You see, I've been chasing a little idle problem. That's the reason for this whole page, by the way. I hadn't even thought about proper float level adjustment before; I figured that if it didn't run out of gas and didn't spurt up through the overflow, things were fine.

Float adjustment is critical! The float bowls are level with the nozzle inside the main carb body. Thanks to the wonderful workings of air pressure, the level of fuel in the float bowl equals the level of fuel in the nozzle. This is what determines where the fuel lies along the needle inside the nozzle.

So, say your floats stop fuel entering the float bowls too soon and your levels are too low. That means the level of fuel is also lower on the needle than it was designed to be. The fuel now is level with station 5 or 6 (smaller diameter, mid-range section of the needle) instead of nearer station 2.

• This allows a lot more fuel to get sucked into the carb.
• This completely throws off your mixture.
• Possibly your car won't idle very well.

Get it? Make sure your floats are adjusted correctly. It will make a difference.

Back to Float Adjustments