Dellorto Drla 40 cleaning question

[kolt10]

i am in the process of cleaning and rebuilding my dells. Should i remove the spindle bearings from the throttle shaft before i put them in a carb dip? Also, is that all I need to remove or should i remove the the throttle valves and the entire throttle shaft? It turns freely now, and i have removed everything else. i do not have the dell tech book yet, but i am going to buy it when i buy my rebuild kits. I am just trying to get everything clean and ready to rebuild. thanks


i have not removed these plugs. Do i need to? and if so how? [the brass ones in the pic]

and here is a few pics of what im dealing with.

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1967 Beetle

[66brm]

Have you considered soda blasting them rather than dipping?
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Aust. RHD 66 Type 1
Aust. RHD 57 Type 1 Oval

[kolt10]

ya i have, im not sure what would be better or more cost effective. I just figured that the carb dip would get to all of the grime. These carbs have set for many years and it appears they were never drained either. I am up to do either way, just which ever way is the best.
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1967 Beetle

[66brm]

Try this its cheap if you have a compressor already

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=438357
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Aust. RHD 66 Type 1
Aust. RHD 57 Type 1 Oval

[kolt10]

Ya i read that last night actually, and i have a sixty gallon compressor. So i might do that, what are the advantages of soda blasting over the dip? Will the soda blasting remove the finish on the throttle valves?
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1967 Beetle

[66brm]

Nah the finish will be fine, use it on the bits you can easily get to such as the body, float bowl etc and I like to clean out the galleries with carb cleaner and compressed air
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Aust. RHD 66 Type 1
Aust. RHD 57 Type 1 Oval

[kolt10]

ok sounds good. I have read that the bearings are pressed in there, am i right? If so i guess so blasting would be easier. Also, what should i do about those brass plugs in my top picture, what are they and do i need to remove them? thanks
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1967 Beetle

[Bruce]

Do not remove the plugs
Do not remove the throttle plates
Do not remove the throttle shafts or the bearings.
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[kolt10]

alrighty sounds good. I can't wait to see these things look like new again. They were pretty dirty when i got them
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1967 Beetle

[Rome]

Sounds like you'll proceed with dipping them - fine. I've done that at home too on numerous sets. Let them sit overnight, then scrub the surfaces with toothbrush. After rinsing with water per the carb cleaner instructions, put on safety goggles and spray into every opening with compressed air. The stuff will fly out of unexpected openings so the goggles are a must. Once everything's dry I'd recommend oiling all moving parts (e.g. throttle plate shaft and bearings) with 3-in-1 oil which is thin enough.

Then write down your main and idle jet sizes as well as your venturies so you have a baseline when you start the engine for the first time.

[Bruce]

[kadub]

I've got a pair of Dell 40s that I "tanked" 2-3 times over the years, leaving the shafts and bearings installed. I finally decided to do a full teardown on them and was supprised to find the bearings only wanted to rotate ~90° before binding (with throttle plates removed). They're sealed ball bearings available from CB Performance for not too much $. I think the carb cleaner damaged the seals and allowed dirt and gunk into them over the years (in a baja). I wouldn't say it's necessary to remove everything like this for cleaning, but just something to think about if your shafts are stiff at all without return springs insalled, etc. Here'a a couple pics of when I took mine apart for their most recent cleaning and turbo-prepping.

These are the bearings and shaft seals. Non turbo-prepped carbs won't have the smaller seals on the inner shaft bushings.

And a couple comparison shots between stock vents and CB's update vents and spray bars for anybody interested.

[kolt10]

well, i soda blasted my carbs and i was quite pleased with how clean they ended up. However, the metal finish had lots and lots of little black dots on the outside(on about 3/4 of the body) that wouldn't blast off. So i pulled out the dremel and used the little wire wheel to remove them, which worked. However now my carb is all shiny and i cant figure out to get the dull stock finish back. So...looks like i will be buying some aluminum polish to make the finish a consistent shine, which isnt my favorite finish but i dont think i have another choice.
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1967 Beetle

[Bruce]

[Bruce]

[kolt10]

Ya I tried soda blasting them again but it didn't help. It wouldn't return to original finish
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1967 Beetle

[Bruce]

These Dellortos had a lot more corrosion than yours. I gave them a light glass bead blast to clean them up.

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[kolt10]

I have a friend that has a blasting cabinet at his machine shop that I can use. So what exactly do you mean by a light bead blast. I thought it wasn't a good idea to bead blast Carbs because the media could get stuck.in the passages
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1967 Beetle

[mharney]

For those that are not detail oriented, this is true. If you are capable of detail, and will flush all the circuits, and dry them out completely, you can do it. If you do not remove EVERYTHING from the carb that comprises a circuit, and throttle shafts, etc., don't do it. If you are capable of being systematic about flushing everything out it'll be fine.

[kolt10]

ok i am in the process of taking them down to just the bodies. So once i have the complete bare casting i should be ready to bead blast them. Is there anything special i should know before doing this, like anywhere i should avoided blasting or be careful around or hit very lightly? Basically i am just curious how i should go about blasting them. thanks
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1967 Beetle