1950s Leaking gas from carburetor carter 742s

[Daffer]

Its always something with a classic car and i know nothing lol, my carburetor which was rebuilt completely it leaking from the gasket in the photo below, im not to worried but id like to get it fixed i heard that adjusting something could fix it. Problem is I dont know what to adjust. Or is there something else wrong that needs yo be addressed to stop the leak.  Thank you all in advance everyone is always so helpful

[TJ Hopland]

Is it got an actual drip leak somewhere or is it just kinda wet and weepy?    You said its just been rebuilt?  What does the rebuilder say?   Seems like they should either stand behind their work and make it right or maybe they know of or mentioned past damage that they were worried would cause an issue like this.

All I can think about that people could be saying adjust is the float level but that isn't something you adjust to stop the bowl gasket from leaking its adjusted to make the carb perform correctly.  I don't know that carb so I don't know if there are any easy external ways to check the float level.

IF the float level is wrong or there is an issue with the needle and seat sealing (or you have too much fuel pressure) and the bowl is just full you are probably gonna be running stupid rich and if you have an electric fuel pump dumping fuel into the engine while its not running if the pump can run when the engine isn't.   All the above would be putting extra stuff that ain't oil or good for lubrication into your oil and contributing to your smoke issue so you really want to figure out whats up with this issue before you run it.  Perhaps others that know this carb can tell you how to check it or where excess fuel may be dumping out.   

[Daffer]

Is it got an actual drip leak somewhere or is it just kinda wet and weepy?    You said its just been rebuilt?  What does the rebuilder say?   Seems like they should either stand behind their work and make it right or maybe they know of or mentioned past damage that they were worried would cause an issue like this.

All I can think about that people could be saying adjust is the float level but that isn't something you adjust to stop the bowl gasket from leaking its adjusted to make the carb perform correctly.  I don't know that carb so I don't know if there are any easy external ways to check the float level.

IF the float level is wrong or there is an issue with the needle and seat sealing (or you have too much fuel pressure) and the bowl is just full you are probably gonna be running stupid rich and if you have an electric fuel pump dumping fuel into the engine while its not running if the pump can run when the engine isn't.   All the above would be putting extra stuff that ain't oil or good for lubrication into your oil and contributing to your smoke issue so you really want to figure out whats up with this issue before you run it.  Perhaps others that know this carb can tell you how to check it or where excess fuel may be dumping out.   

kinda wet & weppy. I acctually rebuilt it, followed the shop manual plus the carter carburetor instruction sheet. my assumption is the bowl is filling up a bit to much but as I said before im no expert, wish I was. I just am not sure how to adjust it to keep it from filling to much. I assume that's the problem because everything else is dry. as for the fuel pump Im only running the original which I also rebuilt since the diaphragms where dried out. Also just went and looked back i was worried there was a chance the float needle may have been installed upside-down but I looked back at old photos and its right, so kinda lost.

[TJ Hopland]

If it was a Quadrajet I would have specific places for you to look but I don't think I know your carb at all.  Were the needle and seat identical to the old ones as far as you could tell?  Re used the float?  Did you do any checking to make sure the float isn't leaking?   What is and did the procedure for checking and setting the level make sense and seem to be correct?

[Daffer]

If it was a Quadrajet I would have specific places for you to look but I don't think I know your carb at all.  Were the needle and seat identical to the old ones as far as you could tell?  Re used the float?  Did you do any checking to make sure the float isn't leaking?   What is and did the procedure for checking and setting the level make sense and seem to be correct?

yea i understand completely, i appreciate you responding with your ideas though. as for the needle and seat only difference was the color the original needle was silver this was gold. yea the float was reused. as for checking leaks I didn't do that and setting the level was just impossible because in the shop manual it calls for a specialty tool which I cant buy (J-4464). Maybe its the needle or the height if the float. Truly all I could imagine

[TJ Hopland]

Sounds like you do need to find a way to check the float level and that the needle and seat are working.

