Yeah hilborn is super cool, but EXPENSIVE. I just can't swing that much right now.
Well I bit the bullet this morning. I called holley again trying to get them to let me upgrade to the sniper2 and pay the difference. No dice. I talked with Taylor for over an hour and we went over every single wire connection, the entire setup in the hand held (abou 50 parameters) and after he saw the picture of how much the throttle body leaked said there was no way to fix it on my end. His tech guy looked at the pic I sent of the fuel on the manifold and said he wanted that unit sent directly to him. Said somehow someone screwed up, bad assembly or lack of a thorough test on the unit and wants to figure out who put the unit together.
So I bought the sniper2 and their power distribution module for 10% off. Along with the deal he is sending out a brand new sniper1 (chrome version-I have the gold color) for $1406. Not wild about the chrome unit, but I don't have anything to use it on anyway, I may try to sell it. I know a local guy that also has two 55's and needs a new carb, but he is mechanically challenged. A great body and paint guy, but can't figure out a firing order. If I sold it to him I'd be the one putting it on the car. The car is to say the least a mechanical mess to put it nicely. He did his best but I cringe at the thought of working on it. Once I started I just couldn't let stuff go that I see wrong. Best for me to stay clear of it. He did a great job of making both is cars from 4 doors to 2 doors, but I wouldn't let him do anything mechanical on a tonka truck I own.
Funny, another person that my wife works with (he drives fuel transports also) has a 70 nova with a BBC. He removed the intake manifold and couldn't get it started after he put it back together. He put the distributor in one tooth off. I got that fixed, and saw he has the vacuum advance plumbed to the vacuum modulator of the turbo 400 trans and the ported vacuum connection on the carb was open. So I got those fixed. Now he needs to wire up a kick down for passing gear. Doesn't have one now. But he like the first guy is a great body and paint guy and has taught my wife a lot about driving fuel transports. He's been with the company 29 years now.
One other thing Taylor at holley said is I need to have a dual post battery and run the sniper power off the side terminal and the main power for the car off the top terminal, or vice versa. He said there will still be some flyback if they are on the same terminal. I have a dual post battery so that's not a problem to change that. One of the things they did a lot of work on was electrical interference for the new sniper2. I guess the power distribution module helps that. So more wiring work. I went to great pains to make the wiring as neat and clean as possible and hide as much as I could. Now I have to almost start over on it.
So now I have to go out to my shop and make $1400 worth of chips on stuff to sell. I have 5 days to do that.
Edit: I just found out the sniper2 uses a external fuel regulator. I have to get one of those now. Not sure how or if I can use my fuel manifold I made with it. Took me most of a day to make the manifold.
![fuel manifold.jpg fuel manifold.jpg](https://www.hobby-machinist.com/data/attachments/413/413789-8ad1fc10487031b7d6f62fff3adb5aac.jpg)