Inliners International Forums General Discussion Engines Leaky 1bbl Carb

OK Guys I am at my wits end here, this is the 3rd carb that has done this. The carb is leaking from the screw that goes into the side of the carb near the base and I am assuming that goes into the throttle plate at the base of the carb. I had a messed up engine before and I had four springs on the carb the first time, so it was obvious to me that there was too much pressure on the bushings and they wore out, but what about the past two times, it has lasted approx two weeks before it wears out and starts leaking. I only have one spring on it and the linkage is OEM. It is an Oreilly rebuilt carb.

Any ideas at all would be appriciated. I can't afford to get a Clifford intake and 4bbl carb, these were mass produced for years upon years, it CAN work, and I want the factory setup... anyone???

What carb do you have? Is it a Rochester MV style?

Yes, as far as I know. I don;t know about that MV Style", but it is the stock Rodchester 1BBL replacement you get at Oreillys. TOMCO CARBURETOR COMPANY - Remanufactured Carburetor
Item No: 1-331

The three carbs that I had all worked great, just the bushing gets worn out at an accelerated pace. I will try relocating the linkage to the other stock location on the inside of the manifold instead of the outside and just keep a spare carb with me again I guess...

Dear Mr. Thomas;

Does yout truck use cable linkage??

If so; check if the cable is "free".

There's "NO WAY" 4 springs should be required, to operate safely.

Good luck.

I was running 4 springs on my old engine, something was definitely wrong with that bad boy, but I have been running just one spring on this engine and the past two carbs.

Yes, I am running cable linkage, it seems to be free, free enough where one spring will return it back, but it isn't straight though, so I will get a shorter cable and see if that helps. Thanks for the idea.

How is the spring arranged? Does it pull directly opposite of the cable, or is it on the same side as the cable, but on the opposite side of the throttle shaft? I can't imagine you have a single spring that stiff, but even the OE stuff tends to waller the shaft bushing out eventually if the spring is on the same side as the cable. It does not however do it anywhere near as fast as you describe.

Just something to think about.

It's an auto zone Help Section spring. You know the ones you can get that are like factory with one skinny spring and another bigger spring that goes around it. I removed the bigger spring.

The spring is set up like a see saw set straight up and down, the top connection is the linkage, and the bottom connection is the spring. The fulcrum is on the side of the intake, not the side of the carb. The spring is attached to the linkage bracket. It is as weak as it can get. Yeah, three weeks is pretty dern quick, but I am convinced that it has to do with the linkage because it just has to be. Tomorrow I am going to change over the linkage to the other location and get a smaller cable, I will make sure to put the linkage in the stock location which I believe is from the bottom of the carb, up to a bracket at the top of the carb.

I agree. I had a spring break on a 340 powered Dart and I was lucky I didn't run into anyone.

Walt & Martin are both correct.

However; something is binding somewhere and that's what needs to be solved FIRST.

Then; the "inned/outer" springs are good for safety and a wise addition any time.

Happy trails.

OK, another carb leaked three days AFTER I "fixed" the linkage and replaced the springs... Everything about the linkage is now OEM factory stock perfect so I am at a total loss for what is doing this. There is no binding anywhere, and the springs are as weak as possible that can still pull the throttle back down.

I am giving up on trying to make the 1bbl work, that frustrates me to no end, but I am tired of getting stranded.

Does anyone know or have a 1bbl to 2bbl adapter plate I can buy? I've got a 2bbl on the shelf. I would love to do a Clifford intake but I do not have money for that and a 4bbl at this time. Going to post in the wanted section as well, thanks.

I found one at Summit for $13

Were those carbs rebuilt? Or did you just use what you had or found? Maybe the ethanol in the gas is eating the rubber and causing the leaks. You say you are tired of being stranded. The engine doesn't run when you are leaking? Sounds like a problem I had before I rebuilt with fresh kits. Just another idea?
Dominic

ALL of them are new Oreillys Remanufactured Carburetors right off the shelf.

There is no rubber on the part that is leaking, it is a brass insert that I can see is getting worn due to pressure from somewhere, that I am unable to determine. If Ethanol was eating up carbs we would have a nationwide issue!

The engine runs when cruising down the road because the vaccum pulls the gas into the engine. At a stop light the gas goes all over the intake, not in the engine, and it dies and won't start again.

Have you got a filter in the gas line some were?

Larry

Nope, stock metal gas line from the pump to the carb. My 2bbl adapter plate was delivered today, so I'm gonna get it on tonight and hopefully not run into too much trouble with the linkage and we'll see how this one goes!

hello Thomas,
I have read these posts a couple of times to see if there is anything I can think of.
you are using a different needle and seat on each of these carbs?. sounds to me like it might be simply flooding for some reason. this is usually one of two things -- needle and seat not shutting excess fuel flow off when the bowl is at the right level,and -- the fuel level too high in the bowl,due to an incorrect float level,or a bad float.what floats are in these ?hollow brass or solid float material?
also the screw you speak of at the carb base -- is that the idle mixture screw you are referring to?
do you have a pic or 2 you can post of the set up? springs and all?

regards,Rod

Dear Thomas;

Before you install your new carb. look in the old one and see if there's dirt/rust in the bowl.

If so; contamination is the problem & you NEED a filter as mentioned.

Good luck.

I am DONE trying to troubleshoot this problem. It has pushed me too far.

I have noted that they are new, stock carbs, and that the leak is coming from the screw that holds the throttle shaft, also demonstrated by the physical wear on the brass sleeve. As I am unable to find any binding or angle that could cause undue pressure on this part, I am going to stop wasting my whole summer trying to figure it out, I am installing the 2bbl today, just need to get the linkage off a newer model inline 6 that comes over from the passenger side and across the valve cover, to be at the right angle, then I'll be in business. I didn't have any luck at the junkyard today, they crushed all three of the inline 6's that were there! I'll look at some other yards tomorrow. Here is a pic of the adapter plate and my old 2bbl.

If anyone is interested, here is a pic of the final setup with the new linkage. I cleaned the carb a little, installed a fuel pressure gauge to be sure there was not too much pressure keeping the needle from seating and added a clear plastic filter to watch for any contamination, both of those drew a negative, but that's just two more things that it's not.

The truck is running good again...

Nexxussian, you mentioned that the shaft gets hollowed out faster if the spring is on the same side as the cable, does everyone else agree with that? I had never heard that before but the logic makes sense.