My friend's perfectly running '69 H/O would not start the other day (cranking with no start). I pulled the air cleaner and saw the choke was working but found NO fuel squirting. I pulled the inlet line and cranked it and found good fuel spurting. Pulled the inlet housing and found the rubber gasket on the end of the fuel filter completely deteriorated and falling apart. Needless to say this was the obstruction. I've heard the stories of the evils of Ethanol 10 and 15 gas but was that the cause? I cleaned the inlet and replaced the filter and it started right up but unfortunately it's idling terribly now so I'm going to have to pull the carb and I'm sure I'll find all kinds of crap in the needle valve seat and throughout. Any recommendations on the best rebuild kits? I've found them to be crappy compared to the ones we could get 20+ years ago.

 

I have used kits from Cliff for a number of years ans my Q-jets work perfectly. Others have spoken highly of Sparky, but I don't have his link.

www.cliffshighperformance.com

 

There is a guy on ebay ...mountain something or another , says his kits are usa made but i have not tried one

 

I pull that plug right out before installing the filter.

 

Ethanol will do that. I failed to check the gas gauge on my GTO on the way to a show a couple of years back. I put in ten bucks of off-brand ethanol impregnated gas because it was the only station on the way and within ten minutes it turned the gasket into black goo, smelled gas and pulled over, fuel was dripping all over the manifold. I had no tools with me because like a bonehead I forgot to transfer them over from my other car. I was sitting on the side of the road and not one of the other "car guys" going to the show bothered to stop and lend me a hand, that's when I stopped doing car shows. I was so ticked off I bit the bullet and drove it home with fire extinguisher in hand and my butt firmly clenched.
I made it home, by rights I shouldn't of, I had my daughter with me and everybody knows that God takes care of fools and children.