1930 Ford Model A

This 1930 Ford Model A came to us needing some service work. The car was running terribly rich and leaking fuel from the carburetor. While this symptom can occur when the fuel valve is left on, it was happening all the time.

There were several different carburetors used on the Model A, and this one was a Tillotson Model X. The Tillotson was made out of potmetal rather than cast iron like the Zenith carbs used on a lot of Fords, so they corrode in different spots and the intake flanges are notorious for warping due to exhaust heat.

We removed the carb, disassembled it and inspected everything. The brass needles were worn, there was a large amount of sediment/rust in the float bowl and the flange was warped. Additionally, the float had been damaged at some point in the past and it has been soldered in several spots.

Next: Reassembly and tuning