After reading a lot of the posts regarding carbs and carb headaches I'm still not sure what to do. My 225 has been totally rebuilt. The carb that came on the engine is a Carter made by Ball and Ball it has the numbers 6- 1787 on the throat near the top. My goal is good fuel economy, is there a new carb out there I should get? Per my forum education I don't want to risk a rebuilt carb. I would spring for something new that has a good track record.
I have Valiant Boy Wonder's assume Distributor and HEI system so want a carb that will complement it and the rest of the stock rebuild.

Thanks,
Metal Turkey

Those numbers don't identify the carb -- the Carter carb ID is on a stamped aluminum tag held by one of the bowl screws (until it breaks off or is not replaced during a rebuild or "remanufacturing" operation).

Do you have/need a 1-barrel or a 2-barrel carb? What year and model is the vehicle?

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The carb tag is broke off just a sliver of it left under the screw.

My truck is a 1966 Dodge D100 slant 225 and NP435 trans.

I don't know what I need for a carb, my goal is the best mileage possible out of a stock truck.

Thanks,
Metal Turkey

Surely Dan knows better, but I did not expect a Carter carb there. Please confirm: one barrel or two barrels (I expect a one barrel, but I might not know better/previous owners might have modified your truck). Thanks.

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/6 Dodge Charger 69
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The carb is a 1 barrel, I took it down to Rod's carb shop here in Phoenix. They thought the carb looked in pretty good shape and figured I couldn't do much better than to rebuild it. I think I'm satisfied with what I have learned from my research; there is nothing much better than a rebuilt original, time to stick a fork in that part of the rebuild.

Thanks for all the advice.
Metal Turkey

1, barrel, thanks After my message I looked more in the internet between flow differences between the Carter and the Holley, and it appears they're minimal. I guess Chrysler thought it was better for lowering prices having two companies competing... and I don't know their criteria on where to use one or another...

If your carb is in good shape go ahead and rebuild it. Is the simplest, more reliable choice. With time and some money you can improve from that baseline.

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/6 Dodge Charger 69
...there's nothing like using the "Search" link above to solve most of your problems...

How come? The Carter BBS was the only carb factory-installed on slant-6 engines in '60 and '61. It was joined by the Holley 1920 in 1962, and (for one year only) the Bendix-Stromberg WA3 in 1963. The Carter BBS was used on passenger cars until 1971, on trucks and vans domestically until 1974 and for export through the early 1980s. The Holley 1920 was used until 1973 when it was supplanted by the Holley 1945, which in turn was joined by the feedback 6145 in 1981. In Australia a local Bendix-Technico Stromberg BXUV3 was used in 1967-1969. All of these are 1-barrel carbs. For 2bbls, the Carter BBD was used for the export 2bbl setup from 1967-1975, and for the domestic "Super Six" setup from 1977 through 1983.

By model (BBS, 1920, 1945, etc.) they are not all the same—there are multiple different variants of most of these carbs depending on year, engine displacement, automatic or manual transmission, vehicle platform and equipment, whether the car was sold in the US, Canada, or California, and emissions configuration. There were two throttle bore sizes and numerous venturi sizes of the BBS and 1920. There were different venturi sizes of the 1945. Etc. Take a look here (passenger car) and here (truck/van) to get an idea of what I mean. As for which carb was factory installed on any particular car, when there were multiple different production options for any given year-model-engine-transmission, well, breakfast that day was whatever was in the cupboard. A 1963 Dodge or Plymouth B- or C-body with 225 and automatic could have come with a Carter BBS, a Holley 1920, or a Stromberg WA3 depending on what fell to hand at that time on that day in that factory when that engine was being dressed.

A juicier question is why Chrysler had multiple suppliers; the answer is probably a combination of supplier capacity, not wanting to have all eggs in one basket when they could scarcely keep up with demand for vehicles with the slant-6 engine, and playing suppliers off against each other to keep prices low. An even juicier question is why Chrysler went to the significant trouble and cost of commissioning the design, tool-up, and production of that Bendix Stromberg WA3 which was never used, in whole or in part, on any other year, make, or model of vehicle. Only 1963 Dodges and Plymouths. Perhaps there was a supply scare, maybe a strike of some kind that made Chrysler think they wouldn't be able to get enough BBSs and 1920s. Or maybe it arose out of the crapmess of shady back-channel deals between Chrysler and their suppliers in the 1960-'61 timeframe. However it came to be, the Stromberg W was probably discontinued for cost reasons; those Bendix-Stromberg carbs probably cost more -- they were of markedly higher materials and build quality than the Carters and Holleys. Chrysler (in the USA) quit buying carbs from Bendix altogether in 1968.

Over the years, a thick layer of baseless guesses and assumptions has grown like barnacles all over the what-carb question. "Oh, the Carter BBS was the small carburetor on the 170 engine; the 225 got the bigger Holley 1920", etc.

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