Float level adjustment on 1926 Packard Eight

[scott12180]

Happy New Year to all.

How do I adjust the float level on a Packard carburetor from a 1926 eight?

I know the original float adjustment on the needle is soldered in place, but I bought a modern needle and seat with a variable float level adjustment.

The repair manual says "1/8 inch below the main jet". When I transfer that to the top of the float bowl, I can then rig up an outside sight tube to determine the level of gasoline. Using my measurements, that should be 1/2-inch below the top of the bowl. HOWEVER, the original needle gives a float level 1-1/4 inch below the top of the bowl! It may have been changed over the years, or not. I don't know. (The carburetor was never on my car. I'm running a Zenith presently.)

What do they mean by "1/8-inch below the main jet"? What does that translate into below the top of the bowl or somewhere else I can actually see?

The repair book says the same dimentions for six and eight cylinder cars. However, the six carburetor is entirely different, so it can't be right.

Help please!

--Scott

1926 Packard 2-36 Phaeton.

[carbking]

Many older carburetors are adjusted in this manner. What the manual is trying to say is that the FUEL level (not the float level) in the bowl with the fuel valve closed ON LEVEL GROUND should be 1/8 inch below the top of the main discharge jet (so it won't normally syphon).

70 years ago, there was a tool (you can make a similiar one) to aid in this adjustment. The tool looked like the letter "L". The end of the short leg of the "L" was a banjo fitting and a hollow bolt that fastened to the underside of the carburetor (remove the plug under the main discharge jet). The long leg of the "L" was an open-ended glass tube. The level of gasoline in the bowl would replicate itself in the glass tube, allowing the mechanic to actually see the exact fuel level in the bowl.

One can make a functional replacement for this tool by fabricating a fitting to replace the plug, bore a hole in the fitting, "sweat" in a piece of copper tubing, and attach an open ended piece of clear plastic tubing to the copper tube.

And those soldered originals were an absolute pain!

Jon.