Fire bug problem...

[MoparMower]

Alright folks, iv got a problem. lol
In the past few months I managed to get my greazy meat hooks on a 72' Duster with a very tired 440. The car was not very well put together from what i can tell and the engine itself has developed a few problems... when i bought the car it ran, but just barely. When it was cranked you had to keep on the throttle constantly or else it would die. I thought no biggie i can still frive it back to my place 2 hours away and by some miracle i made it. Now it also has a little problem of every time i turn over the engine without it cranking the carb catches fire! Its done this noumerouse times but every now amd then its cranks on up and no flames to worry about. with all that being said this car will be my first resto into a street/strip car for those nice weekends when i wona cruise around raising a lil hell andmaking all the wemon googly eyed. :glasses7:
But i have no idea were to start with this thing Tbh.
Any ideas on what could be causing the bikefire of flames from the carb or having to give it throttle to keep it running. (fyi the timing isnt turned 180° i already checked that.) HELP PLEASE! IM STUMPED!

MODS: 1972 Plymouth Duster 440-727
edlebrock victor intake manifold, under a Holley double pumper (not sure of the cfm), Mandrel bent headers (dont know the brand because they're too rusty) W/flowmaster 40s, and 8 3/4 rear.

 

[Louie70Dart]

Not an expert, but sounds like timing. Timing being too far retarded is firing before the valves are fully closed. Or bad valves themselves. If you are able to check the timing and its in, then compression test next to check the leak down.

 

[nuttyprof]

I was going to suggest that the timing chain may have slipped, been there done that.

 

[MoparMower]

Hmm.. didnt even cross my mind that the valves could be bad. i havnt been able to take the heads off yet to look at them but i did pop off a valve cover and was not pretty.. couldnt hardly see any of the mechanics from all the sludge.

 

[chryslerfat]

Timing chain, timing, valve adjustment, bent pushrod or missing, or bad vacuum leak could all do it.

 

[MoparMower]

Shes gona get a good solid rebuild here in the next 6 months, but for now i just need to get it running well enough to make it TO the mechanic/mechine shop! Im in the military and live on the base in a barracks so i have nowhere covered to work on it and keep it out of the weather, and no major tools, just bare essentials.as well as no trailer to hault it with.

 

[Louie70Dart]

I put bad valves in there cause if the timing is on, maybe the valves next. Badly fouled plugs that never 'go out', for lack of proper terms could also cause it. Too much gas with bad plugs? Key is to have a plan, stick to it, eliminate one thing at a time to be sure.

 

[MoparMower]

Very true, i have'er been a bit scatered about it all. I did however put new plugs amd wires on it not to long ago. And here shortly its gona be getting a disk brake conversion as well so that i can be able to STOP that 440 once it gets running!:burnout:

 

[Bulldozer]

sounds like a very tired carburetor to me. sounds very fuel related. try a known good carb or rebuild what you have. set the timing first , then fuel. with the timing out of wack and a flooded carb , you are almost guaranteed a flame. make sure the firing order is correct. too much fuel will most certainly cause a hard start, and when it fires it can pop flame. I had an ill adjusted holley that would do exactly that, I slapped a 1406 on it and bam, problem solved.

 

[RustyRatRod]

First thing I would do is start with a compression test. Make sure there's no dead cylinder. If there is, all the work in the world topside will never get it running right. Confirm you have 8 holes making compression and move from there.

 

[MoparMower]

How would i go about doing a compression test?? Never had to do that myself.

 

[OldmanRick]

First off, I have to say thank you for serving me, my family, and all of us FABO members :thumbrig:.

I think you have a great car to play with even though it may not have been put together well. I agree with the others that popping out the carb is most likely a timing issue...with the carb being secondary imo. Considering the "sludge" you discovered, it sure sounds like someone dropped that 440 in there that was pulled from a fairly high mileage donor car.

Best thing to do right now is educate yourself on what you actually have.....Like any numbers you can get off that engine, and also the rear end type/gear? Still lots to learn here about this car, mainly for you, but us too.

Man I wish I wasn't 3000 miles away, I'd love to get my hands dirty along side you with a project like this. :thumbrig:

Learn, Enjoy, and ask us lots of questions.....We're all here to help!

 

[krazykuda]

How would i go about doing a compression test?? Never had to do that myself.

Get a compression tester and a remote starter.

remove the spark plugs.

Screw in the compression gauge hose in the spark plug hole, then attach the gauge.

Jump the starter relay with the remote starter to turn the engine over 4-6 times until the pressure stops increasing. Hold the pressure for 1 ninute...

Squirt 2-3 squirts of oil into the cylinder and repeat the test. This is called a wet test.

Write down all of your readings.

I like to repeat each cylinder 3-4 times for consistency.

Look at the readings and see what the max and min readings are. There should be no more than 15-20 psi variation max.

If the readings are higher for the wet test than the dry test, then the rings are leaking.

If the reading is low and doesn't increase with the wet test, then you have a problem with the valves sealing.

If you have any questions, post your results.

 

[65LoveAffair]

Not sure if this is an option for you, as I don't know if you are on shore duty or if you are SeaOpDet, but did you know that Whidbey Island has an Auto Hobby Shop? If you click here , it will take you to a page where you can get some basic information and their phone number. I got a lot of good help and advice from my base auto hobby shops when I was in the Navy. Good luck to you, and thank you for your service!!!