Solexes versus Webers

[Bart Frazier]

I have Solexes and Webers at my disposal and I need to sell a set of carburetors, but I don't know which to keep. Main objective: I want power. From what I can gather, the Webers win in that respect. But talking to my father, they apparently can be so tedious to adjust so as not to be worth it. Does this sound right? If that's the case, I'll keep the Solexes.

[Dirk Heinrich]

I'd say take the time and make the effort to try both setups. See if you can get the Webers right and if you like it. I am running Webers and have them kinda right now - still a little hesitation if I floor it. Honestly, sometimes I wish I had the Solex for the smoother ride.

[Sterling Vaden]

Check the throttle shaft and butterfly to bore wear in the Solexes. How much is too much? you ask? Ha! compare with the Webers. If there is air coming in around the shafts, or you can see tons of daylight between the buttterfly and bore, then you will be big bucks into the Solexes to get them to the point where they will run correct and reliably.

You might want to keep the Solexes and run the Webers. There should be enough info from a search to determine the proper jet/venturi/emulsion tube settings.

[Antoine Godschalk]

webers have 'the name' to be the superior carburators. I've tried them, and I've also tried Dell'Orto. The ran fine and I had the idea it had lots of power. When I mounted the Solexen I had the idea the car had less power because the ride was 'smoother', but when the engine was checked/tested the Solexes delivered the same power (the engine produced the same bhp) and also acceleration was comparable to the Webers and Dell'Orto's.

In the end I've decided to keep the Solex-carburators (although they look less spectacular).

[Max Handley]

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Bart

I've been running both for the past 20 years. As mentioned many of the Solexes today have air leaks due to shaft & butterfly throat wear. If your Solexes fall into that category use the Webers.

The newer generation of the 40IDF Webers are fairly easy to retrofit & jet for your application. I personally like to retain the 28mm venturies , using f7 emulsion tubes, 200 air corrections, with 130 main jets. This combination seems spot on with a SC/912 type engine with stock heads & 1720 cc displacement. I also think because of the advantage of a newer design the Webers feel stronger with more torque throughout the driving range then even a good pair of Solexes. Many devotes of the Zenith 32ndix with the smaller venturies (28mm)swear by them & my theory is the smaller venturies (28mm) with the larger 40IDF butterfly & throat is a very nice combination indeed.

Make sure if you use the Webers to get the better throttle arms & reverse the throttle arm ball on the RT hand Weber to get a better or more even side to side throttle arm geometry. Also make sure to use the better after market intake manifolds that allow easy access to the spark plugs. You can also use the solex to weber adaptors that will allow you to retain the stock solex manifolds. When in question as to the proper Weber set up & related parts I would recommend Richard at PMO in the L.A. area , he's one of your best resources for all the above.

Be sure & check & re-set as necessary the float level adjustment on your Webers . Measure from the top gasket to the lower edge of the float as seen in the IDF Diag. Closed adjustment 10mm with tang of float just touching the float needle valve ball with spring & not compressing same. Open adjustment 32.5 mm or close proximity.

[Bruce Baker]

I have Solexes and Webers at my disposal and I need to sell a set of carburetors, but I don't know which to keep. Main objective: I want power. From what I can gather, the Webers win in that respect. But talking to my father, they apparently can be so tedious to adjust so as not to be worth it. Does this sound right? If that's the case, I'll keep the Solexes.

Full circle...some history:

Decades ago, there were two reasons a 356 pushrod engine ever had a Weber carb installed; they were cheaper than Solexes and bigger than Zeniths.

Solex 40s began wearing past tolerance a long time ago. Hunting idle, poor float performance and reliability caused many to use Webers. Zenith carbs were looked down on as 'power robbers' and the new NPR 1720 kits were thought to 'demand' more mixture!

It was the same situation with 018 and 022 distributors...and thus the use of 019 and 050 substitutes and the current trend to resubstitute those with originals rebuilt to 'like new.'

The Webers of the early 356 days of the 'tuners' were much higher quality than what followed after a change in manufacturing. They were great right out of the box in the beginning, then they got 'cheap' and we had to take them apart right out of the box to clean the metal shavings and make sure all the parts were there!

Now, we joke about tuning Webers as "you can move the flat spot around, but getting rid of it altogether is difficult."

We now replace a lot of the aftermarket carbs with originals that have been rebuilt properly for another two reasons....."originality" and that Porsche designed them into their motors and we finally had to admit that Porsche may have known what they were doing!

Solexes can be rebuilt to be very close to new and be tuned to give the same power as any other carb of a matching size. I'd stay with those, as in the long run, they are more valuable.

[leonard turnbeaugh]

Learn to love your Solexs.
They are a good carb and with a little patience they can be tuned quite well, the weber is a lazy solution. The weber has a 28mm venturi that is the same size as a Super Zenith carb, your Solexs have 32mm.
If you are using a big bore kit and have a flat spot around 4000rpm with solid shaft Solexs try using the split shaft Solexs.

[Greg Banfill]

Learn to love your Solexs.
They are a good carb and with a little patience they can be tuned quite well, the weber is a lazy solution. The weber has a 28mm venturi that is the same size as a Super Zenith carb, your Solexs have 32mm.

