After much research, I've decided to put the 4100 on an Offenhauser 6016DP w/ a set of stock/cast exhaust headers from a '93 EFI. I will also be upgrading to a DSII spark system, but no cam change is planned. I would like to have a 1.08, but 1.12 is fine, hot air choke and I'm not trying to make a show piece or anything, just want a freshly rebuilt 4bbl and toss the crappy 1bbl feedback in the nearest trashcan. I'm not interested in Holley or Edelbrock.

I contacted Carbontooter to have him build a carb and this is how he replied

A 4100 carb is too big for any I6. You should stick to the 2 barrel or change the engine entirely. I will not do a 4v carb for your application. You will end up hating me because of flat spots and hesitation that you will never be able to work out of the carb. Trust me I have been there and it is not pretty. Save yourself a lot of aggravation and round file that idea.

Two questions; Is he correct? If he isn't, who should I go to for a carb? Pony would be nice, but can't justify the price.

 

I don't have an Autolite 4100 necessarily, but I can't imagine why he's telling you that. There are plenty of guys on here with 4bbls on their engines and love them, me being one of them. I think F250-Restorer has a 4100 on his, but it may not be the best advice to ask him since he's reworked a lot of the internals, cam upgrades, etc. and the 4100 on his would respond quite differently than a 4100 you may put on a stock engine.
Pony is the only other place that i personally know of to get one of those carburetors. The other that you may try is keeping an eye open for one on Ebay and rebuilt it yourself, or have it rebuilt. The reason Pony charges so much (if I understand it correctly) is that they do a lot of personal modifications on the carburetors they sell to overcome any and all design flaws that have made themselves apparent over the years.

I currently have a Holley 390 on mine, and yeah, there were a few flat spots here and there that I had to work out (still has one I'm still working on), but it's by no means a troublesome nightmare as the guy you were talking to seems to have described a 4bbl on a 300 as.

 

Thanks Abandoned, your past posts and those of others have been some of my best resources, so was confident in the 4v decision. Anyone ever deal w/ "Gotta Fish Carburetors"? The guy has a store on eBay.

 

I had a 4100 on my engine, and it was built by pony, and all total it cost me about $600.

There are two things you need to know about the 4100. First, you need the Clifford intake or the Offy 'C'. With the Offy DP manifold, the carb sits perpendicular to the engine, making the mixture screws and idle adjustment prone to burnt fingers and lots of cussing. I am serious. It is so difficult that I eventually sold the carb on ebay.

Secondly, the youngest of those carbs left the factory in 1968! Mine ran great and the secondaries came on like a NOX boost, but it also cost me dearly.

Oh yeah, if you do go with the 4100, save yourself the headache and buy the 1/8" bottom plate from Pony to prevent vacuum leaks. It cost $20 and will save you a ton of grief.

Ford put that carb on stock 289's. The 1.08 should work perfectly well on your engine, but be aware: you want the one they call a 'short snout.' On the linkage side, on the front of the float bowl is the accelerator pump housing. The one you want only sticks out about 1/2" from the float bowl. Check the different one on ebay.

They are very simple to rebuild. Before you buy one, know that the heat tube threads are good. Because these carbs have been around so long, most of the ones you get on ebay, or anywhere, have had parts changed in the linkages, etc. Pony sells everything.

Good luck. The photo below is what they look like new from Pony. I do think you would be better off buying a new Edelbrock or Holley for half the $.

<a href="http://s659.photobucket.com/albums/uu316/bobbyrogue/?action=view&current=P1010153.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i659.photobucket.com/albums/uu316/bobbyrogue/P1010153.jpg" border="0" alt="autolite 4100"></a>

By the way, if you do go with the 4100, replacement jets are available through Holley.

 

I never bought from him, but I corresponded with him several times regarding the 4100. He is a major smart ..., but knows his stuff. He has been selling those carbs on ebay for quite a while, so check his reviews and ratings.

 

The Autolite 4100 appealed to me a lot as well, but as you said, the last one was built over 40 years ago. This is the main reason why I went with the Holley 390. You can still get them brand new off the shelf. They may not have the peak performance the 4100 is known for, but it costs half as much, and parts are readily available.

 

Here is a photo of a 4100 with the acc. pump housing in clear view. Look at the bottom left corner. That is what they call a 'short snout'. That is what you want. Some of them stick out much more. Avoid them.

<a href="http://s659.photobucket.com/albums/uu316/bobbyrogue/?action=view&current=4100_004.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i659.photobucket.com/albums/uu316/bobbyrogue/4100_004.jpg" border="0" alt="Pony carbs 4100"></a>

 

Thanks, what's the problems w/ the long snout. First I've heard of this. I own (4) 4100s, two long and two short. Trying to decide which one to have sent off to rebuilder. The other three will be sold to offset the rebuild cost.

 

I got hooked on the Pony hype. But ended up going with the Edelbrock 500, out of the box, and I love it.

I think I will try to buy the sleeves Pony installs on the 1.12, 600 cfm 4100's, and rebuild one myself just to try the 'Spread bore' effect. They install the sleeves in the primary venturi, making them 1.00 for putting around town, and then you have 'warp drive' effect of the the big secondaries kicking in. I think it will be fun, but, of course I'd have to change the manifold too.

 

Jon, at Pony Carbs, specified using the short snout when I mentioned it was for an inline. I assumed it was regarding how much fuel was being delivered, but I'm not certain. It was the first thing he asked for when I said a 300, so I thought it must be important.

Something else to consider: Those copper floats are more than 40 years old. Pony sells new ones for about $20.

Before you sell the carbs you have, look up the # stamped on them. Some of them can be quite valuable because of mustang restorations. Some research could pay off.

 

This guy.scott parsons of gotta fish carbs "rebuilt" my 65 mustang 2100 carb...it came back looking good, but didn't work at all..all it did was blow black smoke..would not idle..I sent it back and told him what it was doing, he claims it is fine,and returned it..popped it back on again...black smoke again...so I opened up the top of the carb,and found he had install huge main jets,almost twice as big as needed,I installed the proper ones and the car ran 10 times better...
I also bought a rebuilt carb from o'reily's and tried it,ran great too...so this guy doesn't know jack about carbs...He would not refund my money,so he is a pure ripp off artist..beware..

 

I would file a complaint on ebay where you found that guy. Those ratings mean a lot to the guys selling there. He is also a major smart ***.

 

Thanks all, I've decided to go w/ the 2100 and rebuild it myself. I guess I'll learn more that way. I've got my hands on the Offy C and still in the process of rounding up the efi manifolds and DSII. It will probably be a while, but I'll let you know when all the changes are made.

 

I've already filed a dispute with ebay and paypal...I told him word of mouth can make or break a business. he does not seem to care.

 

I'm running the Holley 390 on my modded 200ci. There are a lot of guy's running the 4100 on 200's over on fordsix.com. Other than the age of them already mentioned, can't see why it wouldn't work. I too went with the Holley due to price, availability.