Tips on buying new Holley 3810

[Alexander D.]

Hi Guys,

I'm looking to buy a replacement new Holley 3810 for my '67 small block 300 hp coupe.

My car has a generic Holley 1850 carb on it. Athough I've had it rebuilt, I continue to have problems with gas smell, hard starting, and occasional backfiring through the carb. Enough I say. While on a 700 mile road trip this past weekend the car backfired through the carb hard enough to scare my wife into agreeing on the merits of replacing the existing carb. Although pricey, I'm seriously considering biting the bullet (and buying my dear wife a trailer load of shoes!) to get a NEW replacement, and correct, Holley carb for my car.

I see two vendors on eBay that are selling (presumably) brand new Holley 3810 carbs:

SPECIALTY PARTS DIRECT
CRANE'S CORVETTE SUPPLY

Crane's price is $84 cheaper than SPD. I've read mixed reviews about Crane here, but nothing that would prevent me from buying a new part from him.

My questions are:

1. Any concerns with buying the new carb from Crane or SPD ?
2. Anyone here buy a new Holley 3810 for their '67? Did you buy it from one of the above sources? Did your car run better after replacing the carb?
3. My current carb uses an electric choke. Should I retain that or go back to the stock choke stove setup? My car has the cast iron OEM manifold. From what I can tell, to go back to the stock setup I'll need to buy a "Choke Intake to Holley" kit, also sold on eBay for about $32. Does this kit have everything I'd need to take the choke back to stock configuration?
4. Should I buy a new carb to intake gasket? These are cheap. Or, should I just re-use my old one?
5. Will the new carb work fine "out of the box"? Or will I need to make a bunch of adjustments to get it running right?
6. Anything else I should consider when installing a new Holley 3810 on my car?

Thanks for sharing your advice with me!

[Edward D.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Lots of questions, here are are few answers to get you started, I'm sure others will chime in.

1) The new repro carb from Cranes or SPD is the same. It will work well but is not quite "NCRS", there are differences.
2) I have used the repro Holleys (Holley doesn't make them anymore, they licensed the rights) on customers cars.
3) The repro carb will be setup for the factory choke style, you will need the kit with the bimetallic spring and linkage.
4) The new carb should come with a gasket, but yes, you will need both it and the metal heat shield.
5) It will run out of the box, that said it should still need to be adjusted to optimize operation.
6) Carb issues may not be your only problem. Sounds like you have ignition timing issues as well.

Unless you know what you are doing, strongly recommend you have a pro tune your car when installing a new carb.

[Alexander D.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Lots of questions, here are are few answers to get you started, I'm sure others will chime in.

1) The new repro carb from Cranes or SPD is the same. It will work well but is not quite "NCRS", there are differences.
2) I have used the repro Holleys (Holley doesn't make them anymore, they licensed the rights) on customers cars.
3) The repro carb will be setup for the factory choke style, you will need the kit with the bimetallic spring and linkage.
4) The new carb should come with a gasket, but yes, you will need both it and the metal heat shield.
5) It will run out of the box, that said it should still need to be adjusted to optimize operation.
6) Carb issues may not be your only problem. Sounds like you have ignition timing issues as well.

Unless you know what you are doing, strongly recommend you have a pro tune your car when installing a new carb.

Hi Edward, and thanks for your reply!

A few more questions for you:

1. You say the repro carb will not "quite be NCRS". What are the differences? I can pay an extra $110 to Cranes to have the carb date stamped. Other than that, would the repro be functionally identical to the OEM carb?
2. Who makes the repro carbs? Did Holley sell the tooling to another carb manufacturer? Or did Holley make a 'custom run' of them for Cranes and SPD?
3. What is the 'metal heat shield' you refer to? Can I re-use my old one, if my car has one now? How do I tell if I have this heat shield? Is it possible that the PO did not install a heat shield under my existing Holley 1850?
4. Which of the symptoms I mentioned (hard starting, carb backfire, erratic idle quality, gas smell) are indicative to you of timing issues?

FYI - I'll be replacing all the ignition parts when I replace the carb (i.e. new plugs, wires, coil, points, condenser). Reason being I''ve had the car for 4+ years and don't know how old any of this stuff is.

Thanks in advance for sharing your expertise with me.

-Alex

[William F.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Specialty parts warehouse, Opp, Alabama, sells the vintage holley carbs. Some changes in the newer versions, hex heads rather than slots on bowl screws, "blue" reusable gaskets, etc, but closest you'll get to original in a new carb.

[Joe L.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Hi Edward, and thanks for your reply!