For checking the float for leaks if it was very recently being used like you drove it into the garage and then took it apart you can remove it and just giggle it near your ear and listen for sloshing.  Most people will plain soak or ultrasonic the parts for a few hours so there again you first look to make sure it didn't just sink on its own but then do the slosh test.  If any fluid can get in that makes the float float less so it may not be able to shut the fuel off when it needs to. 

For the level set there is usually a way to do it without less special tools but you need a chart showing you where to measure and the measurement since it may be different than the factory because of the different process.  That sort of stuff usually came with the repair kits.  This often involved getting the carb upside down so you had to get creative and find a way to prop the thing up so you could get both hands under it to hold things and measure at the same time.  Maybe check with the source of the kit and see if there are some documents available online showing their work around process? 

[Daffer]

Sounds like you do need to find a way to check the float level and that the needle and seat are working.

For checking the float for leaks if it was very recently being used like you drove it into the garage and then took it apart you can remove it and just giggle it near your ear and listen for sloshing.  Most people will plain soak or ultrasonic the parts for a few hours so there again you first look to make sure it didn't just sink on its own but then do the slosh test.  If any fluid can get in that makes the float float less so it may not be able to shut the fuel off when it needs to. 

For the level set there is usually a way to do it without less special tools but you need a chart showing you where to measure and the measurement since it may be different than the factory because of the different process.  That sort of stuff usually came with the repair kits.  This often involved getting the carb upside down so you had to get creative and find a way to prop the thing up so you could get both hands under it to hold things and measure at the same time.  Maybe check with the source of the kit and see if there are some documents available online showing their work around process? 

yea I looked back and I found at the back of the book the specialty tool gives the height in a different section so I think I might start there. thanks for the tip when i end up taking it apart ill try the "slosh test" thank you for all the help in this process and answering my questions, I know this wont be the last question lol.

[Joe Jensen]

According to the information I have, the float clearance should be 5/32".  I don't have the specialty tool either.  I used a drill bit to confirm I had the correct clearance between the float and the float bowl lid.  I would check both floats but they should be the same unless someone distorted it at some point.

I did not take a picture of how I checked with the drill bit, I remember it being awkward and I wished I had a third hand to help.

Good luck,
Joe

[Jay Friedman]

According to the information I have, the float clearance should be 5/32".  I don't have the specialty tool either.  I used a drill bit to confirm I had the correct clearance between the float and the float bowl lid.  I would check both floats but they should be the same unless someone distorted it at some point.

I did not take a picture of how I checked with the drill bit, I remember it being awkward and I wished I had a third hand to help.

Good luck,
Joe

As far as I know there is only one float in a Carter 742s carb.  (My '49 has a similar Carter 722s.) I've adjusted the float level with a drill bit too, but I also forget how I did it. 

You can buy the special tool to set the float on ebay.  Here is one:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/167549316117?_skw=Carter+carb+float+adjusting+tool&itmmeta=01JXH2JMPBFTR82NM2F5Y6VVAQ&hash=item2702b7ac15:g:fzoAAOSw~ZFl48SQ&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA4FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1f35mnY2701RFxB9jcVcBt1fIo%2BSfS8KnDC8U8miUQcXmAkzo9IzwxHjn4SkKXFBVSpIIPYCfPCov5DjRYxEg5IyKIRo62Lox4RzJdXPE8tp55sVbfelc5AGWpSwOuOhgtnJsIZ33F5KcW07%2BakTi8TMEnQ8x66TPOOOv6vJDivuEZfolqkVK0loegFXqaqqPY6R%2BMqazPLnOari0iFDHmRKp%2BLZm%2FfLfWhPoWUMBueoDw7XZekmSnpNzuGrN0bqrtXHhRNkxmzJlRbNLLFWC12%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR6jLyqLsZQ

The Carburetor Shop in Eldon MO also used to sell them and maybe still does. 
(https://www.thecarburetorshop.com/Contactinfo.htm)