‘73 440 hard to start after first cold start

[Charger Fan]

On first start of the day with just a tap on the pedal the engine fires right up with barely a spin on the starter. After running for as little as a few minutes and shutting down it takes a lot of cranking and pedal held down to get it to fire back up. This is the first big block I’ve owned. Never had this with small block. Educate me please.

 

[WileERobby]

Check the operation of the choke.

 

[70chall440]

I see you are in FL, perhaps it is getting a bit heat soaked. Its most likely a fuel issue so I would start there.

 

[Jerry Hall]

What's your timing at?

 

[Rusty knuckles]

I see you are in FL, perhaps it is getting a bit heat soaked. Its most likely a fuel issue so I would start there.

This. My 383 takes a bit of cranking on a hot start too. Just the nature of the beast. Electric fuel pump helps a lot.

 

[JG71B]

I have a bone stock 77 B motor with headers. I run one of those 1/2" inch spacers made from some kind of fiber material between the carb and intake, I also blocked the heat cross over in the manifold along with adding a WIX fuel filter with a return line. I no longer have starting issues on hot summer days, a couple cranks of the mini starter and it fires up. Vapor lock is non existent also.
How about some details...carb? Headers? Timing?

 

[Charger Fan]

Engine is all stock. Stock exhaust manifolds, stock thermoquad 850 cfm, and timing set dead nuts on 10 degrees before.

 

[70chall440]

Well stock or not something is going on, when was the last time the carb was went through? Maybe you have a vacuum leak some place although I don't think that would do this or better said it would do it all the time.

My gut feeling is that its not getting enough fuel or the spark is not hot enough. You might try some different plugs.

 

[Rusty knuckles]

Engine is all stock. Stock exhaust manifolds, stock thermoquad 850 cfm, and timing set dead nuts on 10 degrees before.

I don't think the 850 carb is helping your cause.

 

[WileERobby]

I don't think the 850 carb is helping your cause.

The TQ was a factory stock carb in the 70's and one of the best street/strip carbs. The problem is NOT the carb, the problem is how the carb is functioning. From his one sentence, the first thing I'm going to check when he brings the car into my garage is how the choke is functioning. Yeah, did that 50 years ago, and that's what I'd do before anything else.