individual Weber screens

[Doc Watson]

Jim, for me its looks and limited functionality, agreed the best thing to use is a good quality filter to protect the engine, but in my opinion, dosent look the part. A mesh will prevent 'relativley' large debris from entering the engine, it would help having a filter element inside the rear scoop entrance on the rear clip although air will still come up from the engine bay which wont be filtered. Depends on how good a fit the turkey pan is. But thats another thread.

Ok that said its been more than an hour........

Removed the handles off one strainer and ensured that all sharp edges were removed. Used a carbide 'cutting' disc on the dremel (dont forget the safety glasses!!!)

The rubber holders for the filters that I have do hold the mesh in place (first two photos), the second two photos show only the strainer sitting on a 48 IDA stack.

I think I prefer the look without the rubber holder and will now have a go at wiring them on.... to me it looks more...... '60's

Andy

 

This has to be the funniest thread I have read on this site. I was just about to spend £160 out on dedicated covers - but now £8.00 in my local bargain store!! Great idea Simon ;-) next step I'll be trying some Earl Grey for my octane booster!

 

[Darren]

Doc Watson. Didn't realise you were only in Plymouth. I'm in Newton Abbot and work in paignton. You'll have to come over some time and have a drool around our T70's.

Darren

 

[Murray Cowley]

Andy, I wondered who that mysterious strained looking person wandering round the hardware stores in Plymouth was!! Looking good.

Darren, can I have a drool too!!?

 

[Darren]

Andy, I wondered who that mysterious strained looking person wandering round the hardware stores in Plymouth was!! Looking good.

Darren, can I have a drool too!!?

Oh I dare say I'm in for a couple of hours tomorrow if your about......

 

[John Fitzpatrick]

Okay, guys, these are called "tea balls", already have a rim, and all you have to do is remove the hinge and cut off the chain. I've ordered a couple of 7 cm pieces. I'll let you know how they work out. You can find them on eBay.
John

 

[Kim Petersen]

Simon:

Yours seems a pretty neat solution, with the benefit of having been mounted on TWM Vintage Stacks (such as what I have on order). Thanks for the instruction on affixing the suckers, but any chance you have a source for the exact tea strainers that you used? I've looked around here and, sadly, the British ex-pat community is probably insufficient for merchants to justify a healthy selection of strainers to choose from.

(Anyone else know of a mail-order or internet source for what Simon appears to have used?)

Thanks,

Kim

 

[Rob]

This is awesome guys...... thanks for sharing Darren.
Doc, what about still using a filter under the mesh...??? Aesthetics and a little insurance for the engine. I have the fine/smooth "sock" type covers, and am wondering about possibly incorporating them inside or under the wire mesh.
Guess I'm gonna have to go hit the kitchen supply store soon. Can't say I have ever said that before in my life....

 

[Simon]

Rob, I bought mine from Cheftools---2-1/2".
Just have to remove the hinge & latch and your set.

Simon

ChefTools - Let's get you cooking - RSVP Mesh Tea Infuser, 1-3/4 Inch Ball

 

[Doc Watson]

My stacks are 70mm diameter at the top of the stack, which means a 2.75" ball will fit, what type of wire is used to keep them in position and how could it be wired without drilling or modifing the stack?

I also am not keen on the rounded lip on the type I bought so have ordered 4 of these.....

"Kaiser Patisserie Range Tea ball infuser strainer 7.5cm Stainless steel £1.95"

I like the look of the flat plate holding the mesh and the size sounds perfect, with me by Thurs.

Andy

 

[Rob]

Let us know when they show would you Doc..... thanks.

 

[Simon]

The 2-1/2" I bought are 2-7/8" at the outside of the rim and 2-9/16" on the inside.

Simon

 

[Jim]

Okay guys, I guess I should buy some stock in a wire mesh company if you keep this up.

