Hey all - recently bought this truck and I’m pretty new to the old ways.

1971 ford f250 360

can anyone tell me what carburetor this is and if it has a choke? I have a manual choke in the cab but it’s not connected to anything on the engine.

 

Thanks for the pictures. And though I’m sure some that are more expert can tell what carburetor that is (looks kind of original style to me), removing the air filter housing will pretty much guarantee that we can get you more accurate answers.

 

thanks for the input. I just took it off and I hope this helps!

 

It is a plain Automate/Motorcraft 2100 with a Dent 73+ fuel filter on the fuel intake besides the one under the fuel pump. It also has an automatic choke which is the black cap on the passenger side of the carb. For best operation, route a heater hose into the clip below the choke to warm the choke up faster. Also close of those unused ports on the carb. And it is not good to have your plug wires bundled together like that because as the wires age, they can crossfire. And at night, you can see the blue corona.

 

hey thanks for the reply man. Is an automatic choke the same as an electronic one in this case? Saw this online and was unsure.

 

Also, is there a way to convert this to manual? Anyone have any good links to a kit I could use?

 

I have to assume that they are referring to automatic electric, versus automatic electronic. There’s nothing actually “electronic” about these old things.
But electric? You bet.
There’s a bi-metallic spring in there that’s heated by a few things. One is water from the cooling system going through the heater hose previously mentioned. And also from some exhaust gases that get sucked up into the choke area through some tubing. If it’s still connected that way.
But later ones also included an electrical connection. So if there are electrical contacts there, there is a wire between the alternator stator terminal and the choke to heat it up.
or if it was added later by a previous owner, perhaps just from the ignition switch.

There used to be kits to convert these, but before you hunt one down and buy it, make sure you have a cable running out to the carburetor.

 

there is indeed a cable sitting on top of the intake manifold coming from the manual choke inside the cab.

im pretty sure the previous owner just replaced the carburetor and didn’t set anything up since there’s no wire going to the choke element and no tubes going to the choke nor the evap port in front.

should I keep it electric or should I convert to manual? If I keep it electric I would have to set that all up so I guess what’s easier and what’s preferred? I live in California so it doesn’t really get cold here

thanks in advance!

 

As much of a fan of manual chokes as I have always been, I think I would just keep it electric and go from there.
In 71, a 250 might still have had manual chokes from the factory, but I’m not sure. By then the lighter duty trucks are all gone electric.
They do seem to work more consistently, and certainly for more people, in case you have drivers that aren’t longtime gearheads. Using a manual choke is kind of a lost art.
The electric is fairly simple. Consisting just of one ground wire usually, and one power wire on with either the key, or with the engine running only via the alternator wire I mentioned.
If you go down to your alternator wires and look for a white with black stripe wire, it should run up somewhere near the engine.
If your instrument cluster has an ammeter charge gauge there should just be the one wire. If you have a battery charge indicator light instead, however, the white with black stripe wire will also go to the voltage regulator, as well as the choke.

looking again at your picture, I think you have the updated version of the shield. It’s not the same design as the earlier ones where you ran a heater hose into the tray. I’d have to see a different angle of it to be sure, but it looks like it’s not meant to carry a hose. Just to be a shield.