A few more questions for you:

1. You say the repro carb will not "quite be NCRS". What are the differences? I can pay an extra $110 to Cranes to have the carb date stamped. Other than that, would the repro be functionally identical to the OEM carb?
2. Who makes the repro carbs? Did Holley sell the tooling to another carb manufacturer? Or did Holley make a 'custom run' of them for Cranes and SPD?
3. What is the 'metal heat shield' you refer to? Can I re-use my old one, if my car has one now? How do I tell if I have this heat shield? Is it possible that the PO did not install a heat shield under my existing Holley 1850?
4. Which of the symptoms I mentioned (hard starting, carb backfire, erratic idle quality, gas smell) are indicative to you of timing issues?

FYI - I'll be replacing all the ignition parts when I replace the carb (i.e. new plugs, wires, coil, points, condenser). Reason being I''ve had the car for 4+ years and don't know how old any of this stuff is.

Thanks in advance for sharing your expertise with me.

-Alex

Alex------

I an unaware that Holley is no longer actually manufacturing these carbs. The last I heard was that Holley made them on a "minimum number" special order and that they made them only for Specialty Parts with all other sources obtaining them from Specialty Parts. If there's been a change in that, I'm unaware of it. Barring the possibility of problems if a manufacturing source other than Holley is now involved, these carbs are functionally identical to the originals. Configuration differences are minor with the major one being hex head bowl screws. This can easily be changed to slotted, as original. I don't know about the date stamping. I'd be concerned that current day stamping would be detectably different than original. Originals were usually very "deep-stamped". I don't know if that's possible with non-factory stamping methods.

The stainless steel baffle, originally, GM #3884575, is just a thin, flat "plate" that mounts between the carb and carb-to-manifold gasket. Reproductions are easily available from all of the Corvette parts vendors.

[Edward D.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Alex,
1) Besides what others have mentioned on the bowl screws and gaskets, the welch plugs in the fuel feed ends of the bowls are different, the accelerator pump cover is different, and the butterfly screws are Phillips instead of slotted. Its kind of pointless to have one date stamped as an expert (a NCRS judge for instance) can easily tell the difference.

2) Not sure who makes them now, but a couple years ago when I called Holley looking for parts they did tell me they no longer made the classic carbs and had licensed manufacture to another company for the restoration market, they did tell me who, but I have lost that information.

3) Metal heat shield goes between manifold & gasket; used on cast iron intakes. Available at all parts suppliers. An its quite possible that your carb was installed without one by a mechanic at some point. You do need one in there.

4) All of the symptoms you mention can be caused by bad ignition timing. You need to make sure that distributor and vacuum advance are good and correct and that points gap (dwell) is correct. With todays fuels timing curve is critical, you set all in total timing. There are a number of tech articles on how to do this, search for articles by Lars.

Hi Edward, and thanks for your reply!

A few more questions for you:

1. You say the repro carb will not "quite be NCRS". What are the differences? I can pay an extra $110 to Cranes to have the carb date stamped. Other than that, would the repro be functionally identical to the OEM carb?
2. Who makes the repro carbs? Did Holley sell the tooling to another carb manufacturer? Or did Holley make a 'custom run' of them for Cranes and SPD?
3. What is the 'metal heat shield' you refer to? Can I re-use my old one, if my car has one now? How do I tell if I have this heat shield? Is it possible that the PO did not install a heat shield under my existing Holley 1850?
4. Which of the symptoms I mentioned (hard starting, carb backfire, erratic idle quality, gas smell) are indicative to you of timing issues?

FYI - I'll be replacing all the ignition parts when I replace the carb (i.e. new plugs, wires, coil, points, condenser). Reason being I''ve had the car for 4+ years and don't know how old any of this stuff is.

Thanks in advance for sharing your expertise with me.

-Alex

[John D.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

I bought the brand new 3810 from SPD last year. They contract them from Holley who builds them in a batch. The owner mark called me directly to be sure I knew what I ordered before he would ship it. He offered the round head bowl screws for an extra charge in case I was judging. It comes with hex head screws.There are some subtle differences to an original 3810.

I bolted it up with the supplied gasket and the car started and ran perfectly out of the box- better than it has at any time in my over 30 years of ownership. I didn't touch a thing except to adjust the idle speed. I should have done it years ago. It was pricey but definitely worth it in my view- there's nothing better than a brand new carb.

disclaimer- no relation to this business or owner in any way

[Joe L.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

I bought the brand new 3810 from SPD last year. They contract them from Holley who builds them in a batch. The owner mark called me directly to be sure I knew what I ordered before he would ship it. He offered the round head bowl screws for an extra charge in case I was judging. It comes with hex head screws.There are some subtle differences to an original 3810.

