Here she is, just as I bought her
I just bought my project truck, 62 F100, 292 yblock, looks to be stock to me. Admittedly, I would not really be able to tell. I believe I have the 2bl unit now.

How do I go about upgrading my carb to a higher performance unit? I'm not interested in keeping it completely stock, so I don't really want to upgrade with the 4bbl that was an option for the yblocks. I have manual choke right now of course, but could be persuaded to go with electric choke. I''ve read that it's not difficult to install. I'm not going to drag this truck, but I do want to significantly increase the tire burning, red light racing fun!

• What throttle body do I need?
• What Carb will fit my application?

FYI, I'm handy with a wrench, but in no way a mechanic, so a lot of the posts are over my head (as of right now, hopefully that will change as I keep working on my yblock). I have a long way to go, so any other general helpful tips are appreciated.

 

The 292 as installed in pickups wasn't known for tire lighting performance. The carburetor installed now is about as good as it gets in terms of design, probably one of the best carburetors ever made. Part of the problem was a restrictive exhaust. I would suggest taking a different approach for the time being. Keep the current carburetor, rebuild it, set it up to specification, and run with it for a while, learn how they work while taking care of the other stuff, that I guarantee needs some attention by now. Even then, I'd install a less restrictive exhaust before changing the carburetor, say. The Y-blocks sound great with dual exhaust pipes.

There are many factors involved in increasing performance, and I believe you'll find there are quite a few things you'll want to look at before ever swapping the carb out. The 292 for example has solid lifters and was known for upper oiling problems, want to check the valve lash and make sure the rockers are getting adequate lubrication. Check out the distributor mechanical and vacuum advance mechanism for proper operation, this has a large effect on lighting the tires. Ten bucks says the crankshaft vibration absorber is lunched and has slipped off axis, making the timing marks innaccurate. So one of the first things to look at is verify true TDC with a piston stop tool. In some ways changing the carburetor is probably the last thing to be done, not the first.

The first checkup to make is a cylinder compression test. This will indicate any major internal engine defects and whether or not that particular engine is a good candidate for a tune-up in the first place. Burnt valves, poor compression would mean the engine needs a rebuild. On the other hand, if compression is acceptable, nice and even across the cylinders then while maybe it doesn't run well right now, the engine should respond really well to some TLC.

With a 50 or 60 year old engine there could be all kinds of problems, previous owners adjusting things wrong, incorrect parts, plug wires out of firing order, the list is endless so it's a good idea to find out first exactly what it is that you've got to work with. A Ford Truck Shop Manual will be very helpful as you go through everything. Read as much as you can, period maintenance docs and tune up stuff, it's all available online now, straight dope from the horse's mouth, Ford Motor Company.

 

There's not much you can do carburetor performance wise without going to a 4 barrel intake. So I agree to make sure that one is in good condition and move on to other things.
Going to dual exhaust is about the best single upgrade that can be made to a Y. For the time being, though, you need to remove that clamp from the crossover. That joint is meant to allow for expansion of the components.

In addition to ensuring that the distributor is working properly, tuning the timing curve can help quite a bit and doesn't cost much more than time.

 

I have had it at the mechanic for a few days. He's going over it all. Says my engine is in good shape and I shouldn't rebuild it. He's replacing worn steering components, doing work to the clutch and other little odds and ends. I plan to upgrade the exhaust as well. My mechanic said he could rebuild the stock carb.

There are definitely many things ahead of the carb. But when the time comes I may still look into it.

Anyone heard of the Holly 2300 2 bbl carb. The guy at Summit said it had 4 bbl performance, 500cfm.

 

You're better off going to a 4 barrel (4v) than a big 2 barrel (2v). It doesn't have 4v performance, either. For one, a 2v is tested at a different vacuum which results in a different cfm. The conversion is about 1.4 so 500cfm 2v is about equal to a 360cfm 4v. The closest common 4v is a Holley 390. Another point is that you have at least one other circuit for greater tuning ability with a 4v, the secondaries. With a properly tuned 4v, you effectively drive around on a small 2v until you demand more. This results in a great combination of economy and performance. With the 2v, economy and low end won't be as good and it will only just about keep up with the smallest 4v at wide open throttle.

 

Yes, I ran one for quite a few years. It's basically a circle track carb made or used to meet sanctioning requirements or whatever. They are required to run two barrels. If you know someone who knows how to set one up it's OK but, the carb you have installed right now was most likely designed, venturi sized, jetted etc etc specifically for that engine, with that intake, in that truck, with that transmission, etc.

Without an intake manifold upgrade and opening up the restrictive exhaust a bigger carb isn't probably worth the effort. The problem I had then was no experience or knowledge tuning engines or carburetor selection and it ran rich as hell. The spark plugs were coal black and needed a fuel tanker to follow me around.

 

Ok, Tedster you've talked me into rebuilding the existing carb for now. I am definitely going to address the exhaust first.

 

Ive got a Holley 0-7448 on my ‘59 F250. It just depends on the kind of power you want. I’m almost 300 hp On my truck. And most people say you need a 4bbl if your going to do anything to your engine. But a 2bbl can still pack a punch, and it shocks all the car guys who see it’s only a 2bbl. And you don’t have to change your intake either as an added bonus

 

That's a 350 CFM 2bbl carburetor, that is right in thar for a performance "sweet spot". Carburetor selection is the most important "adjustment" of all and it is usually misunderstood, people buy something based on appearance or think bigger is always better, or buy something unsuitable for simply driving around and cruising. If a carburetor is sized too big, it will actually run lean.