Just bought a 1973 Chaparral Firebird with a 340 in it. Got a few questions to get myself going.
First, I should tell you that I don’t know anything about sleds, and I know very little about engines. All I really know is that they are a lot of fun.
I found this baby on CL for 130 bucks, as it had been stalling every once in a while on the guy who owned it, and he didn’t want to work on it anymore. I went over, he uncovered it, and she started on the 3rd pull. He told me he bought it not running, and a carb re-build kit got it going. She was blowing a ton of smoke, but idling just fine (he told us he had the idle high). He explained most of what he had done, most of it was lost on me, I just got that something was wrong. The smoke, and the stalling lead me to this question: Anybody know what oil/gas ratio I should be using? He said he read 20:1, which seemed high to me, and I thought might explain the smoking.
We took it out into the yard, and the first incline I came to (at about 7mph) the sled couldn't make it up. He messed with something (I think the idle, or air intake) on the side above the fuel tank and in front of the carb (the same thing the choke controls) and it started going. Soon after, it stalled out again. Any idea what he was messing with?
We gave him 80 bucks for it, took it home, let it sit an hour, and then I got her going by pulling that thing religiously, and adjusting those same screws he was. She was screaming through the back yard for 3 hours or so, and then I think we ran her out of gas. (He might have moved the main gas line from the bottom of the tank, I havn't looked yet.
Going to mess with her again tonight, and see if she runs any better.
1973 Chap.
