original carb stripped where fuel line enters helicoil wont work, its original and runs great. need new body though. any help out there

its a 400 4 speed

Any reason helicoil won't work? Is it cracked or way oversized? I've done many and helicoil always inserted correctly, sealed and is the only permanent repair I know of. I've seen guys JB weld it in and add an inline filter, - also works, depends on your preference and how original you want the car to keep.

Already had a helicoil in it cracked and worn. was told it cand be fixed again withiout the worry of leaking.

I have never seen jb weld hold up and usually ends up leaking which could possibly end up burning your car to the ground. not worth the chance of installing a time bomb in my opinion. As long as the actual carb housing is not cracked what I have seen is the helicoil installed crooked not allowing the gasket surface of the filter housing to sit flush. if this is the case you can dig out the helicoil the best you can and buy the repair housing they sell at most parts stores which is made like a tap and will cut it's own threads on the way in you just have to make sure and keep it square on the way in and as long as it feels tight and sits square on the gasket you will be fine. I have personally installed a few of these back in the day when I was a tech. for people because of how easy it is to strip these fine aluminum threads. I have seen people use it just this way for years and take it in and out for filter replacements or if your nervous and already have a rubber fuel line in that area just leave the filter out and install a inline filter. Good luck and let us know how you make out.