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Ronnie, if she’s sat a long time and you say she needs a lot of choking and that the float and valve seat don’t seem to be letting enough gas through, there’s a good chance there’s rust or crud somewhere in the fuel delivery system or the carb causing the problem. HOWEVER, first drain any old gas and replace with fresh clean water free gas and try her. Also just to be safe, inspect and clean the plugs and replace them if needed with Autolite 388’s. You may as well take a look at the points to be sure they are gapped proper (0.015 if mag or 0.022 if distributor) and clean/polish them if only gray oxide coated but REPLACE THEM if burned or pitted or carboned up or black looking. If after clean fresh gas and good points and plugs and a good blue spark at each plug she still needs choked, NEXT try adjusting the carbs top load and idle needles, initially at 1 ¾ to 2 out for idle and ¾ to 1 out for load and she how she does. If she still seems to not be getting enough gas, you could have a restriction in the carb or fuel delivery system and below are my standard fuel flow tests to try and isolate where the problem is: 1) With the gas on at the valve or sediment bowl, open the carb bowls lower drain cock or plug and insure a good steady stream of gas flows out approx 1/16 inch for a couple minutes. 2) If not, remove the fuel line where it attaches to the carb and insure a good strong flow of gas is there the size of the lines inside diameter. 3) If so, first try removing the lil side plug on the carbs circular inlet fuel strainer and see if you can drain or clean or blow any rust or crud out to see if she will then pass test 1. 4) If its still so that the removed fuel line has good flow but she still wont pass test 1, remove the top nut and cap off the circular inlet fuel strainer and clean out any rust or crud which may be clogging the needle valve seat at its bottom. You may need a new top gasket when you’re finished. 5) Back to test 2. If there was NOT good flow the size of the gas lines ID, remove the glass sediment bowl and see if the 2 lil horizontal holes at the top are open and allow good flow which fills the glass bowl. If NOT, there may be rust or crud in the inlet pipe or mesh screen or crud in the tanks bottom. FUEL FLOW SUMMARY You have to have good flow at the tanks bottom, then through the inlet pipe or mesh screen, then out the side holes to fill the glass sediment bowl, then through the fuel line, then through the carbs side inlet strainer, then through the needle valve and seat, then finally, it has to fill and maintain the carbs bowl to the right level via operation of the float and needle valve and seat.
OTHER CAUSES OF NEEDING CHOKE.
If the flow tests ALL pass, and she has fresh clean gas, and the load and idle needles are set and working right, and the ignition is producing a good blue spark but she still needs choked, the float level could still be set too low or the carbs main center vertical brass nozzle could be partially plugged or other carb passages or its idle circuit could be plugged. OTHER THINGS TO LOOK FOR Have you removed the inlet air pipe to see if the choke is working right and have you removed and cleaned and serviced the air cleaners bottom bowl and make sure its free of water???? Take a look at the plugs and points and be sure each plug is producing a good blue spark, do ALL the flow tests, be sure she has fresh clean gas, there’s no water in the air cleaner bowl, the load and idle needles are set right, and if she still needs choked to run, post back and we will proceed from there. My first suspicions if the ignition and timing are good are, bad gas, water in gas, then a clogged needle valve and seat or side inlet fuel strainer, then a clogged sediment bowl or inlet pipe, then float level too low. Good Luck n God Bless John T Nordhoff in Indiana
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