Triple side carbs. Need help from the experts.

[7240z]

Hi guys! Need a little help. I came across these carbs that this guy is selling to me. They are triple side drafts SOLEX Carbs with the horns.( sorry I don't really know the real name for it but I'm hoping you guys do! ) I know the Webers are the weapon of choice but since this kind of offer doesn't come often I wanted to take a chance in these carbs. They are still brand new and not a single drop of gasoline has come through them. They also come with the manifolds. Can you guys give me anything on this matter? How much of a difference will there be if I exchange them for the SU's? Thanks!

Ez

[sblake01]

Are they Mikuni-Solex or just Solex? I know that Datsun used Mikuni-Solex on their race cars back in the day. I actually had a set of 44MM Mikuni/Solex on a 510 years ago. I eventually sold them because without more engine work, that was simply too much carbureation. I imagine that they would be hard to find parts for now. I've been away from the carb scene for a while and I basically just deal with fuel injected cars now. Hopefully some of the members with more carb knowledge will chime in here.

[george71z]

Go for 'em! Like Stephen said, on a stock motor they may be too much carb, but if you have the mods, they will be fine. The operation is very similar to the Webers. You will notice a decrease in fuel mileage, however. This is usually out-weighed by the acceleration smile factor. If they don't work out, you can always post a classified. I'm sure someone out here would snap them up.

[26th-Z]

Wish I had a really good close-up of a Mikuni. Search the archives and I'll bet you find what you are looking for. The top of the carburetor body will say SOLEX in big letters, but it will also say Japan right below. Mikuni. I don't agree with you, Ez, that Weber is the weapon of choice. IMO Mikuni is the weapon of choice. Here is a blurb from the Mikuni catalog. Datsun competition sold Mikunis in both Japan and America. BRE / Interpart sold Dellorato.

Chris

[2-4-T-Z-MAN]

I agree with 26th-Z. Not just because I have Mikunis, but because of the reasons I chose them. A buddy of mine races and has Solex carbs. The two things he said positive about them was that he didn't have to continue to adjust them and that the webers he has seen all tend to "puke " gas. Not a good thing to have happen over the headers. Even if you don't us them get them. They will only increase in value.

[Ron Carter]

Solex sidedrafts will have Mikuni markings as well as they are known as Mikuni Solex's that were available in several different sizes. 40's and 44's are hard to tell apart unless you know what you are looking for. 50's look completely different, and the bodies are made out of magnesium. You will want to measure the diameter across the back of the carburator 40mm=40PHH Mikunis / Solex carbs and up from there.

BRE sold Mikuni / Solex Carburators until they were bought out by Mac Tilton who changed the name of the company to Interpart and sold Dellorto's.

There are several posts comparing Webers to Mikuni's.

I have a set (3) of 50 Mikuni's (waiting for the right Z car project) a set of (3) 44 Mikuni Solex carbs on my BRE Z and a set (2) of 44 Mikunis on my 2000 roadster. My preference is for Mikuni only because they are what I am used to....

[jmortensen]

The basic difference to me is tunability. The Webers are a LOT more tunable, but they seem to need to be tuned more often. Mikuni/Solex is a simpler setup and easier to get where you want them. Once you do, they tend not to need to be futzed with anymore. The Webers on the other hand seem to need a lot of tinkering to stay in tune.

Mikunis are simpler:

chokes

main air

main fuel

pilot

pump nozzle

jet blocks

That's pretty much it for Mikuni tuning. For whatever reason it seems unanimous that the OA blocks are the only ones worth using. So that leaves you with 5 parameters, and it seems that you can make a car with Mikunis run decent regardless of the choke size, although it might have more top end with a bigger choke, etc.

Webers by contrast:

Chokes

venturi size

main air

main fuel

air corrector jet

emulsion tube (jet block)

idle jet

pump nozzle

pump exhaust valve

starter jet

Not only are there more parameters to adjust, they're more adjustable. The jet blocks are an integral part of tuning Webers. My understanding is that properly tuned Webers will turn out a few hp more than properly tuned Mikunis. But you have to have a whole lot more parts and know a whole lot more about what the systems in the carbs do to get them in the zone, then you have much more maintenance keeping them there.

FWIW I haven't had Webers on any of my cars, the idea that they are finicky and need tinkering comes from friends who have them and Z forums that I've been around.

[george71z]

Question for 2-4-T-Z-MAN. Is there any cure to the Weber 'gas puking' problem? Mine do that when I travel at Interstate speeds, or run for over an hour or so. Sure wish I could find a fix.

[jmortensen]

That wasn't addressed to me, but I might have some insight... When I first got the Mikunis I was playing with a bunch of stuff and then I drove to an autox about 2 hours away. When I got off the freeway the car idled at 3000 rpm for about 5 minutes, then went back to normal. Solution was to synch the carbs in my case.

[2-4-T-Z-MAN]

Hi George71z,

To my knowledge, no. The gas thing just seems to be a trait of the webers, per my friend. The only thing he said, that was not a fix, for anything other than safety was to have a large enough heat shield to keep excess gas from dripping on the header or exhaust manafold. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

[26th-Z]

I am only able to drool Mikuni, Ron. Thanks for your clarifications. I don't know what people will think of me if I put a set on 26th, but Her Majesty told me several times that she would like a set.

[Ron Carter]

Yeah! Hey I have a highly modified N42 and a set of 50's that need a good home "her majesty" would really fly....you could build a nice little 3.1 with this set up and tease her a little bit