Jon - no, not at all. The engineers had better test equipment and resources than ANY of us.
However, one has to temper that with the change in fuel, and the fact that some of the carbs specifically designed for Chevrolet are no longer readily available.
Also to be considered is that Carter did not specifically offer a carb for the 261. And some folks (me included) just detest automatic chokes (3211s) for the later 235's. Showing may age here, but I can remember when cars costing more than $10k (Rolls-Royce and Ferrari) both had both manual chokes and manual transmissions.
The reasons I mentioned the WE and WA-1 are basically: (A) both are still more readily available than the Carter 2100s/2101s for the 235, (B) the leather accelerator pump, and (C) Carter NEVER offered their best carburetors (cost) for replacement on Chevrolet.
Again, this thread is slanted toward quality. The WA-1 was probably at least the equal of the YF in 1950, when drivers did not have to contend with ethanol. Today, it is better because of the leather pump. The WA-1 was discontinued in the mid-1950's because of cost, the YF was cheaper to produce, and sell. So I try to keep an open mind on other possibilities than what was recommended in the early 1950's. And the WA-1's used by Olds and Pontiac, while not dirt-cheap, are certainly more affordable than 2100s/2101s. Pontiac folks are like Chevrolet folks in the realm of power. An owner with a worn 216 Chevy will think about a change to a 235/261 before rebuilding the 216. A Pontiac owner with a worn 1950 Pontiac will consider replacing with an 8 cylinder before rebuilding the 6. Thus, there is less demand for the Olds/Pontiac WA-1's (forget about the ones used on Packards
).
Jon
