how many carb tools does one need?

[jd_1138]

The Homelite 2 stroke weedwhacker I bought new 5 years ago was dying when I tried to take the choke off, so I ran it on choke for a couple of years then I left it at a friend's house (in their barn) after weed whacking for them last year. Then I picked up a nice Troy-Bilt one that runs way better at a yard sale for $25. Last week, I finally recovered the Homelite and I decided to try to fix it.

I ordered a 3 piece set of carb adjustment screwdrivers off eBay for like $5, and when they came today I spent about 2 minutes playing around with the 2 adjustment screws -- speed, mixture. Somehow it runs great now. Starts up easily and idles easily after it warms up even with the choke-off.

Are these only used for small engine carbs? What carb tools are needed for car/truck carbs?

 

[The Cobbler]

any small engine carb I've seen just uses regular screwdrivers .

 

[mikegt4]

I just did some work on my chainsaw carb, it had some bolts that required the splined tool, I got by without it. They basically are there to keep you from messing with the factory adjustments. If you do a lot of small carb work the tools that you will need are a good investment, in this case inexpensive as well.

 

[Modern Garage]

As an aside, a few years ago I asked at my local small engine supplier to buy the oddball screwdriver I needed for my chainsaw. They claimed they were told by one of their OEM's that they wouldn't OK any warranty repairs if they sold that driver to a customer.
I don't know if they were jerking me around but they've always been straight with me before and since. I went home, peeled the carb apart, slotted the screws and put it back together.
To your question, except for the "Double-D" (the oval one on the left in your pic) and some Torx all I've ever needed are normal slotted and phillips screwdrivers.
Of course, what does it matter? Cars don't have carbs anymore...
Joe

 

[Xcursion88]

Goodluck with that.

Toro push mowers for me. Absolutely the best in the business and Husqvarna trimmers.
I had to by a new one because my one **** head son ran over it with a Super Duty.
The new one is more powerful and lighter so it was a win win.

 

[ChevyEFI]

Are these only used for small engine carbs? What carb tools are needed for car/truck carbs?

Idle mix screws on late Quadrajets use double-D. A flex driver works well there. I think a smaller double-D socket is used on the rich or lean stop of the CCC Q-jets. My Thexton Q-Jet tools include 1/4" drive sockets and elec. test modules. I don't have the kent-moore angle gauges. I DD a carb until it was stolen.

 

[Indexmill]

As said above, they are for new carbs on outdoor power equipment so that Joe-homeowner can't **** with the mixture adjustments all in an effort to save the planet from all of those weedwhackers and chainsaws...

Just buy the special tool on Amazon if and when you encounter a carb that you can't adjust otherwise. These special drivers really don't cost much of anything; just buy em as you need em.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Diaphragm carbs have very few parts or adjustments. Bowl type carbs usually require a special type of slotted screwdriver (like a gunsmith screw driver) to remove the main jet and emulsion tube. If you are willing to sacrifice a screwdriver you can grind one down to do the job.

Get a set of jet cleaning wires and brushes.

 

[jd_1138]

any small engine carb I've seen just uses regular screwdrivers .

In Canada, the government probably mandates that carb's be easily adjustable with regular screwdrivers. Just kidding.

 

[M6erfan]

 

[Ralf11]

use 3 of those for your Columbo engine...

 

[Copymutt]

Priced sets of jets lately.
you can size your own.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Hopefully zero, so you're not stuck working on peoples carb'd junk.


Most everything automotive I work on uses flat head screws, but most all of it is 70s and earlier, and aftermarket (usually edlebrock or however it's spelled). Typically speaking, IF the small engine in question has clean fuel, a clean carb, solid spark, and compression - no carb adjustment should be required for functional performance. If you are making large adjustments, you have another issue.

Example - MOST, if not 100% of all carb'd vehicle I work on run like garbage and the carb is all screwed up. Why? Massive vacuum leaks, miss-sized carbs, timing chains sloppy, bad timing in general, low compression, stuck EGR systems, low fuel pressure, etc. People fiddle with the carb until it "runs good", just masking the actual issue. Fix the engine, and "base" settings work pretty good. If the engine is healthy, one can even make it idle at the stated RPM on the underhood tag. Everybody has these things coming it with a 1200rpm hot idle - only way to keep them running.

 

[dnschmidt]

I have no idea as to how many carb tools my landscaper has. As for my cars both are fuel injected.

 

[Ralf11]

Hopefully zero, so you're not stuck working on peoples carb'd junk.

you might be working on somebody's prized vintage sports car tho

 

[2ndGearRubber]

you might be working on somebody's prized vintage sports car tho

IME those all use flathead screw drivers to adjust, most of the old stuff I see that's not american pre 1970 is just webers. DCOE? Sidedrafts mainly. Same deal with carters and aftermarket carbs - all flathead. And even many of the "prized vintage sports cars", need valve jobs to fix the miss fires. Seats are hammered in, valves dished, rattling in the guides, etc. Playing with the carb ain't fixing that, unless a 1200rpm hot idle is called fixed. Although a good number can also be fixed simply by being driven for 30 minutes and adding fresh fuel. People put 100 miles a year on them and everything is all clogged up.

