1986 gas club car stock carburetor settings, black soot on spark plug

[bigcee]

Hi all,
I need some help with this old 86 club car. It has been running intermittently after sitting for quite some time. I took the spark plug out and cleaned it. It had black carbon build up on it. I was also thinking of taking the carburetor out and cleaning it and adjusting it. does anyone know the stock settings for the screws and levers and such? I could use some help!

Thanks in advance!

[MarineGrunt]

If it's black that means it's running rich (getting too much gas). I would first give the carb a good cleaning. Get a piece of paper and write down the current settings so you can get it back to where it's at now if need be after messing with adjustments. How you do this is by turning the screws in and counting the turns. I usually put a score mark on the aluminum where the slot in the screw is and then count half turns. Even after adjusting it may be possible you'll need a smaller jet. I actually just ran into that on an older atv I worked on today.

I don't know the stock settings for you carb but normally for the air or fuel mixture screw is 1.5-2 turns out on most carbs. Yours may either have just an air screw or fuel screw. Normally if the screw is towards the engine side of the carb it's fuel and if it's on the air box side it's air mixture. Idle screw can fluctuate for turns out but is easy to adjust. If you can attach a pic of your carb I may be able to help a little more.

A clogged air filter can cause a rich condition too. Also make sure your choke cable is adjusted properly so choke plate opens all the way. If it's not opening back up it could also cause a rich condition.

[bigcee]

I will try and get a picture of that for you!

Any info on how to adjust the carb plate?

[Cruise Master]

I've never worked on a gas cart before, but the old trick to setting a carb is to get a can of spray carb cleaner. You then spray a very fine mist in front of the carb intake. If it speeds up it's too lean, if nothing happens it's too rich. You want to get it to just that point where it does not speed up.

[bigcee]

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Need more pics?

[bigcee]

Took carb off and cleaned it.

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[bigcee]

So I noticed that it seems to run more stable and reach higher rpms with that hose from the crank case removed from the back of the filter housing. That is letting ambient air directly into the engine though.

I also observed some gusts of warm air coming out of the filter housing....as if there was some slight...what do you call it...blow back?

[Cruise Master]

Originally Posted by bigcee

So I noticed that it seems to run more stable and reach higher rpms with that hose from the crank case removed from the back of the filter housing. That is letting ambient air directly into the engine though.

I also observed some gusts of warm air coming out of the filter housing....as if there was some slight...what do you call it...blow back?

Are you sure the black is not oil? That hose releases positive pressure in the crankcase that can occur if you have bad (or stuck) piston rings.

[bigcee]

Hmmm....I'm not sure...got a way to test it?

[Cruise Master]

A simple thing to do is a compression test. This will tell you the overall health of the engine. A healthy engine will be within 10 maybe even 15psi of spec's.

Also when it comes to spark plugs if they're black rub them on your forefinger then use your thumb to rub the black. You should be able to feel the soot or oil between your fingers. Old school.