Will Hesch posted:Al, it's a re-curved BR18. John can re-curve the BR18 or the 022
Thanks, Will. Being cast iron bodie'd and with the same advance curve, either would be a good choice (after being re-worked) for a dual carbed VW engine.
Sacto Mitch posted:Youse guys were right. This is, hands down, the best fix for Weber carburetors ever invented.
And it's not new idle jets or jet doctors or jet gurus or jet cleaners or anything that has anything to do with jets. My engine was jetted to perfection and just purred.
Well, sort of....
It wasn't that much harder than swapping in new idle jets. There was about the same amount of reaching for stuff that you can't actually see and maybe about twice as much cursing. But nothing you couldn't do in the privacy of your own garage.
I still don't know how it makes the Webers work better, though, since it doesn't connect to them in any way:
As you've found, Mitch, a distributor with the correct advance curve is the ticket!
Sacto Mitch posted:
I think I've heard good things about the Davis units, although they're more than twice as much as the Magnaspark (but do include the coil right on the dizzy).
There's nothing really remarkable about the Magnaspark. It's no more reliable than an original Bosch - if you could buy a new, made-in-the-fatherland original Bosch.
I do like that you can access the advance mechanism on the Magnaspark easily (just pop off the rotor). You can work the advance plates and feel if they're moving smoothly, and lube the pivot points if they're not. And you can monkey with the springs, too, if you want to alter the curve. Not much chance to do that on the Bosch.
I don't think it's too likely that the repop pseudo-Bosch units (like the Pertronix) are ever put on a timing machine and calibrated to a spec in the course of manufacture.
The Magnasparks seem to be a lot more consistent from one example to the next than the ersatz Bosch stuff, too.
I remember the DUI ads in the VW magazines years ago, and the only real criticism was that they were expensive. And I disagree- while the Magnaspark seems comparable to an original German Bosch, the extra spacing on the cap between terminals allows you to use more voltage (a big plus right there, as a blue coil puts out enough voltage that a smaller cap distributor can start to crossfire at higher rpm's when the cap itself gets a little older) and the adjustability of the advance curve of the Magnaspark make it a much more user friendly piece.I haven't used one, but know guys who have, and the general consensus is CB got it right.
You're also right about all the 009 made in China copies (including the Pertronix); spark scatter like crazy and no consistency of the advance curve make any of them a dubious choice at best. If you do any reading on any of the VW sites, this is a constant issue- and for every guy that says his works fine (and remember, most of the time it's some yokel who's bolted it on and the only testing is it fires up and runs, so "yup, it runs reeaalll goood!") there are numerous complaints about timing scatter and the advance curve just generally being all over the place by those who have taken the time to check. This is not what you want when trying to get the most out of your engine and it living the longest life possible.
@IndianBob- It may not be a popular set up, but since it works well, don't question it!
Al
PS- The problem is not that everything these days is 'made in China', the issue is people having stuff made at a price point so they can undercut the competitor. They can and do supply to very high quality standards when required. When they build to a price point, though, and you've got a market like the VW crowd (who are generally a cheap-assed lot who haven't figured out that the more expensive piece can actually be cheaper in the long run), let's face it, we're doomed. We're getting what we deserve.