i have a 1964 valiant with a 225 /6 and a 904 tranny. New points, wires, rotor, cap, plugs, rebuilt carb, new fuel pump, and adjusted valves. Timing is set around 5 degrees at 600 rpm. The car seems very sluggish off the line. Is this normal? Also when cold the engine stutters when giving it gas. I know that the heat riser valve is stuck so will this do that? I am also considering getting a 2barrel into one conversion. Will this help at all? Any idea of how much more horsepower increase when milling the head?

Thanks

Welcome on the board. Sluggishness is not normal, nor is hesitation when cold. Sounds like the carburetor and the choke may need more attention. Did you rebuild the carb yourself, or is it a "remanufactured" item purchased from a parts store? The heat riser valve should be freed up so that it works correctly. What settings did you use on the valve adjustment, and did you do it with the engine cold or hot? What spark plugs did you install, and did you remove their metal ring washers before installing them? Also sounds like the distributor might warrant some attention. Did you check to make sure the mechanical and vacuum advance mechanisms are working as they should?

The 2bbl-to-1bbl "adaptors" are pointless at best, and a tremendous hassle to make work even marginally on a car like your automatic '64 (linkage issues, hood clearance). If you want a 2bbl conversion, there are various ways of doing it right. All of them involve either swapping or modifying the intake manifold. But it would probably be best, in general, to find and fix the car's problems before making modifications.

You will want to buy at least the factory service manual and possibly the other two books described in this post, and as for milling the head...leave that for a far-future round of upgrades. Your car is not sluggish because the head hasn't been milled.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

'64 Valiants are the crown jewels of the slanted world. But, then, I might be biased!

It's not normal for one to be sluggish, although they aren't exactly rip-snorters in stock form. The heat riser can cause problems. In which position is it stuck? How does the car do once you're rolling?

Rebuild carburetors are often the culprits, as are clogged fuel lines and pickup socks, and the ever-popular vacuum leak.

A two-barrel conversion will help IF the problem is in your current carburetor.

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"When you find a big kettle of crazy, it's best not to stir it." - Pointy-haired Boss

1964 Valiant V200, 225/Pushbutton 904
BBD, CAI, HEI, LBP, AC, AM/FM/USB, EIEIO

I rebuilt the carb myself, with a napa rebuild kit. It runs fine when warn though. The hesitation only happens when its below 40 degrees. Champion spark plugs. I used settings for the calves out of the manual. I think .10exhuast .20 intake, I think, maybe the other way around. No I did not remove the metal washers. Why is this important? Yes I have checked the vacuum and mechanical advance on the distributor and they are fine. The heat riser valve is stuck open, no exhaust hits the intake.

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1964 Plymouth Valiant 4 door V200
170 slant six

1996 Dodge Dakota 318

1953 Willys Pickup-= V8 Conversion project

OK, that suggests issues with the automatic choke system. See this article for information on checking and adjusting the choke thermostat and the choke pull-off. If you find the choke thermostat is bent or deteriorated from age, it is best to install one of the electric choke kits. Your stuck-open heat riser valve is also contributing to poor cold driveability, so see here for info on getting it back in action.
They probably aren't causing your problem, but they also aren't very well made these days. Next time, try a set of the NGK ZFR5N spark plugs, which have an extended tip that improves driveability. The metal ring washers should be removed (from whatever brand of plugs you install), because they are not used on '63-'74 slant-6s.
The spec is 0.010" intake and 0.020" exhaust, with the engine hot. Did you adjust the valves with the engine hot?

When you say the engine runs fine when hot, are you saying it's not sluggish once it's warmed up? Or it's sluggish all the time, but also tends to hesitate when cold?

Have you verified that the timing mark on the crankshaft pulley actually indicates TDC on the frontmost cylinder? Over time, the outer ring of the crank pulley can slip relative to the inner ring. This will cause retarded ignition timing even when the mark (under the flash of a timing light) says it's correct.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Agreed, but we do need to make the distinction clear between a 2bbl conversion (the right way to do it -- with a swapped or modified intake manifold) and a 2bbl adaptor on a 1bbl intake (the wrong way to do it).

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

The plug seat in your head- assuming it's the original - is designed to seal without the metal washer. The washer could cause an imperfect seal.

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"When you find a big kettle of crazy, it's best not to stir it." - Pointy-haired Boss

1964 Valiant V200, 225/Pushbutton 904
BBD, CAI, HEI, LBP, AC, AM/FM/USB, EIEIO

The plugs seal just fine with or without the metal ring washers. But the plugs will run hot and the electrodes will be moved slightly out of position if the ring washers are used. See here for detailed info.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

yes i adjusted the valves to spec when the engine was hot. it has hesitation when cold but is still sluggish when hot. No, i have not checked the outer ring on the damper. How is this done correctly?

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1964 Plymouth Valiant 4 door V200
170 slant six

1996 Dodge Dakota 318

1953 Willys Pickup-= V8 Conversion project

You can stick a straightened-out coathanger wire or similar into the frontmost spark plug hole, and turn the engine by hand (easier with no spark plugs installed) until the wire stops moving upward out of the plug hole. Then, check where the mark on the crank pulley is relative to the timing indicator. Obviously there are two TDCs, so if the mark is not visible the first time, turn the engine until the wire goes down and then all the way back up and check again.

Another thing to check is whether your timing chain is stretched. Pop off the distributor cap and rotate the engine in one direction until the rotor begins to move. Then rotate the engine in the opposite direction and see if the rotor begins to move immediately. If there's much lag, the timing chain is stretched and ought to be replaced.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

thanks,
i'll try that next time i work on the car

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1964 Plymouth Valiant 4 door V200
170 slant six

1996 Dodge Dakota 318

1953 Willys Pickup-= V8 Conversion project

I have a 1964 Dart with a 225. Thanks for the info here, I'm pretty sure my heat riser is stuck as well.

Dan, I am currently running a "remanufactured" Carter BBS that isn't quite right, and I was planning this holiday season to put on a ~300 cfm 2-bbl Weber with one of those adapters. Not a permanent setup, but I have the carb laying around and the adaptor was cheap. I realize this is not as effective as getting the proper intake manifold, but what exactly is the downside? Just not getting the full potential out of the carb? Wasted fuel mileage? I had this thing on many years ago before the rebuild, so I know it will clear the hood and I have a working linkage made.

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Somehow I ended up owning three 1964 slant six A-bodies. I race one of them.
Escape Velocity Racing

Aside from linkage hassles especially with automatic transmission and hood-to-carb clearance issues (sounds like you've tackled these), the adaptor itself is going to work against you. Two holes restricted down into one. I'm sure it'll work as a temporary deal, it's not like the car will blow up or anything...but you'll want to make plans to do it right (carb mounted directly to intake manifold) when you can.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Okay, that sounds about right. This is just to add some more power without spending any extra $$. At some point in the not-too-distant future I plan to get a 2-bbl (or more?) intake.

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Somehow I ended up owning three 1964 slant six A-bodies. I race one of them.
Escape Velocity Racing

Gmf.... I think 68 FB Barracuda's is.......Well remember over here In RSA all the Barracuda's - only a-bodies over here btw - was Known as Valiant Barracuda and badged as such

Think I might be biassed as well

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Regards,
Fanie Gerber
It's never junk, it's just a part you're not currently using

http://www.valiant50.co.za
Just say I own a few Mopars