aunty norm Posted February 22, 2019 Share Posted February 22, 2019 Just picked up a stromberg u-2 carby at a swap. The carby is all locked up and shafts won't move. I don't want to force them as the carby is made from pot melt. Has anyone have any suggestions how to free it up without damaging it? Thanks in advance for any suggestions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFranklin Posted February 22, 2019 Share Posted February 22, 2019 Do not spray it with WD-40 it will make things worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nearchoclatetown Posted February 22, 2019 Share Posted February 22, 2019 Did you look at the inside carefully to see if it's worth the bother? No cracks, etc. and blow air through the small passages? I agree, WD-40 sucks. Be patient and take your time, do not force. Try the ATF and acetone mix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinneyhill Posted February 23, 2019 Share Posted February 23, 2019 3 hours ago, aunty norm said: The carby is all locked up and shafts won't move 3 hours ago, aunty norm said: the carby is made from pot melt You might find it difficult to fix. The old die-cast mixture contained a lot of zinc and that is probably corroding and expanding - the oxides take up more space. You may be able to free up the shafts with a bit of soaking. Don't force it because die-cast "pot metal" alloys are brittle at that age. And don't apply much heat. It will melt at or before 200 oC. You could try working up a holding system that won't crush it, pour boiling water over it and attempting to turn the shafts. You might find all the fine passages are blocked with oxide. A wee story. I cleaned out an updraft die-cast or aluminium carb. off a lovely wood-finish boat from the '50s or earlier, with an in-board 4 cylinder side valve engine. The thing would not run at all. The carb. was choked with white powder, which I now recognise as either zinc oxide or aluminium oxide. I managed to scrape out larger tubes and get very fine wires through all the air ways etc., carefully so as to not enlarge them, to clean out the powder. And it worked! Oh, lots of compressed air too. Luckily the butterfly shafts were not frozen. It was only a few months to a year since it had run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbking Posted February 23, 2019 Share Posted February 23, 2019 Suggestion: One of your countrymen has reproduced the U-2 body castings from aluminum. USE THEM! The originals are dangerous! Jon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maok Posted February 23, 2019 Share Posted February 23, 2019 His name is Glenn Smith. Top bloke too. http://www.vintageandclassicreproductions.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aunty norm Posted February 23, 2019 Author Share Posted February 23, 2019 I know Glen, and his carbies are good! But the cost is a little more than I want to spend at present. Furthermore I'm really on the look out for a ux2. Also some books state that it should have a ux3,but the stud spacing on a 1928 model Senior manifold is to small for the ux3 So for now I will try and get this carby apart in one piece and see want parts are good and go from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILIKECARS53 Posted February 25, 2019 Share Posted February 25, 2019 I HAVE A UR-2 ON MY DA SIX. WORKS QUITE WELL. SAME STUD SPACING AND IS NOT POT METAL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aunty norm Posted February 25, 2019 Author Share Posted February 25, 2019 Thanks for the input! Will have to check it out and see what is available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB-ed Posted March 3, 2019 Share Posted March 3, 2019 First of all, those carbs were used on many cars with different internal jets and openings. You have no idea whether that carb is set for a Dodge or not. Second of all, I also tried using an original pot metal unit on my car (Victory Six.) I reamed out all the holes that were causing shafts to freeze up; I used JB Weld to lock in various jets and bushings that came loose. Then while test driving on the road I hit a pothole and the throttle body disintegrated and the whole carb fell in pieces onto the mud pan and slid down onto the road. I was left with gas pouring from the vacuum tank onto my hot engine. DO NOT USE an original, pot metal Stromberg updraft carburetor. Get Glenn's replacement. He will use the parts from your carb, installing the proper ports and jets for your engine. You will be very happy with the performance of your car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbking Posted March 3, 2019 Share Posted March 3, 2019 Just a suggestion - reread the post above by JB-ed; then read it again! I totally understand budget constraints. My Dad used to tell me I had champagne taste, and beer income! About 25 years ago, I came up with a lot of "boilerplate" answers to email questions. The following was WRITTEN AT THAT TIME! EARLY ZINC CASTINGS The carburetor for which you are inquiring is one of a group of auto parts (carburetors, fuel pumps, door handles, generator back plates, etc.) made from a zinc alloy (“pot metal”, “white metal”, etc.) that is chemically unstable and therefore not useable. We once submitted a sample of this metal to a metalurgist who tested it and informed us that there was about 4 times the amount of lead in this mix as in the later (about 1935) mix. This material cracks with age and heat. Carburetors which fall into this category include: Schebler model U Johnson model H and model R Marvel (all with zinc alloy bodies 1925~1930,31) Stromberg model T and model U Tillotsons from 1923 through 1935 Zenith model 105 THERE ARE NO GOOD ORIGINALS LEFT IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM! We will NOT for any amount of money rebuild these carburetors. While we do have some of these units for sale; they are sold with the understanding that the are NOT rebuildable, but may be used as patterns to have new castings made from aluminum, and then transfer other parts (shafts, jets, float, etc.). The castings have not improved in 25 years. You have options: One of the best (and one of the more pricey) is obtaining castings from Mr. Smith. However, there are a number of aftermarket carbs which may also be used, some better than others. Don't destroy a nice antique car, or worse, someone's health, by using the original Stromberg U-2 castings. Jon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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