The Classic Case Of Carburetors

Although not much used since the 1980's in vehicles and early 2000's in motorcycles, carburetors at one time were a key component to any engine. Without it the engine simply did not work. First created in 1885, they served as a mixer for fuel and air which, together, ran the engine and its design was so simplistic that it was difficult to understand how it could be improved.

The Bernoulli principle dictates that as air begins to move faster, static pressure is lowered which, in turn, increases dynamic pressure. What this says is that as one accelerates, mechanisms inside the carburetor are activated that control the amount of air and fuel that gets pulled into an engine. How fast this air moves, then, determines the amount of pressure that gets built up which controls the amount of fuel pulled into the airflow.

There were several versions built along the way beginning with the single carburetor for cars and later multiple carb systems for motorcycles. They can still be found in other equipment like lawn mowers and boat motors and all work on the same principal. In the earlier models the air entered from below and exited at the top. This was called an updraft model and had the advantage of preventing engine flooding. However, beginning in about the 1930's a downdraft model was invented which was later replaced by a side-draft model as space under the hood became a premium.

The advantage carburetors had was that novice mechanics could rebuild them with minimal instructions and a little patience. Unfortunately, today they have all but disappeared in light of the newer fuel injection systems. This is unfortunate for many as the newer systems are all but impossible to work on without special training. For those who had the opportunity to rebuild a carburetor, however, it has all but become a treasured memory that the younger generation will probably never get to enjoy.