Hello all - a few months back, I noted gasoline leaking from my Carter W1 carburetor in my 1946 Chevy Fleetmaster. I learned a good bit of information and tips about causes of gasoline leaks from the forum here, but I finally found the cause. The gasoline is leaking from a copper plug in the bowl of the carburetor.
Has anyone else had a leak from one of these copper plugs? What is the best way to correct this?
Does the plug have a separate copper gasket between it and the body? The soft copper takes up any gaps between the plug and body. Sometimes a gasket can be reused but a new gasket is often needed.
I assume you may be referring to the plugs that do not have a screw driver slot in them? If so, those plugs are tapered and are driven into a taper in the end of a drilled passage.
The ultimate fix will be to remove the old plug and clean up the tapered area before driving in a new plug. There is a special Carter tool to remove the old plug. I've never had to do this myself but I'm sure others here have. Hopefully they will bring their knowledge and experience to your assistance.
Otherwise... I have "fixed" several leaks in the past by cleaning the area thoroughly and applying a good coat of black Permatex silicone sealer. Let it cure well before subjecting it to use. I cured an oil pan gasket leak on a combine this way and it saved me from ever having to lift the engine off the machine... with just one application! :-)
Hi Stovblt, thank you for the reply. Yes, referring to the plugs that do not have the slot in them. I did not realize there is a special took to remove the plugs, hopefully someone can share the experience if they ever had to do it. Otherwise, I appreciate your recommendation for a fix. I have an epoxy made by Loc-Tite intended for use on gasoline tanks. However, it has been my experience with this material that it works for several months and then eventually, the gasoline will eat through it, causing the leak again. Is the black Permatex you recommended resistant to gasoline?
Hi Matt,well,I have never had to repair your exact problem,but I did have a fuel leak in an old Iron Horse tractor fuel system.Grant it,it was diesel fuel but I mixed up some JB Weld and,after cleaning the surface around the crack in the metal with Brake Clean,I worked the JB into the crack,wiped off the excess and that was the end of the leak. It is gray in color and you cannot even see it in the crack. It is on year 7 and still holding tough. Maybe not for the perfectionist,but got the job done fast and easy.....Best of luck Matt..
Chipper, there is no gasket there. It looks like the plug is inserted into a hole and punched to spread the head of it and make a seal. I rebuilt the carburetor with all new gaskets and no gasket goes here.
Sorry, I misinterpreted "plug" to refer to the slotted screw in plugs. They do have a ring type gasket.
The copper plugs are removed by a tool with a tapered "V" slot. They are slightly larger near the head than a 1/8" copper round head rivet. It is this wider part of the rivet that does the sealing. If you use a 1/8" copper rivet the widening can be accomplished by tapping on a rivet inserted into a flat bottomed hole in a plate and then tapped out. For most people JB Weld (an epoxy) can be used to provide a long term seal. Just try to mix the white and black stuff at 50:50 or as close as you can. The farther off ratio the weaker the material and susceptibility to gasoline attack.
Hope that seals it up for you Matt,might just save you lots of work.As Chipper said,try to get as close to 50/50 in the mix as you can,and I really stress getting the surface good and clean---nothing sticks to oily surfaces is my experience.I used a very small piece of emery cloth to rough up the surface after the brake clean just to give the JB Weld a good surface to grab on to !! Best to you...
