Re: 1956 Clipper Hot Rod

Posted by BH On 2011/12/29 19:32:20

What's shown near the center of your top view of the carb is not a tube, but a boot. This one is awfully dry-rotted; the top end should be a much closer, but loose, fit to the plunger rod.

Looks like someone sprayed some gold paint on that carb, at some point, to freshen its appearance - seems to be overspray on that tired old boot.

My guess is that you've got a sunk or stuck float and the carb is getting flooded with gas, which will find its way out the bowl vents. Gas could also be entering the accelerator pump bore, above the plunger, from a slot at the top of the casting, and exiting through the boot. A couple of taps against the side of th fuel bowl with a hammer might free up a stuck float, but won't do anything for a leaky one.

Sounds like a carb rebuild is in order. Kits are available from Daytona Parts, and I believe they include that boot. It's been years since I rebuilt one of these carbs, but 4GCs are pretty easy.

However, you'll wanna make sure that these are genuine front/rear carbs for Caribbean as kits vary between various 4GC models and years. There's a difference between 55/56 fuel bowls; 55 had screw plugs on the driver's side for checking fuel level. Also, accelerator pump plunger and bore is larger diameter in 56 than 55.

In addition to the factory shop manual and service newsletter articles, the manufacturer's data sheets for these carbs are available in the site's archive.