Fuel System: Wanted – one step leaner metering rod for WCFB

[Charlie D]

The tail pipe of my recently restored 1955 President State Sedan is black in color. I have been informed that indicates the engine is running on the rich side. The metering rod that is currently in the WCFB 2214SA is the Carter 75-1141. The parts book shows the first size leaner metering rod as being the Carter 75-1154 (Studebaker part number 537402). The parts book list two more leaner metering rods but it looks like they come with two jets and a vacuum piston spring.

My thinking is that if the first step leaner metering rods do not require different jets I can just change out the current 75-1141s for the two 75-1154s. I would not have to take the top off the carburetor to perform that task. The idle adjusting screws are set a little on the lean side so I think the richness is kicking in somewhere above idle. I am hoping the next leaner metering rods will help lean out the overall range up to 60-65 mph.

I appreciate any help you can provide in finding the leaner metering rods. If someone has had a rich running engine that was able to fix in another manner I would love to hear about it.

Thank you,
Charlie D.

[Mrs K Corbin]

Have you gone thru the troubleshooting steps to make sure the carb is in good order before condemning the metering rods? Ie float settings, etc?

[doofus]

Charlie D you need to make a long run at speed then check your tail pipe. stop and go will always show "Sooty" pipes. Luck Doofus

[bezhawk]

Make sure the "pull off tang" under the small cover in front isn't kicking in too soon. There should be some play in the vacuum piston before the mechanical over ride takes over. The settings are in the shop manual.

[PackardV8]

The tail pipe of my recently restored 1955 President State Sedan is black in color. I have been informed that indicates the engine is running on the rich side.

Yes, No, Maybe. Today's fuels have such different additives that the old school science of reading the color of spark plug insulators and tailpipes is no longer as reliable as it once was.

The only way to know the actual air/fuel ratio is with a wide-band O2 sensor. Fifty years of carb tuning and the first wide-band sensor I installed showed me how much I didn't know.

jack vines

[Ron Dame]

My Carter AS was running rich and I was advised to look down the throat while running and look at the atomization of the fuel ( Pro tip, use a mirror just in case the car decides to backfire). I found that instead of being fully atomized, drops of fuel were bouncing off the throttle plate and into the manifold. A quick couple of well placed shots of carb cleaner and a pipe cleaner into the emulsion tube and discharge port cleared it up and it's running fine