He'll Rebuild Any Antique Carburetor
Matt Gall, Motec Engineering, hasn't seen an antique carburetor he couldn't rebuild if given the time. If he doesn't have the parts or can't find them, he'll build them. While he specializes in Minneapolis Molines, he has rebuilt carburetors for most tractor brands.
"The biggest challenges are the ones with missing parts," says Gall. "A guy sent me the top half of a carburetor from a 1918 Moline Universal. It was a Holley, and they didn't make many for tractors at that time. It took me a year, but I made all the parts based on pictures in a book and found a bowl from a different brand that I could make fit. It worked perfectly when I sent it back."
Gall tests out all rebuilds using a test engine and dynamometer before returning the carburetor. "I know that it will work when I send it back," he says. "Of course, sometimes the carburetor wasn't the problem. People often assume it's the carburetor when they have an ignition problem. Then they put the rebuild on, and the engine still won't work."
Standard treatment is to tear a unit apart, clean, repair or replace parts and reassemble with all new screws, seals and gaskets. Cleaning involves baking the casting at temperatures of up to 1,200 degrees and then bead blasting it.
Gall does all of that for a flat rate, even if he has to make all replacement parts. He charges $75 for Minneapolis Moline style TSX Marvel Schebler updraft carburetors and $100 for Zenith, IH, Deere and others. Shipping is extra.
More complex jobs get spread out over a longer time frame. Gall fits in work when time is available, as opposed to working on one job from start to finish. He has a complete machine shop including mills, lathes, surface grinder and saws.
In addition to carburetors, Gall also rebuilds governors, distributors and even entire tractors for area collectors. While most of the work he does is brand neutral, one area of concentration is Minneapolis Moline wiring harnesses. The brand is a favorite of his as he both restores and "pulls" with older Minneapolis Molines.
"I realized that nobody was making wiring harnesses for Minneapolis Molines," says Gall. "I started making them, and now I have a guy who does them for me. I'll probably sell 200 of them this year."
Gall also makes, rebuilds and sells other niche Minneapolis Moline parts that are hard to find. He also buys olds parts he can rebuild. Currently he keeps about 30 Minneapolis Moline tractors, some restored or for restoring and others for parts.
"I have a 1928 Twin City model 1728, which was one of the brands that merged to make Minneapolis Moline," says Gall. "It has four valves per cylinder and twin cam shafts, one for intakes and one for exhausts. People got excited when that style engine was introduced in cars a while back. The Twin City had it back then."
It was tractor pulling and collecting that led to the parts business. "I started making parts for myself and realized I could make money making them for others," he says. "Now I'm doing it full time, and I hardly have time to work on my own any more."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Motec Engineering, 7342 W State Road 28, Tipton, Ind. 46072 (ph 765 963-6628; motecengr@aol.com; www.motecengr.com).
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He'll Rebuild Any Antique Carburetor TRACTORS Antiques 34-5-25 Matt Gall, Motec Engineering, hasn't seen an antique carburetor he couldn't rebuild if given the time. If he doesn't have the parts or can't find them, he'll build them. While he specializes in Minneapolis Molines, he has rebuilt carburetors for most tractor brands.
"The biggest challenges are the ones with missing parts," says Gall. "A guy sent me the top half of a carburetor from a 1918 Moline Universal. It was a Holley, and they didn't make many for tractors at that time. It took me a year, but I made all the parts based on pictures in a book and found a bowl from a different brand that I could make fit. It worked perfectly when I sent it back."
Gall tests out all rebuilds using a test engine and dynamometer before returning the carburetor. "I know that it will work when I send it back," he says. "Of course, sometimes the carburetor wasn't the problem. People often assume it's the carburetor when they have an ignition problem. Then they put the rebuild on, and the engine still won't work."
Standard treatment is to tear a unit apart, clean, repair or replace parts and reassemble with all new screws, seals and gaskets. Cleaning involves baking the casting at temperatures of up to 1,200 degrees and then bead blasting it.
Gall does all of that for a flat rate, even if he has to make all replacement parts. He charges $75 for Minneapolis Moline style TSX Marvel Schebler updraft carburetors and $100 for Zenith, IH, Deere and others. Shipping is extra.
More complex jobs get spread out over a longer time frame. Gall fits in work when time is available, as opposed to working on one job from start to finish. He has a complete machine shop including mills, lathes, surface grinder and saws.
In addition to carburetors, Gall also rebuilds governors, distributors and even entire tractors for area collectors. While most of the work he does is brand neutral, one area of concentration is Minneapolis Moline wiring harnesses. The brand is a favorite of his as he both restores and "pulls" with older Minneapolis Molines.
"I realized that nobody was making wiring harnesses for Minneapolis Molines," says Gall. "I started making them, and now I have a guy who does them for me. I'll probably sell 200 of them this year."
Gall also makes, rebuilds and sells other niche Minneapolis Moline parts that are hard to find. He also buys olds parts he can rebuild. Currently he keeps about 30 Minneapolis Moline tractors, some restored or for restoring and others for parts.
"I have a 1928 Twin City model 1728, which was one of the brands that merged to make Minneapolis Moline," says Gall. "It has four valves per cylinder and twin cam shafts, one for intakes and one for exhausts. People got excited when that style engine was introduced in cars a while back. The Twin City had it back then."
It was tractor pulling and collecting that led to the parts business. "I started making parts for myself and realized I could make money making them for others," he says. "Now I'm doing it full time, and I hardly have time to work on my own any more."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Motec Engineering, 7342 W State Road 28, Tipton, Ind. 46072 (ph 765 963-6628; motecengr@aol.com; www.motecengr.com).
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