Float level advice, please.

[Captain Obvious]

On 6/16/2021 at 10:01 AM, duffman said:

Looking forward to some live on the road testing to validate the float weight gain!

Me too, but the on-road analysis might take a while until they end up on a car. You want me to send you the "heavy-duty" floats and you can try the whole thing out on your car?

I'm actually comforted by the fact that someone thousands of miles away with different gas is having the same issues. Just another data point aiming at changes in the gasoline formulation.

[siteunseen]

With that old Jetson's phone you have take an extra battery  and charger along for the testing. Maybe some flares and a blanket or two. You can keep warm with one and send smoke signals with the other.

[Duffman]

CO, I would be more than happy to test your new “bloats”, but I need the temps to drop below the 117 it is today!!  Let me know if you want to send my way.

[siteunseen]

Bloats. That's perfect and funny.

[240260280]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/184562227884?epid=1657456216&hash=item2af8c41aac:g:VGgAAOSwjsxfxv8S

[Captain Obvious]

17 hours ago, siteunseen said:

With that old Jetson's phone you have take an extra battery  and charger along for the testing. Maybe some flares and a blanket or two. You can keep warm with one and send smoke signals with the other.

  Hahahaha!!! As a matter of fact, I've been informed (by the wireless carrier) that my old phone won't work for very much longer and they are sending me a new phone. And get this... The new one is a 4G flip phone!! LOL!

I read the reviews for the new phone and they're terrible... Everyone says the screen is really small and the apps that you can put on it are crappy. Well duh. Sounds perfect.

And speaking of my old phone... Now it's getting hot when I charge it and the back is a little bulgey. So I won't need any blankets to keep warm. The lithium fire will be plenty warm. Now I just need it to last long enough for the new replacement to get here.

[Captain Obvious]

17 hours ago, duffman said:

CO, I would be more than happy to test your new “bloats”, but I need the temps to drop below the 117 it is today!!  Let me know if you want to send my way.

Bloats. Love it!

So yeah, I'd be happy to have you test the bloats. It would add one more data point as to the validity of the modification. I'll send you PM!

[jonathanrussell]

I have been away for a few months but really enjoyed this discussion. Adding weight to the float is a really interesting idea that I will keep in mind. With added weight, you could trim the side of the float so you eliminate the problem with the float hitting the bowl on the front long ear carb. I have shaved a float before but didn't think of adding weight. FYI, I shaved it by sanding it. Solved the clearance problem but...reduced weight. I know we all end up solving our float adjustment problems in different ways but here is what I have settled on.

I use two rear lids and two short needle jets. The long ear, long needle valve 72 idea for the front carb was....to me... a mistake.

I don't pay any attention to measuring how many mm down from the top of the lid that the fuel level should be. I remove the piston domes, pistons, and drop the nozzles down 10 full turns. Then I set the float tabs so that the fuel sits at or just below the top of the jet.

I tune with a colortune. O2 sensor would be better and I will try that some day.

One last thing. Take a look at some of the photos of needle jets earlier in this thread. Notice that the stock original needle jets have a needle that is larger in diameter, is nicely rounded at the tip, and for me at least moves up and down more precisely. New needle jets are cut straight at the end, are thinner diameter, and rock around a lot. I think this, combined with the curved tab come together to make it really easy to have new needle jets get tripped or stuck on the curve of the tab. Just my theory.

Anyway...great read. The fuel density theory and idea to add weight are really interesting angles to think about.

 

[Captain Obvious]

15 minutes ago, jonathanrussell said:

 FYI, I shaved it by sanding it. Solved the clearance problem but...reduced weight.

Haha!! Done that!!

[Duffman]

CO was kind enough to send me a trial set of "bloats" to test on my Z.  I have a 2.8L engine rebuilt with flat top pistons, standard cam, N42 head and block, 6 in 1 header, short ear fuel bowl lids on both front and back SUs, etc.  I have some experience playing around with SUs and Webers, so this was fun for me!  My standard floats weigh around .4 oz, and CO sent me a set weighing .7 oz.  My initial efforts to get the fuel level set, using my set of FloatSyncs, proved to be most difficult, and after multiple failed attempts, went back to CO to discuss options.  He thought going to a lower add on weight might prove to be a solution.  So, he redrilled the "bloats", took out the heavier weight, and added a lighter aluminum plug.  The weight of the mini "bloats" was .5 oz (25% more than my standard float).  This proved to be a much better solution, as I was able to quickly dial in the appropriate fuel levels in each carb, while having the tabs of each mini "bloat" set at a level where I don't have to worry about the float hitting the side of the fuel bowl to reach a full level.  I will leave it to the industrious Captain Obvious on how he created the mini "bloats", but I believe it is a great solution for those with a similar problem!!  Thanks, Bruce!

Now, on to finding the perfect SU needle for my Z ... 

Edited October 11, 2021 by duffman

[madkaw]

Very interesting read and right on target for I’m dealing with . I’m a little intimidated to boring holes in my SU’s , but might have to do that . I’m building a high performance engine for a customer and I can’t get the floats to comply . I’ve been at for days - literally . My floats are slammed against the lid to get proper level using a float sync. 
I can’t afford for this engine to go lean . 
Instead of a fancy slug I was thinking a coarse screw into the side of the float . Maybe a brass vs an aluminum would give me options as far as weight - even steel . 
Any thoughts on this approach ?

I am using two short lids hoping I could duplicate my  approach easier 

Edited September 6, 2022 by madkaw

[Captain Obvious]

My thoughts? I spent a bunch more time trying to get the 72 floats to work without adding weight and I failed. Nothing I tried could get them to work, so I added weight. Again.

Here's some pics of my latest incarnation. This time I made a threaded insert so I could change the weight in the future if necessary: