Anybody ever heard of "Fish" Carburetors and their supposed 100+mpg??

[blazerboy_4life]

Just went down to Denver yesterday and on the way home stopped to see my grandfather. He was cleaning out the garage when i pulled up and gave me a few things like and engine stand and a Fish Carburetor. He said he got 22mpg out of a 410? olds motor. Anybody ever heard of these carbs and their reliability/power/ridiculous mpg ratings? All the articles Ive dug up keep talking about 100+ mpg off most any V8.

[Shane]

google ...

[cam.man67]

just did some research on 'em. The 100+ mpg claim is totally bogus, nor did Fish ever claim that. He did claim that is was a more efficient design than any other carb out there, and that was true.

From what I see, a Fish carb is an incredibly simple design (only 17 parts, 1 gasket, and 3 moving parts). Works pretty well for racing, or so I see.

I'd love to try one out on my truck, see if I can hit 18-20 mpg, but, alas, a "new" one costs $850.

[63chevyll]

sounds pretty cool

[cdowns]

that's why they call it fishin and not catchin

[blazerboy_4life]

Originally Posted by Shane

google ...

I was hoping for more personal experience. Google was the first place I went THEN I came you guys.

[Shane]

ok.

[71meangreenc10]

Yeah,
Cant get past that $850 price tag......I have never heard of it either, I go through the summit and Jegs catalogs, even LMC never saw it. Ill look and see if JC whitney promotes it.....

Also supprised that during the $4-5 bucks a gallon spike a couple years ago didnt get this air time,,unless it was just a local product.

Smitty

[blazerboy_4life]

Right now im trying to find an intake I can bolt it up to. It doesnt match my 2bbl.

[MARKDTN]

Originally Posted by 71meangreenc10

Yeah,
Cant get past that $850 price tag......I have never heard of it either, I go through the summit and Jegs catalogs, even LMC never saw it. Ill look and see if JC whitney promotes it.....

Also supprised that during the $4-5 bucks a gallon spike a couple years ago didnt get this air time,,unless it was just a local product.

Smitty

It's not a new product, been around a long long time.

[blazerboy_4life]

Originally Posted by MARKDTN

It's not a new product, been around a long long time.

Yeah this one that my grandfather gave me he used to run back in the 70's

[mrein3]

Originally Posted by 71meangreenc10

Yeah,
Cant get past that $850 price tag......I have never heard of it either, I go through the summit and Jegs catalogs, even LMC never saw it. Ill look and see if JC whitney promotes it.....

Also supprised that during the $4-5 bucks a gallon spike a couple years ago didnt get this air time,,unless it was just a local product.

Smitty

I'm surprised we haven't heard more snake oil type things now that gas is headed back up. Before I read this post I'm quoting I was going to mention that we always hear this stuff while gas goes up in price.

Somebody should keep track. First its the 100+ mpg carb that big oil and big car companies bought the rights to.
Then we'll hear about the magnets on the gas line.
Then we'll hear about injecting hydrogen into the carb.
Then we'll hear about the air cleaner that swirls the air and improves mileage.
Then we'll hear about the split fire spark plugs that studies have shown improve mileage.

Folks its a broken record that gets spinning when gas goes up. With today's fleet fuel mileage requirements do you really think a car company is going to keep something that gets 100+ mpg on the shelf? When Ford says use 5w-20 because it gives them an across the board 0.1% increase in fuel mileage do you think they are sitting on a 100mpg carb? When Chevrolet shuts down extra cylinders at cruise on the highway do you think they are sitting on a 100 mpg carb?

What did P. T. Barnum say? "There is a sucker born every minute"

And those suckers buy lots of the above mentioned products. [I'm not saying the fish carb isn't a fine working carb, I'm just saying that it won't get 100+ mpg in a 5000 pound truck]

[leddzepp]

Wonder if Barney Miller used one?

[Tkmadone]

I had one on my MGB for a while. I went from 21mpg to about 23. It was cool because it was so simple and I would have kept it but it didn't have a choke so it was annoying when cold. I think I still have it somewhere...

[DANTIP]

A friend of mine is an engineer at Ford and specializes in port fuel-injection system design. We have had many conversations regarding carburetors, fuel-injection, fuel mix ratios, etc. My wife doesn't hang around long when we talk. Basically, gasoline engines operate properly when the optimum mixture of fuel and air is maintained. These guys get into enormous detail but it comes down to mixing the best/optimum amount of fuel with a given (or measured) amount of air. He admitted the best performing carburetor for road-driven vehicles is a properly set-up Quadrajet. Their testing shows a Q-Jet can approach port fuel-injection performance and economy.

Claims of dramatically better fuel economy with different gadgets aren't real.

My friend did convince me to buy a digital read-out system for carburetor set-up. These devices rely on an O2 sensor (you have to weld a bung into the exhaust pipe) to give you a mixture readout. With this and a setup procedure for the Q-jet, you can feel good about your carb performance. Indiana does not require any testing of tailpipe emissions, but I'll bet the mixture device could help you nail a lean setup that would aid in passing a sniff test.

[blazerboy_4life]

Originally Posted by mrein3

I'm surprised we haven't heard more snake oil type things now that gas is headed back up. Before I read this post I'm quoting I was going to mention that we always hear this stuff while gas goes up in price.

Somebody should keep track. First its the 100+ mpg carb that big oil and big car companies bought the rights to.
Then we'll hear about the magnets on the gas line.
Then we'll hear about injecting hydrogen into the carb.
Then we'll hear about the air cleaner that swirls the air and improves mileage.
Then we'll hear about the split fire spark plugs that studies have shown improve mileage.

