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MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG Midget and Sprite Technical - new carbs

as it would seem i need new head gasket, i thought i may buy a new set of carbs , anybody ever bought new or had thier original ones rebuilt. think i would prefer my original ones rebuilt. anybody recommend any good suppliers. dan
d a hadaway

I think about the only place to go is www.sucarb.co.uk

pretty pricey for a rebuild if i remember rightly.

Malcolm
M Le Chevalier

yes saw them on the internet malcolm,have you ever used them?
d a hadaway

a good MG mechanic should be able to do a proper SU rebuild for you, as the only "tricky" part is fitting oversized throttle shafts if the housing is worn (usually, simply fitting new shafts is sufficient to restore the proper seal).

There isn't much to wear on an SU, and the rest of the needed parts come in a rebuild kit.


Definitely rebuild what you have, rather than buy new, as the benefits of new, in this case, are low (unless your carbs have been buggered up by someone in some non-recoverable way).


Having the bodies buffed and polished, and the levers all re-plated, those things add a lot to a rebuild cost (and "bling"), but neither are necessary for performance though.


Norm
Norm Kerr

yes i agree it is a bit bling, looking at them the worst part them is a lot of wear in the spindles i guess a repair kit would be just as good
d a hadaway

M.L. Motorsport
37a Nuralite Industrial Estate, Canal Road
Higham
Kent
UK
ME3 7JA
01474-825123
Opening hours: Mon - Fri: 9am - 6pm Sat: 9am - 3pm
A.C.Dodd, better known in mini circles, did mine before they moved to this, relatively, new address.


A Anstead

You don't say what engine you have, but it may be a good time to change to a HIF44.
Cheers John
HALL JOHN

d a, I just bought the rebuild kit from them and replaced all the parts that came in the kit and gave things a polish.

Dunno if they work tho as car is in bits.

Malcolm
M Le Chevalier

Read the service and adjustment advice on the Burlen web site. It goes into a lot of detail about how to test, refurbish and set up the Su carbs.

In practice, the part that seems to wear is the butterfly spindle. This then allows air to be drawn in through the spindle bushes and causes a weak mixture. Worse, as the spindle rotates, it varies the amount of leakage making it impossible to even adjust to compensate for the air leakage. The good news is that although you can rebush the castings, 9 times out of 10 the wear is predominantly in the brass spindle which is very easy to replace, curing the problem.

Apart from this, the only other parts likely to cause a problem are the various gaskets and seals, and the fuel needle valve. All of which is easy to deal with.

One can buy rather bright and shiny highly polished dashpot covers that just slip over for that "instant bling" effect.
Guy

I never liked the look of the carbs on my present midget but was persuaded to have them worked on

Before this I'd had trouble with float needles and seats and even had to swap one of the new sets back to a s/h one to stop overfill

On my previous car I had trouble with two different sets of carbs on the same car (and three different lots of fuel hose, from three different places that perished quickly)

I finally on this Midget changed to brand new SU carbs much better than ones messed about with by various previous owners

Sorry I can't remember the name of the guy I was recommended to use for rebuilds (been around for years) but I do remember these

- http://www.su-carbs.co.uk/

David Lonsdale, Classic Carburettors, Cirencester, UK


Nigel Atkins

I've heard good reports about Eddie Biddle, although not used him myself. AKA EB Carburettors, I believe.

I can't seem to find him on t'net. He is normally at Stoneleigh MG Show and also refurbishes windscreens/frames.

Someone here must have contact details?
Dave O'Neill 2

This thread was discussed on 27/04/2011

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG Midget and Sprite Technical BBS is active now.