The opportunity has presented itself to purchase the manifold portion of a sbc Hilborn setup for what I think is probably a fair price. But, since I know very little about these(other than the fact that they are ridiculously cool), I thought I'd ask here. It does not include the pump. The biggest thing that I was questioning was all the gasket sealer. I'll see if I can get a couple more pictures from the owner. Opinions?
It doesn’t look bad,,,,I’m guessing the sealer was used because they had the stacks up so high it was uncovering the groove ? Is that all you are getting ? Is the barrel valve included ? Tommy
Okay,,,,the stacks are several dollars,,,,,depending on what style you want . Also,,,,the pump can be expensive,,,,,,and you will need a fuel shutoff ,,,.,and a few more pieces as well . It depends on how much of a shopper you are ,,,or a very good a trader to get some good used pieces for little money. Tommy
I can’t see from that pic very well,,,,if the barrel valve is there or not ? I’m assuming it is,,,,if not,,,that can add about 300 bucks to the equation,,if buying new . Tommy
Is everything smooth and tight? Shafts wobbly? Nozzles gas or alky? If you're not sure what your looking at, find someone who does. Its one of those parts everybody wants till they get one...
Not something you'd see on the HAMB, but I saw one of these converted to EFI injectors running a Megasquirt. You had to look hard too see it.
The sealer is because these were prob run on the dirt, and quite common for racers to seal the stacks, the thing to look at is the pinch bolt ring that locks the stacks, are any of the cracked-broken-welded??? Why that happens is that the stacks are soft aluminum and over time they crush and the racer will continue to tighten the pinch bolt and to the point of over-tightening and snap the casting instead of replacing the stacks. A new pump will run about $5-600. used pumps are cheaper, but will have to be sent in for service($$$$) to make sure its operating at tip top level and the whole unit should be sent in to have it flowed to the engine combination and you will given a jet range to tune with. If you dont , and its not right or the used pump is worn, without the knowledge of these systems, you are just wasting money and chasing your tail. where as set up by an injection service, its a simple bolt on, plumb, an run right out of the box. This is a race engine part, its for the most part either full bore or idling. People have been able to get them to somewhat work (depends what you consider "work")for street use, but that takes a lot of fiddling to get it to come off idle cleanly because it has no accelerator pump to get the first shot of fuel (gas)into the system from a standstill
If I were buying it I would seriously consider sending it to Kinsler and having them go through it. The injection I had on the my sprint car started giving me some problems. One thing was the throttle shaft bores were worn. Kinsler put in bushings, new throttle shafts, flowed each injector, replaced all seals and "O" rings. I bolted it back on and never touched it after. I watched a lot of guys fiddle and fiddle with their injection systems at the race track and never get it quite right. It was money well spent.
Thanks for all the input! It's still a fair deal. But, based on the numbers I am hearing and the missing pieces, it sounds like I may be better off buying a setup that is complete. Thanks again