Folks its a broken record that gets spinning when gas goes up. With today's fleet fuel mileage requirements do you really think a car company is going to keep something that gets 100+ mpg on the shelf? When Ford says use 5w-20 because it gives them an across the board 0.1% increase in fuel mileage do you think they are sitting on a 100mpg carb? When Chevrolet shuts down extra cylinders at cruise on the highway do you think they are sitting on a 100 mpg carb?

What did P. T. Barnum say? "There is a sucker born every minute"

And those suckers buy lots of the above mentioned products. [I'm not saying the fish carb isn't a fine working carb, I'm just saying that it won't get 100+ mpg in a 5000 pound truck]

Oh I in no way think I im going to get any where near the 100mpg rating ive read about thats just silly. I do however think its possible to hit the 22-25mpg range on my 305 with some help.

[blazerboy_4life]

Originally Posted by DANTIP

A friend of mine is an engineer at Ford and specializes in port fuel-injection system design. We have had many conversations regarding carburetors, fuel-injection, fuel mix ratios, etc. My wife doesn't hang around long when we talk. Basically, gasoline engines operate properly when the optimum mixture of fuel and air is maintained. These guys get into enormous detail but it comes down to mixing the best/optimum amount of fuel with a given (or measured) amount of air. He admitted the best performing carburetor for road-driven vehicles is a properly set-up Quadrajet. Their testing shows a Q-Jet can approach port fuel-injection performance and economy.

Claims of dramatically better fuel economy with different gadgets aren't real.

My friend did convince me to buy a digital read-out system for carburetor set-up. These devices rely on an O2 sensor (you have to weld a bung into the exhaust pipe) to give you a mixture readout. With this and a setup procedure for the Q-jet, you can feel good about your carb performance. Indiana does not require any testing of tailpipe emissions, but I'll bet the mixture device could help you nail a lean setup that would aid in passing a sniff test.

Which digital system did you go with and how did it work out for you?

[brad_man_72]

theirs plenty of carbs produing 100mpg, but their all bolted to mopeds and scooters!

[Vintage Windmills]

Originally Posted by DANTIP

A friend of mine is an engineer at Ford and specializes in port fuel-injection system design. We have had many conversations regarding carburetors, fuel-injection, fuel mix ratios, etc. My wife doesn't hang around long when we talk. Basically, gasoline engines operate properly when the optimum mixture of fuel and air is maintained. These guys get into enormous detail but it comes down to mixing the best/optimum amount of fuel with a given (or measured) amount of air. He admitted the best performing carburetor for road-driven vehicles is a properly set-up Quadrajet. Their testing shows a Q-Jet can approach port fuel-injection performance and economy.

Claims of dramatically better fuel economy with different gadgets aren't real.

My friend did convince me to buy a digital read-out system for carburetor set-up. These devices rely on an O2 sensor (you have to weld a bung into the exhaust pipe) to give you a mixture readout. With this and a setup procedure for the Q-jet, you can feel good about your carb performance. Indiana does not require any testing of tailpipe emissions, but I'll bet the mixture device could help you nail a lean setup that would aid in passing a sniff test.

I bet he will also tell you that even if a vehicle is 100% efficent, you'll still only get 30-40mpg due to wind resistance and tire to road resistance. It takes that much gas to keep it moving. Anyone will tell you this that has done the math or understands physics

Edit: this only applies for full size trucks, smaller vehicle #'s can be higher.

[DANTIP]

Originally Posted by blazerboy_4life

Which digital system did you go with and how did it work out for you?

It's an NGK AFX. It is intended to be mounted but I use it to help friends set-up their carbs, then we plug the O2 bung. Takes all of the guess-work out!

[blazerboy_4life]

Originally Posted by DANTIP

It's an NGK AFX. It is intended to be mounted but I use it to help friends set-up their carbs, then we plug the O2 bung. Takes all of the guess-work out!

Yeah it sounds like a good idea. Ive got at least 2 more motors in my near future and I think this could help simplify a lot of things!

Edit: i just went to the website and dont see any pricing. What do those usually run if you dont mind my asking?

[ChevLoRay]

During the Arab oil embargo of '73, there were several devices that claimed fastastic gas economy, that we were encouraged to buy. Fish carbs were one of them. There was another item, that was a lot cheaper. It was a simple device that leaned out your mixture by way of a vacuum in your intake...thinking burnt valves?

There have also been rumours that said the "car companies" were buying up the patents and parts so we would have to buy gas guzzlers.

Then, within the past 10 or so years, we had the Tornado. Not saying anything about it except their money-back guarantee is valid.

As long as the internal combustion engine has been in existance, or almost, someone has been trying to invent the perfect carburetion device and claiming unbelievable economy. Electronic fuel injection is superior to old-tech carburetors, but there are other tricks that will help. They're simple, too, if you think about it. Try keeping your tires inflated to the higher specification on the sidewall. Some tires are rated to carry their loads at 45PSI. Whatever that number is, believe that the higher value will let the tires roll down the road more easily. Underinflated tires will create drag and use more fuel.

[406 Q-ship]

Fish carburators is from the 1950's.

[VA72C10]

Originally Posted by Tkmadone

I think I still have it somewhere...

I think if I did I'd be looking for it and have it on ebay within the hour

[71meangreenc10]

Originally Posted by MARKDTN

It's not a new product, been around a long long time.

Sorry,

Never heard of it till this post......


Smitty