CHANGING of the CARB - Installing PAPPY's New Solex 1-Barrel

wayoflife

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Working on old iron always has a way of becoming a slippery slope in that everything you do to it leads to another something that needs to be done. In the case of Pappy, our 1954 Willys CJ3B, a simple adjustment to his timing lead to me working on his points, changing out his plugs and wires and before I knew it, installing a new Solex 1-Barrel carburetor.

While the Carter YF is a good carburetor, Pappy's was in real need of a rebuild and a few of its components were starting to become worn out enough to be a problem. While I'll most likely still rebuild it, I decided to save that project for another day and for now, decided to just replace it with a new Solex 1-Barrel. At only $128 brand new and readily available for pick-up at my local Summit Racing, I figured it was cheap enough to give it a try and not lose any sleep if it turned out not to work out well.

On top of being affordable, a Solex carburetor is super easy to install and it'll bolt right up just like a Carter YF. I should note however that it is necessary to lower the fuel pressure down to about 1.75-2 PSI in order for it to work properly. Typically, you can do this by installing a fuel pressure regulator but I decided to try something a bit different and that was to install a fuel pump spacer. By pushing the pump away from the block, the stroke of the pump arm is effectively reduced that and in turn lowers the pressure.

Here is a short write-up that highlights the steps I had to take in order to swap out Pappy's old Carter YF and replace it with a brand new Solex 1-Barrel. I hope you find the information useful.

Before the new can go on, the old has to come off and that starts with the removal of the air cleaner. Here you can see me using a screw driver to loosen up the clamp securing the air tube to the top of the carb and air cleaner.
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With the clamps loosened up, the air tube can now be removed completely and allow for more access.
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The fuel line feeding the carb can now be disconnected.
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The cotter pin securing the throttle linkage to the throttle body lever needs to be removed in order to separate them.
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Loosening the screw securing the choke control cable to the choke lever and bracket to free it from the carb.
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There are only 2 nuts securing the carb to the intake manifold and the one located on the outside and facing the passenger side of the Jeep is easy to get to.
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The inside nut is impossible to get to without removing the valve cover. Fortunately, it's just held in place by 2 bolts located on top of it.
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With the bolts removed, the valve cover can be carefully lifted off.
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Now that the valve cover is out of the way, the second of 2 nuts securing the carb to the intake manifold can now be removed.
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Carefully removing the old intake manifold gasket.
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With a clean rag stuffed into the intake manifold to prevent debris from falling in, I made sure the mating surface was clean and free of any old gasket material.
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Installing the new gasket that came with the Solex carburetor.
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Placing the new Solex carburetor on top of the intake manifold.
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Securing the Solex carburetor in place using the factory nuts.
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After carefully reinstalling the valve cover, I secured it in place using the factory bolts.
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Connecting the throttle linkage to the throttle body lever and securing it in place with the factory washer and cotter pin.
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Threading the choke control cable through the carburetor housing and onto the progressive starter lever.
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Securing the choke control cable to the progressive starter lever.
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Connecting the fuel line to the Solex carburetor.
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Finally, what everything looks like after installing the air tube.
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With the new Solex carburetor installed, it was time to move over to the fuel pump and install the spacer that bought Walack's. Again, it is important to bring down the flow to about 1.75-2 PSI and from the research that I've done, the spacer should help to do just that.

While it may not be necessary, I decided to remove the fuel pump so that I could remove the old gasket and clean things up before installing the spacer. Here you can see me disconnecting the fuel lines from the pump.
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Removing the 2 bolts securing the fuel pump to the side of the block.
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Spent some time cleaning the fuel pump inside and out. The filter chamber was filled with bits of rust and debris.
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If you can believe it, this used to be all black with oily grime. Since I was at it, I decided to spend some time cleaning it up as well.
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Here's a shot of the spacer and new gaskets.
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Installing the new spacer sandwiched between new gaskets.
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Reinstalling the fuel pump and securing it in place with the factory bolts.
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Reconnecting the fuel lines.
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Being that I just installed a whole new fuel system, it did take some effort to get the pump primed and the engine fired up again but once it was running, it ran awesome! The engine ran clean, idled smoothly and maybe it's just my imagination but it almost feels as if it has more power too. With that said, I am running into one small problem and that is it'll only run with the starter control pulled out fully or close to it.
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Unlike the Carter YF which has a manual choke, the Solex has a starter control that's supposed to provide the richest mixture when fully pulled out and as the engine warms up, it's supposed to be pushed in to progressively reduce it until it can eventually be turned off. This of course is to help save gas.
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As of right now, even when the engine is warmed up to operating temperature, it will die when sitting at an idle and I push the starter control in more than an 1/8". While driving, I can push it all the way in or to about 1/8" as is instructed but it doesn't run as well and again, dies when I come to a stop. What's tough is that I really want the Solex to work as it's intended to but it's hard to get past the fact that the engine starts and runs fantastic with the starter control pulled fully out. No back fire, no pinging and no heavy smell of un-burned fuel. Obviously, I still have some kind of fuel delivery issue and maybe I'll need to go back and try installing a fuel pressure regulator in the future but for now, I may just leave well enough alone so that I can enjoy driving pappy around. :cool:
 
