This thread captured my attention several weeks ago and I have been contemplating it ever since. I was going to reach for the "Quote" button but having reread all of it, I think I'd quote everyone from the OP to the last reply. Mr. Steele certainly did the community a favor by furnishing an example of an original Rochester verses the fake with it's extra ridge. This "milling process" would override any conversation regarding the stampings, but apparently they have good reason to be called into question as well. So that leads me to several thoughts. One - the elaborate scheme cooked up to alter the carburetor's main body. It's obvious this was not some backyard re-stamp and genuine machining took place in the execution of that scheme. Not only is there a ridge, but a much sharper radius to the corresponding part of the plane to the right of the numbers (red arrow). The deception is real and unfortunate. As somebody suggested this carb was sold. While I'm not out to buy a high dollar Stage 1 car today, it still troubles me to a great extent. It is not hard to envision, once this is installed on a car, that the future buyer of that car will become a victim as well. After all, we have the luxury of singling out the issue on the WWW. A buyer of an entire car must take in the totality of the vehicle. This carb will lie in the shadow of a ram air cleaner. At best, an informed buyer will probably check to see the 246, or perhaps even the date code, and move on. My second thought isn't as technical but more philosophical. The opening poster made the comment, "dig deep fellas". Another poster said somebody just got screwed for $3,500. But, shouldn't the collector car community take a look in the mirror on this? Maybe its my age or my middle class life talking here, but even if it were real, isn't that a lot of dough? I have bought at least a few Stage 1 cars for less. The fact that people are willing to spend that kind of coin led to someone going to the extent they did to create the monster in the first place. In no way am I trying to change the subject, but this an extension of it. I would offer it's the same reason, in general, and in my humble opinion, that VIN tags get transferred from one vehicle body to another vehicles body without jumping through the legal hoops. Some part of this carb has to be the "Stage 1" part of it. Everyone here seems to recognize that part it is, in fact, the carb main body (technically, a float bowl assembly). This would be no different than recognizing the importance of a car body/tub/shell in a re-body conversation as far as I'm concerned. Just another abomination on the hobby, and shame on the party that did this. They are a bad egg!
It is a philosophical question 100%, just like a Mona Lisa can be bought for $1.99, but the real thing is priceless….1 is not better than the other technically, but real is real.
Good point sir. However, no one should try to pass off the $1.99 as the priceless example. Therein lies the problem. This hobby is getting so perverse, the sale of these cars, and the parts for that matter, are becoming the equivalent of buying a watch off a man in a trench coat on a New York city street.
Thats why you always need to do your due diligence! I always mention the Bloomington gold group. Those guys need to hire "experts" to examine the engine pad on corvettes with a microscope to make sure the broaching marks are correct and coincide with known examples. You want to know what it will be like for us in 10 or 15 years? Look at the corvette community right now
The milling and other work are textbook of what The Carb Doctor has been doing for at least 20 years and selling on eBay. Most of the time,I have seen his dates off by a few days. Maybe done on purpose. When you mill it you also remove the casting flash that all carburetor main bodies have along the upper edge by the air horn. Between that and the ridge that is left,it doesn’t matter if the font is correct or not,unless you don’t know what you are looking at. There have been 10-12 vendors like this throughout the years on eBay,duplicating the rare,sought-after carbs. So ponder this: If each of them made 10(and they made more than that),then that’s 100-120 bogus ones floating around out there.
I have a freind that has a low HP '60 fuelie. When he did his engine he had to get the ok from them to deck his block. Only thing is, there is a guy in the Detroit area that has one of the original block broach machines that does that kind of thing just for those Vette guys. Havent a clue how much it cost him, but sure it wasnt cheap. It just goes to show you what some people will go through to make it 'look' right.
