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MG MGB Technical - Stupid HIF4 mistake

Gentlemen,

If, after renovating the carburettors, a fountain of fuel squirts out of the left carburettors' jet, filling the cilinders with the precious fluid and even raising the oil level considerably, don't spend half a day taking off the carbs a few times inspecting the floats and float needles for leaks. Just switch the fuel line and vent/overflow line, restoring them to their original position...... You don't even have to ask how I know this...... I said it was a stupid mistake!!

Amazingly the engine ran (badly) with this "set up"
Willem van der Veer

Willem,

Yes, that would spoil the fuel economy. Thanks for the tip. I'd rather learn by your mistakes than by my own.

Charley
C R Huff

Nice one Willem,

Your honesty is brilliant.

We could have benefitted from some interesting Dutch vocabulary there!

Imagine your computer, with all the connectors of the same model and size, and no labels to tell you which was USB, 240V, ethernet, etc...

There'd be more than a few drips to clean up if you got that wrong.

David
D Balkwill

David,
<<We could have benefitted from some interesting Dutch vocabulary there!>>

I can assure you I wasn't speaking French when faced with this problem, but in such situations a (Famous) grouse can be good therapy.
I just gave up before dinner and whilst sulkingly watching "Antiques Roadshow" on the BBC, I was struck by lightning when I realised my mistake. Because I suddenly cried out the frustration over my own stupidness, my wife did get a fright!
Willem van der Veer

Willem,

We have all been there. Sometimes difficult to think clearly under pressure, and a break is what we need. Sometimes I awake at 4:00 a.m. with a solution to a problem I have been working on, and the answer so obvious I can't believe it was right in front of me. Then never really get back to sleep re-thinking a better solution.

Regards,

Larry C. '74 B/GT & '69 midget

Larry C '69 Midget

Willem-
Don't feel bad. I also have a few "Bet’cha can’t guess how I know this?" tales of my own. We all do. In one case, I knew that in order to have a leak-free rear axle, first I would have to get the entire old gasket off and have a clean, oil-free sealing surface. A razor scraper that uses single-edge razor blades does nicely at this task, but you need to use it patiently or you will snap off the blade. Of course, I made the classic mistake of spraying the old gasket with a solvent that just happened to close at hand, acetone. That removed the oil just fine, transforming it into a substance that was as hard as a rock, forcing me to shave it off a few hundredths of an inch at a time. I ended up going through a large box of single-edge razor blades by the time I was done. Like I said, don't feel bad. We all know how it feels.

Larry-
I, too, recently found myself suddenly awake at 0400 with the solution to someting that I had been puzzling over for hours prior to going to sleep. Stumbling across the room to the dresser, I grabbed a pen and a piece of paper and scribbled on it, then went back to sleep, happy that I had finally solved the problem. The next morning I looked at the piece of paper. It read: "write it down".
Steve S.

Just logged on the BBS to ask for more advise on the same problem. I just replaced needle valves and the problem was still there. I will try your advice...I hope I made the same stupid mistake!
Thanks
J Rosen

This thread was discussed between 22/09/2008 and 23/09/2008

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