Origin was Dick O’Kane.
Book is hard to come by, but is a scream!
Bob, Geo, Glen, David, all good advice, photos and info, thanks. When I get back to the car at the end of the week I’ll get started on double checking what I did with enrichment and also change the floats to see what happens and revert back… And Geo, I have to say, of all of the great photos you’ve revealed to me over the years, nothing beats those 2 with the carpenters scale further up this thread. I love it!
Anthony
Hi Bob, back in front of the car and with a mirror, I can see my carbs are stamped with 897 and 233. 897 is the front carb. That’s it, 3 numbers on each carb. They are 175CD’s identical to what’s in the S2 manual. Do those numbers make sense?
Anthony
Hey Doug, same numbers, that’s interesting. Does that tell us anything? My carbs are on the car and I’m using a small mirror to look at the numbers. I can see additional stamped numbers like yours but can’t read them 'cause their faded. Maybe I’ll be able to see it all clearer if I remove the carbs. I’m going to remove the pistons first and see if I can find the numbers on the metering needles.
Thanks for the photos.
Anthony
Anthony, not sure what the other stamped numbers mean, but if they are the same as Doug has I would bet the carbs are also 3165. I forget what the S is for , but the F and R are for front and rear.
if you have 3165 carbs you should have the B1E needles.
Hi Bob, I confirmed I have B1E needles. I removed both pistons this afternoon and could just see the stamped designations. Next I’ll double check what I did with the enrichment to make sure I reassembled the chokes correctly. I’ll let you know.
Thanks
Anthony
I have yet to find out what the “S” is for.
Got one choke mechanism removed. I believe I have the choke plate on the removable mechanism set the correct way. I know it can be reversed 180deg. Do I have this right??? As enrichment is called for and the plate rotates, the 4 small sequential holes on the choke plate open up to the elongated hole on the choke body. Which in turn makes the elongated hole on the choke plate open to the single hole on the choke body.
Anyone care to verify that for me?
Thanks
Anthony
Hope this helps…
This is from a document I found on the net, specific to Triumphs but very applicable to our carbs (mostly).
Credit:
Also, check out the initial part of this thread:
https://forums.jag-lovers.com/t/e-type-heres-one-for-the-archives/103206
Hi Doug, huge help! Thanks for the info. I do indeed have it installed the correct way around. But one interesting observation on the choke disk I removed, the 4th hole is recessed like all of the other small holes but it’s blocked. I thought it was blocked by crud in the hole. I tried to clear it using a small piece of stiff wire I harvested from wire brush, but I can’t poke it through. It actually looks like it was never drilled through the disk. Interesting as it is, that won’t contribute to a rich mixture. I think my next step is to remove the chokes and cover the holes with some aluminum duct tape. If it runs leaner, I’m having problems with fuel getting past the chokes when they are close. Which was described as a common problem with these carbs in one of the links you sent.
Anthony
Doug, I ordered a colortune and it revealed the engine was mostly running rich at idle. Above idle and through the RPM range the colortune indicated what looked to me like normal combustion, but not at idle. I removed the carbs and set the floats from 15mm to 18mm. It was better at idle but still slightly rich. Again removed the carbs and set them to 20mm and the colortune displayed proper combustion at idle and through the RPM range. I cleaned the plugs and after a long drive the plugs are no longer lamp-black but grey. Long term, I’m going to install adjustable metering needles to give me a way to adjust mixture. So it turns out there was never anything wrong with my choke assemblies.
Anthony
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With your jets at .065 the car should be running extremely lean especially if you’re running ethanol fuel. I would say that most likely your needles and/or jets are worn. Since the needles are biased and spring loaded they favor one side and will wear a flat spot on the needle and jet over time. Most Stromberg rebuilds only the o-rings, gaskets, and diaphragms get replaced. Usually the needles and jets are original. I think you’d benefit from adjustable jets or pistons as well as a fresh set of B1E needles and set the jets around .120-.125 below the bridge.
The float height only affects the amount of gas getting inside the bowl, the needle and jet are what sets the mixture. But float height should be about .6875, at 20mm you’re on the low side.
Also, set the emissions stuff(bypass valve, temperature compensator) so it’s not operational. The stock settings allow air to pass through and will give you intermittent higher revs and poor running conditions.
Kind of a late reply but hopefully this helps get your old girl going @ 100% again!
Hi Chris, better late… and thanks for the info. I’ve been fooling around with this issue on and off for almost 2 months. I agree with you that 0.065" could contribute to lean running. And that worn needles, especially on the bias side, could contribute to the root cause. My jets magnified look round to me, not worn oval shaped. Joe C. told me they should be 0.100" dia. and I can just fit the shank end of a # 39 size drill bit at 0.995" dia.in the jet. But a # 38, at 0.1015" will not fit. So I’m quite confident the jets are okay. I’m running ethanol free so it might be a minor factor. However, my next step is to install adjustable metering B1E’s pistons etc. Raise the floats 2mm and test it out. Not sure yet if I will lower the jets to the recommended 0.125" per Joe. Maybe lowering them will depend on how much adj meeting range is left if I manage to dial it in. One thing that I’ve observed through all of this is that float height makes a difference. It’s not an accurate way to adjust mixture but the good news is that I’m getting good at removing and installing the carbs! The last time I did it, I had them off, drained, adjusted and reinstalled in about 45 minutes. 
In the coming weeks I hope to have some additional observations with new needles.
Anthony
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Chris, float level can effect the mixture. The lower the level, the further/harder atmospheric pressure must push the fuel up the jet and into the airstream, making it leaner. The higher the bowl level, the easier it is for atmospheric pressure too push the fuel up the jet into the airstream, thus the richer the mixture.
Tom
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Agree, if it wasn’t so important the manuals and rebuild instructions wouldn’t be so exacting on the specifications for setting the floats.
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That does make sense but I think float level is more sensitive on the SU than on the strombergs internal float chamber since the fuel level will never be too high in the jet by design.
I’m still confident that the problem at hand is a worn needle and/or jet. Even running non ethanol fuel .065 jet depth is too lean.
Chris, I have all the parts to convert my carbs to adjustable meeting needles. When I get around to doing the conversion I’ll report back. The conversion includes new B1E’s. What I have done with float height is not a permanent fix.
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Carbs off again, floats set at 17mm, and with new adjustable B1E’s installed in new pistons, watching the colortune, I can easily adjust them to properly set mixture at idle and through it’s RPM range. The adjustable needles give me about 3-1/2 turns of adjustment before they fall out of their adj threads. In my case they are midway around 1-1/2 turns down from the full rich position. A nice scenario.
From my observations the takeaway to this thread is that mixture can be adjusted with float height but it requires a lot of work, it’s trial and error and not exact. I had the carbs off and back on 3 times setting float height from 16mm to 18mm to my last setting at 20mm. But at 20mm, after a long drive, I started to notice slight fuel starvation for about 1/4 second after quick right turns. Experimenting with float height will get you small changes in mixture but if you have a long way to go, as I did, adjustable jets or adjustable meeting needles is the way to go.