STEEL

Ok, this is my first build, and the victim is a 85 Z28 (305, 5 speed) and I'm dropping a fresh stroker 383 in. Im using a moderate cam, and its a street/strip car. I have been told that Hollys are best, but hard to tune. I dont have any experience with Carb Tuning, and I am worried that I would NEVER get it right. Also, I have heard Hollys are more expensive, and you need equipment to tune them. This is a budget build (The car was $650, and the engine is $1500) but I want to get my moneys worth if Im buying a Carb. Is it really THAT hard? Is the power difference THAT significant? Would I be better off going with like, a demon?

Burntz

This is purely just my opinion

But a good quadrajet is the most versitile carb out thier. It doesnt have a set CFM, you can tune it to whatever. They are getting rarer, so yes more expensive, but i feel they have the pro's to do it. A: if you are light on the throttle, then small primaries = better gas mileage. B: Once you go WOT, big secondaries open and woooo hold onto the ******* handle.

If you suck at tuning and want to go easy, just grab an edelbrock and throw it on.

Kevin Vandevenne

iTrader: (3)

An edelbrock 750 would probably be the "easiest" carb to put on the car. They are very easy to work on and tune. A 650 Holley DP would make more power. They do take more work to get setup correctly. You can usually sort one out in a day at the track.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

There is no advantage of the Demon over a Holley. If you're sticking with the manual transmission (and a T5 will have to be babied behind a 383), then you definitely want a double pumper type carb. The q-jet may be the best street performance carb, but it isn't the best choice for use with a T5.

Tuning a Holley is not difficult and does not require special equipment. If you get surging under cruise, increase the primary jet size. If you don't have cruise surging, decrease jet size until you do, then go back up two jet sizes. Generally speaking, secondary jet size follows the primary jetting (if you increase the primary jet size, increase the secondary jet size the same amount, etc.). If you get an off-idle dead spot, increase the power valve number - and like primary jetting, if you don't have the dead spot, decrease the number until you do, then go back up. Pretty simple.

Performer carbs don't. Don't even consider one. The only possible way you can consider them easier to tune than a Holley is you don't have to drain the fuel bowl to change the metering rods. Big hairy deal. Stay away from them, they're a waste of good performance $'s.