My plan is, sometime in the future, to install an aftermarket L-88 hood which should give plenty of clearance.
But in the meantime, I felt I had to do something in order to give the carb a bit more breathing room.
My solution was to remove about 5/8" from the bottom of the base plate, the area where it contacts the carb horn.
Maybe not the best or most elegant solution, but it alleviated my worries.
Here are photos of how I did it and the end result.
BEFORE ▼
The first thing is to remove the air cleaner assembly so you can determine where, and how much material you will trim off it.
I used masking tape in order to scribe a line around the base. This would allow me to make as straight of a cut as possible with my Dremel tool fitted with a cutting disc.
Here is the base after removing about 5/8" off the bottom. I went through five cutting discs since they are small in diameter.
And in case you're not familiar with using a cutting disc, it's a lot safer if you work from left to right.
Needless to say, eye protection is a must.
After shortening the air cleaner base, I used a large file in order to smooth out the surface as much as possible. A belt or a disc sander would have been ideal, but since I do not own one, I had to improvise.
Fortunately, the contact surface looked pretty flat when I was done, so I did a test fit to make sure there would be no clearance issues. There were none.
And this is the finished product. I also had to shorten the threaded stud so it would clear the foam.
5/8-inch is not a huge amount but it does make a noticeable difference and adds a bit of peace of mind that the air cleaner will not touch the hood. The L-88 hood will take care of any additional concerns but that project is a ways down the road.
AFTER ▼
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