VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1912-1928 A confusing engine problem

It's a 26 with a 28 engine.

When I first got the car last year I flushed out the gas tank, blew out the fuel line, installed an electric fuel pump (I won't do that again), oiled the cylnders and spun the engine by hand (I did that repeatedly over a period of about 2 weeks. Then I put a battery in it, turned the key on, stepped on the starter button, and drove away.

So far, so good.

Then one day, about 2-300 miles later, it quit while driving down the road. It started right back up. It's still doing that.

My engine will run about 10-20 minutes and stall out. It will then crank right back up and do the same thing all over again.

The gas tank has been cleaned, the fuel line replaced ( 5/16 copper tubing), a "new" vaccuum tank installed (compliments of Gary Wallace), the carb rebuilt by JYD (Thank you. It looks really good), new points (set and rechecked repeatedly), condensor, dist cap,rotor button, coil, plugs, and plug wires installed.

Did I forget anything?

Oh, the line from the vaccuum tank to the carb definitely runs down hill. Plus I put in a new ignition switch from a NAPA jobber. I even replaced it too eventually.

It has a burnt valve.

The wiring, although very old and probably original, is in good condition and not frayed or rotted. The lights work well.

I once went so far as to bypass the entire fuel system by hooking up a temporary tank above and to the carb. It still stalled out.

When it decides to quit it will run mildly rough and then quit as if someone turned the key off. If I quickly pull the choke out it will run a few seconds longer but still quit. Today when it did it I squirted some starter fluid where the flex tube meeets the carb. It continued to run for a few seconds more.

I'm out of ideas. If everything is new or like new then it has to be in the engine.... with one exception. New is not necessarily in working condition.

Your thoughts?

Thanks.

Sounds like the carburetor is the contributing factor in not permitting the engine to run.

Better give Skippy a call.

Or, just hang tough and he'll see this and give you a suggestion or two.....

Bill.

As I recall, he tried several different carburetors previously and the same problem still persisted.

I vote for some thing in the bottom of the vacuum tank where it drops fuel into the line to the carb, once it stops running the trash floats up, the car starts and runs till the trash works it's way back down to plug the line. ooooor in the float bowl, the fuel strainer, orrrr it is a coil getting hot and breaking down.......

When it quits next time shut off the valve in the bottom of the vacuum tank and then loosen the nut on the bottom of the carburetor float bowl. Place a metal or gas resistant container under the bowl. You should have about a cup of gas drain into the cup. If not then remove the line from the bottom of the vacuum tank and drain the tank in to a container. You should have about three cups or more drain from the tank.

Let us know the results and then we can suggest additional checks if required.

Mack, I have by passed the entire fuel system, save the carb, by hooking a small tank to the carb and gravity fed gas to it. The problem remained.

The coil is less than a year old and was put on in hopes of correcting the problem. It didn't. If it's over heating it sure does cool down quick because, as stated, the engine will restart immediately.

Chipper, I'll try your suggestion tomorrow but if that's the problem it's in the carb, and every other carb I have put on it, including this one that was just a few weeks back rebuilt by JYD.

JYD came highly recommended and I'm sure he did an excellent job.

I will post the results of your suggested test as soon as I do it.

rbl2

There is some questions that I would like to ask about the problem you have with the car quiting. You say it is a 28 engine?
What carby does it have? 26 27 or 28.
What type of Vac tank do you have the 26 27 cast top type or the 28 pressed metal type.
Just a thing to check also is to make sure that the breather on the vac tank is not blocked. You may have bypassed the fuel but did you take off the vac line from the manifold to the vac tank?If this vac tank breather is blocked when the vac tank sucks it will suck from the engine and stall the engine straight away. As soon as this happens the car will start up right away and go until the vac tank sucks again.
You might find this strange but I had this happen on a 27 tourer when a paper wasp blocked it with some mud. Still cannot work out how it got there but I changed everything many times but because I only had one good vent tube unbeknown to me I kept transfering the problem from 1 vac tank to the next. Changed carby, points, condensors checked timing etc etc.
Sent me crazy such a dam simple cause that took many many weeks of hunting to find.
Any way give us some of the details and see if the cause can be pinpointed.
twin4

The carburetor is a RAKX-O.

The vaccuum tank has a cast top

The carb is a 28

Yes, I had blocked the vaccuum line from the intake when I by passed the vaccuum tank. If a vaccuum line is not in use and left open the engine will run rough. Besides, the vaccuum tank was completely bypassed and not needed at that point. The problem lies somewhere between the carb and engine. It may be electrical but I don't see how. Then again I don't see how it could be fuel either.

