I have a NOS holley 4 bl teapot carb(previously called mayor mc cheese on hamb). I am planning on running this on an offy 4 bl intake on my flathead. Before I start it I have some questions. How much fuel pressure do I need? How many cfm are they and has anybody run one who would have some tips or tricks? I can post a pic of the carb later today. Thanks Brad
yeah, ditto on that. Get rid of that piece of shit and run something else. If you're that anal about period correctness, try to find an old Carter or a Rochester.
i bought an old school bus once a long time ago,i actually lived in it for awhile it had one of those carbs. yes,it caught fire that desk lamp idea sounds pretty nifty.or sell it to a restorer.
There have been threads about these carbs before. There were about 5 people who said they were awful and 5 who said they ran them fine for years with no trouble. I am not anal about period correctness, I have a brand new one sitting on the shelf. 6 strombergs are a fire startin son of a bitch that puke and gag but they are really cool? I am going to try it. Brad
it's your car,do what you want. don't forget the fire extinguisher.it's a good idea to have one anyway.
I have a Holly "teapot" on my '55 Mercury. It's been a decent performer, but I have had some problems with it in the past. I don't drive my Mercury everyday, so the fuel bowl tends to dry up. When this happens, the float can very easily hang up and not shut the needle valve when the car is started. With the fuel bowl being near the top, gas will spill down the carburetor and intake. Hence, the "towering inferno"! To solve the fuel bowl filling problem, I installed an electric fuel pump in line with the standard diaphragm pump. It's wired to a momentary switch under the dash. Before I start the car, I "bump" the electric fuel pump (short spurts) a little until the bowl is full. When the bowl is full (and the float has shut off the needle valve), the backpressure shuts off or prevents further fuel delivery from the electric pump. At this point, I can start the car knowing the fuel bowl is full and not overflowing.
Thanks Chris, this engine is going in a HAMB dragster. It will be far from a daily driver. I am looking for tips like yours to prevent any trouble. I have seen many of these carbs on restored Tbirds with Y blocks that drive around - not on fire. I appreciate all the input and I know everyone is trying to be honest and help. Thanks guys! Brad
Fwiw, #4000 teapot four barrels that come on the Lincolns were preferred by many since they are bigger than the Ford Teapot carbs. I've often wondered if one of the Teapot's problems were too much float drop. Let the float hang down too far and the float tab is pushing sideways on the needle instead of up and the float is hung open. A little AFB I ran on a 67 Barracuda did that one once. Interesting because that's the way it came from the factory. Not being real familiar with the Teapots, it could be possible there are no tabs on the float to control float drop. Perhaps adapting a different float to the Teapot could be done. Float drop is the opposite setting from float level. Hold the carb horizontally in it's normal orientation and see how far the float hangs down. Anything more than about 10-15 degrees would probably be too much. I would make sure to regulate the fuel pressure and follow what the manuals say. I'm guessing about 4# would do it. (Depending on the pump you have you could be impressing 6-9# on the system and that will blow by most needles.) Other brand and style of carbs have their float sticking problems and catch on fire now and then so perhaps the towering inferno bit is a small misnomer. Lotta guys ran them in single and dual setlups back in the day and had no problems.
I have been running a teapot for a year on my '56 292 in the F100 without too many problems (anecdotal expereince at best ). I do find it hard to start if it has sat for a day or two and like RSC's idea of an electric pump to help things along. I will switch to a more 'modern' carb at some point but am unsure of what to switch to and what would fit the present manifold ... more research required. I have found a ton of info for my F100 on http://www.ford-trucks.com/ (forums) and know there is one dedicated to YBlock stuff. If you are going to keep the teapot PM me. In my stack of old Hot Rods I have a pretty good article on teapot tuning tricks, i.e. specific cold weather settings, etc. I can scan or photocopy depending on which turns out .... now where is that mag Later, papa al
I knew there had to be some people running them. I plan on using the stock flattie mechanical pump with maybe a little electric inline with regulator to help it depending on where the fuel tank gets located. Will the flattie mechanical pump work with a low mounted tank? Brad
I found these original manuals online here: http://www.tocmp.com/manuals/Carbs/Holley/H4000/C228/ This website is fabulous btw. Lots of info you would have a hard time finding. I found that my carb is the 4000 series but they are all 370 cfm. Brad
I had thought it might be around 400 cfm by looking at the size of the barrels. I think it will be fine. How does 370 cfm compare to two or three deuces?
Here's an article I downloaded from the Hot Rod magazine site when they had their archives available online: Teapot Rebuild
Whew you guys are fast. Found the mag, scanned, uploading .... what?? RSC's provided *.pdf is the same article I have from HR Sept. 1957. I will save the band width .... Later, papa al PS thanks for the info on the teapot ...
the tea pot Holley is a good carb. I removed my original mechanical fuel pump and run an electric with LOW FUEL PRESSURE! The key to not having any problems is LOW FUEL PRESSURE. My 368 runs like a dream. The only problem I've ever had is a bad accelerator cup and they are available in aftermarket rubber.
i run 2 teapots on my 56 linc motor with no problems have heard stories of firepots also the linc ECU carbs are larger app 500 cfm than the ford / merc app 400 cfm y blocks you can id linc carbs by there squarish choke flaps as compared to ford merc round ones the floats have a spring underneath to help them back up. float level should be adjusted wet [remove top measure distance between top and actual fuel level i'm running 1/4 in specs call for a 1/2 i have 7 lbs fuel pressure with no dripping or leaking but i will cut it back to 5 lbs that should be plenty i have the same start up problem when car sitting for a few days like the idea of a 2nd electric fuel pump will look into putting one on my coupe you will probably find the secondaries won't kick in till 5 grand or not at all remove vacuum secondary cover and remove check ball and retaing clip from secondary housing look in the hole it's there get a late model holley sec spring kit and start with the 2nd most lightest [lowerest tension] spring and tune to your motors need my coupe runs fine with these carbs i like the design of these the fuel is far away from hot intake and motor heat + has sort off ram effect cause by gravity sort of like a tunnel ram with the intake you'll be suprised how many people will ask you what kinda carb your ruuning john
This is a very old thread revived...I'll just add that they can be made to run...low fuel pressure, REGULATED, is a very good idea...they used to be semi-popular with offroaders years ago because they can handle steep inclines....the spark control valve for the Load-O-Matic P.O.S. distributor can be removed, if you junk the Load-O, and plugged with a std. Holley power valve blockoff plug. You may need two gaskets to seal it.
I own one, I use one, my problems went away buy doing three things, 1)I hired a pro carb rebuilder do rebuild my teapot. 2) I switched to an electric fuel pump for more constant and reliable pressure. 3)I use a fuel pressure guage to make sure I DON'T OVER PRESSURE the unit. If you want stats I would be happy to send them.
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