I hesitate to use the early set as I am a little turned off by the dodgy choke mechanism and non-linked throttle. A cursory glance suggest that parts for the later set might be easier to come by. Any opinions? What would you do? Thanks!
I have an early set of the Solex BS38’s on my XS2, and a linked set of BS38’s on my 77D. It’s not hard to find parts for either set. There are pros and cons to both.
The Solex,
Pros...
Not being linked can give you a little better feel of what each carburetor is doing independently of the other, you can use your fingers to blip the throttle linkage and fine tune the balance.
Not being linked makes it a little easier to install and remove from the bike.
No worries about the choke set up, it works just fine, it’s just different.
Cons...
Two separate throttle cables need to be synced
Plastic elbows for a fuel balance hose are brittle and hard to come by, this can be worked around.
A little more fiddly to tune, no vacuum ports for a manometer.
The later version linked set of BS38’s
Pros....
The linked throttle and single throttle cable are just easier
The built in vacuum ports make it easy to balance the carbs
No fragile plastic parts
Cons...
Not much really, about the only thing I can think of is not being able to manipulate the right side carb independently of the other when you’re working on the bike.
I can’t remember what exactly, but there is a difference in the carburetor mounts. Edit: I see Gary already covered that.