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Probably been asked a million times before but - edelbrock or Holley ?

MFP

MFP

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Thanks for reading , I'm in the UK and am thinking of swopping my current edlebrock 750 for a holley ..on my
400 BB ,72 satellite ,
I'm told the holley will " wake the motor up " so from stateside / global experience what are thoughts and would you swop it ?

Trusting you are all keeping well
Cheers and regards.
 
I wouldn't. It's not necessary. You may benefit by tuning your carb and ignition advance.
 
What modifications have been done to the engine? Swapping brands of carb would surely only be a 'fine tuning' of an already fully worked engine. Much better things to spend your money on.
 
It all depends on what style carb you understand and most familiar with. I'm a Holley guy because I got to understand their components & how they worked. I was unlucky with rebuilding my Carter/Edelbrock carbs (AVS, Thermoquad & Carter aftermarket AFB) for whatever reason. The aftermarket AFB worked great on my 360 tow vehicle for quite a while, but I struggled with getting it back with the rebuild. My Holley 3310-1 on my street 383 was great as I learned about carbs. Once I started drag racing with Holley's, I got really familiar with tuning the various Holley systems. You can make either style work well once you understand how they work & how to effectively tune them. I also found Holley parts seemed more available for tuning "back in the day". Not sure if that's true today.
 
Holleys are generally easier to make do exactly what you want, if you know exactly what you want. If the Edelbrock is working well you’ll see absolutely no difference with the Holley. Save your money.
 
Go on Google and search Edlebrock v Holley. There's a Hotrod article that compares about 5 carbs, all 750cfm. They are all within a few hp of each other.
 
I've switched back and forth many times, because I have shelves full of carbs and like to mess around. The Holleys looked a bit racier, but usually gave about the same power as the Carters. The Carters almost always gave me better gas mileage.
 
66 Sat said:
Go on Google and search Edlebrock v Holley. There's a Hotrod article that compares about 5 carbs, all 750cfm. They are all within a few hp of each other.
Click to expand...
As I expected done on a small block chevie.
 
My two cent's. I like Holley easy to tune. Many parts available for them. Have run Edlebrock agree both will give you the same hp. The fuel pipe from the front bowl to the rear bowl some times wanted to leak. Used bigger O ring.
 
The main differences are not WOT power, but how well they can be tuned for off-idle transition, acceleration and secondary opening transitions.
The Holley give you more tuning opportunities (at least easier) than the Carter/Edelbrock.
You may get better performance by re-curving the distributor and keeping the current carb.

I like the tunability of EFI with timing control. Just saying because it is getting more affordable (if starting from scratch.)
 
One could easily spend hours reading all the threads on this esteemed website on this very subject
if one would only avail themselves of the Search box in the upper right side of the site. :thumbsup:
 
MFP said:
Thanks for reading , I'm in the UK and am thinking of swopping my current edlebrock 750 for a holley ..on my
400 BB ,72 satellite ,
I'm told the holley will " wake the motor up " so from stateside / global experience what are thoughts and would you swop it ?

Trusting you are all keeping well
Cheers and regards.
Click to expand...
Well, I'm a more of a Holley-design fan myself...but I'm an even bigger fan of working with what you already have if it's capable, and the Edelbrock carbs are definitely capable. Plenty of folks turning fast track times with them. So my opinion is, before you drop a bunch of cash on a different carb that will also need tuning and attention to get dialed in, consider getting the one you have set up to run the way you want. The key with either style is getting educated, and equipped, to tune them properly.
Something like this:
https://www.summitracing.com/search...-performer-series-carburetor-calibration-kits

(I can't vouch for the accuracy of any of this but maybe it will help get you started)
https://www.hotrod.com/articles/rebuilding-tuning-edelbrock-carburetor/]

Also look around on the You Tube for "edelbrock carb tuning' videos.

You can do this. There's plenty of info out there and I urge you to ask questions here as they arise. We have some really sharp Edelbrock/Carter style carb tuners hanging around...
 
On the Edelbrock / Carter AFB type carbs, first thing is to run engine for a few seconds to make sure the fuel bowls are filled. Next take the top of the carb off and check the level of the fuel in the bowls. If the fuel is lower than the notch in the plate between primary and secondary jets, the fuel level is too low. With too low a fuel bowl level, you can't even start to tune the carb. Having the sight hole on the fuel bowl and the adjustable needle seat assembly of the Holley makes getting the float bowl fuel level much easier.

