My Twin-H Saga (with pics!)

RichardD

The '41 Buick Century 8, 165HP,  had dual carbs and was the most powerful car produced in the US that year; 0-60 in 12 sec and top of 101. But was only year since gas rationing and less mileage didn't mix. NC used them as Highway Patrol cars.
Love Duals~~~

JasonNC

Iceblade, we both need to thank Ken and Frank for showing us the right plugs.  My problem is I needed six and got them from NAPA, but will probably only be able to use five as somebody plugged one hole with a bolt.  Looks like he did a real good job because I'm afraid to attempt to remove it.  

iceblade10

Thank you Ken and Frank!

RichardD

2 cent comment on vapor lock: You don't need the extra carb gaskets if you are running headers. I don't anyway. Not very much heat transfer to the intake especially if they are wrapped with Thermo-wrap.
Jason, might be cold Sat. in King !!

JasonNC

I'm supposed to play in a charity golf tournament on Saturday with my wife.  I'm trying to convince her to make a donation and cancel the golf.  She thinks because we have a tent and a heater that we'll be ok.  Either way, I probably won't be in King.  

iceblade10

Things are slowly moving along... I emailed 2 "restoration shops" near me a week about about fixing/cleaning the manifolds for me, but neither of them wrote me back.  I guess business is so good they can ignore potential customers?

But if life gives you lemons, blah blah blah...  One of my dad's friends has welded the crack for me.  He is a professional welder, so he knows what he is doing.  His other friend is going to replace the broken stud for me.  As for cleaning, I just might try my oven cleaner theory out... Really, I have nothing to lose - it can't possibly harm anything...

I got a call from the gentleman who I purchased this set from, and he apparently found the bell crank in his barn!  He didn't even know what it was when we met up and I asked him about it... when he found it behind some boxes it had fallen behind, he knew it must have been what I was describing.  Anyway, that's going to save me a LOT of hassle right there.

As for the carb situation, Paul Schuster is going to hook me up with a pair of the right carbs.

Things are slowly falling into place...

iceblade10

Thanks Ken... yeah, he said that none of them have the tags anymore, so he's gonna open them up and check out the metering rods.

iceblade10

Excellent information Ken.  I was just about to ask how to even tell what is correct...

SuperDave

Ken, Any idea why the change in late 53-54? From all the specs I have found, the only difference in the two is the metering rod  or did I miss something?

As an aside, The "standard" metering rod is for seal level to 3000 foot elevations. You will have to go leaner for higher elevations.  I have those numbers if anyone needs them.

J Lombard

Super Dave:

I live at 5000 ft.  What metering rod size should I use for my 2113S?


J

SuperDave

75-974 3-5 K feet  75-975 5-8 k feet. looks like you are in between.

Credit Walt Mordenti for this info in one of his tips.

iceblade10

Dave, the 54 Hornet 308s had a different camshaft and produced a bit more horsepower, I believe.  I would guess that this necessitated a different carb setup?

iceblade10

I have a question regarding air filters for the Twin H canisters.  I read that I needed the K&N E-2550 model, so I ordered 2.  They arrived today, and I was excited to try them on.  However, they are NOT the right size.  They are roughly the right height, but way too wide.  I have 1955 air cleaners at the moment - are they narrower than the 52-54??  The filters in them are FRAM CA-100PL, if that means anything to anyone.

SuperDave

I have a pair of those K&N's too. Nice shelf ornaments. I ended up buying a generic for the Fram from an "on line" store.  All the twin H filters are the same regardless of year.

iceblade10

Dave, were your K&Ns the wrong size as well?  Looks like I'll have to return them and look for paper ones...

Glowplug

Iceblade: from a previous forum posting

NAPA 2110,
AC A130C,
FRAM CA1-1PL, CARQUEST 87110, Motor-craft FA11, Purolator A20021, WIX 42110

 

SuperDave

YUP  The didn't fit as I would have liked. As little as I drive and considering we have more mold than dust down here. cheap ones work fine.

iceblade10

Interestingly enough, the K&N site says that the AC A130C and WIX 42110 are equivalent to the E-2550, but the E-2550 clearly does NOT fit...  Makes me wonder if any of these would fit...  

http://www.knfilters.com/search/kn_cross_ref.aspx?part=E-2550

iceblade10

I ended up returning the E-2550s, and used K&N's sizing interface to find a filter size that is the EXACT inside and outside dimension, and only 1/4 inch taller than the original paper filters.  There should be plenty of thread to accommodate that.  The model number is E-3270 if anyone is interested.  We'll see how they fit - can't be any worse!

SuperDave

Has anyone come up with source for a decent carb choke heater tube covering (insulation) ?

iceblade10

Dave, the kits usually come with insulation.  There have been posts where people have linked site selling just the insulation, which looks original.  These were usually for Fords/Chevys, it seemed.

https://www.google.com/#q=carburator+choke+tube+insulation

If you didn't care about looking 100% "original," you could just use something like this, probably (just get the correct diameter:

https://www.amazon.com/Heatshield-Products-204002-Shield-Sleeve/dp/B004GNLGTQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481808471&sr=8-1&keywords=fuel+line+insulation

JasonNC

I got mine from the HH Classic Chevy parts listed in the link above. I measured my tubes and ordered mine accordingly.  They fit great, but I'm thinking these were the last two in that length.

iceblade10

I made one with the heat shield sleeve from Amazon for my single-carb setup.  I just used black, but it comes in different colors.  You could use a white sleeve and black shrink tubing on the ends if you wanted a more "original" look, I suppose...

iceblade10

I received my bell crank in the mail today!  It looks complete, too! (please correct me if I'm wrong).

The small piece connects right to the end of the linkage, and the other 2 pieces are what would connect to the gas pedal and transmission.   They were crudely cut to extract this from a junkyard car at some point, I'd guess.

Question - would the existing rods for the single-carb setup screw right into this without any modification?  It looks like they might, but I didn't really look closely yet.

Also, right now the central "shaft" is rusted to the outer piece, so it's not spinning freely like I imagine it should.  I'll have to soak this in penetrating oil...

SuperDave

You are correct, The two levers on the outside are for the HydraMatic and throttle pedal. The two rods that are cut will be removed. The short link that has not been cut will go upward and connect to the twin H linkage. You will not use any of the single carb linkage. The inner shaft can be driven out and cleaned up there is a small amount of bronze bushing inside the outer shaft and if you look close, there is a small oil hole.

You are getting there!

Edwardjohnsr

Does anyone have 2 rebuildable or rebuilt 968's that they would be willing to part with at a reasonable price?  I would like to replace the two on my twin-H Hornet because they are in pretty bad shape.  I've rebuilt them myself and probably did some damage taking them apart.
Ed

iceblade10

So, I soaked the bell crank in oil, and the central rod popped right out with a little tap.  However, it appears to be bent to hell!  I assume this should all be straight, right?!

iceblade10

Out with the old, in with the new!  The K&N E-3270 filters fit like a glove!

iceblade10

My dad's friend (a gunsmith) made a new stud for me, so I can finally start bolting things together.  After I clean them up and paint them, of course!

iceblade10

It helps to know resourceful people!  My dad's friend made me a new bell crank shaft from scratch... Better than new!