Riddle me this

[jamesw]

1988 dodge ram50 sport 2.6l with a Weber 32/36 DGEV Electric Choke with a manual gas pump
@ around 60-65 mph i get blow back threw the carb almost like a back fire this just started happening .
so the other day i was going into town have a little hill i have to climb about half way up i,m running around 60-65 mph the rpm start to drop and suddenly pop, spit, sputter cuts out .
i reach up turn off the over drive the rpm pick up but i,m still getting the what i,m calling blow back threw the carb it's like it cuts out
then when i let off the gas it's ok.
it does it under a load like pulling a hill with my 14 ft flat bottom aluminum boat.
it will also do it without the boat just not as bad.
so is this a carb going bad?
we check (my mechanic ) the timing right on the money check the vacuum plenty of vacuum no leaks getting plenty of fire
when you take the breather off there is black in the carb from when it pops back aka *back fire* so before i go investing in another carb*$299 ebay. what can it be?
thanks for any help on this one guys

[jamesw]

on a whim today i readjusted the timing because of something that i read by geezer101 wrote the other day

I have a tendency to not worry about a timing light other than using it as a diagnostic tool.

so on that theory i got out this morning and redid the timing first one way took it out ran it same thing blow back threw the carb so i come back to the house and went the other way with the timing and low and behold the blow back stopped i tested on a steep hill @ 70-75 mph one that i had run the other day that had issues @ 60-65 mph but this time it ran right up the hill WITHOUT any problems as far as blow back is concerned i still have a little bit of power lose but i think i can fix that by adjust and tweaking the cab and the timing together. but as for putting a timing light on it and setting it to factory specs it throws it way off *as in performance* and cause's a lot of issues.
learn something new everyday thanks gezzer101 for the advise given to mikclson .

[geezer101]

...learn something new everyday thanks gezzer101 for the advise given to mikclson .

Glad to be of help dude. There are so many variables affecting ignition timing when it comes to old school distributors. The timing light relies on every variable being 'perfect' but it's far from it (especially when the engine is getting long in the tooth so to speak). And as I mentioned in the post going by 'the book' only tunes it for a base idle figure and not for dynamic driving conditions. Should've added to regap your plugs too - under gap them to about .95mm and tweak the ignition timing again. Digging out an extra 10mph on an incline is a big difference eh?

[jamesw]

yes sir i agree 1000% i should have thought about it but this meds i take for my old broken down heart lol it makes me forgetful some times. i have forgotten more than most people ever learn . this is why i like good people like yourself that can think for the rest of us lol keep up the great work

[geezer101]

Thanks for the kudos james . I'd mark the distributor now at it's current tune point so you have a reference to work from. A bit more tweaking and carb adjustment, and it should pull nice and strong. The Weber is more responsive to ignition adjustments and can handle a more aggressive tune due to a greater CFM + air/fuel mixture.

[BradMph]

make sure your mixture is setup correctly after you get things dialed in to your liking. Check your plugs for color and if they nice tan color your good. My weber needed a couple needle adjustments, but I'm at 2000ft. Keep on Trucking

[jamesw]

Thanks for the kudos james . I'd mark the distributor now at it's current tune point so you have a reference to work from. A bit more tweaking and carb adjustment, and it should pull nice and strong. The Weber is more responsive to ignition adjustments and can handle a more aggressive tune due to a greater CFM + air/fuel mixture.

see another great ideal i,ll get out there today and take some bright paint and spray where the bolt is that way if it moves i,ll be able to tell.at current setting it still seems a bit sluggish on take off like it wants to hesitate .but after what i have been dealing with this is a nice problem lol

[jamesw]

make sure your mixture is setup correctly after you get things dialed in to your liking. Check your plugs for color and if they nice tan color your good. My weber needed a couple needle adjustments, but I'm at 2000ft. Keep on Trucking

yes sir bradmph that was one of the first things we checked was the plugs well the first plug anyways and it was nice and clean tan as you say guess i do need to check the rest of them just to be on the safe side. it's not like they are hard to get to lol
i pulled the jet/air mix needles to make sure there wasn't any trash they was all clean shot some carb cleaner threw everything.
also put a bottle of 104 octane booster in a full tank of non-ethanol fuel that was a pretty penny lol but i think now that i have found the solution to my problem i,m headed down the right path i hope lol