The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Predator Carbs

Soooo I just found out about these things, strange circumstance but I just bought 2 of them for $100 off a friend.

I did some reading and searching and there isn't a ton of info that I could find, even on the bolt. Basically everyone says they are simple but less fuel efficient. Does anyone have any experience with them in general? Any reason I shouldn't slap this on my 409?

Although I've heard of them long ago, if they where any good, everyone would be using them including me.

I think P.T. Barnum might have had a sales franchise on those things. I've seen them used on round track race engines on occasion- - - -mostly by guys at the back of the pack who were desperate to do anything they could to stay on the lead lap. Compared to a Predator, a Rochester B looks like a good choice.
Jerry

I'm not certain but I've been told that is the one that won't or can't idle below 1000 rpm because of the design and need for a certain amount of airflow for it to work. I'll be curious to hear what others say.

Just to be clear- I'm not worried about making MAX HP or best fuel economy. I'm driving a 59 Spartan 100 those things arent that important for this vehicle. What I am curious about is first hand knowledge about reliability.

Let be real, I'm not taking passes at the track and I'm not trying to get 20 mpg. I have no problem buying a new holley or an Edelbrock (sorry I'm an edelbrock guy) but I enjoy having things that are interesting and a predator carb certainly seems to fit that bill. So I was just looking for input with that in mind. Are they high maintenance? Is tuning difficult (thing I read say easy but Im not that smart). Just basically any info you've got.

Thanks for the replies so far though.

Google is your friend.....

A load of info here:

Predator Carburetor

SimS

Probably, the best thing to do would be to mount both of them, and then you would have "first-hand-experience" before you take them off.

I bought one new for resale when they were available from one of my distributors; and it took me 35 years to find someone to buy it; at less than the wholesale I had paid for it originally.

Jon.

Sounds like they'll just end up on the shelf. That's ok, small piece if hot rodding history.

There's nothing new about carbs with rectangular throttle plates that open up like a Predator. They were used on big radial aircraft engines in the WW II era. The concept works well on relatively constant speed engines that flow huge volumes of air with fuel flow measured in gallons per minute. They suck on engines that must deal with frequent speed and torque load changes. The 28-cylinder R-4360 engines come to mind- - - -4,360 cubic inches, and HP ratings from 2350 to 3500.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pratt_%26_Whitney_R-4360_Wasp_Major

Jerry

Long before the Predator (actually, about WWII), there was the Woodworth. Below are a couple of pictures of the very first Woodworth that was placed on a car for testing, and subsequently removed. This unit came from the Stromberg Engineering Department from a group of unusual carburetors.

After the Woodworth failed, there was the Kendig, and sometime after it failed, the Predator emerged.

Jon.

[img]http://www.thecarburetorshop.com/Woodworth_1.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.thecarburetorshop.com/Woodworth_2.jpg[/img]

The Woodworth was smaller than the Predator, and was attempted to be sold to replace the late 1940's two-barrels.

Back to the Predators: the only group (there may be a few individuals) that seemed to use the Predator successfully were the monster truck folks on monster engines with blowers. My guess would be the design kept a more constant flow of fuel through the different angles. Did you ever watch the antics of those monster truck drivers?

Jon.

Good info Jon, thanks.

Yes I've seen how they drive those things. And these carbs have a cult following in off road circles too so that logic holds water.

I already bought the pair so I'm gonna try one out just because. And then according to the info on here I'll probably end up ditching it. But either way I will report back. If I knew where to Dyno it I'd do a run with it and a standard carb to see the difference.

Back in the early '80s Little Brother ran a Predator for a fairly short time on a 429 running Cobrajet heads in his '69 Ford F100. The engine was a long way from stock and traction was a major issue. My memory is the Predator was OK at wot, but street manners were not good at all. He sold it after a few months and went with a Holley. The truck did get a lot of respect with the Predator, but overall ran better with a well tuned Holley.

Was the Predator the carb that was supposed to run the same on Pike's Peak as at sea level? Seen so many snake oil toys through the years I can't keep them straight.

In order for there to be a predator, there must first be prey.
For $100 for the pair, you didn't get bit too hard. It is still a neat conversation piece. Just make up a story to tell about how you once beat a Corvette off the line at a stop sign with it in your Spartan.
Just don't mention that the Predator was rolling around in the bed, and that the Corvette was parked on the street at the time...

Spartan, did a bit of digging on Predators, learned a bit and just thought I'd share starting here, and here. This guy claims to have discovered a factory assembly mistake on a Predator, which he corrected and now has only great things to say.

Thanks for all the responses guys. Like it was said. Neat convert piece if nothing else. I didn't think $100 was too bad either. If it doesn't stay on the Spartan it'll go on a rat rod some time.

Moparguy, I'll read through those links and see what I can glean. Thanks a ton. I already watched a couple YouTube videos some guy did on them it was fairly enlightening.

I used a Preador on my 440 cid Ramcharger dirt drag truck. It was a great carb. Had no trouble at all. I tried a Holly that had been reworked to be bigger than it was supposed to be, over 850 cfm. The Preador out did it hands down. When I sold the truck it was still on there and doing fine. It had amazing throttle response. It was not a street truck but a race truck only. For my part I really like them. I still have on with a new rebuild kit in the shop but nothing to use it on. Hope this somehow helps. By the way I did use a 2" spacer under it.

Thanks Red Truck! I appreciate the input. After what everyone has said I'm certain that its not the right carb for my application but Im gonna give it a run anyway. Just to be different.