I'm needing to rebuild my Carter AFB 2bbl on my 1959 401. Anyone know of a place I can get some good instructions on how to do it right? Thanks
There is a technical book on Carter carbs available from the larger speed shops or your favorite book store. I THINK the author's name is Dave Emanuel. The AFB is one of the easiest carbs to work on; go for it! Happy motoring, Frank:beer
I have that book, and it won't really help you that much with a 2 bbl. Have you ever rebuilt any other carb before?
I rebuilt a late 70's carb on a Ford Granada I got for free. It actually worked after that! That was 20 years ago but I have a average capability with a wrench so if it's an easy carb I can do it.
OK, now that we've figured out that you have an original-style AFB 4-bbl, here's some tips. Don't use the Carter #902-317A zip kit, it is for the later aftermarket AFBs. Get a kit specific to the carb number from NAPA or CARS (www.oldbuickparts.com). The book mentioned earlier is Super Tuning and Modifying Carter Carburetors by Dave Emanuel, ISBN 0-931472-11-3. It has a few page pictorial of a teardown and rebuild of a later style AFB, might be helpful. Biggie to watch out for - the heat riser passage. You'll see it on the top of the intake once the carb is off. There will be four holes for the throttles, and two small holes connected by a 'trench' running in front of the primary bores. This may well be plugged up with carbon. There are two gaskets. A normal fiber gasket goes against the intake. A stainless steel shim gasket goes on top of that, against the base of the carb. If this gasket setup has deteriorated, or if a previous owner has screwed up, the base of the carb will be damaged. Both gaskets are currently available from NAPA or CARS. I got mine from Postons. That's about it. Oh and buy a gallon can of carb cleaner, looks like a metal paint can, its the stuff that gives you a good chemical burn if you put your hands in it too much. Don't put plastic or rubber parts in it. Enjoy, and stay in touch!
Thanks everyone. I see the 4bbls now. With the chipped metal on both sides where the choke plate rod goes through I wonder what kind of abuse this thing has been through.
Wrong air cleaner? My geuss is that at sometime in the past someone put the wrong air cleaner on it. ou: Instead of checking the clearance, they probably just wrenched it down untill it snuged down on the carb opening. I'm willing to bet that they didn't even notice the damage. I would check that choke plate shaft to make sure it's not bent at each end. If it isn't then it should function fine.