting changes. Pretty much have to do a throttle chop too, any idle time is going to skew things looking rich. The worst that can happen with a colder plug is fouling, but too hot a plug can cause predetonation due to hot spots, so it's best to start out on the cold side and work hotter if necessary. So, general rule in tuning is the heat range of a spark plug should not be changed to try and compensate for an overly rich (or lean) condition. Get the carburetor dialed in correctly first, with the stock heat range plugs, and then look carefully at the heat range. It is tricky to tune with modern gasoline too, since there is hardly any "color".
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 664
Likes: 2
From: York Pa.
Right, that's what I was wondering, it looks like a hotter plug. I would use a stock heat range plug before making any AFR or jetting changes. Pretty much have to do a throttle chop too, any idle time is going to skew things looking rich. The worst that can happen with a colder plug is fouling, but too hot a plug can cause predetonation due to hot spots, so it's best to start out on the cold side and work hotter if necessary. So, general rule in tuning is the heat range of a spark plug should not be changed to compensate for an overly rich (or lean) condition. Get the carburetor dialed in correctly with the stock plugs, and then look carefully at the heat range. It is tricky with modern gas, since there is hardly and "color".
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 664
Likes: 2
From: York Pa.
I was having another tuning session with the truck and Holley carburetor tonight and this is the results. My electric choke has plagued me with it staying on in my opinion too long and now since I added a fuel regulator my truck won't start with one hard push of the gas pedal, now I have to pump and feather the gas peddle to keep it running. My experiment was to adjust the choke so that it was completely closed at initial startup instead of a slight gap but it did not change the hard startup I'm experiencing.
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
Keep in mind carbed engines always have at least a little bit of a routine or technique required prior to start when cold.
Here's what I think is happening: Remember when those spark plug pics earlier in the thread you posted were black as coal? I bet it started really easy then right? Choke, no choke, who cares, because, no cold weather technique is required when acre-feet of raw gas is being dumped down the intake!
When the carb gets setup and tuned right though, you'll have to pump more than used to, relying on the accelerator pump shot to deliver at least some raw fuel. The choke plate needs to be closed, or nearly so. The purpose of the choke is actually to deliver more fuel, not really "less air" as commonly thought of. It increases the velocity of the air through the Venturi and "pulls" extra fuel out of the well. When I got the 2100 dialed in nice on the old beast the engine did seem a bit more cold blooded, it just takes more pumps and full choke and starts right up.
Here's what I think is happening: Remember when those spark plug pics earlier in the thread you posted were black as coal? I bet it started really easy then right? Choke, no choke, who cares, because, no cold weather technique is required when acre-feet of raw gas is being dumped down the intake!
When the carb gets setup and tuned right though, you'll have to pump more than used to, relying on the accelerator pump shot to deliver at least some raw fuel. The choke plate needs to be closed, or nearly so. The purpose of the choke is actually to deliver more fuel, not really "less air" as commonly thought of. It increases the velocity of the air through the Venturi and "pulls" extra fuel out of the well. When I got the 2100 dialed in nice on the old beast the engine did seem a bit more cold blooded, it just takes more pumps and full choke and starts right up.
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 664
Likes: 2
From: York Pa.
Keep in mind carbed engines always have at least a little bit of a routine or technique required prior to start when cold.
Here's what I think is happening: Remember when those spark plug pics earlier in the thread you posted were black as coal? I bet it started really easy then right? Choke, no choke, who cares, because, no cold weather technique is required when acre-feet of raw gas is being dumped down the intake!
When the carb gets setup and tuned right though, you'll have to pump more than used to, relying on the accelerator pump shot to deliver at least some raw fuel. The choke plate needs to be closed, or nearly so. The purpose of the choke is actually to deliver more fuel, not really "less air" as commonly thought of. It increases the velocity of the air through the Venturi and "pulls" extra fuel out of the well. When I got the 2100 dialed in nice on the old beast the engine did seem a bit more cold blooded, it just takes more pumps and full choke and starts right up.
Here's what I think is happening: Remember when those spark plug pics earlier in the thread you posted were black as coal? I bet it started really easy then right? Choke, no choke, who cares, because, no cold weather technique is required when acre-feet of raw gas is being dumped down the intake!
