pull the inlet line and the part that line bolts to first.
that should let you pull the needle out from that side. and see if there is garbage in there before you have to pull the top.
if you can get it cleaned up there, it will save you gasket time.
I have the Holley manual and I see what you mean! Yeah that may work! Thanks for the suggestion!!
The funny thing is when I swapped out the inlet fitting I noticed the manual shows it's supposed to have a filter/spring in the fitting itself but there wasn't one and I checked all my old carb rebuild boxes to see if any came with a filter but no luck so I left it as is because I had been driving it for years without it! I would've put a filter in if I had access to one but... That probably would've prevented this issue(assuming it is debris)!
