55 oval carb question

No shit. A 53 year-old Volkswagen and already it's falling apart.

Do you think just maybe the intake gaskets and carb should be, ah, like REBUILT?

Done at 49K and that was when the problem started.

Howard

Sounds like a beautiful car you've got there and a real treasure knowing it's history from day one. I think you should get another 28 pic carb,preferably rebuilt,install it on the car and see if it solves the problem. You could then save the old carb as a spare or rebuild it again. I agree with your wondering about the tone of your reply. Unfortunately this group has diverged from it's original purpose or intent---to share knowledge of air cooled VWs and help out other hobbyists with your knowledge. Seems to be too much insider gossip and backbiting going on. Been involved here for over 6 yearsand it disturbs me too. Just my opinion-Fred67bug

Could you recommend a source for a 28 pic carb. I wanted to keep it as original as possible but would certainly try a new carb since traffic moves pretty quickly today and it would be nice to keep up.

Howard

Terrific story. I love hearing the provenance and history of a vehicle like this. Never, never, never sell it. (but if you do ... gimme a call :-)

I don't know for sure but I'd think that West Coast Classics would be a good bet for finding the material:

There's absolutely no reason for the remarks. Just consider the source and ignore it. Your killfile would come in handy there, you wouldn't miss anything relevant.

Yep. :-) Morons do run rampant.

Sorry I can't help with the carb question. Good luck.

-- Scott

I just remembered this seller on The Samba:

hth

-- Scott

Have you looked for manifold/gasket leaks?

how ironic.....

------------------- Chris Perdue "I'm ever so thankful for the Internet; it has allowed me to keep a finger in the pie and to make some small contribution to those younger who will carry the air-cooled legend forward" Jim Mais Feb. 2004

On Sat, 20 Nov 2004 04:56:47 GMT, "Howard Nelson" scribbled this interesting note:

eBay. And a good carguretor shop to rebuild it, including new throttle shaft bushings. At least that's what I did with our '59.

-- John Willis (Remove the Primes before e-mailing me)

Just a tiny bit of 'wisdom' regarding rebuilt small carbs. When you have had a well made carb that worked well for decades, it's likely that a rebuild will not be as good. Face it, most of the carbs made in the fifties were lumps with a low percentage of perfection. You got a good one from the get-go. Quite rare, IMHO.

But the important part was driven home to me by a true master of carburation. He watched over me as I rebuilt a carb for an early bike. I was meticulous. Then he showed me all the mistakes I made - little things in anyone else's book, like overlooking a miniscule decades-hardened bit that could dislodge, less than perfect gaskets (most gaskets are pretty bad), the popular but wrong float valve, and especially overtorqued jets and screws. Learn what an inch-pound means. :) Then he concluded, "but it's the best rebuild I've seen here."

So maybe starting all over with a reputable make of carb is a better idea than a rebuild. (My mentor would take it apart and rebuild it before using it for the first time!)

And sorry for the grief I gave you earlier.

Howard,

congratulations on your car! sounds great!! I just purchased a 55 oval ragtop with semi's. I cannot help you with the carb question

-sorry - as I am now learning about this car and it's unique characteristics; but one of the earlier people here had a good point about trying another carb, I would go that route - if this happens at high speeds, does this correlate to it happens when the engine is running hot? I'm working on some "minor problems" of my own. I'm use to newer bugs - 68 and up. Could I ask you some questions regarding what may be missing on my bug

- outside this group.

Don't give up on this group!! - I've been visiting for here for years and 90 % of the people are great! There are always 1 or 2 that give problems. Just like in the "outside world"

Matt S

Yeah, we all have bad days. When I read the first post I was kinda incensed, too. "This car ran great, then I had things rebuilt (presumably by someone else less meticulous than yourself) then things started going to heck."

Like another earlier person posted "If it ain't broke, don't break it."

I've worked on cars from a relatively stubborn 1933 Dodge 2 ton truck to a

Like the '33 dodge above, the brakes weren't working quite up to snuff, tore into the drums, all the (original!!!) brake pads and stuff looked fine, still about 3/8ths or so left on the pads, front and back, turned out that the rear brake line had a small puncture in it, (we did drive this truck on logging roads, in the woods, to very remote areas), and my dad's solution? Hammer the rear brake line so that fluid wouldn't leak to the rear. Of course, we were running on front brakes only for a number of years, but it's not like a 1933 Dodge really had all that much metal to stop, and when we had her fully loaded with trees, putting her into 1st would slow you down to

Great story about your dub, nice to see that is still possible in today's age of $40,000 'restos' and stuff. Never give up your car, you would regret it the rest of your life.

I replaced a cardboard thermostat in my Chrysler a while back with parts from the local parts store and the gasket had huge part numbers stamped into it -possibly with a drop forge press...would that leak?? I went MOPAR. Dave

You don't need a new carb, stay with the original. A carb with 51K on it is in good condition, you won't find a better one. Stay with the original carb, unless it is obviously damaged. If it's a carb problem, then all you have to do is clean it and readjust it.

Also check that the vacum diaphragm on the distributor is working properlly. Remove the distributor cap, and attach a 50ml sylinge on the carb end of the vacum hose. Use the sylinge to create vacum. You should see the points plate in the distributor moving according to the vacum you apply. If it doesn't move, either the point's plate binds and needs cleaning or the vacum diaphragm is shot.

Check the advance mechanism first, then the carb, then for vacum leaks in the inlet manifold.

Bill, '67 bug.

Thank you very much for this helpful approach. I will try these things in that order and report back to the group with my findings (may not be soon).

Howard Nelson 55 type 1 OEM