When the carb gets setup and tuned right though, you'll have to pump more than used to, relying on the accelerator pump shot to deliver at least some raw fuel. The choke plate needs to be closed, or nearly so. The purpose of the choke is actually to deliver more fuel, not really "less air" as commonly thought of. It increases the velocity of the air through the Venturi and "pulls" extra fuel out of the well. When I got the 2100 dialed in nice on the old beast the engine did seem a bit more cold blooded, it just takes more pumps and full choke and starts right up.
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
3 Best / 3 Worst Parts of Modern Ford Ownership
Brett Foote
10 Amazing Upgrades That Solve Common Ford Truck Owner Headaches
Pouria Savadkouei
Every 2026 Ford Engine Explained
Brett Foote
10 Ugly Ford Trucks That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Most Expensive Ford Trucks Ever Sold on Bring a Trailer
Joe Kucinski
2027 Ford Super Duty Buyer's Guide (Every Model, Engine, & Package)
Brett Foote
Top 10 Ford Truck Tragedies
Joe Kucinski
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
Likes: 25
From: south louisiana
When it's tuned right you shouldn't need more fuel to start it. Been my experience black sooty plugs make it harder to start cause they're harder to generate sparks with. You shouldn't have to pump the pedal more than 2-3 times to get it to light off, even without a choke. I don't run a choke at all on my carbed engines and it only takes 2-3 pump shots to get em started. I even had one 5.0 that would start and idle without a choke at 25*F without any pump shots. That one was an Explorer motor topped with a Ford A321 intake and 570 Holley. A good hot ignition and a cam that generates lots of vacuum at idle does wonders.
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
You shouldn't have to pump the pedal more than 2-3 times to get it to light off, even without a choke. I don't run a choke at all on my carbed engines and it only takes 2-3 pump shots to get em started. I even had one 5.0 that would start and idle without a choke at 25*F without any pump shots.
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
Likes: 25
From: south louisiana
Right, but you know how they get black and sooty in the first place? Running pig rich.
Right, but if no choke is required below freezing it's tuned way on the rich side of things. Would it be safe to say you're a fan of, shall we say "spirited" performance engines & driving? Hm? Nod your head "yes"...
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 664
Likes: 2
From: York Pa.
Positive update, first I'd like to thank Tedster9, baddad457 and all others for sticking with me and giving me so much guidance. I have really struggled to get this truck to run right ever since summer. First off I changed my throttle spring setup and that got my carburetor to idle down properly. Than I changed the squirter and power valve to fix the off idle hesitation. Finally I added a fuel regulator with a gauge to give my truck a proper 6.5 fuel pressure but after doing all of this I noticed my engine was actually running worse and began popping and backfiring out the exhaust and at the same time I couldn't get the fuel bowl levels set properly. After several adjustments and no success, a couple of days ago I pulled the front needle valve and to my delight there was a piece of debris stuck in there, I removed the debris and reinserted the needle valve.
Today my neighbor and I took the truck out for a test drive and this is the BEST the truck has ever ran, it pulled harder and longer than ever before. In first gear it was still pulling at 5500 rpms when I shifted, and in second gear it was pulling strong at 5000 rpms when I decided to shift to third and slow back down to a safer operating speed because my ole truck has loose steering.
I hope it will run as good as it did today the next time I pull it out of the garage. Thanks again.
I want to also note it was 32 Degrees outside.
Today my neighbor and I took the truck out for a test drive and this is the BEST the truck has ever ran, it pulled harder and longer than ever before. In first gear it was still pulling at 5500 rpms when I shifted, and in second gear it was pulling strong at 5000 rpms when I decided to shift to third and slow back down to a safer operating speed because my ole truck has loose steering. I hope it will run as good as it did today the next time I pull it out of the garage. Thanks again. I want to also note it was 32 Degrees outside.
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 664
Likes: 2
From: York Pa.
My son and I took the truck out on a Sunday drive, terrorizing the neighborhood doing burnouts and revving through the gears. I'm very pleased with how it is running, I tried to post a short 8 second video but it won't upload. Next on the list is to connect the dual exhaust with a crossover tube to increase the engine performance a bit more.