Jim Taylor's mechanical restoration of a 1965-spec Pontiac Tri-Power unit is coming to fruition. A ton of work has been done to the formerly tired manifold and its three carbs, which Taylor bought at a swap meet and brought back to his Phillipsburg, New Jersey shop for service. For those readers who are just tuning in, Part I of our journey involved Jim and Mark Erney of Jim Taylor Engine Service disassembling and identifying each carburetor and stripping and cleaning the manifold. Part II brought in-depth throttle shaft assembly and bowl cover repairs for the throttle flange and airhorn. Last month's installment covered many of the carb's parts selection, painting, and rebuilding subjects. In this, the final part of our series, Taylor finishes assembling the rear carb and places all three carbs onto the completed manifold using airhorn-to-filter gaskets (Ames N209F end gaskets and one N209H center gasket). The last half of our feature covers the external accessories, including the Ram Air pan. Taylor depends on Ames Performance Engineering (800-421-2637) for the top-notch reproduction parts that will keep the Tri-Power induction system running for years to come.
Conclusion As you can see, it is important to save every available Tri-Power core. Once we were finished, Taylor had some parting words of advice. "There is no reason that the carbs we just finished can't be in use 50 years from now. It is important to use new lock washers on every screw, and lube every thread with oil or anti-seize compound. Over jetting really hurts power and parts--start with original #62 or #64 jets in the center, and #66 or #68 jets on the ends. Also, never fool around with the venturi cluster air bleeds. If you do Trips right, you will find out why they are famous."
