The Cal-look Lounge

What do they look like inside? Anyone ever cut one in half?

I have. Directional vanes... there are pics on thesamba.com gallery. What specifically do you want to know?

Hot VW's 1992 I think (?) published an article on different fan housings, and featured pictures of innards of different original shrouds. Same issue had Danny Gab's black early KG in it

There are a number of different factory shrouds and just as many aftermarket.

Can you be more specific?

Checkout this topic: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=492074

I was helping a friend pick a shroud the other day, we ran into a FI shroud (rare sight around here), definetely not using that, the air scoop for the oil cooler is tiny!
(also the venturi was long gone)

That's an interesting thread on The Samba, especially the cut away picture. As it happens, that's the fanhousing style I have.

Partly, I was just curious to know what's in there. But..

I bought myself a set of 40mm manifolds for my DRLAs so they matched at the top (current ones are 48mm) and then spent a good while matching the bottom of the manifolds to the heads. When I went to fit them, the carbs fouled the side of the fanhousing: this is on each side, where the fanhousing sticks out a bit before curving back in to meet the cylinder head tin. I really should have trial fit them first!

I was wondering why the fanhousing stuck out at that point - I might have the fanhousing trimmed away in that area so there was enough room for the carbs. It looks like it could be safely reshaped without affecting the engine cooling.

However - it might make more sense for me to buy manifolds which leave the carbs where they are now and repeat the porting to the head. That's probably easier and cheaper.

Concept1, located in my hometown, is now producing an all new late-style doghouse shroud with the FI venturi ring:  http://store.concept1.ca/Fan-Shroud-W-Heat-W-Holes-COOLED.1.1/

Please note the price is in Canadian dollars.  They also have a site for US buyers with the price conversion.

If you look on this thread, you'll see all the vanes inside, there's a photo on page 1:  https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=644297

Angle mill the manifolds to tilt the carbs out?
(since you've sppent all that time on match-porting)
 ;)

Wouldn't that do weird things with the jets as the fuel levels would be different each side of the float bowl?

I don't think it would make much difference if the angle was slight. Kick the carbs out to the sides 1/2" at the top would only need maybe a few degrees possibly?

Having said that, I've never done it on IDFs/DRLAs (only on other carbs) so don't know for sure, just an idea.

I like those Concept shrouds too, they look great.