[New'n72]

Update on this porblem:

Last Fall I replaced the coil on urging from one of my automotive knowledgable coharts at the office. I didn't drive it much after that because the weather started getting cold and nasty.

I start it up periodically over the winter and early this Spring I went out to start it up and it barely turned over. Sounded like a dead battery, although I was at a loss as to how that could have happened.

I also thought that maybe the starter was giving me a problem since the bendix occasionally fails to engage when I start it up, so I asked the local mechanic's joint to get a starter for me. The old guy at this place said he bet on the battery and asked me to bring the battery in and he would put it on a charger and test it. It tested bad.

I bought a new battery. 800 CCA. Once I had the car started I took it back to the mechanic and asked him to check out the electrical. He found that the alternator/regulator was over charging the battery.

So..at this point I had a new coil, new battery, and new regulator.

As the outside temp. warmed up I eventually got out and drove for a few miles. Then I took it to work one day. Never had any real problems but the last time I had it out I smelled gas. When I got home I found dampness around the base of the carb.

It appears that the fuel filter connection had loosened up a bit.

I have driven it a couple times since that and I have not had to crank and crank like I did last Spring, after it warmed up to operating temperature and then sat for a while.

I'm thinking that my starting problem was a combination of these things: battery, regulator, and possibly coil?

I learned quite a bit while working through this problem and I appreciate all the help that was offered. Hopefully the difficulty "starting when hot" problem is gone.