I bolted it up with the supplied gasket and the car started and ran perfectly out of the box- better than it has at any time in my over 30 years of ownership. I didn't touch a thing except to adjust the idle speed. I should have done it years ago. It was pricey but definitely worth it in my view- there's nothing better than a brand new carb.

disclaimer- no relation to this business or owner in any way

John------


I've said it many times before: nothing makes a car run like a NEW carburetor. I'm so committed to this belief that I have several brand new carburetors, both Q-Jet and Holley, in my spare parts inventory so that I'll never run out.

What you were told is exactly what I've understood for a long time. Holley builds the repro carburetors in a "minimum number" batch for Specialty Parts. I think the owner of Specialty Parts is (or, at least was) a guy named Bob Rush.

I've never been able to figure out why Holley makes these practically perfect reproduction carburetors and, then, uses the hex head bowl screws which are, by far, the most glaring discrepancy. Certainly, the slotted type are available, in fact, maybe even from Holley.

[Leif A.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

John------


I've said it many times before: nothing makes a car run like a NEW carburetor. I'm so committed to this belief that I have several brand new carburetors, both Q-Jet and Holley, in my spare parts inventory so that I'll never run out.

What you were told is exactly what I've understood for a long time. Holley builds the repro carburetors in a "minimum number" batch for Specialty Parts. I think the owner of Specialty Parts is (or, at least was) a guy named Bob Rush.

I've never been able to figure out why Holley makes these practically perfect reproduction carburetors and, then, uses the hex head bowl screws which are, by far, the most glaring discrepancy. Certainly, the slotted type are available, in fact, maybe even from Holley.

I have to agree with Joe's statement about a new carburetor. I have bought several from SPD over the years and every one of them has been perfect out of the box...never an issue. When I ordered my latest 3810 for my '67 L79, they offered to ship it with the slotted screws in the same box so that I could change them out...no additional charge. Great guys, great product, great service. I have recommended them to many over the years and I had nothing but positive feedback from everyone who has bought one of the carbs. This is NOT a paid endorsement

[Gary B.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Guys,

Do these new Holley carbs sold by SPD have modern day gaskets that will withstand gasoline with ethanol?

Gary

[William F.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Right. A little different but closest you'll find and they're new and they WORK.

[William F.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

BUT, interestingly 2 new ones I bought from them each had a pin hold leak in the secondary floats. Ran me crazy for a while trying to figure out the flooding. Couldn't believe this could be the problem in a new carb- till I took float out, put it in a jar of gas and watched it sink like a rock. A quality control issue I guess. Still best place to buy a new vintage Holley.

[Leif A.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

Guys,

Do these new Holley carbs sold by SPD have modern day gaskets that will withstand gasoline with ethanol?

Gary

They do Gary...no issues whatsoever.

[Gary B.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

They do Gary...no issues whatsoever.

Leif,

Thanks. Sounds like a purchase is in my future.

Gary

[Alexander D.]

Re: Tips on buying new Holley 3810

I have to agree with Joe's statement about a new carburetor. I have bought several from SPD over the years and every one of them has been perfect out of the box...never an issue. When I ordered my latest 3810 for my '67 L79, they offered to ship it with the slotted screws in the same box so that I could change them out...no additional charge. Great guys, great product, great service. I have recommended them to many over the years and I had nothing but positive feedback from everyone who has bought one of the carbs. This is NOT a paid endorsement

Thanks Leif and all of you who replied to my inquiry about David Crane / SPD and the new Holley 3810 I want to buy.

First an update - I called David Crane this morning to ask about the new 3810 he has posted for sale on eBay. David's price is about $40 less than SPD's once shipping costs are included. I asked David if he'd sell me the carb and a choke kit. All was good until I told him I was in Canada but wanted the parts shipped to my mailing address in Washington State. That's when things got a bit difficult. David told me he won't take payment from credit card issued in Canada, suggesting I pay him via PayPal "Friends and Family".

I told David I didn't prefer that as PayPal would charge me an extra 3% because I would need to use my credit card to send the funds to PayPal before these were disbursed to David. I don't have a US bank account or funds deposited with PayPal, so the extra fee applies. I then suggested "Why don't I just buy the carb you have listed on eBay as a Buy it Now item?" That didn't go over well as David "If you do that I'll immediately cancel the eBay transaction; eBay already charges me 13%, the margin on the carb is too low..." I said it shouldn't make a difference where my credit card was issued because the transaction would go through eBay and that I've bought many parts from many vendors this way in the past without any issues. I reminded him that the ship-to address would be in Washington State so he didn't need to worry about shipping across the border. David softenend a bit, saying he'd check with PayPal/eBay and asked me to call him back in a couple of hours...

I'm now thinking it may be less trouble to pay a bit more and buy the carb from Specialty Parts Direct. I called them just now but got an answering machine message suggesting I email someone named Mark. This I did, so hopefully I'll get a response soon.

Wish me luck in getting the darned carb!