Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Southtowns27

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I need to replace the Quadrajet on the Merc 260 (Chevy 350) in my Wellcraft 260 Aft Cabin. I've never seen throttle shafts this sloppy before.. Anyway, Edelbrock and Holley both offer marine carbs. I'd like to hear personal experiences with both. I have experience with them in the automotive world, but not marine. Also, since I'm in fresh water, what will I gain, if anything, by switching to an aftermarket aluminum intake? Again, I'd like to hear personal experiences, both good or bad.
Thanks in advance.
 

Bondo

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Ayuh,.... Hands down, the Edlebrock 1409,... It's a carbon copy of the Merc/ Weber,...

All the brackets, 'n cables Fit,...

Manifold is up to you,... The iron GM hi-rise is hard to beat,...

Nothin' wrong with aluminum either,...
 

achris

More fish than mountain goat
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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

You need to ask yourself why Merc stopped using Holley carbs way back in the 70s... Here's a clue.. :boom:
 

Scott Danforth

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

I'm a holley fan myself, however can not argue with the drop-in simplicity of the 1409.
 

NHGuy

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

If the Rochester only has a problem with sloppy shaft openings you can rebuild it with shaft bushings. That's unusual though. My carb guru says that auto carburetors are the more likely sufferers of sloppy shafts because of the constant throttle changes that occur when driving. This is in contrast to boats that are normally operated at more steady speeds.
I redid my 24 year old Qjet this past winter and the shafts were perfect.
Cliffsperformance.com has great qjet stuff, and he will personally advise you on a phone call.
But if you want to do drop in, the 1409 is the best.
 
Joined
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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Another vote for the edelbrock... I've always liked there carbs over holleys, they are a lot simpler and don't need new gaskets every year. A direct drop in is just a bonus. If you get an intake, others have advised me to get one that's a dual plane. Hope this helps
 

achris

More fish than mountain goat
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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

+1 for the dual plane...
 

Scott Danforth

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

switching intakes alone wont gain you much

if you want gains that are significant, you have to give the engine the ability to breath more. usually cam, intake and carb together will give you a noticeable increase.

you have a 26' aft cabin. thats a big boat. what are you trying to improve?
 

haulnazz15

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Also get my vote for the 1409. It was drop-in ready and only needed a few minutes to get the idle speed/mixture tuned in. Works flawlessly. As far as the intake, don't get too concerned with it for power-increases, because there won't be a lot of gain to be had at the RPM's your 5.7L runs in a boat. Air gap intakes work great when you're spinning 5K+ rpms, they don't help much (sometimes less) at lower RPMS. I have the Edelbrock Performer (aluminum) and 1409 on my 351w, with no complaints.
 

FreeBeeTony

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Another vot for the 1409........worked right out of the box......only idle mixture adjustments.
 

Southtowns27

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

The 1409 keeps sounding better and better. If I were to swap the intake, it would be to an aluminum dual plane, nothing fancy. The boat works fine the way it is, but an improvement in fuel economy would be nice. Not sure what I'd gain with the intake, but the way I see it, if it can breathe better, it has to be more efficient. But, then again, it spends the majority of its time under 3500rpm..
 

haulnazz15

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

The 1409 keeps sounding better and better. If I were to swap the intake, it would be to an aluminum dual plane, nothing fancy. The boat works fine the way it is, but an improvement in fuel economy would be nice. Not sure what I'd gain with the intake, but the way I see it, if it can breathe better, it has to be more efficient. But, then again, it spends the majority of its time under 3500rpm..

I swapped my intake because I was putting in a new engine and upgrading to a 4bbl from a 2bbl. Since I didn't have the 4bbl carb OR the dual plane intake before I did the swap, I can't attest to any gains from one or the other. I would imagine that the basic Performer intake will suffice.
 

Scott Danforth

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

The 1409 keeps sounding better and better. If I were to swap the intake, it would be to an aluminum dual plane, nothing fancy. The boat works fine the way it is, but an improvement in fuel economy would be nice. Not sure what I'd gain with the intake, but the way I see it, if it can breathe better, it has to be more efficient. But, then again, it spends the majority of its time under 3500rpm..

I sold my stock GM iron intake to a late mod racer. said it flowed as good as the aluminum intakes and met the rules.

Take it for what its worth.
 

NHGuy

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Get the Edelbrock air gap, not the rpm or performer. The air gap allows a cooler air-fuel charge to the motor and gives a scoshe more midrange oomph. The other two are for turning big rpms.
 
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Speakrdude

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Re: Edelbrock or Holley replacement carb?

Did he just use the word "scoshe" as a unit of measurement of horse power?

Well done sir.
 
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