You can get either to run good, it is just a matter of making adjustments to the carbs. Prepare to add the cost of tuning parts like the calibration kits.
If you have an engine tuner shop with a chassis dyno, it is usually worth it to have them tune the engine. Or you could invest in a wide-band O2 meter, but that is more money, maybe about the cost of having it tuned by the shop?
 
Many thanks to all of you for taking the time to write your replies , I've booked in with a garage ( tuning shop) and have decided to stick with my edlebrock for now . I'm going to start with what I've got , tune and take it from there .
General consensus seems that the edlebrock is capable and I think carb and timing etc is first port of call

Thanks again to all of you for your help and time :thumbsup:
 
If this is too far off the subject, let me know.
Here is my reasoning for the EFI:
If you take the cost of a carburator (around $420-$480), plus the calibration kit ($60-$120)around , and add an O2 air/fuel meter ($160) you will have an easy $650-$750 into a basic carb setup that you still have to tune. If you have electric fans, a fan controller is around another $100.
Now your within <$250 of a $1,000 Sniper or Fitech EFI.
The EFI also comes with rev-limiters at no additional cost, and can also double as a gauge display of RPM, Engine Temp, Battery Voltage, just to name a few.

Now the fuel system for EFI might cost more if you have a good existing fuel system, but if your starting with a rusted fuel tank and lines, then the cost of replacing and setting up the fuel system is about the same.

The ignition can be the same for both, or you can lockout the distributor and re-phase the rotor and have the EFI control the ignition timing too.
The EFI can also do idle compensation for the Air Conditioner Clutch, and Control power adders while also adjusting the timing for them.

Anyhow, the EFI packs alot of features for not that much more money, and actually simplifies alot of wiring compared to individual gauges (O2 and such), and options like fan controller, rev-limiter, nitrous controller, and such.
 
@451Mopar - Hi mate, not off subject at all , I have to say I have not considered efi but its certainly a consideration for the future , I know nothing about it but from what you said it's very flexible .
I've decided to stick with a tune up and my carb for now and on the back of the advice and replies I'm ordering a complete kit for the carb so if it needs anything I'll already have it

Cheers for taking the time to reply I really appreciate it mate :thumbsup:
 
MFP said:
@451Mopar - Hi mate, not off subject at all , I have to say I have not considered efi but its certainly a consideration for the future , I know nothing about it but from what you said it's very flexible .
I've decided to stick with a tune up and my carb for now and on the back of the advice and replies I'm ordering a complete kit for the carb so if it needs anything I'll already have it

Cheers for taking the time to reply I really appreciate it mate :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

That sounds like a good plan.

As I said a few posts ago, if starting with nothing, these TBI type EFI are not a bad way to go for the price.
I have more invested in carb tuning parts and tools than what the carburator cost.
 
451Mopar said:
If this is too far off the subject, let me know.
Here is my reasoning for the EFI:
If you take the cost of a carburator (around $420-$480), plus the calibration kit ($60-$120)around , and add an O2 air/fuel meter ($160) you will have an easy $650-$750 into a basic carb setup that you still have to tune. If you have electric fans, a fan controller is around another $100.
Now your within <$250 of a $1,000 Sniper or Fitech EFI.
The EFI also comes with rev-limiters at no additional cost, and can also double as a gauge display of RPM, Engine Temp, Battery Voltage, just to name a few.

Now the fuel system for EFI might cost more if you have a good existing fuel system, but if your starting with a rusted fuel tank and lines, then the cost of replacing and setting up the fuel system is about the same.

The ignition can be the same for both, or you can lockout the distributor and re-phase the rotor and have the EFI control the ignition timing too.
The EFI can also do idle compensation for the Air Conditioner Clutch, and Control power adders while also adjusting the timing for them.

Anyhow, the EFI packs alot of features for not that much more money, and actually simplifies alot of wiring compared to individual gauges (O2 and such), and options like fan controller, rev-limiter, nitrous controller, and such.
Click to expand...
Definately another direction to go. Something else, EFI isn't bothered by fuel evaporation problems.
 
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