Our 1986 F150 (5.8L) needs the carburator rebuilt.

Does anyone know a mechanic or service company in Tulsa, OK that does an excellent job rebuilding Holley Carbs??

Can't seem to find anyone that will touch them. Ford certainly won't. Have kit. Had one mechanic back out of the job.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

I don't mean to be the bearer of bad news, but few people will mess with them. The honest and sad thing is that you can buy a new one cheaper than you can get a rebuilt. Also, Edelbrock makes a GREAT carb, Demon even better.

 

I got a 351 ho with the holley and im in the process of puttin on a edelbrock 1406

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That IS sad. Used to be, High school kids with some dexterity could rebuild carbs with a rebuild kit. I always rebuilt what was there. Even the VV carbs. But if the throttle shaft wore the shaft holes to an oval, well, time for a replacement there.

 

Granpa, yeah sad but true. It is not that no one can, it is that it is so expensive. Figure an easy 3 flat hours at least for the standard rebuild on one of those boat anchor holleys. Most of that is setting it up, as the holley is a bigger pain than most. (built for racing, not idleing) At my shop that is 180 bucks. Add the carb kit to that.. lookin well over 200 bucks easy. Add tax, shop supplies.. man it makes my head hurt. No REALLY... holleys really DO make the head hurt.. lots of HC's and CO at idle even set up right. GO to the local parts store or speed shop and get a NEW one for that and not worry about worn butterflies or shafts.

 

Thank you all so much for your insight and input.

I will be looking into the edelbrock products.

My last attempt at rebuilding a carburetor was on my wife's 1976 Ford Gran Torino Elite back when we were dating. I messed it up so bad that her car caught fire on the way to work the next day. Needless to say I haven't been able to touch any of her cars since then (18 years ago!!!!!!) May be a blessing in disguise.

Anyway, I also wanted to ask you guys about what our mechanic called the "WARP" factor. Where the Original carburetor on the original manifold fit perfectly together because they have "warped" the same over time. I've been told that no matter what kind of new carb I might buy and install, it will never fit perfectly because of this "warp" factor. Any ideas or comments?

Also remember that the '86 was the last year Ford put carbs on the F-150 and that the whole engine is run by a web of vacuum hoses. Does the Edelbrock take this into account?

I really appreciate your input to the process. The price of premium gas my wife uses and the poor mileage we get with the carburetor on this truck is killing the budget!!!