Well, I called AutoZone to see if they still had the one carb that worked but leaked. I figured that might be the best one to get in shape. They did so I swapped again. I tore open the float bowl and made sure the float could float and that it was adjusted right. I noticed the needle was sticky at times so I replaced it with an old one I had from an earlier rebuild. It started with no leaks. After running awhile, it too would backfire. I checked timing and it was OK. Finally, I ran a hose directly from the carb to the distributor rather than going through the oasc valve (although I had bypassed it before with no noticeable change) this time it allowed the throttle to be advanced without backfiring. After warming it up, I adjusted the mixture, idle and timing. It runs great and starts great when warm. Now the real test is in the morning when cold.

I have a parts sourcing question, where does one find odd parts like a vacuum tree for the intake, or a vacuum amplifier, or vapor canister? I have done internet searches and called parts places but no luck. Haven't tried junk yards yet. Thanks everyone for all your help.

good for you, except i still would have gotten them to give you another carb, i went through 3 bbds, i got one and it worked great for a week (always seemed to seep abit but didnt worry me) and then one day it didnt idle, well they took it back and said that the float was screwed on it, got another and started the truck up, looked under the hood and more gas was going onto the intake/exhaust then was flowing into the carb or engine. the 3rd one i got now has a 2 yr warrenty b/c i really reamed them out (i payed 200 blinkin bux for this 2BBL!!!!) and it seems to be working ok. are you sure your vaccum advance is working correctly, a slant needs fast advance, maybe try adjusting the vaccum advance canister by using a allen wrench and turning it counter clockwise to make it advance faster.

Justin

i'm sorry i do not know what size allen wrench, but to adjust it you just pull the vaccum line off of it and stick an allen wrench in there and turn.

Justin

Thanks for the advance canister tip. I wasn't aware of that and it probably could use a boost. I actually had gone through 4 carbs on this. They were still working well with me though at Auto Zone to their credit.

Is it possible that a bad vacuum advance might be what's killing my friend's Dart on corners? I do a quick rev to jump around the corner from a stop, and the engine literally shuts off. No struggling or anything, just *plop* off. No problems when accelerating straight though...

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'74 Duster w/ HEI ignition, beat to snot suspension, A904, 8.25" 3.55 SG rear, still being tuned up and gets 17 MPG

Know how they always build a better idiot? That's me