I really don't know too much about carbs, and after several attempts I am still running rich. I have a 383 with a fresh qjet on it. MY question is can I use a vacuum gauge to help dial in my A/F ratio??? If yes where do I connect the gauge to, the carb or the manifold? Also what is a ballpark figure that my vacuum should be at and should the vacuum reading increase or decrease as I am getting closer to the right mixture?? Thanks Brian.

Manifold.
More vac is better.
"Good" vacuum based on the kind of cam you have. Stock should be over 20inhg at idle, full out race could be like 8inhg.

Haynes makes a book specifically for Q-Jets. I bought this book last year and it has been great to own. It goes over tuning to a full rebuild.

There are pictures and diagrams on every page and it is extremely easy to follow. The book breaks it out in step by step instructions so if you can follow instructions, and have somewhat of a mechanical ability, you should be able to do pretty much anything to a q-jet.

Keep in mind that some of the later Q-Jets (from the Smogged 2nd Gens) are more limited in their ability to be adjusted for idle-air mixture.

For example, on the earlier Q-Jets, people say to screw the mixture screw all the way in, & then back out 2 full turns. On the later ones, plan on 4 full turns out. Either way, just set them to the highest vacuum you can get. I used manifold vacuum.

If you are still running rich, then you may want to think about pulling the unit apart & rebuilding it. While you are at it, replace the float & reset the float level. At that point you would also want to epoxy over the welch plugs (there are several - my Haynes Q-Jet book was pretty clear on this, too). But, now I'm getting ahead of you ;)

When I rebuilt my 350 to Stroker 385 I could not get the q-jet to tune, In fact when I adjusted my F/I screws there was no response because I was idleing on the main jets. Sent the carb to cliff ruggles and he had to enlarge my idle circuit, now its all good.

Manifold.
More vac is better.
"Good" vacuum based on the kind of cam you have. Stock should be over 20inhg at idle, full out race could be like 8inhg.

Here are my cam specs, it is a crower roller cam with .474 lift on the intake and .498 the exhaust side. @.50 duration is 214*/220*. Cam is decent but nothing crazy, so when hooking up the gauge I should connect the gauge to a manifold port, is this correct and not the carb???

I called the Carb Shop that set the carb up for me and they told me that they intentionally set the carbs up rich. THey also stated that the carb I have should be able to have the A/F ratio tuned from 10.0-14.0 just with the A/F screws, do you guys agree with this?

Here are a couple pics of the carb..
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g86/nolimitpkr/qjet-6.jpg
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g86/nolimitpkr/qjet-7.jpg

Gee, I built and tuned and about 5 Rochs including my own last year and I don't recall "AF ratio" tuning screws??? The Haynes book doesn't talk that way either or any other books for that matter. All Rochs are set up rich for whatever reasons GM had and thats likely what the Carb Shop was refering too. An O2 sensor can help fine tune any engine but all you need worry about are three things from my experiance.

The carb in the pics is great. Just the version you want, from the pics. That cam ( a roller???? Your running a 220 @ .050 roller???) is so mild getting the idle set should be possible with the stock idle mixture screws. They are NOT "AF" screws???. I have a rowdier cam and had to drill little holes in the primary butterflys to get mine to idle well. A key point...make sure the transition slot is covered properly to start. You may need a book like Haynes or better Roe's Rochestor book.

Next is off idle. The little spring that pulls the primary needles up and down with Vac needs to be functional and correct. The jetting for a good start for yours should be 75-76. An Edlebrock Rochestor strip kit could be a good buy.

WOT involves fine tuning the main jets and the secondary hanger and rods.

They are a pain to work with as far as primaries becuase if you want to experiment its a 30 minute task to pull the top, make a primary change and then carefully put it back together on the car. Holley's have the edge on "quickchange"s.

Still if each system is set up right I am baffled as to why so many folks can't figure these perfectly good performance Carbs out.

A last note: Is the float set right? Rich problems can come from that as well and don't assume a new one like yours is. Same with the fuel valve on the end of the float.

No substitute for fooling around with them and get some gaskets and a strip kit and don't be afraid to tear them apart and check stuff.

Good luck with it!

The "AF ratio tuning screws" that they are referring to are the idle-air mixture screws. There are two at the front base of the carb. Sometimes they have metal plugs over them that must be removed for access...

AF = Air / Fuel.

camertom mentioned just about everything I can think of.

Does the idle surge at all or just run rich?

I like to use an exhaust analyzer will get the idle mixture right on. Remember... setting the idle mixture screws too lean can make the exhaust rich due to lean misfires.

camertom mentioned just about everything I can think of.

Does the idle surge at all or just run rich?

I like to use an exhaust analyzer will get the idle mixture right on. Remember... setting the idle mixture screws too lean can make the exhaust rich due to lean misfires.

No the motor idles great once it fires up(800 rpm). Unfortunately the car is not registered so it's hard to do any driving where I live. I guess I will have to wait until the strip opens, I can get some runs in and start trying adjustments...

Thanks to all for the help and the advice...