Used Carburettors Buying Guide
If your currently sat home looking for carburettor bargains on market place and eBay here’s a few things to look out for when buying used carburettors.
This may help you when trying to save money that ends up costing you in the long run.
The old “they ran O.K might need a service” isn’t assurance the carbs are good.
Remember some of these carbs can be up to 60 years old.
Unfortunately a tin of carb cleaner a screw driver and a basic service kit won’t resolve a lot of the more common issues.
Firstly check the carbs are a matched pair look at the carburettor type there are many different variations of Weber and Dellorto carbs even if they are the same family model they may not match .
E.G not all 40 DCOE’s are the same checks the type number matches.
Look at the carb body if there are differences they are not the same carbs so unmatched and you will never get them to run right.
The same for Dellorto’s these have suffix and non suffix carbs so 40 DHLA or 40 DHLA with another letter after the type no. even better some Dellorto’s may still have the metal tags on the tops.
This applies to all models 40’s 45’ 48’s.
Not easy to spot is if someone has swapped a top.
Look for physical differences between the bodies and tops they should match.
Evidence of oxidisation on the outside can mean the carbs have been subject to damp and water and once removed this can leave pitting and damage both externally and internally.
Early style shaft bearings being an open bearing tend to stick & seize. (JDA only fit the later sealed type bearings).
Previously worked on doesn’t mean they have been looked after we see lots of damaged caused by inexperience or out right bodgery.
Seized or stuck components like accelerator pump rods and plungers are not easy to remove successfully.
These siezed components are often internal and not seen leave it to the experts to avoid expensive or irreparable damage.
(JDA can remove seized components without causing damage)
Broken float pin leg on the carb top would usually write the carb top off and this isn’t visible without disassembly. (Can be repaired at JDA)
Always check around idle mixture screws for cracks or damage to the body open the throttle plates to make sure there are no internal cracks around the idle mixture screw seat area.
Check around the choke and aux vent locking bolts these generally get over tightened and can crack the body and chokes. Also check the aux venturi’s are still round another indicator of over tightening.
Another area not visible is a build up of dirt inside the carburettors sometimes that blocks internal passages were factory blanking plugs have to removed to clean these areas.
(JDA clean carburettors externally and internally)
These pictures are just a sample of what we have sent into us when the customer thinks they have bought a bargain.
Carburettors are not plug and play have them checked and serviced by a professional.
We have our own Genuine Weber service kits that are more extensive than a standard kit.
All carburettors serviced and restored at JDA are inspected and tested prior to return to ensure your carburettors are right.
JDA will usually buy carburettors in need of service or restoration even broken or damaged carburettors.
We also have refurbished carburettors in stock.
Get in touch for new Genuine Weber carburettors components and Dellorto servicing parts.
This doesn’t cover everything but we hope these tips help you in your quest for buying carburettors. Remember JDA are an official Weber dealer and Dellorto specialist.