hi guys!!! neeeeeeWbie here. thanks for the warm welcome.
Excited as allll Heeee(( to get a gas boat...finally traded my traxxas tmaxx nitro plus some for a proboat shockwave 55 (classic one, not the newer SS model).

anyways this is the skinny version of the question. which carb will fit on this 230pum zenoah? it has a WA167 which are expensive compared to a 257 and 644, will the 257 work? i know it doesnt have choke or primer bulb. does anybody have experience with this and whats the best route to take?

The long version of the story.....got this boat home with 1 issue the prop kept spinning and loosening off the flex cable...that brass thingy forgot the name of it but has 2 hex stop screws that wouldn't hold the prop shaft in place.......figured no biggie. was wrong. got a new shaft with ferrule(thats the name of it!!!!) but was too long so i cut a bit off to make it fit in the collet, ALONG with making new engine mounts to set the momotor about 2 inches further away form the hull to make this flex work. 1/4" flex, i'm new to this and didn't think of looking for the correct size but anyways this worked for now (still never ran this boat yet mind you)....the part that stops the prop, little collet looking like also kept getting loose. tapped it and put another stop screw on the other end.....its good now i think (never ran boat!!!)
Antenna on transmitter broke , 2.4ghz antenna spektrum..... horizon hobby fixed it for free....cool beans. ....
from the many many many times pulling the rope to try to start this damn thing, the igntion coil tab broke.....and finally broke the metal conductor that it uses to ground to the engine......placing an order on that one soon, i got a relocation bracket for it because its placed so retarded that it will for suuuRe break. its not placed on the side of the engine like i've seen pics of other zenoah motors.. anyways cry me a river huh?
new plug, gas,....just wouldn't stay running. got a carb rebuilt kit(first time rebuilding a car ever, thanks youtube for some info).... total failure, installed new islocation block cuz it seems warped, i filed it down to straighten it but got a new one to eliminate the possiblility of a leak, new gaskets and now the engine floooods so bad it squirts fuel ...the cylinder is puddled, exhaust is filled, had to literlly tilt the boat and remove exhause to pour out the gas. i guess i blew something in that carb pushing carb cleaner, i suspected i did something wrong near the primer bulb area on that cover, at first the return line was restricted...after blowing carb cleaner through it and messing with it....clearned up, but now after installing it the bulb wont really fill like it used to....blah...blah blah. Ok new carb time.

Sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo will a $26 wt257 work on this 230pum? if so, i will lose choke and primer bulb. i can cover the intake while pulling on rope that will choke it i beleive, but what about primer? inline primer if one exists? .....but i guess the main question is what carb options do i have at this point? the WA167 are too expensive.

Thanks, soo much for taking the time to read my story. My son is awaiting eaaagerly to watch this boat in the water and i'm trying my best. soon i'm going to pour gas on the boat and roast marshmallows over it together with him!!!

Although I think the 167 is a better size for the stock 230, both the 644 and 257 will work. Don`t worry about primer. Basically the engine will start fine with either choke OR primer...doesn`t need both. With the 257 just do as you said, block off the intake to choke then start.

well i got a new wt-644 for under $40 shipped and installed, got her running...but having difficulties tuning it. at first it will die after putting the boat in the water (under a load i guess) and I dont have a clutch assembly, direct drive setup...not sure how it came originally for the classic shockwave 55.
i tried lookin up factory needle settings....the range from 1 1/8 - 1.5 on the low and 1/8 to 1.75 on the High.
these boats dont handle too well on turning, do i need turn fins or what? it has a single rudder setup, the later shockwave 55 SS has dual rudder setup.