If gas comes out when I squeeze the carb float is it time to replace it?

[Dwight Romberger]

Just kidding. Gas did come out of the float when I sqeezed it though. I am retiring the old one.

[60FlatTop]

You can put the old one in a pan of hot water (not boiling) and watch the vapor bubbles come out until they stop. Then flux and tin the area the bubbles came from and wipe a light coat of solder over it. Then you still have one for posterity.

Bernie

[60FlatTop]

Ooops, that's a cork one? Well my trick works with brass ones.

B

[FLYER15015]

Dwight,

If your first line was true, then calling it a "float" would not be correct terminology.......would it ?

I think that one deserves a place on the shop wall, with a sign reading "display only".

Mike in Colorado

[Dwight Romberger]

If it doesn't sell on ebay, that's what I will do! (That's a joke)

Edited April 22, 2013 by Dwight Romberger (see edit history)

[michaelod]

I'm told that one should coat the new float in superglue which is supposedly impervious to gasoline and alcohol.

[FLYER15015]

We coat the firewall and engine bay cowls of our model airplanes with polyurethane, and it works very well keeping "corngas" and nitro fuels off the balsa and plywood parts.

Mike in Colorado

[Dwight Romberger]

I'm just not that clever Michael. The one I bought (on the right of the pic) is made out of Nytrophl plastic. And, I don't end up with my fingers permanently stuck to the float!

Edited April 19, 2013 by Dwight Romberger (see edit history)

[Guest morerevsm3]

We coat the firewall and engine bay cowls of our model airplanes with polyurethane, and it works very well keeping "corngas" and nitro fuels off the balsa and plywood parts.

Mike in Colorado

I use epoxy thinned with methanol on my planes

[Marty Roth]

I used shellac.

[nickelroadster]

Shellac ain't going to work with alcohol. Shellac is thinned with alcohol. A lot of the older cork floats were coated with shellac but that was before alcohol in the gas. Gas these days with strip the shellac right off and gum up the carb. You can use old time buytrate dope from model airplanes to seal floats with as model airplane fuel has had alcohol for sixty years.

[michaelod]

Shellac ain't going to work with alcohol. Shellac is thinned with alcohol. A lot of the older cork floats were coated with shellac but that was before alcohol in the gas. Gas these days with strip the shellac right off and gum up the carb. You can use old time buytrate dope from model airplanes to seal floats with as model airplane fuel has had alcohol for sixty years.

I would concur with nickelroadster on this one. Shellac is probably the worst thing one could use on the float with today's gas and would be literally be removed from the float within 60 seconds after starting the car. Superglue works great and you don't have to worry about it sticking to fingers/tools as long as you install the supporting arm prior to application. That will give you a handle to hold on to as you apply the material. Worked fine for me with zero problems resulting from the process. Superglue is impervious to alcohol and as long as we are not running acetone as fuel we should be in good shape.

Thanks,

Edited April 22, 2013 by michaelod (see edit history)

[carbking]

A couple of coatings that will work IF THE FLOAT HAS NOT PREVIOUSLY BEEN IN FUEL:

(1) POR-15

(2) Model airplane fabric dope

Originals were coated 75 or so years ago with orange shellac. Todays fuel will go through orange shellac like a hot knife goes through butter. Don't even think about trying it.

We cut new floats from the closed-cellular polynitrate foam. Balsa wood may also be used. Once the float has been cut, use compressed air to get rid of every spec of dust prior to coating. You want no air bubbles.

Not saying there isn't, but we have found no coating that can be used to recoat a float which has been in fuel.

Jon.

Edited April 22, 2013 by carbking (see edit history)

[Dwight Romberger]

Jon,

I really liked using the polynitrate foam. It was very easy to shape on the grinder.

Dwight

[nickelroadster]

One advantage to using nitrophil foam is that you don't have to worry about coating it with anything. I just carved one up for a Johnson carb that someone else had coated with who knows what and that was clogging up the carb. The stuff was orange red and was coming apart in little bits. The nitro stuff works great.

[carbking]

One advantage to using nitrophil foam is that you don't have to worry about coating it with anything. I just carved one up for a Johnson carb that someone else had coated with who knows what and that was clogging up the carb. The stuff was orange red and was coming apart in little bits. The nitro stuff works great.

In theory, this should be correct, as the foam is closed cellular; however, I had one mechanic whom I trust tell me that one without coating sank in three weeks (Seattle area).

I now suggest coating the poly nitrate floats if only as an insurance.

Jon.

[Dwight Romberger]

Thanks for the heads up Jon. It's too late to coat mine, but I will keep an eye on it.

Dwight