Holley 715 opinions and advice

[Karguy]

With some downtime I have been looking at and thinking about 6S281. Over the last several years I have managed to accumulate virtually all of the hard to find Shelby/K code items that had gone missing or just rotted over many years. My goal is to restore 281, within reason, to "as new" (as possible) when delivered to Richardson Ford here in Albuquerque Nov 1965. I have become a bit of Realist when it comes to items like double / single crimped brake hoses, I have decided to use Ford service replacement double crimped hoses primarily for safety, just seems like common sense at this point. Plus I can always upgrade down the road if desired. That said, I intend to drive this car sparingly, I have no interest in going to concourse level one condition, I will take a run at concourse level two.
All that being said I would like thoughts and opinions concerning my recently acquired date correct carburetor. Drew at air-fuel-spark sounds like the guy to have mechanically and cosmetically restore these carburetors. My plan was to box this unit up and send it to him but I am now having second thoughts, not because I don't trust him, I just don't want to get this wrong. My question is this, should I restore this carburetor mechanically or go all the way into the external cosmetics, color also? I have seen older pictures Of early Shelby's with carburetors that look exactly like mine does now, please see pictures. I have also seen pictures of nicely restored cars with the brighter and darker colored carbs. What to do? Thanks in advance for your comments and thoughts.

Karl

[mygt350]

I sent my 715 to Drew and he did a fantastic job. My carb was not cruddy on outside but had some junk in the float bowls. I chose a good clean and a rebuild versus replate, etc. Unless its crazy dirty, I would lean against plating and leave "patina" as is.
Just my 2 cents. But Drew is "da man". Doesn't do unnecessary work, but work he does is top shelf. Plus, he is a good person as well.

[Dan Case]

Opinion. If significant amounts of driving are intended, especially during damp or rainy weather, I would just have it cleaned and serviced by Drew. Fresh new conversion coatings and platings don't stay fresh all that long.

[chris NOS]

honestly if you restore the car concours ,you should go for a full rebuild and cosmetic , if you have your motor looking all new and then you top it with the carb in this condition it won't fit and you'll regret not doing it 100%, my 2 cents .

[greekz]

honestly if you restore the car concours ,you should go for a full rebuild and cosmetic , if you have your motor looking all new and then you top it with the carb in this condition it won't fit and you'll regret not doing it 100%, my 2 cents .

I agree, have it totally restored so it matches the level of your engine.  When it does age, it will still look nicer than not doing the full restoration.

[kingchief]

My 4 cents worth is to have the carb refurbished cosmetically if you truly intend to enter a concourse event.  You will appreciate the look.  Mine was done in 2011 and if you keep it nice and clean it will continue to look good and perform great.  Attached is a picture of mine and I have driven her over a 1000 miles since then.  Not much in the grand scheme of things but it looks GOOD!

Cheers,

Steve

[Karguy]

Thanks Steve, did Drew restore your carburetor? It looks very correct to me.

[Rocket]

Joe Bunetic restored mine for 550, and it looks like Shelby just took it out of the box and put it on. Ron

[kingchief]

Hi Karl,

Honestly, I do not know who restored my carb.  The engine was rebuilt and restored in 2011 by Cobra Automotive.  I am not sure who they used or if it was done in-house.  At the time, I was a rank newbie in these things.  From what I have seen on this site either Drew or Joe would do a great job.

Good luck and all the best,

Steve

[gt350hr]

   The wonderful thing about Drew is HE LISTENS. Not being rude but look at Kingchief's replated primary throttle shaft then look at yours. Kingchief's is "all plated" besides being a replacement shaft altogether. The stop and spring are gold. On the originals , the shaft is silver or black phosphate , the spring is silver or natural ( there were some variances throughout production) and your lever "looks natural" . Also notice the end of the shaft is "rolled" out to retain the lever. This is typical of "in the day" manufacturing versus the "flat rectangular" method used now. If you don't want the shafts done , he will respect your wishes. The accelerator pump lever will be black and the screw and spring silver , vent tubes natural. He's gone out of his way to perfect color as it changed over the production run too. many use other restorers , I feel Drew is the best choice.
  No disrespect to other restorers intended.
  Randy

[Drew Pojedinec]

Since my name got dropped.....


As Dan said, coatings don't last forever. In truth (most restorers wont tell you this) the original coating is waaay better and more durable than anyone's replacement chromate. The reason is simply due to 50 years of the castings degrading and absorbing god knows what contaminants. 
Stuff is original once.

Many times with a project like that you can clean up the castings really well and just replate the hardware. I've also just cleaned castings as best I can and sent pictures for approval....  easier to decide later.

The good part is it can always be cosmetically restored later. If driving is the goal, just rebuild it and run the joker.

Mr Joe does nice work as do many other restorers. I don't know their protocol, but for me it pays for a customer to be highly specific. I don't do this for a living and frankly I don't care how long it takes to get right.... kinda enjoy the challenge of someone pushing me to make the job higher quality. Guess that is why it's a hobby 😂

[Drew Pojedinec]

An example... some 660's I recently did. We kinda thought the castings looked cool as is.
To be honest, once the air cleaner is on all you are gonna see is the baseplate and throttle shafts.