Boomer joe and his carb equipped smog era "classic"? Maybe those use special fasteners. But I try to avoid that clientele. As soon as the words "tune up" are uttered, I'm out. The actual fix is a rebuild. LOL

 

[Ralf11]

yeh Webers and PMOs do.

I should know about Zeniths and Solexes but I don't.

You also got SUs and I dunno what else back in the day...

Even British junk might be somebody's prized old car (I dunno why tho)

 

[JJ99SS]

Goodluck with that.

Toro push mowers for me. Absolutely the best in the business and Husqvarna trimmers.
I had to by a new one because my one **** head son ran over it with a Super Duty.
The new one is more powerful and lighter so it was a win win.

I'll have to remember to think like that when my now 8 year old son inevitably misplaces or destroys a tool. Maybe that's why my dad never got mad at me for breaking things...

 

[Indexmill]

you might be working on somebody's prized vintage sports car tho

Prized vintage sports car carburetors will NOT require special drivers. Let's stay focused. The fucked up tools required these days are really only for new-ish outdoor power equipment with carburators for which the gooberment is trying to force compliance. Just buy the $2.00 driver you need from Amazon and change the settings as you wish.

 

[xjfish]

This is what I use.

 

[Xcursion88]

Hopefully zero, so you're not stuck working on peoples carb'd junk.


Most everything automotive I work on uses flat head screws, but most all of it is 70s and earlier, and aftermarket (usually edlebrock or however it's spelled). Typically speaking, IF the small engine in question has clean fuel, a clean carb, solid spark, and compression - no carb adjustment should be required for functional performance. If you are making large adjustments, you have another issue.

Example - MOST, if not 100% of all carb'd vehicle I work on run like garbage and the carb is all screwed up. Why? Massive vacuum leaks, miss-sized carbs, timing chains sloppy, bad timing in general, low compression, stuck EGR systems, low fuel pressure, etc. People fiddle with the carb until it "runs good", just masking the actual issue. Fix the engine, and "base" settings work pretty good. If the engine is healthy, one can even make it idle at the stated RPM on the underhood tag. Everybody has these things coming it with a 1200rpm hot idle - only way to keep them running.

Oh my....
Last year I had a customer bring in a 1980 Vette that was running like ****.
That carb was ********. It was amateur hour at GM over those years. Using an ECM controlled carb sitting midst of a whole pile of vacuum lines. Enough vacuum lines to make a 100 year old willow tear up.
I had to get on some ******** microfilm to see all the vacuum hose routing...many F bombs that afternoon let me tell ya

To think... some ******(s) got paid a ton of money to brain storm that horseshit up all on an 8 second 0-60 corvette too.

Speaking of GM...let's all give a nod of idiocy for the opti spark used on the LT1 as well. .
Ok end of rant

 

[Ralf11]

Prized vintage sports car carburetors will NOT require special drivers. Let's stay focused. The fucked up tools required these days are really only for new-ish outdoor power equipment with carburators for which the gooberment is trying to force compliance. Just buy the $2.00 driver you need from Amazon and change the settings as you wish.

you could not be more wrong...

386-300 CARBURETOR TOOL KIT, SU | Moss Motors

386-300 CARBURETOR TOOL KIT, SU|<P>An assortment of handy tools for the home mechanic. Instructions included. Suitable for all cars with SU carbs. Includes jet wrench #386-400.</P>

mossmotors.com

 

[crerus75]

The first time I had to adjust the splined mixture screws on my leaf blower, I ended up pulling both screws (idle and WOT), slotting them with a Dremel and a cutting wheel, and reinstalling. Now I can adjust them with a small flathead screwdriver.

 

[Milton Shaw]

I used to rebuild and repair Rochester quadrajets and they require a hand full of parts to set them up correctly, Same thing with the computer controlled carbs of the early 80's. As others have said they used a lot of slot and d shaped screws and some of them had brass plugs driven in them to keep them from being set. Lots of fun finding all the vacuum leaks and getting every thing working correctly for the computer to control it. Still have a drawer full of tools for those, and haven't used many of them since the 80's. All the newer 2 cycle are hard to adjust because of government restrictions for California emission laws. Wish the other 49 states could rebel and even just get the Prop 65 warning left out of catalogs would give room for accurate descriptions instead of giving into California's ridiculous rules. It's bad that one state can require so much for the rest of the country. Same as the 536 senators and representatives in Washington having so much control over everything in this country.

 

[AngryBeaver]

Theres a lot more than 3 special ope carb tools, and have been that way for well over a decade….

 

[wolf_from_wv]

I'd buy the 13 piece set on Amazon, and still somehow end up not having the right one.

 

[Lassen Forge]

I still have my CarterCarburetor square tin box with most of the specialized Carter tools in it... some I'd still love to have, but it's enough to get me through the late 40's through about '57 or so...

Also had a separate box of carb tools when I was doing a lot of motorcycle and scooter work... hoping I still have it somewhere, as I have a chance to get back into that again... at least until they outlaw gasoline...