lazy j,
From recently messin' with a Stromberg 2-barrel carb on a 66 Dodge Coronet, I'm gonna take a stab at this, and see if someone shoots me down:
First, I don't know what year automatic chokes started appearing on trucks, but '49 seems too early to me for that. But I think that's what the carb in your photos has - that big cylindrical growth on the front side is a vacuum choke unloader, I think. Picture's not perfect, but that tube on the side might be a vacuum line from below the throttle plate(s). It is (I'm weak here) supposed to automatically open ("unload"?) the choke when vacuum drops, as in when accelerating, so engine doesn't stall. Or is it that it closes the choke, to increase vacuum and speed up the draw of fuel into the throttle body? Anyway . . . It's related to the choke.
So, I'm GUESSING that this is not the original carb.
SECOND, I'm GUESSING that rod you're worried about is the thermostatic choke coil thingy. It's attached to a spring coil in the exhaust manifold, which, when it warms up, the coil spring expands, pushing that rod upwards, which would open the choke automatically when the engine was warm enough not to need the choke, were it connected to a choke on a carb that uses that. It would also prevent the choke from being closed on a warm re-start.
Again, doesn't seem to me that a '49 would have that, either, so maybe it's jury-rigged to the manifold heat control valve somehow . . .Regardless, it's obviously not currently in use.
Is there a "CHOKE" knob in the dash somewhere? If so, where does the linkage go? If not to this carb, than it's prob. not the original carb.
OK . . . I'm gonna sit back and wait for someone to "school" me in carburators now . . .
-Michael
