Carb question
 

I'm not 100% in my knowledge of carberators, but I had to know: Would the 12A's performance be better if a secondary carb was installed? I've read write-ups that state the 12A's carb is very restrictive, causing it to die and be difficult to maintain a steady RPM with. I know that Sterling has their way of stripping it to make it better, but from a theoretical (and cheaper) perspective would a second carb be possible?

The carb itself isn't that bad, all the extra crap hanging on it can hurt perfromance though. If you want to keep a stock carb, pay the money for a Sterling and enjoy the tunability. There are a lot of options that really depend on your wallet and skill of tuning.

You can usually find used Holley 4 barrel carb and manifolds for sale used if you are looking to save a buck. But really, on the street a stock carb is fine. Even with minor stripping of emissions it will make 125-130 rwhp with a stock port engine.

The Sterling is a great choice for a performance carb. Cheaper than anything else, because you use the stock intake with it. He also bores them out and works all kinds of magic to make them flow way more than the stock Nikki.

I've been racing one for years (and daily driving) and love mine....



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Absolutely go with a Sterling. You'll retain drivability and gain power and response. Get the exhaust done first though. You won't see any gains from any engine modification without upgrading the exhaust.

Stripping emissions equipment will not net you any more power. The only reasons to remove the emissions bits is to reduce points of possible failure and clean up the engine bay. Emissions has no effect on power output one way or another.

^ Except for the shutter valve in the intake manifold (which was put there for the sake of the cats). The cats themselves are a restriction, but a relatively minor one unless they're clogged (especially when you consider that a cat is a pretty effective presilencer, too).

As it relates to just the carb, though, I agree with you.