62 Conti Water Choke Leaking

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R&R
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62 Conti Water Choke Leaking

Post by R&R »

First let me start by saying thanks to everyone for a great site. Although this is my first post, I've been reading for over a year. Now, on to my issue....

About a month ago I decided to send my carb off to be refurbished. Got it back, things look great, car ran nicely, but...the darn water choke started leaking once things warmed up. My first reaction was to tighten the three screws around the housing, which did no good. Actually, once the top two screws were tightened, it began leaking even more.

In talking to the company who rebuilt the carb, they mentioned that my housing was one of the nicer specimens they've seen...really no corrosion. They clearly replaced the gaskets with new ones.

I'm stuck guys....what should I try???
Lugnut

Post by Lugnut »

Understanding you want to drive the car and can't do so without a carb the darn thing just needs to go back to them to replace whatever gasket they managed to get a pinch in when re-assembling. It is really their responsibility. If you don't want to send it back the least they can do is send you all the gaskets necessary for you to replace whichever gasket has the problem.
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Post by R&R »

Lugnut - Thanks for the reply. I did in fact send it back to the rebuilder just to have the same results. Frustrating. When I asked why they didn't bench test this, the response was that they have no way of doing so. Yesterday the rebuilder agreed to send me a new gasket to try. Based on all of my research, this doesn't appear to be a very common problem but wanted the boards oppinion. Hopefully the new gasket will do the trick.
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NewLincolnMan
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A faucet in my engine

Post by NewLincolnMan »

R&R, the three screws that hold the choke onto the carb and the gaskets may not be your problem. I just put a new water choke on my carb (actually a while ago) and it also leaked. But the water wasn't coming from the outer diameter of the unit. The water was actually leaking from the screw that holds the outer cover (holds metal element) on to the rest of the choke. I may not be making much sense here but if you take the choke off it comes off as one piece. There's a screw (at least on my 64) right in the middle (facing out) that keeps the cover on the unit, so that if you take it out your choke will now be in two pieces. There is a gasket in there but that may not be your problem. Try tightening that screw, finding a gasket, rubber washer, or something else that will seal it if that is indeed the source of the leak.

Hope this helps.
NLM
John T
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Post by John T »

R&R:
These water heated choke housings can be frustrating. I would remove the unit from the carb and disassemble. This is done by removing the center screw, with the strange head design, and separating the two halves of the housing. Replace the gasket with a gasket made of EDPM rubber material. The center screw also needs a gasket which can be standard material. Clean all surfaces and reassemble using average torque on the screw. I would pressure check with 5 PSI air while submerging in water to verify leak free condition. If it leaks tighten some more, only a little bit and recheck for leaks. If it is OK increase the pressure to 15-18 PSI and recheck. This is the process that I used successfully. This gives you an appreciation for the difficulty in sealing hot coolant.

Have fun
John T
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Post by R&R »

NewLincolnMan - The screw you refer to is actually where the rebuilder thought it was leaking from. However, from what I can tell, that's not the case. It appears to be coming from the two halves of the choke assembly.

John T - I like your idea. Couple quick questions...What do you use to remove or tighten that odd screw without destroying it with pliers? Second, the gasket material you refer to...are you saying the local auto parts store caries sheets of this and to make my own?

Thanks everyone for helping the newbie.
John T
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Post by John T »

R&R: EDPM is ethylene-propylene-diene-methylene. Know you know why an abreviation is used! One commercial use is rubber roof membrane which should be readily available. The typical thickness have enough compliance to seal the irregularities in the choke housing.
The screw removal should be fairly easy with a GOOD set of pliers with sharp teeth as the screw has a reasonable shoulder. I was successful with pliers. If the screw is damaged I believe it can be replaced with a standard screws. Remember that it is hidden under the air cleaner.

Have Fun
John T
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Post by R&R »

I'll give that a shot. Thanks again for all of the suggestions.
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