wassell amal copies

[Ryebread]

Has anyone used the wassell copies of the amal 930's? I'm looking at getting some replacements for my worn out amals. I'm wondering if the cheaper price is indicative of the quality or are we just paying for the amal name?

[Unkl Ian]

Isn't Amal still in business ?

[bandit]

http://www.amalcarb.co.uk/

[Ryebread]

I found the wassell's for $139 a piece. The Amals are made in china now anyway.

[Destralo Roach]

Dont bolt on and go, inspect them first.

They are still good carbs.......

[strangedaze39]

Haven't tried these, but like the sound of the stay-up style adjustable float. Although the amal's have those also now.

You could also replace the slides in your amals if they aren't too far gone and get some more life that way most times.

[dandruff]

The new Amal premier concentrics are amazing. They have a cnc machined hard anodized slide, removable pilot jet, new body casting, and new float design. I can't believe that a copy made in China will be the same quality. The new Amals have a 2 year warranty also, I have yet to see a statement of warranty from Wassell on their "new" carbs.
Speaking of Wassell, this is the same company that bought the Hepolite piston name and is now putting Taiwanese JCC pistons with Hastings rings in "Hepolite" boxes. In no way do I have a problem with JCC pistons or Hastings rings, but they are not Hepolite and should not be called by that name.
Amal has had a long history and has been though a few different owners, the latest being Burlen fuel systems. These people have made great efforts to improve these carbs and remake hard to find models. They make the 76, 89, 276, 289, GP, TT, monobloc 376 and 389, concentric, MK2, and can build carbs to factory specs for almost any British bike.
To me this doesn't compare to someone making a copy of someone else's design and having it manufactured in a communist country. That is just my opinion.

[96dragginsdime]

amals are made in england...... just bought a set from lowbrow about two months ago, work perfect.

[whittiger650]

dandruff,

Sounds like you have run the new Amal Premier carbs ? If so, what are you running them on, how long, etc. etc. ? Concentric ?

Originally Posted by dandruff

The new Amal premier concentrics are amazing.

Ryebread,

Do you know for a fact that new Amals are made in China or is that just hearsay ? I hadn't heard about that.

Originally Posted by Ryebread

The Amals are made in china now anyway.

As far as the Wassells go, why not ? Count them in as a viable replacement. We're talking about keeping motorcycles running that haven't been made in over a quarter of a century for the last of them (Triumphs) and most are around 35 years old and older. Some of us run 60 year old bikes. These bikes will obviously never be made again. So, maybe supporting the people who make a decent replacement part for these old bikes might be worth keeping around. If you can't afford an Amal, get the Wassell. Or a PWK. Competition should also keep the prices affordable !!

From what I have read the Wassells seem to function just as well as the Amals and aside from looking at the brand name on the body are a good carburetor. I will certainly try one out next time I am in the market for a new carb.

[Ryebread]

I need to clarify my earlier statement that they are made in china. I have read both ways on this and dont really know for sure. well just call it hear say.

[Tony the torch]

The Amal craburetor company is doing well and in England, we actually buy 2 to 3 carbs per month from Amal dealers here, and special order many carbs from bloody England, they are great products,
We buy the remote float GP's the monoblocks the concentrics and the mark II's from Amal, all brand new and don't have any problems.

[family man]

I have tried a few different replacement carbs over the last couple of years with no avail, There just is no substitute for the originals.
I tried the PWK They are junk Mikuni's work well but for the cost you might as well still with amals IMO.

[Frosty]

Never used them but heard good things about Lund Machine for old Amal repair.

www.amalsleeve.com

[Tony the torch]

the Lund re-sleeved carbs work fine most of the time, some times a carb gets ruined in the sleeving process. but, by the time you pay $99 for Lund and $25-30 for new needle and needle jets you now at 3/4 of the cost of a new Amal carb.
The needle jets are the single most over looked worn out item on these carbs. before you replace an Amal check the slide, if it's really sloppy inside the bore then you need a new carb, but many times all you need is a new needle and needle jet.

[swooshdave]

Originally Posted by Ryebread

I need to clarify my earlier statement that they are made in china. I have read both ways on this and dont really know for sure. well just call it hear say.

From Amal:

Keith1069 wrote:
On the 'Made in England' front does that mean the castings are UK sourced and machined as well? Just interested Mark.


We absolutely do source some castings (machined and un-machined) from outside of the UK. I’ll put some things in perspective for you. Burlen (parent company to Amal) use well over 5000 separate castings in the manufacture of their product ranges. A very small percentage (I would estimate between 2 and 4%) of these castings have been sourced from outside the UK. The reason for this is usually down to economics of cost/quantity/quality. We have used foundries in Europe and beyond. Contrary to popular belief, even China sourced castings can be of equal or better quality than the UK but only if you are prepared to put effort into a properly controlled UK vetting and quality procedure as we do. Conversely, Italy, well lauded as producers of fine instruments, has produced some quite terrible castings at great expense. So, of the 20,000 plus saleable stock lines we produce, yes, some will have seeds grown in other countries, however, assembly and quality control is 100% Salisbury, England. And for clarification, we have never hidden this fact.

The whole ‘made in the UK’ argument has started to become a bit pathetic to be honest, and I don’t see the point. We would never intentionally lie about the provenance of our products – not only does it actually ‘mean’ something to be able to say ‘made in England’ but it would be against the law to mislead. As a company, we are not perfect and do not profess to being so, but I am proud of where we have taken the Amal brand and I look forward to continued development in the future.

ebsbury wrote:
Amal have been getting castings from Spain and building Mark 2 carburetters with them in the UK since the 1970s. Machining and crucial quality control were all done in the UK, as was the final assembly of the carburetters.


Ebsbury is 100% correct. In addition, we have never been totally happy with the quality of the castings from Spain and as such are currently producing new tooling..... and.... you’ve guessed it...... it’ll have ‘made in England’ on the casting....... because....... it’ll be made in England!!!!!

http://www.accessnorton.com/wassell-...5.html#p148633

[Hillbilly Deluxe]

when i owned a bike shop,we used wassells for a lot of stuff,i was under the impression that they were supplying genuine amal parts.we bought a lot of carbs from them and they never let us down,either wassels or the carbs.this was nearly 25 years ago though,maybe things have changed.

[bem]

Wassells has changed hands several times in the last 20 years. In the UK they now have a very poor reputation for quality - so much so that most people would not want to be seen with the name on their bike. In contrast Amal's reputation has been going up and up - they have invested a lot of money in improving and developing their carburetters and it has really paid off. The latest Premier Amals have a easy to clean pilot jet which can be removed without removing the float chamber.

[fouraceswes]

What Dan said times two. Just another opinion, but I would not consider it to be fair if someone made something that looked just like mine and then marketed it as their own.

[Tony the torch]

Originally Posted by Ryebread

I found the wassell's for $139 a piece. The Amals are made in china now anyway.

If you are the type of person that consistently buys the "cheaper" product,
Then you are likely accustomed to disappointment.

[6T Sinner]

All good points. The Premier Concentrics are fantastic, worth the $$. The anodized slides are also available for your sloppy old conc, too.

Also, aren't some of the "Wassell" items simply using the old castings with the wassell name on them?

And as my source recalls, Just like MCM in the States, Wassell was never really known for outstanding quality or workmanship. At least by the 70's anyway.