[Stan Weiss]

Originally Posted by steve25

Any intake valves that where not closing properly, yet the cylinders firing would have made for back fires being heard out the Carb, especially when you put your foot in it,BTDT!

Did the op have plugs that where not firing? I forget.

The one major thing here that will have many different repercussions is that for whatever reason the amount of run time on the motor in its poor state was enough to get the engine oil to smell of fuel, so this was either due to 1) cylinders not firing. 2) a Carb problem. 3) or both combined!

Also low vacuum in and of itself would have made for a rich condition.

Diluted engine oil combined with blowby will make a mess of things, I have seen this in many a high mileage SBC motors that should have been rebuilt the right way, that there owners just re-ringed and stuff in a 250 duration Cam and a 850 Carb while the delusion of then having a 11 second car.

Steve,
I guess I look at what is going on here totally different than you do.

When first put together it had 15" of vacuum. Which should have not caused any problems.

It is a 400 ci with a 270/277 Adv 210/221 @ 0.050" cam. I am sure no delusion of even having a 12 second car

I am still not sure that it did have a ring seal problem.

Stan