carb adjustment two Elgin 1.25

[Timothy McDonald]

I’ve been out a few time with these two Elgin 1.25hp. At 19 pounds they fit a canoe. Problem…I spend half my time with one hand on the main fuel adjustment valve. The engines seem very sensitive to fuel adjustment, they definitely don’t tolerate rich settings and every few minutes I hear the motor slow and have to adjust the mixture. Sometimes merely putting pressure on the valve stem fixes the problem. Never does it take more than a very slight movement. I visualize inside the valve the conical shape is gone and just a flat surface remains. Is there a replacement or do I try to reshape the tip of the valve?

[Timothy McDonald]

Homemade transome mount fifteen ft Chestnut canoe

[billw]

I have two 1 1/4 Elgins. They are both very sensitive to adjustment but not quite as bad as you describe. They are also very sensitive to dirt and crud of any size, in the carb, line and tank. Being as they are as much as 75 years old, there’s been ample time for crud build-up and mis-use. I would start by cleaning the carb, line and tank, even if you already did it once. Fuel itself is a cleaner and can loosen and dislodge dirt and garbage that you may not have gotten out the first time. Crank case seal and flange leaks, if you have them, don’t help. All that being said, that’s why they give us adjustments…so we can tweak it when needed.

Long live American manufacturing!

• This reply was modified 3 years, 1 month ago by billw.

[billw]

Nice canoe. In the picture, what is the thing that appears to loop over the wide-open throttle handle? Is that a fuel line? If so, that loop may be a big part of the problem. Sorry if I am not seeing it the right way.

Long live American manufacturing!

[frankr]

Timothy McDonald wrote:

I’ve been out a few time with these two Elgin 1.25hp. At 19 pounds they fit a canoe. Problem…I spend half my time with one hand on the main fuel adjustment valve. The engines seem very sensitive to fuel adjustment, they definitely don’t tolerate rich settings and every few minutes I hear the motor slow and have to adjust the mixture. Sometimes merely putting pressure on the valve stem fixes the problem. Never does it take more than a very slight movement. I visualize inside the valve the conical shape is gone and just a flat surface remains. Is there a replacement or do I try to reshape the tip of the valve?

Well there ya go—-the pointy tip is gone from the needle. Try to reshape it if you can. Otherwise, you need a replacement.

[Timothy McDonald]

billw, good eye. I wondered if someone would see that. Not the fuel line, a piece of copper wire. I forgot to tighten the spark adjustment plate screw when I put everything back together. Copper wire keeps the throttle in place.

[Timothy McDonald]

frankr…thanks. I was afraid of damaging something but I’ll give it a go. Nothing to loose I guess.

[Timothy McDonald]

I don’t think fuel contamination is the problem. The one fuel line I modified. The other is original. Cleaned both tanks and carbs.

[Timothy McDonald]

Billw, I took out the valve stems and one from a parts Elgin 1.25. the parts motor has a different valve. Much sharper. Do you happen to know what’s in your motors?

[dave-bernard]

the adjustment is not to loose and moving is it. snug it up a little.

[Author]

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