Rule Of Thumbs! The float should be level compared to the bowl's contact to carb when held up-side-down. Most of all, it should stop the intake of gas before it touches the carb. What are the conditions of the needle and seat in the Carb?? loger

Thanks Loger, I've had this trouble a while. I'm going to try a new Briggs seat. The 398188 kit works great in the 40$ Ariens. One more question. How should the bowl be positioned? With the low spot toward the needle valve? TIA, Andy

The low spot should be positioned to allow the float to drop lower. Correct Techs? Try not to get a seat that will starve the engine for fuel as a swollen seat will do. loger

The welch plug you found in the bowl is from the bowl vent. I think its only purpose is keep sloshing gas from immediately coming out of the vent hole. It doesn't seal anything.

The lower part of the bowl is for the float to drop to its lowest point, so it goes under that part of the float.

I've run into a few float seats that are compromised by rust, or by ethanol. They hold pressure......sometimes. Always clean the entire system of dirt or rust, install a filter, install a new seat. The grooved part of the seat goes upward.

Update : today I rebuilt another carb. It was flooding too , but I think it was just the bowl. I tightened the nut a quarter turn and it seems to have done the trick. In all this goings on,it ran out of gas. No gas, so I dumped in some MMO and a 1/2 bottle of B 12 Chem-tool. Then life intervened and I had to quit playing with it. I'll give it a whirl this weekend. I got cleared to return to work. Yippee!

I always set my Tecumseh floats this way:
With the bowl off, turn the carb upside down. With the float in position and everything in place, except the bowl, i hold the carb up to eye level.
As i look at the assembly, i always set the float with a slight tilt upwards at the end opposite the hinge side of the float. Just a wee bit. This makes sure the needle valve will do its proper job when the carb is reassembled and back in its normal position wi8th fuel in the bowl.

I going back to work monday. I guess I have worked too long (46 years) I don't get the yippee feeling at all! But, glad I can still work and have Job that's for sure in today's world! maybe the bowl nut being loose alowed siphoning effect causing the leakage????