Yup! Just like the title said, what is the best 12A Carb to have and why?

 

depends on what the car is going to be used for:

For a street setup: Weber 45dcoe (good for stock ports), Weber 48dcoe (good for streetports, the dcoes have good mid range rpm power), sterling carb, Mikuni 44phh (I have heard these are the best street carbs but I haven't used one), Holley carbs (have no experience with these setups but I assume they are easier to setup then the alternatives because they are a more popular carb.)

For a racing setup: weber 48IDA (for all out high rpms power, good for bridge ports, and massive streetports)

I warn you now with any aftermarket carb you are going to need to have a ton of patience they do not come "ready to run" out of the package they do require extensive tuning to get them to go good.

 

edelbrook makes a good carb i had one on a old 2nd gen that i converted to a carb. It picks up better than the holley. Im pretty sure it is beacuse it is a spread bore carb but a holley will flow more cfms at a higher rpm range but i think it was to much. THe holley i had started to lean out at around 5500 i didnt have ne problems with the edelbrook though.

 

weber 45 dcoe - dont get the 48 like me without a ported motor. I had to get new chokes and jets to get mine to run properly on my stock motor.

 

Hey thanks guys that helps so I have a good idea of what kind of setup I want to do in the near future.

 

Check out Carl and Sterling at:
http://www.pbandjracing.com/
They mod your Nikki carb with some nice power output options, plus likely cheaper than a weber, etc plus probably more drivable in the "real-world"
Got mine in with Carl right now for street-modding...
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

I'm going to try a Sterling too, because it's cheaper than a 45DCOE, fits into the existing location circumspectly, and will probably pass the CA smog 'visual' test OK. If this thing works out it's a boon for CA 12A owners.

Incidentally, if anyone has a spare core Nikki (or even just the throttle plate shaft) I'll buy it from you: the one I sent to Sterling has a bent shaft.

Those Webers are nice carbs. I had dual 40DCOEs on my 1962 1300cc Alfa Veloce and they were honeys: didn't require re-tuning, worked well over the rev range and load range, and never gave me trouble.

B

 

Although I agree that the sterling carb is very badass, I love the looks of the sidedraft in the engine bay. My only problem with my weber 45dcoe is the insane amount of tuning it has required to get it to run decently (mostly because the carb was used though)

Check out what my setup looks like, the engine still needs a little polishing and cleaning to make it to my standards but its making progress.

 

down dreaft webber

 

Do I need to explain what these things can do?

 

I agree with Wakyracer, go for Weber downdraft if you want tunable performance.

The dcoe is historic, moderate performance, and clutters up the engine bay. Polished up it looks attractive. But then that's a personal choice, it's like what you choose in your passenger- looks or speed? You rarely get both without a deep bank balance.

A modified Nikki is still the best choice for stockport or mild streetport. after that there is only one choice: 48 IDA.

 

i couldn't agree w/ ou more wacky