I am just beginning the rebuild of a 1941 Ford Flathead 24 bolt. i picked up a box of ford 94 carbs parts with 4 whole but slightly different carbs and a mess of parts off craigslist. My plan (loosely stated) is to rebuild three of them and pick up a three up intake off of ebay. So a couple of questions: 1) if each carb is a bit different can they still be joined on one manifold? 2) if so, is it true that the center carb is the master and the two outer carbs are slave? meaning is the center carb the only carb with a choke and jets and the other two are wide open and staged so they only work when the pedal is pushed beyond a certain point? (as a side note, is there a different rebuild kit for each of the 94's? according to model # stamped on the outside?) Thank you for any help as this is the first engine rebuild for me.
The two end carbs should be the same. It is common to use one of the carbs with the hand throttle for the center because of the extended throttle shaft. These would be 91-99, 21-29, or model 59. Commonly used carbs for the ends would be 8BA, EAB, or others without the extended throttle shaft, although the extended shaft carbs may also be used. This link may help: http://www.thecarburetorshop.com/Aftermarkettripowersetups.htm Jon.
You can also pick up extended throttle shafts. In facy you can buy aluminum secondary throttle boddies ( which have no idel circuit and ar springload to ensure full closure... But some folks don't like aluminum bases. .. . I used y-block aa-1 carbs for my 3x2 set up ( think holley 94 with more cfm ) I also used the vintage speed tri power kit... kinda pricey ... but comes with everything you need ( if you had fresh rebuilt carbs ) he can supply the rest of the rebuil parts.
Three carbs may be a bit much for a 41 engine without a longer stroke and maximum bore. A 41 engine with a decent bore will only make it a 248. A 276 or 286 can use three if it has plenty of cam.
Your end carbs will also need to have jets, there is no way to regulate the fuel delivered without them. Your end two carbs should also be secondary carbs specifically, which is to say that the throttle plates shoulod completely close off when the car is not being used, they normally will have thicker throttle plates which are shaped slightly differently, these can be purchased or you can send your carbs to be modified. Now that you are sufficiently shook up there are several people here on the HAMB that set up carbs for this function. Stick around a bit and find out who they are and see if they can hook you up.
If you're running a bone stock engine: use the 3X2 intake. rebuild the best carb of the bunch & put it in the center. cut some sheetmetal or aluminum plates to fit under your front & rear carbs, & put whichever ones look best out of the rest of your collection on the front & rear. A little fake plumbing to the front & rear, & you have a good looking set up that runs fine off of one carb. Fools damn near everyone, except those of us who have done it.
for a mild flattie of limited displacement (such as yours), just use 2x2 carbs and run them simultaneously using slightly smaller (orifice size) jets. Less complicated, less tricky to set up, and less cluttered in appearance. That's just my opinion - more than two carbs are better used on larger displacement high performance/racing engines that require that much air/fuel. dj
Thank You everyone. I ended up getting a vintage fenton 2x2 from ebay and set it up with vintage speed bases and linkage. Sold the whole thing back on ebay for $850
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