 

[Bernard]

Some months ago I have made this modification to my carbs to avoid to shallow some gravels

http://www.racecar.co.uk/acoc/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=300

 

[Peter Delaney]

I tried the Ingles ? rubber ring setup that Andy shows - it was an expensive disaster. My trumpets were 5mm smaller in diameter than the Webers that the setup was designed for, I heated the rubber rings before mounting (as recommended) - & yet 3 of them split with only 20 mins of driving ! So, I am running the trumpets "naked" for the moment.

I also remember a thread/post which indicated that they cost you some 30hp - when you look at how much the rubber ring interferes with the air flow, its not hard to believe.

I might have a problem with the height of the hemi-spherical mesh setups suggested, so I am looking at a flat sheet of such mesh, held in place by a simple aluminium ring with 4 little tabs. The tabs will point vertically down, and could be bent slightly under the rim of the trumpet mouth to secure them.

Seems simple - anyone see any flaws in this idea ?

Kind Regards,

Peter D.

 

[Jim Pearson]

Hi Peter D,

My understanding is that, with the surface area of a hemisphere being twice that of its base circle, provided you use mesh with at least a 50% open area you would wind up with unrestricted flow.

Using flat mesh as you suggest, whilst easier to fabricate and fit, you will restrict the effective open area of your trumpet - and by a substantial amount if the mesh is only, say, 50-80% open area.

However, given that the trumpet is tapered, perhaps all you need to do is avoid restricting to less than the area at the narrowest point of the trumpet.....???

Regards,

Jim

 

[StanJ]

However, given that the trumpet is tapered, perhaps all you need to do is avoid restricting to less than the area at the narrowest point of the trumpet.....???

Not quite. Keep in mind that the flow through any orifice is largely dictated by the pressure differential that exists from one side of it to the other. The negitive pressure downstream of the trumpet is essentially fixed (at WOT), and a pressure drop across the filter/screen will result in a lower pressure differential at that point, reducing airflow through it to some extent.

 

[John Fitzpatrick]

I’ve never seen an air filter on a dragster and I think that for the occasional track day Sunday driver who doesn’t expect to go 100K miles between rebuilds, the screen looks good and keeps out the objects that would blow an engine on the spot. For every day driving though, I would think a proper K&N is in order.
This brings up an interesting question- how much and what sort of damage does ingested grit –the sort that would pass through a screen-cause? Cylinder wall scoring, valve seat damage…? and how long does it take under normal conditions to effect performance?

 

[Bernard]

Hi Peter D,

My understanding is that, with the surface area of a hemisphere being twice that of its base circle, provided you use mesh with at least a 50% open area you would wind up with unrestricted flow.

Using flat mesh as you suggest, whilst easier to fabricate and fit, you will restrict the effective open area of your trumpet - and by a substantial amount if the mesh is only, say, 50-80% open area.

However, given that the trumpet is tapered, perhaps all you need to do is avoid restricting to less than the area at the narrowest point of the trumpet.....???

Regards,

Jim

I fully agree with your approach Jim, I have tested some months ago both systems and the hemispheric grid is a little more efficient than the flat one (mainly at the top end). To be honest I have to precise that I was obliged to cut a little the original Weber trompets to have enough space to install the tea balls and this modification can also contribute to improve power at the top end. Here below one picture of my first mesh grid adaptation on one after market horn (as you can see, I use the "modern" Weber IDF type ). I have to precise that it was difficult to crimp the flat mesh and it was the reason why I have used silicon to seal tea balls.

 

[Peter Delaney]

Jim, that is a good point about the extra air flow thru domed mesh. Perhaps I need to go with a compromise between the full hemisphere & flat - something like Bernard's setup.

Bernard, that is really neat - how did you do the clamping rings, & are they removeable ? (I need to get at the actual butterflies every 6 months or so to re-synchronise them - gentle taps with a screw-driver & checks with a vacuum guage).

Thanks for the input guys.

Kind Regards,

Peter D.