Hi everybody I have a 1942 BSA M20 with an AMAL 276 remote float carburetor and just got down with the full restoration. I put gas in it and opened the petcocks and all of a sudden gass was coming out of the carb. I adjusted the float level and it stopped coming out of the air intake but it kept leaking out of the lower banjo bolts top and bottom. I have replaced the upper and lower washers with nylon,copper and fiber but it still leaks really bad from that area. The carb itself looks to be in bad shape so I tried to smooth everything out for a better seal, but again nothing. If anyone has had this problem or has any info on what to do I would sure appreciate it.

email (option): bjsullivan23@ymail.com

Barrett it makes no difference about the washers on the lower banjo or the one above on the big union nut, as long as they are sound and tight. There is a small bleed hole in the carb body just above the union nut. The petrol will be coming from there because either your float level is too high or the float needle is not sealing. Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Make sure your float is pushed down the float needle until the clip locates in the groove, the clip can become loose. The one on my ES2 had slide up making the fuel level high and the bike run rough. I see the replacement ones on Amals website have 2 grooves now, my one only has one so no way of adjusting the float height.

email (option): horror@blueyonder.co.uk

The double grooves on the latest needles are not for adjustment, but to allow the use of the current production nylon floats which are located by a spring clip rather than the soldered construction on top.

There is only one correct position for each type of float.

Float height is adjusted by altering the location of the float chamber in relation to the carb. Alternative mixing chamber nuts are available for this purpose. A small adjustment can be achieved by fitting two gaskets under the mixing chamber.

Putting two grooves in the float needle of a fixed float height carb so that (presumably) the needle can be used in either an original or modern version is a really dumb idea, bound to lead to confusion and incorrect settings...

Successful setting up and operation of the carb requires that the carb specification is correct and that it is adjusted correctly throughout the range...Achieving that without a firm grasp of the principles of operation and physical construction of the unit and some information relating to the specification for a particular application, is unlikely to yield an accurate or efficient result...

BSA factory worksheets contain detailed descriptions of the way the carb operates and information on common faults and their likely causes...

Amal and BSA literature will help to confirm that the correct carb, assembled to the correct specification, is being used..This information should be obtained at the outset....and as a last resort there is the forum...

My advice to anyone is to first acquire a clear understanding of the principles of operation involved before trying to solve any problem...

Making random adjustments hoping to solve a problem is as likely to introduce another problem as it is to solve the original one and thus can make things even more difficult to resolve....Ian

Cheers Rik, I see now that they have done away with the old type float for a plastic one and a seperate clip. Not something I've come across as I haven't got a carb that new.

email (option): horror@blueyonder.co.uk

a couple of problems ive had is that it seemed the needle in the float bowl was slightly to long so was not seating or sealing properly on the bottom, if so just file it down couple of mm.
take the bowl off, leave the float in and lid on and blow in the bottom, blocking the carb fitting end with your fingers, then you can se if its sealing or not.
maybe check that the locating hole on the lid is clean
no holes or cracks in the float
the bottom of the float needle is clean and try to seat it a bit better buy pulling and twisting the needle with your fingers.
hope this helps

barry

email (option): mrsbfuller@hotmail.co.uk

And remember when you tickle this type of carb it will continue to dribble out of your carb until it finds the right level.In other words dont panic! I was chasing my tail for ages thinking the needle wasn't sealing until it clicked.

From reading your problem the first thing I would be checking is the banjo at the bottom of the bowl as over the years a lot of people have tried to file them flat and it is common that they can be on an inclineon the top or bottom and therefore the new gaskets will not seal as they are not the same height all over. I trust your carb body is marked on the top right flange where it bolts onto the cylinder 276C/1B and that the bowl is marked 1B?