When it quit running this morning I shut the valve off at the bottom of the vaccuum tank and drained the bowl on the carb. I collected 3 oz.

From the vaccuum tank I collected 6 oz.


The temptation now would be to blame the vaccuum tank, but please keep in mind it still has the same problem when it is by-passed.

Just a thought here. Could the key switch or another wire be grounding out causing engine to sputter and die.

Re: the carb. I want all to know that I have tried a total of 3 carbs, 4 if you count the rebuilding of the one on there now. The problem was there before and after the rebuilding so I'm certain that's not the problem.

Before rebuilding the carb, adjusting the air/gas ratio was extremely difficult. With the rebuilt carb I can get it to adjust.

JYD had told me the carb was in nice condition before the rebuild and that most likely rebuilding it wouldn't cure the problem. He was right.

He was right about something else too. It looked so nice after he rebuilt it I didn't want to put it on the engine.

Woodbutcher...that's a possibility but I have serious doubts. I've thought of that and have checked and rechecked the ignition switch and all the wires involved in ignition.

Do you have a spare coil to try. I could be coil is cutting out. When engine begins to sputter take a pair of insulated pliers and pull high tension lead out of coil just far enough to get it to spark through the air gap and see if it does kick back in.

I think I threw the old coil away. This one is new.

I would still check for something in either the carb bowl or The vacuum pump and forget trying to run off of an auxilary tank or electric pump, It didn't work for me seem to work

I would also run a wire direct from the battery to the positive post on the coil, check for a short in the wires to the coil and points, as much trouble as your haveing I would rebuild the distributor with new wires,rotor, cap and points & condenser, just keep the old parts. Are you using a modern six volt coil and condenser?, how about a high tension coil wire and distributor cap? points? Don't throw anything away!

Question and comment. Is the new coil an internal resistance or external resistance unit? Are you running 12-volts or 6-volts? Have you changed the condenser again? Is the coil 6-volt or 12-volt? Have you run a compression check? How do you know you have a burnt valve?

rbl2,

The reason it seems the carburetor may be the reason for stalling was the notation in your first post where you indicated spraying starter fluid at the flex tube/carb connection allowed the engine to run a few more seconds. Does the engine continue to run if you remove the flex tube and spray directly into to the carb throat?

"I would rebuild the distributor with new wires,rotor, cap and points & condenser"

Macky Wacky: rbl2 stated in his above posting that: "........new points (set and rechecked repeatedly), condensor, dist cap, rotor button, coil, plugs, and plug wires installed."

"I would still check for something in either the carb bowl......."

Macky Wacky: rbl2 also said: "I want all to know that I have tried a total of 3 carbs, 4 if you count the rebuilding of the one on there now. The problem was there before and after the rebuilding so I'm certain that's not the problem."

Ya just gotta check out and read all of the previous postings because Bill has done his homework and he has covered all of those bases already.

Thanks JYD, but I was never known for having a 4.0 GPA.

At this sitting I need all the help I can get.

Barry, I haven't tried that but one time I did run it w/o the flex tube and it ran very rough. I had disconnected the flex tube thinking something might be clogging it. It had a small opening in it where it was coming apart so I replaced it with a new one.

With the amount of gas in the carb and vacuum tank I would doubt that fuel is the problem. I suspect it is electrical (Coil, condenser, short in distributor, oxidized points, crack in the cap, carbon tracking or ????) I understand that all those parts are new or recently replaced but have gotten bad parts before.

I agree. New isn't always what it's supposed to be. I'm considering buying all new electrical parts now. If nothing else, I'll have alot of spares.

Maybe.

JYD, if he checked out these items and then the car STILL won't run, maybe he missed something, reckon maybe?... or what???????
Anyone can say that was checked out, and be right. But the car ain't running yet, is it?

One more thing before I quit, is are you sure the exhaust isn't stopping up? and do you not have a nother six volt Chevrolet you can borrow a coil and condenser off of for a check? I think we have done about all the good that talking will do, now about all that is left is to generate some perspiration! GOOD LUCK!

The car is running. But it will only run for about 10 to 20 minutes and then it dies and immediately restarts, so getting the car to run is not an issue. The issue is finding what makes the car shut down on its own.

The exhaust suggestion is a good point!