OMC 3.8 v6 1984 fuel leak

[dlogvine]

I finished restoring the Mercedes (Freedom Boat) 1984 with v6 3.8L engine. It had some really weird flame arrestor before, so I tried to use an old flame arrestor from 3.0 Mercruiser engine, It has a slightly smaller flange opening and did not go all the way down to the carb. When I tried to run the engine it ran fine but I notice the fuel leaking from the carb, somewhere on the top of it. I could not identify the exact source of the leak, flame arrestor was blocking the view a little, but it does not come from the fuel line, this one I had to replace, since it was all cracked and was gashing fuel. The question is, could the fuel run from the carburator to flame arrestor gap or should I look for another source?
thanks

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,..... Fire it up, Without the ill fittin' flame arrester, 'n Look,....

Very doubtful it's the flame arrester, as it should never see gas,....

It's also gotta fit Properly to work,...

 

[Scott Danforth]

finding a good fitting flame arrestor is your number 2 priority, with fixing your fuel leak as number 1.

if the leak is coming from the carb itself, you need a carb rebuild. probably a stuck needle and seat. if the fuel leak is coming up the clear hose from your fuel pump, you need a new fuel pump.

 

[dlogvine]

finding a good fitting flame arrestor is your number 2 priority, with fixing your fuel leak as number 1.

if the leak is coming from the carb itself, you need a carb rebuild. probably a stuck needle and seat. if the fuel leak is coming up the clear hose from your fuel pump, you need a new fuel pump.

I did rebuild this carb, but it was a long time ago and I think there were some problems with fitting some parts of rebuild kit with the actual carburator, will try to look if the floater is getting stuck or at least determine where does the leak come from exactly.

 

[Scott Danforth]

carbs get dirty, you may need to rebuild again. if you find crud in the bowl, you may need to chase the source. could have crud in your tank.

 

[dlogvine]

Tried to run the boat without the flame arrester. The leak is definitely from the carb bowl. So I think it is some adjustments or cleaning. Will clean all the nozzles tomorrow, so far I just checked the float and the needle, both looked ok, adjusted the float a little and painted the carburetor. Will try to put it in tomorrow and test it. If it still leaks I will take it to the carb shop for them to adjust it.

 

[dlogvine]

Looks like the jet nozzles are clean, gaskets are good.will see if the leak is gone. What else could cause the bowl overflow? From what I saw the fuel started coming from the top of the fuel chamber with a float after 20 30 secs of running

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... A heavy float, or mis-adjusted float would be My 1st guess,....

 

[dlogvine]

Ayuh,.... A heavy float, or mis-adjusted float would be My 1st guess,....

Looks like that was the case, adjusted float and put a correct flame arrester and it runs well. I also discovered when rebuilding carb that a previous owner screwed up with it quite a bit, broken screw and stripped thread in flame arrester support, a couple stripped threads in the carb body, had to drill bigger holes and tap them. But finally the boat is finished (keeping my fingers crossed ). Had to recarpet the bow, changed all upholstery, except the captains seat, changed the gimbal seal, half of the dashboard wiring, dashboard gauges panel, lights and a bunch of other stuff. And trailer work.