Today didn't go as planned. I was on my way to the tire shop to get an alignment and have my Coker classics installed. The car started and drove normally as it usually does and I was cruising on the highway until I came to an intersection and the car stopped running. I popped the hood and gas was flowing out of the carburetor. I could not restart the car at all. I had a good strong spark. Curiously it would also not start with nose candy (ether starting spray). I ran the battery down and had it towed home. This is my 1951 Mercury with 8CM engine and the teapot Stromberg. It must need a rebuild. I can't decide if I should have the Stromberg rebuilt or if I should put another compatible carburetor on it. (Carter, Weber, etc) I have heard that the stromberg's are prone to flooding, and I want it to be more reliable.. Any suggestions?
No idea about the carb, but what a good looking car!! Probably wouldn't restart just from being totally flooded. Might be a good idea to change, or at least check the oil for gas too, if you haven't already. Maybe some dirt got in the carb?
I work mostly on things with two wheels, but there most flooding carburettors are caused by some kind of dirt on the needle/needle seat. I wouldn't automatically assume a carburettor needs rebuilding after flooding once, I check the actual condition of it once I'm in there to determine that.
Always anylize the problem before doing the repairs. Easy statement, sometimes hard to do. Once the spark plugs get really gas soaked, they will not fire. You may have to change plugs. As stated, there’s nothing wrong with that model carb. Been used successfully for years. Bones
"Teapot" I usually think of the Holley 4bbl flaming inferno on the Y-Blocks as a teapot. But anyway there probably are better carbs out there if you plan to swap yours out. One thing to consider is the Load-O-Matic ignition system originally on your Merc. If you've already changed the distributor out for one with mechanical advance don't worry about what I'm going to say. You will need a carburetor that is compatible with your distributor or the ignition advance won't function correctly. Good luck with this pain in the... -Dave
After working on vehiles with carburetors for over fifty years, I can tell you the number one cause of carburetor failure is something going into the carburetor that’s not clean air or gasoline. Dirt, bugs, water, corn juice, etc. Distant second is leaks and then part failure comes in third. Good filters , quality fuel are your friend. Bones
Another thread on the 885... https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...arb-advice-need-to-upgrade-holley-885.197708/
Possibly a hung up float if gas was pouring out of it. Rebuild it and make sure the float swings nicely. X2 on a filter addition. My fuel system is new so I just run a single Moroso steel can filter and change it once a year.
My first choice for a better carb would be the Rochester 2g from a SBC. But, as said above, your stock distributor won't work correctly with it. I have a 2g on my flattie w/Bubbas distributor. Runs fantastic!
I was looking at this carb for sale and it has a throttle lever that appears to be different... It looks like this is set up for the linkage to *push* for clockwise movement as opposed to "PULL for clockwise movement". But the listing says '51 Mercury. It says it is a fully restored unit. Any input on this? That throttle lever looks totally different than mine. Second picture is mine that pulls for clockwise acceleration.
No help here but thats a real beauty and It shows it a lot better from that rear angle than the shot in your avatar
You'll love it. With good compression & fresh tune, you can set the idle down to 375 RPM. Also fun to run with the air horn in your hand ....
Those carbs are easy to rebuild. Just take pictures as you go. I'm dyslexic so I tend to put things on backwards (gave up wearing underwear years ago.. ) and having a reference is good as gold.
Mercury used five different of the Holley 885-FFC carbs from 1949-1951 and Lincoln used three more. So between the two brands, eight different of these carburetors. The differences are pretty well spelled out in the Holley Master Parts Catalog. From about 1946 through about 1956, Holley put out some of the very best carburetor information ever published for public consumption. Exploded views of each individual carburetor, with every single piece pictured, and original part number for each piece listed. Roughly 1957, Holley went to the *&^%$#@ generic (one size fits all, is correct for NOTHING) "exception" diagrams used by others. The reason for the change is quite obvious. My book covers 1939 to about 1963 and is about 9 inches thick! As others have mentioned, they are easy to rebuild, and kits (at least by mail order) are readily available. These are not bad carbs, and have the advantage of being calibrated for your engine, and everything fits. Unless you are hot-rodding the engine, see no reason to change. Jon.
If you want to keep your distributor stock then clean and rebuild the carb you have. Otherwise you need a different dizzy with a different carb. My merc i went to the 2gc and a hei dizzy and never looked back.
One thing that may be worth looking into, in my opinion, is the fuel pressure. I was working on a Oldsmobile Rocket 303 with the original Carburetor and fuel system. Occasionally it would flood as your Mercury did. I put a fuel pressure guage on it and found that the pressure could rise up to 5 PSI. At anything above 4.5 PSI, the needle and seat wasn't able to stop fuel from coming into the carb. I ended up installing a fuel pressure regulator and set it at 4 PSI. That resolved the issue. I hope this helps a little.... At least a little extra input towards the brainstorming. Sent from my Moto Z (2) using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Most carburetors have a specified working pressure. While enthusiasts can defeat this specification by arbitrarily changing the fuel seat orifice, the factory specification is always a good starting point. Holley specified a working pressure of 4.5 psi for your type 885-FFC carburetor. A fuel pressure gauge temporarily inserted between the fuel inlet line and the carburetor will tell the tale. One test is worth 1000 guesses. Jon.
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