54' 223

[Anonymous]

I did some trading and ended up with an all original 54' Ford 2-door post. About as stripped as you could order it. The thing runs fine, but I don't know much about the engine, or, I really don't know what problems this engine has.

I'm building this car to be a cruiser/Drive-in car. Its got to be decently reliable and dependable.

When I first tryed to start the car, It wouldn't get any fuel. I took the carb-apart and found that everything was clogged with dryed varnish, I air compressed it out, put it together, and it drove a quarter-mile with no brakes to our barn, where it has sat for 6-months.

I can't find a rebuild kit for the carb, I know I'm probably not looking hard enough, but where could I order one? I don't plan on rebuilding the engine until later, I think it should be fine. I'm looking into an oil change, new spark plugs and wires, and a new exhaust (Currently has glass pack, 1 3/4 inch pipe).

Hoping to get it on the road in about a few months, It came with patch panels for the floor, It needs some paint, one rocker and some other body work.

-F

 

[Daves55Courier]

Damn I ought to be an expert with these carbs by now. There are three of them sitting on my workbench now. All new, all of them flooded. There is a 4th one on the engine, also flooded.
I got some of them from CarQuest auto parts rebuilt, one of them from carburatorexchange rebuilt and one is a NOS.

They are all holley model 1904 carbs.

If U wanna rebuild it yourself, I would recommend Joblot automotive in Queens village New York for the kit. They have a website and will send you a catalog upon request, or just call them and ask for James. He will fix U up.
The rebuild kits are also available at some popular vintage Ford resto parts suppliers and some chain auto parts stores.

Ummm, fix those brakes too !!! Haha.

 

[Daves55Courier]

Oh yeah....GOOD LUCK making that damn thing dependable. When U do, let me know so I can pick your brain and find out how you got yours to stay running in warm weather without flooding out.

 

[Anonymous]

My grandpa had a '55 car with the Y-block in it. He said hes going to do the brakes for me, since they are supposed to be the same car underneath.

Knowing its a 1904 and not just "Holley 1-bbl" should help alot. Maybe I can scrounge up some parts for it.

-F

 

[Fred]

Make sure that the carburetor type is original to the car; it should have a glass fuel bowl cover. Many (most?) of the forum members who run these carbs have flooding problems. They are very easy to flood due to three things. 1- the pressure required to overcome the needle and seat is low, 2- if any contaminants get into the fuel supply they tend to stick between the needle and seat, and 3- the float is hung from the passenger side of the carburetor (when the carburetor is mounted in the original orientation) so when you make long right turns the fuel moves across the float chamber leaving the float to drop, thus overfilling the float chamber. They aren't the best designed carburetor but you can make them work most of the time with some effort. I personally don't trust rebuilt carburetors that I didn't rebuild. I also don't like the neoprene tipped floats; I have better luck with the old brass needles. If you do reuse the original needle and seat make sure they are clean and there are no nicks or scratches in the seating surfaces. I ran three fuel filters on my '53 (one clear paper element fuel filter, one porous stone type built into the fuel pump, and one porous stone type with a magnet right before the carburetor) and it still occasionally flooded. If I floored the accelerator the resulting fuel usage would usually wash the offending bit of crud out of the needle and seat and it would stop flooding in about 10 seconds.

I prefer the previous Holley / Ford one barrel carbs that were used on the G series flathead six motors.

 

[karfer67]

just a thought if these carbs are such a pain in the arse why not swap out to another carb or are there no other choices? although i gotta admit if i did have one i would think it is real cool to see the fuel through the glass bowl

 

[Daves55Courier]

Make sure that the carburetor type is original to the car; it should have a glass fuel bowl cover.

Yeah that glass fuel bowl would be nice. Not all of the holley 1bbls had the glass bowl. Few of them had it, and that cover is interchangeable on a dozen holley model 1bbl carbs back then including the 1904. You can buy a new glass part at joblot automotive in Queens village NY, but they dont sell the metal ring/clamp arrangement for it.

1- the pressure required to overcome the needle and seat is low.

So what would you recommend setting the pressure regulator at for starters, say 3.5 psi ?

2- if any contaminants get into the fuel supply they tend to stick between the needle and seat.

I now have a inline fuel filter ahead of the pump and a glass cased inline filter ahead of the regulator. There is also a glass bowl at the bottom of the fuel pump so you can see if there's any contaminants coming into the system from the tank. My tank has been lined and all the fuel lines are new. Cant get much better than that.

3- the float is hung from the passenger side of the carburetor (when the carburetor is mounted in the original orientation) so when you make long right turns the fuel moves across the float chamber leaving the float to drop, thus overfilling the float chamber.

You can eliminate this problem by installing a rubber filler between the coils in the front springs. One rubber coil each spring encompassing about 360 degrees virtually eliminates front end body roll even when taking corners at a high speed. But i will only testify to that based on using them with the heavy-duty springs they installed in the Courier.

the previous Holley / Ford one barrel carbs that were used on the G series flathead six motors.[/quote]

Is that a better design ? will that carb fit and function on the 223's ? It would be worth it to me to changeover to one of those if they would fit and be dependable. Flathead six, you mean like a '52, I-226 ?

 

[Fred]

I would start with setting the pressure at 2.5 p.s.i.

The flathead carb I am talking about was used on all H series motors. It has a vacuum port for the distributor. The fuel inlet is on the same side and the throttle arm is in the same plane and side of the carb. I don't remember if the vacuum port is in a similar location. The potential problems are: 1- the carb is taller than the glass bowl and 2- the lines and linkage may not line up exactly.
http://www.parts123.com/PartFrame.asp?Z ... TAGE_SPEED
choose the Carbs - Six Cyl.-single Barrels option under catagory. These are the carbs I am talking about, but I wouldn't pay that kind of money for one.

I rebuilt a glass bowl carb for my '53. I had to swap to a smaller main jet to get it to run right (62 instead of 64 if I remember correctly, remember my '53 has a 215 instead of a 223). I didn't use an H series carb because I like things stock, and I thought the glass bowl looked neat.

 

[Anonymous]

How much effort would it be to just put a Rochester 2-jet on the car instead? I know some brackets and stuff may not line up, but would there be anything Else I could stick on and forget?

-F