Old timer gets his 426, needs some help from Mopar experts.

[john perez]

I'm 80 years old and just got into going to car shows and enjoying the people and many cars that are there. I see a lot of very nice Chevy's and Ford's but decided I wanted something a little different. I found myself a 64 Dodge 440 with a Max Wedge engine. That baby sure is nice and has no problem keeping up with traffic (. It has two Edelbrock carburetors and electronic ignition. My question is When I start it in the morning, above 50 degrees it runs a little rough, I don't think the chokes are working, you have to work the gas pedal to keep it going. Once it warms up it runs great, idles smoothly at around 750 in gear and is very responsive. The real problem is when you shut her down for about 15 minutes and try to start it. She will crank for a while, maybe 7 seconds before she fires, if she fires. Is this just the nature of the beast or is there something I can do to have it start better after it has been run. I just put new plugs, Autolite 85's and a new coil. It does have an electric fuel pump. Thanks for your help

 

[moparedtn]

Well, first off....

and


Good Lord man! 80 year old first time MAX WEDGE owner?
There's a whole lot of WOW in that statement, right there.
We need to see this critter!

In regards to your question, a lot of that lies in the fuel available these days.
Edelbrocks especially are susceptible to "percolation" on hot engines and gas with a lot of methanol in it only exacerbates the situation, so there's a couple of places to start.
The use of insulating spacers (phenolic, composite, etc.) helps some to isolate the carb from "heat soak", among other things.
More knowledgeable folks will be along shortly with better help, I'm sure.

 

[Beekeeper]

Welcome aboard and you sure came in with a bang! ain’t true till we see pics though

 

[toolmanmike]

Welcome. Damn, I hope I'm still banging gears when I turn 80! (15 years to go) Edelbrock carbs like to vapor lock. The float bowls are fairly small and directly below the bodies so they suck up a lot of heat. You can put spacers under the carbs which helps. At least a 1/2" thick ones. Some run a fuel return filter but that doesn't do much for the hot soak problem you are having.

 

[ruffcut]

I agree with Ed. I've raced max wedge for years and have experienced that even with race fuel. The cross ram intake is kinda tricky until you get used to how it behaves. By the way, 80 and a maxie! Cool!

 

[Ski 61701]

Welcome, boy you jumped in the deep end here with a max wedge car. They are fun, but can be a little temperamental when cold.
Yes until they warm up they are a challenge at times. Do you have a mechanical choke...button on lower left side of dash you pull out to activate the chokes, or do you have electric chokes on carbs?
As moparedtn mentioned, the fuel does and can percolate after being shut down. Since you have experienced this, next time you go somewhere and park, pop the hood so heat can escape, and try and restart after 15 mins or so. If car starts quicker you have heat soak which then boils fuel out of carbs. Since you mentioned having an electric fuel pump on it, when you first start do you hear fuel pump cycle on? usually people who put electric pump on are trying to prevent hot starting problems.
Please post some pictures of your car. looking forward to seeing it.

 

[Jerry Hall]

Welcome from Alabama. Glad you are getting out and enjoying shows. I'm about 7 years behind you but a Max Wedge is always cool no matter what the age.

 

[HD539]

Welcome from the Pacific Northwest

 

[R413]

Welcome to big time mopars!

Use ethanol free fuel it won’t vaporize near as bad as ethanol fuel.

Here is a link to a list of stations for CT.

https://www.pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=CT

Turn off the fuel pump before you are parked the car will idle a long time before it runs out. You do this so the fuel won’t be full in the float bowls with the shut off and heat soaking, then hit the pump before starting so they are full of cooler fuel.

 

[toolmanmike]

Welcome to big time mopars!

Use ethanol free fuel it won’t vaporize near as bad as ethanol fuel.

Here is a link to a list of stations for CT.

https://www.pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=CT

Turn off the fuel pump before you are parked the car will idle a long time before it runs out. You do this so the fuel won’t be full in the float bowls with the shut off and heat soaking, then hit the pump before starting so they are full of cooler fuel.

Great idea!

 

[krazykuda]

I'm 80 years old and just got into going to car shows and enjoying the people and many cars that are there. I see a lot of very nice Chevy's and Ford's but decided I wanted something a little different. I found myself a 64 Dodge 440 with a Max Wedge engine. That baby sure is nice and has no problem keeping up with traffic (. It has two Edelbrock carburetors and electronic ignition. My question is When I start it in the morning, above 50 degrees it runs a little rough, I don't think the chokes are working, you have to work the gas pedal to keep it going. Once it warms up it runs great, idles smoothly at around 750 in gear and is very responsive. The real problem is when you shut her down for about 15 minutes and try to start it. She will crank for a while, maybe 7 seconds before she fires, if she fires. Is this just the nature of the beast or is there something I can do to have it start better after it has been run. I just put new plugs, Autolite 85's and a new coil. It does have an electric fuel pump. Thanks for your help

Max wedge heads were designed for racing... They don't have heat crossover ports cast into the heads as that heats up the air fuel mixture which is not desireable in race cars...

Heat crossover ports are to help heat the air fuel mixture when the engine is cold for street driveability, that may be what's going on...

 

[khryslerkid]

Welcome John!

What you describe is pretty much normal for what you have. You'll find what it likes the best for restarting by trial and error. Putting a mechanical choke on the one carb will help with cold starting or just give it time to warm up before you leave.

Post some pictures when you figure out how to do it.

 

[Jerry Hall]

I have a Max Wedge mechanical choke on mine, no electric fuel pump. Cold start without electric fuel pump is a little long after it's sat for a week. I have no other issues, but never run ethanol fuel. Also the way I mix my fuel it's always around 95 octane or higher.

 

[Montclaire]

One thing you may want to try is an old fashioned uni-syn air meter to make sure the carbs are working together. Timing may also play a part here and as another poster suggested, avoid ethanol fuel if you can.

 

[440Coronet500]

Welcome from Michigan, the Motor City! Max Wedge, Damn nothing like jumping in with both feet! 440'

 

[Officer Higgins]

Welcome from Alabama. Glad you are getting out and enjoying shows. I'm about 7 years behind you but a Max Wedge is always cool no matter what the age. View attachment 963645

gorgeous car!

 

[john perez]

Thank Ya'all for all the great advise. I will take a few pictures tomorrow and post them. I take it out every day for my "JOY" ride . It's really a mom and pops looking car, no hood scoop, old fart driving, looks innocent enough. I happened to look in back of the front tire and there are racing lake plugs on each side. Maybe just for show, but they sure look mean.Came with, what they say is the original window sticker and build card. Got most of the service records from the two or three owners. Claimed it had 74,000 miles but who knows. I just wanted to make sure I was not doing anything wrong. It sure is a breed of its own.

 

[davek]

hello and glad your here with us. Cant wait to see some pics.

 

[CudaChick1968]

Welcome aboard sir! What a terrific story!

What intake are you running with those dual four's?

 

[Nate S]

Welcome from right here in CT!

In ‘64 they came out with the 426-S street wedge just because a lot of folk who bought the max wedge didn’t like the fuss. That said, the troubles you recount sound about par for the course. Like another poster said, an electric fuel pump (to boost the mechanical) can sometimes help the hot soak. If the car is stock though, I’d just leave it.