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best marine carb

S

schlosser1

Member
hi i just bought a 87 enchanter with a 330hp gm crate motor i would like to run it for the rest of the season in fresh water. i am not sure if it was upgraded to marine specs ,head gaskets,brass freeze plugs,ect... is it safe to do so. and also what is the best all around carb i have a quadrabogg now and it runs kinda crappy should i get a rebuilt Quad or a Ebrock? thanks.
 
holly all the way. but i dont know if they make a marine carb. for 330 hp. id probably say around a 650 cfm. or maybe less. too bad you couldnt find a fuel injection kit on ebay. that would be the way to go .
 
Quadrajets really are one of the best carbs out there...when they are working right. They have a great flow rate, yet are very efficient at partial throttle (you usually don't get both in the same carb.)
Of course, the hollys are cheap (relatively), simple and reliable.
Most marine carbs out there are Quadrajets, from what I've seen.
I've always had good luck with the Quadrajets.
 
Holley or Demon carbs are the only way to go when you have a modified engine. You cant beat the tunability they provide. However, your stock engine would run best with the stock MARINE quadrajet it came with. It would be the carb of choice for the least maintenance and best all around performance.
 
I would love fuel injection, thats what i have on my 67 gto but i dont want to spend that kind of money again. i would like to stay away from holley because they allways run a little rich $$$ on every car i had,but they were great for performance. I would like a Q jet or an ebrock and i am leaning more toward the Q jet unless any one has had real good luck with the ebrock. And any sugestions on running the rest of the season? Thanks,
 
it depends on what you plan on doing with the boat, for the best all out performance the holley's or demon's are the ticket, for just crusing sking etc and if you are looking for good economy, q-jets are fine when working good, I have found the edelbrocks to work very well and are easy to tune if needed and you can get the benefit of a elec choke...Rob
 
I ordered a rebuilt quadrajet for my 350 from I-5 parts (found them on ebay). Cost about $260, but it does work good. Only complaint is that the back plates are a little loose, and I haven't figured out how to tighten them yet. The back plates open to quickly when I open her up, and it bogs for a couple of seconds before it takes off.
 
thanks for the feedback everyone on the q jet there is an alen screw under the top plate you have to losen and a small flat head screw keep presure on the flat head or you will lose your starting point. my boat will be a tubing/skiing boat so i would like good economy.
 
i just love the carb ones... acutally the weber is the most forgiving, and easyest carb to make work.. and jamey, your local , mechanic should be able to correct your carb problem in about 30 min,, while the having there coffee.. actually across the board.. the quad will keep up with the holly, the demon.. and so on.. depends on your builder, and tuner.. how good he or she is
 
Hey Big Red,

Thats a good one. :D


Right next to Tunnel ram with 2 Predators, I would put " An illegal alien holding a squirt bottle over an open intake manifold"

Those Predators really sucked. :sick:
 
schlosser1 said:
hi i just bought a 87 enchanter with a 330hp gm crate motor i would like to run it for the rest of the season in fresh water. i am not sure if it was upgraded to marine specs ,head gaskets,brass freeze plugs,ect... is it safe to do so. and also what is the best all around carb i have a quadrabogg now and it runs kinda crappy should i get a rebuilt Quad or a Ebrock? thanks.
Click to expand...

i know we love our carb set ups but... what about his question on the crate motor. my non-professional thoughts are... and was it a short block, long or complete?

probably ok for 1 season but is it worth the ri$k?, should have been switched over yourself before putting it in the boat, a bit easier that way. crate motors from gm are usually for trucks i believe but the head gaskets do need to be changed as you risk early failure there. i was told it would last about 2-3 seasons. also, if you got a long block the valves will not be up to standard so when you get the heads off i would have them converted to marine grade. be sure to keep your rods numbered as they need to go back into the same lifter with the correct end up after it is broken in. springs are probably strong enough but i would have them checked. marine engines normally turn higher rpms and you dont want a valve to float.

i would keep in mind the valves not being marine grade until the change over if you got the long block, i see that as a major concern if you run it hard at all.

MAYBE A KNOWLEDGEABLE MECHANIC will comment on the valve issue if you did not re-use your heads.
 
Todd,
You are right. Somehow, this thread got shifted to a carb specific topic.

Since the engine will be used in fresh water, there is no urgent need to replace the freeze out plugs or the head gaskets. As you mentioned, the more urgent concerns are the valves, springs and cam profile. Yes, the stock GM crate stuff will run, just not up to full potential. I certainly would not recommend to anyone to simply drop in a crate engine. Then again, it depends on what your intentions are. If you want to cruise around at moderate speeds, I am sure it would ok for a while. If you plan on beating the crap out of it, then you need to replace some parts.
 
well, i will be upgrading now that i spun 3 main bearings :irked: but the motor had rust in the cylinders and the bearings looked like they have been run under water i figured it couldnt be perfect since the boat has been sitting since 03 what a shame because the motor was an 01, 330 hp. crate motor now i can build it the right way. thanks for the comments.:bounce:
 
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