Hi Andrew
I'm glad that you brought this subject up. I have the same problem as Petak. Black spark plugs and black exhaust
Am I correct in saying that the mixture screw on a Zenith 28IF only works for the mix at idle? I read it somewhere on this forum.
How else can the mixture be regulated besides at the choke flap. Could it be that my spark plugs aren't burning the fuel correctly? They're about 2 years old but haven't done a lot of mileage on them.
Appreciate any help, as would Petak, I'm sure!
The way I would attempt to sort this would be to start with the electrical side of things; confirm the points are correctly set to the right gap and that they are correctly timed. A good strobe lamp can help, as this will give a dwell angle, which is more accurate than using feeler guages to set the point gap. Then check the spark plug electrode gap & confirm the plugs are clean and not oiled up-clean or replace if necessary. Take a look at the H.T. leads and assess their condition; if they're old, brittle or show signs of rubbing change or replace. Don't forget the coil lead, too!
Now the carburettor. Check the choke cable goes fully home when the control on the dashboard is pushed fully in. I adjust these so that the control is slightly "proud" and then you know the flap in the carb is FULLY home when it's pushed in. If the action seems sticky or stiff oil the cable linkage by dribbling a little 3 in 1 oil down inside the cable and do the same to the accelerator linkage if it feels similarly stiff or sticky.
Check the air filter for condition and clean out the housing of leaves etc. Change the air filter if necessary. make sure the intake is set for winter or summer, as appropriate. While looking into the top of the carb give the choke cable a few "pushes and pulls" and ensure that the butterfly isn't sticking in the throat of the carb.
Check the oil level and assuming all's well, switch on & allow the motor to reach normal operating temperature. Once it has, and the choke is pushed fully in (so it's off) WITH THE CAR IN NEUTRAL use the idle screw to raise the tick-over speed slightly. (If you're not sure which screw it is, it's the one that moves the cam that attaches to the accelerator cable.) Now, with the tick-over running a liitle higher then it normally would screw the mixture screw fully into the carb, but do it gently and do not force anything! The car will start to sound "lumpy" and as you begin to unscrew the mixture the tick-over will rise (usually 1.5 to 2 turns will be about right) and the car will sound "happier." Now reduce the tick-over using the idle screw and rev the car a few times. It should rev up without any hesitancy or "gasping" for air. If it sounds OK take the car for a run & see how it feels on the road.
These adjustments are not an EXACT science with cars of the age of ours, and settings may vary from what I've suggested. All adjustments to the mixture & tick-over are done when the engine is at idle, though.
In the UK a decent classic-friendly garage would probably do the adjustments described above during the M.O.T. test for a small additional charge. I did loads of them when I did tests, as it saved time; failing the car, only to have the owner go away , bring it back and then having to couple it up to the exhause analyser took longer then re-setting things there and then!
Sorry to have gone on a bit, but I hope it helps!