David Deutsch wrote:
>
> Hey we have to discuss something.
>
> I my humble opinion, I'd prefer a good pair of SUs any day of the week.
Humble?
> This is one of those personal preference topics. The only way to
> conclude this topic is to say, "to each, his (or her)own)".
> Safety Fast, David (working hard to be kinder) Deutsch
I suppose if you want a stock car to run as stock, then you need some of
those "Skinners Union" things. And, I suppose, it I ever had a 'new' set
of SUs then maybe I would think they are okay. But they are infinitely
tunable because they are infinitely worn by the time I get to own them.
There is no reason to sell performance parts for SUs because just
peddling the stock pieces is so profitable.
On the cars I've had with twin SUs, it always worked out that either one
worked okay but neither one wanted to work together. Sorta like that
fine Atlanta republican rep: "Cooperation but not Compromise."
The little car could be made to idle okay but that was usually by
choking down whichever one of them had the most worn throttle shafts.
And eventually, I would come screaming off the freeway and the car would
settle down to a 2,200 rpm frantic idle.
And why does all that stuff gotta move to just work the silly choke? You
always can tell when it's time for a tune-up. Thats when it not only
takes both hands to pull out the choke lever but also a foot pushing
back on the dash for leverage.
The replacement parts ain't what they used to be either. The jet tubes
in the rebuild kits are mostly plastic. And the little rubber hose is
just the right length to jam the slide up when you use the choke. When
you want to screw the plastic spicket into the bottom of the float bowl,
the little, tiny, ignition wrench turns about 2.5 degrees before it
fowls across something.
You try to be really industrious and get the float level right on. But
the replacement floats are plastic bobbers not quite as sophisticated as
the stuff I use for fishing so its impossible to get the right level
with this non-adjustable junk.
And they make a really big deal when you replace the butterfuly disk on
the new throttle shafts to make sure they sit square. But it's damn near
impossible with the 25 year old pot-metal housings. You do the best you
can but when you torque down the nut to hold the shaft in place it all
binds up and you have to start over again. In frustration you break out
the Dremel tool and then, come Monday, sure as hell the car will hardly
idle and you're ordering another set of those little brass discs for 15
bucks a pop.
The metering needles are "one-size-rubs-all" non-adjustable ones that
eventually slice into the jet tube. And you'd better be happy with the
enrichment because they are non-adjustable. Well, except in use, when
the become self adjusting any way they want.
The chamber and piston assembly have been swapped around every which way
by the procession of previous owners and they work perfectly at any
speed you can attain in your driveway. But at 4,000 rpm on the highway,
they'll wiggle around anyway they want. And then they eventually spit
out the damper piston just for fun and you gotta guess how much oil to
put back in in the middle of nowhere. Anything extra oozes down the
slide, gumming it up, and running through the motor to emit a cloud of
blue smoke on start up so you think you're in for a valve job.
The linkage that ties the duo together is Rube Glodberg genius at its
very best. Only the idle screws are easy to get at so everyone is an
expert at balancing the carbs. But the choke ramp screws point down into
the darkness. But that's just as well as the shafts that try to rotate
the recalitent choke has long sense fouled itself and, since you can't
buy new ones anymore, you have to just keep messing with the old ones.
And try to get those little lever arms down to the fuel jets to still
line up when you're done. But it doesn't really matter as the POs kept
swapping out the return strings until, by the time you get the car, they
are a filed down pair of springs that used to hold the hood up on an
early-seventies, first generation Monte Carlo.
Yes sir, them little SUs are really memorable. There is a fine business
for the SU specialists to take a constant stream of money from the MG
purists. In the last catalog I got, a set of brand new SUs could set you
back over $600 and you still have to use the crummy, balky, cheesy stock
linkage.
Oh boy, hold me back or I'll tell you what I really think...
Bob Allen, Kansas City, '69MGCGT with three (3) 40MM DCOE Webers.
|