Fuel pump troubles...HELP!

[83cuttysupreme]

Hey guys. as most of you know i got an 83 cutty supreme, and put a chevy 305 in it from a 1992 camaro, so gen III i believe. and I took the pushrod out of a gen I block for the mechanical fuel pump. but for some reason no matter how much i crank the motor over, no fuel comes from the pump, i thought I was going crazy so I hooked up the inlet from the fuel pump to a gas can and disconnected the fuel line from the carb to see if it would spit some out, still nothing, I'm not a big fan of electric fuel pumps, but i gotta do what I gotta do. What do you guys think?

I may just go electric, but what kinda pump would I need in this case?

 

[CostasCutlass]

I just had this issue and it took a friend for me to figure it out. Mechanical pumps push not pull, and since u just put this in all of the fuel in the line probally drained back out. What we did was take an airline from a compressor with just an air blowing nozzle on it, took off the gas cap, and used a couple rags to seal around it a lil better. Have a friend blow some air into it and try cranking. With the pressure in the tank the pump should be able to suck it up. This is exactually what we had to do with mine after putting the new motor in and it worked perfectly. I'd definately suggest using a see through fuel filter between the pump and the carb, I couldnt believe how much crap mine cought in the first few minutes of running. Autozone by me carries the spectra brand clear filter, its the same brand jegs carriers. If you use that one just make sure to use some teflon tape when you screw the plastic nipples into the filter or it'll probally leak. Hope this helps, let me know if this fixes the problem or not.

 

[jrm81bu]

That would still be a gen 1 engine. Did you check to make sure the pushrod actually moves in and out hwen you crank it? The cam may not have a lobe on it to make it move.

 

[83cuttysupreme]

Well It turns out the cam is the problem, there is no lobe on it for a mech fuel pump. My buddy has a holley electrical fuel pump and barry grant regulator, where's the best place to put this? can i mount it right in the engine bay? or does it need to be back towards the tank?

 

[larryo454]

Hi the fuel pump as close to the tank as u can get it. the holley pumps push fuel, when a holley pump pulls the fuel it does not last and tend to die. And the reg can go up on the engine if u want.