Great write up as usual. It is amazing how simple things were built back then and how long they can last.
 
Is the no idls fuel mixture?

Sounds like it's running lean and the starter control is masking that. Once your off idle, you're out of the idle circuit and into the power circuit.

That's how most carbs work. I'm not familiar with the Solex systems.

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For sure it's running lean and the starter control is compensating for it. Could very well be the spacer I installed isn't helping that but without it, the factory fuel pump should be sending out closer to 4 psi and that's way too much. I'll probably try removing the spacer to see what if any difference it makes.
 
Great write-up. I've never heard of a fuel pump spacer, but makes sense. You may be able to fix the fuel issue by adjusting the idle mixture screw slightly. I've had several new carbs that still need adjusting here and there. Good luck.
 
Great write-up. I've never heard of a fuel pump spacer, but makes sense. You may be able to fix the fuel issue by adjusting the idle mixture screw slightly. I've had several new carbs that still need adjusting here and there. Good luck.

Yeah, I would have been more quick to play with the mixture screw if the motor weren't idling so smoothly. Granted, it's only smooth with the starter control fully open. I think I'll try removing the spacer first and if that doesn't do the trick, I'll play with the mixture screw.
 
I've never installed a carb that didn't need tuned. So the starter control is more than just a choke? I have never seen one of these and I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the operation.


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I've never installed a carb that didn't need tuned. So the starter control is more than just a choke? I have never seen one of these and I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the operation.

I agree. Just tried running it as is and now taking small steps so that I see what actually fixes the problem.

The starter control operates a valve with 3 settings. It essentially rotates a disc that has 3 orifices with the first being quite large to allow for a rich mixture at a cold startup, a second that's a lot smaller for a warm startup and a third that essentially takes the starter control out of action.
 
Let me know when you know the ins and outs of the new carb. You can come install one my FC. I'm always fighting the old carb it seems. This might be the ticket.




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Weird. It's an interesting concept for sure. Being so warm out I would think little to no starter control should be needed. I would go rich on the mixture and see what happens. Maybe try tuning with a vacuum gauge to get your perfect mix.


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Let me know when you know the ins and outs of the new carb. You can come install one my FC. I'm always fighting the old carb it seems. This might be the ticket.

LOL!! The Carter YF isn't a bad carb, it's just that the one on your FC or on my 3B are old and typically have worn out components. The Solex is nice being that it's a more modern design and one that was used by a ton of auto manufacturers and all the way into the 90's. There are a lot of people who say that it's crap on a Hurricane motor but I've found that most never addressed the fuel pressure which is critical for the Solex to operate properly. So far, even with the slight problem (if you can even call it that) I'm having with the starter control, I really like it and think you will too.
 
Weird. It's an interesting concept for sure. Being so warm out I would think little to no starter control should be needed. I would go rich on the mixture and see what happens. Maybe try tuning with a vacuum gauge to get your perfect mix.

That's a good idea and one that I'll have to give a try. Thanks.

I think they call it a volume control. Also, look for vacuum leaks. I'm sure you already did. But didn't want to assume.

Yeah, checked for leaks but found none. Again, starts right up, idles well and runs good so long as the starter control is fully open.
 
The*Volume Control screw is the smaller of the two adjusting screws, located on the left side.

LOL!! Been trying to decipher the POS photo copy diagram that was sent with my Solex to see what that was. I assumed it might have something to do with the control but wasn't sure. Thanks for the tip.
 
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