With 40 IDF's you can have 28mm or 30mm venturis, possibly bigger.
If you run 44 IDF's, as seen here... http://porsche356registry.org/356talk/14/25791.html
you get a bigger venturi, (34mm or 36mm) With either size you get *very* easily changed jets for tuning.
Also worth mentioning is the venturis can be easily swapped in the IDF's to get the size / performance you desire.

If you are using a big bore kit and have a flat spot around 4000rpm with solid shaft Solexs try using the split shaft Solexs.

Wouldn't it be easier to swap venturis / jets (with Weber's) instead of trying to find a completely new set of Solexs to get what you need?

[Jim Breazeale]

Greg

This question comes up all the time. There is no right or wrong. It does generate many opinions and everybody seems to have one on this subject.
Greg: Just because Leonard has just one post, does not mean that he hasn't been around the block a few times.
For many years, Many a West Coast 356 (and many other makes) vintage racer has seen Leonard blow by them!

Regards
PS: I wouldn't have a weber carb anywhere near my 356s.

[Greg Banfill]

Agreed Jim, and I know who Leonard is.
Just putting the info out there for people to read.

[Max Handley]

Jim

What am I missing here. You sound like Bill Shoreman.....SMILE . I use to listen to Bill as he cussed about the use of Webers. I don't think I ever convinced him that Webers of the newer generation ( at that time being mfg'd in Italy with the later version of the injection pump with adj. arm ala solex) were wonderful if set up & jetted properly. I have used them for years with great results. I happen to like good Solexes as well especially the later split/shaft variety as they seem to transition better than the earlier solid shaft design. I don't like the independent butterfly arrangement however as it is more problematic & not really necessary for the intent it was designed for. As for purely asthetic reasons I would agree the Solexes to me look the best. Webers are good, Solexes are good , all depends on who's turning the wrenches. To be fair to Bill Shoreman he was talking about the earlier Webers that had their problems & couldn't be used directly as supplied as could the Solexes. Hey.....let me set up a pair for you the next time your Solexes wear out .............next you'll tell me that Gas Burners aren't magnesium ?? Hey Bob move over you got room under that Rock...




F 8)

[Sterling Vaden]

One word: Dellorto

Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

I know, I'm just freakin' evil!

Dellorto's have numerous objective improvements over Webers and Solexes. They run smooth with no flat spots, get great mileage and don't die in corners. Installed properly, you have to look twice to tell the difference from Solexes.

The point is, any of the three can be set up to run properly, with proper venturi size, jet size, etc. and will give good mileage and the same power. The real problem is, there are no easy (complete kit, bolt on) and inexpensive (<$500) solutions.

[Jim Breazeale]

Sterling

I have to agree with you. Delortos are the bomb!
Max, you will never get the chance to demonstrate Webers on any of my 356s. After all, I do have "standards". Stove Burners do have a mix of magnesium in their aluminum alloy.
I must admit that I do own a car with Webers (besides my Rgruppe 911). It is a piece of crap and the Webers help to maintain it's lousy image.

Regards

[Alan Klingen]

I would always pick the Solex over the Weber. The Solex does need to be in good condition mostly the shaft bushings good. If you look down the throat of a Weber it needs to have the venturi reduced to 28 mm to help its loss of low speed performance, the Solex deos well with 32 mm venturis. Having said this only the original solid shaft Solex does well and the split shaft Solex does not do as well. The split shaft Solex was produced in 1968 to work on emmission controlled 912 motor. Beyond the shaft issue the internal jetting and design were for emmission reasons. For example the idle circuit does not get its fuel from the main jet area, like all carbs before, but from its own supply. The accelerator nozzle gets it fuel damped by internal valves. I have to say that sometimes a motor can live with these issues but need a huge amout of fussy around just to make it idle near right.

Alan

[S.J. Szabo]

Hmm-m-m...... Odd man out again. Oh well.

Maybe its the configuration (an old Italian set with the cam-and-roller enrichment; normal jets; feeding a 1720 engine), maybe its dumb luck, but the Webers I have been running for 25+yrs. have performed in an exemplary fashion. I've never (as in, not ever) had to struggle with a flat spot, corner starvation, or cranky behavior while they delivered great low-speed response and enough high-speed power to keep me smiling.

Of course, my engine is not built solely to generate big hp and I am no fan of screaming around at high revs. I spend a lot of time trolling around at 2Krpm or less and I am content to roll on the throttle when I want to go faster (tho I am prone to trying for a G. at 30 or 40 mph.... sideways is sideways). Plus, the 32mm venturis and appropriate jets are always an option.

But I didn't build a dog either and the Webers have proved to have the performance and consistency to be pretty much maintenance-free (thanks in no small part for the ball bearings on the throttle shaft (the value of which should not be underestimated on an engine that is actually used over time, and a feature that Solex was too cheap to provide) and to the cam-and-roller (long lived and fiddle-free)) for neigh on to 100K mil. And therein lies the beauty for me.

"The lazy solution"? I call 'em the easy solution.

However, it has never occurred to me to sell off my solid-shaft Solexes in the meantime. Ya just never know....


Keep 'em flying... for a lo-n-n-n-g time.