No one is advocating an electric over a mechanical. Everyone is saying "if you go with electrical" do this or that. It does have the advantage of almost instant gas flow when bowl is empty. The original system is the best way to go. Finding out why it looses carb fuel is the answer. We just got off on a tangent about electric.
I will say that "a few days" has been mentioned and "a week or more" has been mentioned. There is a point where all the bowl fuel will evaporate. At that point, if you don't pump the hell out of it while cranking, with some choke applied, it will take a long time to suck up the gas and start itself. At least that's what I've done for many years on trucks that sit a long time. You can't sit a long time and start right up unless you have an electric fuel pump....ooops! there I go again.
In truth, I have never installed one in my old trucks. Probably never will.
If your truck cranks slow, your pump pumps slow.........so filling bowl takes longer after a week or so of sitting.....up hill.......in the sun...15 seconds max.
Why are the folks glossing over the constant BLACK SMOKE?
This is an indicator especially if he means all the time. Choke stuck/way too much gas. I would rebuild this carb before doing anything else. Need a good baseline. Also make SURE air cleaner is CLEAN....and not a small "Hot Rod" pot pie size.
BTW, pumping like crazy does not fill the motor with gas, it is just that when there is enough to squirt, you catch it right away to save battery and starter. You don't know when it's ready for it's first squirt or two because you can't see inside
It's the same as pouring gas down in.
