Carter W-1, 1 Barrel Troubleshooting

Metering Rod Loose

Throttle Shaft Loose
There was some play in the throttle shaft and I’m wondering if that is something you can repair as I’m getting a pretty good fuel leak at the shaft. If you don’t do this repair is there a bushing kit you offer?Gas is coming from the shaft because the carburetor is flooding and gas is running down to the throttle plate and out of the shaft.

Shafts can never be tight enough to seal.

We do not do repairs, but I have a couple of people that do it well. See our recommended companies here.

We do have bushings, but they are sold by size. Don’t know what the W-1 takes as they seldom need it.

Find out why your carburetor is flooding. Once that is fixed the leak out of the throttle shaft should stop.
Flooding caused by:
Too much fuel pressure (probably under 5 lbs on cars that use the W-1 carburetor, but check your motors manual).
Dirt in the needle & seat. This is the most likely problem.
Test the float. If it is leaking, then it will be too heavy and the needle won’t close. Heat up some water just prior to boiling, immerse the float. Any bubbles indicate a leak.

Where do the jets go?

The idle jet is attached to the small plug which goes into the bottom of a W-1’s bowl (as opposed to the very large plug for the accel. pump check valves). The plug which goes in horizontally near the idle mixture screw simply covers a fixed orifice drilled into the casting.

The only “economizer jet” in a W-1 is the main jet (in the bottom of the bowl) as it interacts with the throttle-position-controlled metering rod. This is true of most Carter main metering systems, whether activated mechanically or by vacuum (BB carbs being one exception I can think of).
Hope this helps.

Concave washer problems

The W-1 uses a copper washer sometimes concaved. If you experience a leak at any of these spots check to make sure the old washer is removed. They hide well and often get missed.

I recently bought a Carter w1 kit. I removed a couple of the screws on the side of the carburetor. It looks like there are brass washers that are pressed into the opening. How do I remove them without destroying the threads in the hole?

Use an awl, or pick to pry up on it. The threads are tough.

• Question: I recently ordered the K4062 carb kit for my carter W-1 part number 838938 on the brass tag. During disassembly, I noticed all of the brass plug washers are flat not conical. The kit provides 4 conical seals and only one flat. The flat included in the kit was item 31 on the kit’s part list. The rest of the plugs, 4 total have no flat brass washers. The kit parts list seems to indicate that there are conical and flat for items 7,28,31,36, and 39 of the parts list. The kit I received does not have the flat washers included.

Answer: The washers in the kit are correct for the carburetor number it includes. Unfortunately we don’t have any flat washers that I can send you. My guess is that you have copper washers, which would be impossible to find. My suggestion would be to re-use your old washers. Clean then well and for extra measure get some Permatex anaerobic and put a very small amount on both sides of the washers. This will go a long ways to make sure they seal.

Only Runs With Choke Partially Closed
This is due to a lack of fuel, or possibly a vacuum leak.
If a vacuum leak you will probably hear a hissing, or whistling noise. Spray carburetor cleaner around the mount and any other vacuum source. If the idle smooths out, you found your problem.
As far as a lack of fuel, check the following not in any order.

• Kink, or restricted fuel line
• Weak fuel pump
• Float level
• Float drop – The float may not be moving down enough to let the needle come out of the seat.
• Float rubbing the side of the float bowl.
• Test the float for leaking – any fluid or excess solder inside the float will cause it to sink. Heat some water and immerse the float. Any bubbles indicate a leak.
• Passage plugged – possibly restricted below the main jet. Carefully blow through each passage to make sure the passage is open.
• Main jet too small – not likely unless it’s a new carburetor for the vehicle. W-1 jets are not available. The old jet can be drilled to a larger size. To make smaller, solder shut and re-drill.
• Metering rod not pulling out far enough – There is no adjustment, but look at the arm connection to the metering rod to be sure it’s moving up and down as required.
• Wrong metering rod – If you don’t know the history of the carburetor, the rod could have been replaced with the wrong rod. New rods are not available and unless you have the tag with the carburetor number you will not be able to determine which rod it requires.
• Restricted air cleaner