After following the excellent tips on diagnosing fast idle / hunting issues in http://www.cityturbo.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2876, I have found that my main remaining issue is the autochoke.
When I adjust the valve seat all the way in (until I run out of thread), air still gets by the bulb assembly thingie. In an ideal world, I guess one would write this off as "dud bulb, replace it" but (a) this one has already been replaced in the last few years and (b) any replacement from a wreck is likely to suffer similar issues, so I'd have to try and find suitable new part.
While testing, it is clear that the bulb does still expand and contract with engine temp, it's just that it doesn't expand enough to seal off against the top valve seat, given the available adjustment that the valve seat has.
I was wondering - should it be possible to extend/lengthen the valve seat (or replace it with a new turned part) to get enough adjustment back to get a good seal? I figure as long as there is enough air passing at cold to get a stable idle, and enough bulb extension to seal it off when warm, all I need is more room for adjustment.
My main concern is that anything I put in there runs the risk of being sucked into the engine if it comes apart. I was thinking perhaps JBWeld or even just a thick washer of some sort might be enough to do the job, and be large and tough enough that if it came loose wouldn't go any further than the autochoke chamber, but would really like some ideas from people more experienced with this sort of work (ie, cars
).Is this ultimately a dumb idea and I should hunt down another bulb, or might this be a way to get more life out of all those autochokes out there that seem to have shrunk with age?
