The way to Clean and Rebuild Carburetors (2)

Also try tightening carb top screws or other carburetor body screws. Do not over-tighten [torque specs are usually in the factory repair manual]. But the carburetor body screws may have vibrated loose.

No luck? Let’s pull the carburetor. Remove the air cleaner, and disconnect fuel and vacuum lines from the carb. Be sure to catch the gas that will run out of the line in a small can or with rags.  Make sure that the gas-soaked rags are hung out-of-doors to dry. Gasoline soaked rags are extremely volatile.

Disconnect throttle connections, making note of which holes the linkage fits into. Often there are two or three holes into which it can fit. Make a note on paper or take a photo. Otherwise you’ll never remember.

Remove the entire carburetor from the intake manifold. Do not try to partially disassemble the carb while it is on the car. As you remove the carb, make note of the direction of the carburetor on the manifold, of the way the gaskets are installed, of spacers and of throttle connections.

As soon as you have removed the carburetor, put a clean towel or rag over the intake manifold so that small parts, nuts, washers, etc. do not fall into the manifold.

Put the entire carburetor on a clean work-bench, and photograph it from all angles. This will help in reassembly. Keep a supply of zip-top plastic baggies, a pen and small pieces of paper nearby. As you remove screws or parts, make a note on the piece of paper as to what the part is, where it came from and the direction that it was installed, and put the part and note in a baggy. Take photos as you disassemble the carb; it will jog your memory in reassembly. Many parts look the same once they are spread out on the bench. Little ball-bearing seals may look identical, but the size may differ by a couple of thousandths of an inch. Don’t mix them up.

A word about carburetor repair kits: many kits are designed to supply parts for a variety of carburetors. It is generally less expensive or easier for the manufacturer to include the parts for several carbs in one package. Be sure that you carefully match up the parts in the kit with the parts removed from your carburetor. Often gaskets look identical, but holes or openings are not quite the same. Also flipping a gasket over will present a totally new perspective of where the holes align.

Carefully begin to disassemble the carburetor. Make a note of the sequence of disassembly. It will make reassembly much easier. The instruction sheet that comes with the rebuilding kit will be a tremendous help in locating internal jets and passages, one-way valves, etc.

Remove all gaskets, rubber or leather parts. The all-metal parts have to be cleaned in a special carburetor cleaner. I have used Berryman’s B-12 Carburetor Cleaner and Gunk’s Carb-Medic. A word of caution – from personal experience: these are strong, aggressive chemicals, and they dry the oils from skin.

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