dry carb bowls

[djw]

I nominate this topic for the thread creep/topic slippage of the year award

[krick3tt]

Question: I have rebuilt one carb and I am ready to test the float level. I have the tool but have a question about the procedure. When I install the level tool the bowl is going to
empty, at least partially, as I put in the gage. I will have to fill it with the fuel pump, but do I leave the engine running or not? After the float level checks comes the balancing.
I now believe I understand the balancing procedure so that is not an issue...only the float procedure.

[berger]

Question: I have rebuilt one carb and I am ready to test the float level. I have the tool but have a question about the procedure. When I install the level tool the bowl is going to
empty, at least partially, as I put in the gage. I will have to fill it with the fuel pump, but do I leave the engine running or not? After the float level checks comes the balancing.
I now believe I understand the balancing procedure so that is not an issue...only the float procedure.

From my understanding you just turn the truck over to fill the bowls, then you can shut it off.

[Jim LaGuardia]

leave it running at idle to make sure fuel level does not go to high, and of course it will leak fuel if you install the tool after filling carb bowl.
Instructions are posted on my website with pictures

[krick3tt]

Apparently understanding of procedures varies from person to person. That is why I ask questions about things I am unclear of.
Thanks for the replies.

[berger]

Apparently understanding of procedures varies from person to person. That is why I ask questions about things I am unclear of.
Thanks for the replies.

Ditto!

[krick3tt]

I am having a beer and enjoying the success of the carb rebuild and the balancing. Balancing is between 7.5 and 8 (interpolated) and the idle is about 850 to 900.

I am going to let it set overnight and start it up in the AM and see if it all stays where it is now. The second carb is easier to do after the learning curve of the first one.
Also honed the surfaces of the carbs to hopefully eliminate some leakage and get rid of the gas odor. It purrs now.

Thanks Jim for your explanation about the float gage.... A huge thank you goes out to Terry who took time out of his day and stopped by to show me where I was going
wrong in the balancing.

Getting closer to going to Overland Expo.

Happy trails

[eToothpaste]

To continue with the thread hijacking, I had been working on very rich idle and sputtering take-offs from stop by adjusting the idle, but I think I lost my fuel pump over the weekend. Here's the story: I took the pinz out in the desert to show it off the night before my first trip to Moab and after going up and down every hill I could find, started heading back only after everyone in the back was smiling. As soon as I got on good road again it started sputtering badly on and off, almost like it was out of gas, till it died, all within one minute. It was close to R, so I poured my jerry can in (after rigging a funnel out of an oil quart; jerry doesn't fit around the roof rack), but no luck starting.

Checked the spark: good, looked at the filter: one red flake, but clean. Checked the fuel solenoids and they all clicked. Pulled fuel hose off the carb and cranked: not a drop! Pulled the hose to the tank off the pump and it blew surprisingly easily, making bubbles in the tank. Also found out my batteries were pretty much dry after a couple cranks, but luckily my aux batteries had been on trickle for weeks and I swapped them out quick. Cranked some more, then got towed home.

The next day I changed the fuel filter just because they are cheap, and cranked with some starter fluid to try and kick the fuel pump harder. Not a drop came up.

So at this point I know it's still possible that something is blocking the tank (after reading similar symptoms on these very forums). I bought an electric pump and regulator anyway just to help troubleshoot (turns out the stupid thing cost just as much after all the adapters and shipping as a rebuild kit from SAV: $100). I'm definitely going to rebuild the mechanical pump, but I haven't decided if I want to stick with electric or keep it as a spare. Haven't got all the parts yet so I haven't nailed down the pump as the guilty party.

To those that have electric fuel pumps, do you use an oil pressure switch to turn it on/off? Does that switch click on as soon as you start cranking, or is it going to take a while? I know some people wire it to the ignition switch, but I'd like to have the oil switch just to avoid the remote chance of spewing gas all over my up-side-down butt. I'm thinking wire parallel to the oil switch and the starter button so the pump kicks on right away and then stays on with oil pressure.

Thanks in advance for any troubleshooting and/or design help.

An amused,

[audiocontr]

Toothpaste, take the stock pump and disassemble the top portion. Flip the diaphragm and put it back together. Try it again.

[eToothpaste]

Thanks for the tip. I took the top off but it doesn't look as though the diaphragm is keen to be flipped. It has a tab on one side so it can't be rotated, and a cute little can on the bottom, not one on the top. I did notice some fine sediment in the top of the diaphragm, as can be seen in the picture. There also is a new grease looking leak that has been growing since it died (wasn't there at all when I first pulled hoses on the pump. This is in the first picture on the outside of the lower part of the pump.

EDIT: Sorry these pictures turned out so huge. Tomorrow I'm going to check for cracked hoses and maybe drain the tank and peek around inside as best I can. However, the previous owner has a log showing all fuel lines replaced in July 2011, a previous hose in 2010 and yet another hose before that in 2009. Fuel pump replaced in 2010. Based on the sediment, I suppose I need to figure out how to clean the carb jets. Are there different jets to use for different altitudes, or are they adjustable?

[pcolette]

The grease is normal. It usually is packed into the base of the pump to lubricate the pump lever and tappet (01-45-02 & 01-45-31).

Check the fuel strainer (01-45-17) on the pump and see if it also has sediment in it. The strainer is fragile and expensive so be careful cleaning it.

It seems odd that sediment made it thru the fuel filter into the pump. Maybe the previous filter was defective?

01-45.jpg (91 KiB) Viewed 3435 times

[eToothpaste]

Ah, so that is what the tappet is! I saw it in the maintenance schedule but could not find it in the manual. How does one check the tappet clearance? 0.20mm

The grease just seems odd because there really wasn't any there until I really started cranking on the engine, then it slowly started seeping out around that pin. Perhaps a coincidence. What also is odd is that (01-45-10) had the sediment on top, but not on bottom.

The fuel strainer is so incredibly clean I can't even believe it. There is not even the tiniest speck of dirt in there or anywhere near it, and it looks to be in great shape.

[audiocontr]

Clean the diaphragm and put her back together. Try again.

Your diaphragm is different than the one I have, but doesn't look damaged.