More SU problems

planetman said:

I'm not trying to cast aspersions on your machining skills, but why re-invent the wheel.

We prefer to rebuild HS6 carbs ourselves, but there is 1 step we don't tackle and that is replacing the throttle shafts. We have the tools to replace the bushings, but it takes a lot of time and then you have to deal with drilling the holes precisely at the correct angles in the throttle shafts.

We send ALL our HS6 throttle bodies to Joe Curto to have just the throttle shafts replaced.

In fact a customer came in yesterday and left us his HS6 carbs to rebuild and I will shipping the throttle bodies out to Joe in the next day or 2.

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By my count, there are 5-7 good SU guys to send stuff to. Most are in their late 50s and sometimes have longer than desired lead times. So, the way I see it, learn their craft and carry on the greatness of the SU

Really what it came down to was that these guys learned by doing, so why cant I? I grabbed as many sets as I could off ebay for $300 and spent another $100 on tools. Sat down at the drill press and started futzing with them. Threw a few sets on different cars that friends are willing to loan me for a weekend drive with the wife. Toss a set on, tune em, hit the road. Thew a few hundred miles on a couple sets of carbs and they were happy. Now, I've done about 10 sets from H2s to HIFs and feel somewhat comfortable charging for repair instead of just asking that the owner give me the parts and giving out a racer guarantee of 3 feet or 30 seconds.

I have been rebuilding SU carbs since 1974. I have worked restoring British cars since then. I have the O/S pilot reamers and have made many jigs and fixtures for rebuilds. See post above about the jig for the throttle shaft pins/linkage for the HS6 carbs. I still do rebuilds for our local and North East SU carbed cars. Yes I'm getting old,[will be 67] also don't know how much longer I'll do this

283SD said:

also don't know how much longer I'll do this

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If a YouTube vid was made that gave key points, not a walk thru rebuilding a carb, on how tools (jigs, fixtures, etc) were used, that would be a nice gift.

More like a gentle overview on how/why this/that tool is used on a SU carb. And maybe cite some relevant books/manuals

84B23F said:

If a YouTube vid was made that gave key points, not a walk thru rebuilding a carb, on how tools (jigs, fixtures, etc) were used, that would be a nice gift.

More like a gentle overview on how/why this/that tool is used on a SU carb. And maybe cite some relevant books/manuals

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Joe Cuturo has a couple good ones. For jigs, fixtures, ect, most of these were assembled and pinned by hand, so they're all different. My favorite jig, green loctite, and a roll of lockwire

My basic process for the shaft levers and pins: Put the butterfly in, close it and make certain it wont open. Slide the lever over with a dab of green loctite, and loosen the idle screw til the lever lays flat on the body. Slide a piece of .25mm shim stock between the lever and body, wire it tight. Use a 1/32 drill bit in a dremel, and mark the hole, give it a little depth so the real drilling doesnt walk. Move over to the drill press and align the hole and drill to size.

If you're planning on going with Joe, I just sent a pair of my SUs his way - reasonable price, but right now there is a pretty far back up. Joe quoted me about a 14 week wait. If you're not in a rush, I've heard only good things about his work. But if you need a faster turn-around, maybe look elsewhere.