33 Fuel Issues

John Gibson

John Gibson

Senior Member
My 33 is being a real pain! It had been running fine but family health issues took us out of Georgia for three months early this year and the car was not run at all during that time. It sits in a 30x40 metal building that is climate controlled with temperature in the low 70’s and low humidity.

I’m not getting any fuel out of the fuel pump. Pump is 32-33 style and I just put a new Renners Corner diaphram in it. I resurfaced both housing sides, replaced all gaskets, put in new wafers and a new flexable fuel line. Copper fuel line goes all they way back to the gas tank. Plenty of new marine gas in the tank. About the only thing that comes to mind in perhaps an air bubble in the fuel line or a problem with the fuel pump push rod. I had redone the fuel pump about three years ago and it was pumping a steady 2 1/2 pounds.

I’m looking for suggestions on what else I can try

TIA John
 
Did you pull the fuel pump cover off and see IF there is any fuel in the bowl?? Is the gasket on the lid a cork or rubber gasket?? Have maybe tried priming the the fuel pump by filling the bowl with fuel before trying to start it? I'd also check and make sure all of your line fittings are good a snug tight and not sucking air either!!!
 
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Are you Using Renner's Cork bowl cover gasket? Try making your own out of Viton. Also the Fiber sealing washer, do you have it below or above the cover? If below try moving it to above, they were actuallay designed to be below but if the cover has ever been warped it wont seal and moving it to above cures that I also use a sharpie around where the fiber washer seals tighten, then remove and look at the rub marks. The stupid Cork Gasket and fiber washer can cause a non working pump with the slightest air gap.
 
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I'd try disconnecting the line at the pump and then give it a new short line and a gallon of fuel just to see if it will start. I've had the line going back to the tank plug solid. I've had the happen on two vehicles I've owned, my dad's '32 roadster and a '33 1 1/2 ton truck.
 
A long shot, but my ‘32 wouldn’t run and I pulled the fuel pick-up from the gas tank and it had dissolved! All the brass tubing and cups associated with the hydrostatic gas gauge had been eaten and were GONE below the fuel level in the tank. There were little pieces like spider webs of brass left, but 90% of the brass had clearly been dissolved. I have never encountered anything like it. I posted what I found on Fordbarn and nobody had seen anything like it. The gas tank had been coated with the “Renu” process and I’m guessing it caused some sort of strange electrolysis problem. Car started behaving like it was starved for gas last time I drove it and I haven’t started looking. But I’m expecting my replacement fuel pickup assy is gone again. Have one more, so I’m probably gonna replace the tank too. Good luck
 
Another little startup trick I use on my ‘32 (assuming you have a ‘33 Detroit Lubricator carb) is to take the top half of the carb off (2 screws), and pour gas thru a small funnel directly into the top of the float bowl. Do this thru the hole where the 3/8” brass tube in the top half of the carb body passes thru. Then reassemble. Gasket always stays intact. A full float bowl will allow the motor to run maybe 30 seconds; plenty of time for a fuel pump to pick up and establish flow.
 
It's not a flathead but my '66 Shelby GT-350 sat for a long time and would not start. I pulled the air filter and looked in the carb, no fuel when I pumped the gas. The needle and seat had stuck in the closed position. I tapped it "lightly" over the top of the needle and seat and this got it open up and finally fuel bowl filled up. I was a fleet mechanic, and carburetors are one thing that don't like to sit, things dry up in them, and they don't usually recover without a complete rebuild. I promised myself I would start each on my dozen cars every week, then I had a stroke and now I'm lucky to remember there are cars out in the garage.
 
Bruce MO: I too have found the hydrostatic pick up eaten away and destroyed. I would like to find the reason. My thoughts center on fuel additive for extended fuel life.
 
I quit using Stabil in my Fords decades ago, and just siphon out old gas. So I’m pretty sure it was it caused by gas stabilizer chemicals. But maybe I did add some??? I sometimes use it on lawn equipment, so I might have had it around. But it was bizarre how destructive it was to brass.
 
I pulled a vacuum on the fuel line at the cowl and no stoppage there but I did get a few small pieces of debris. Viton material arrived yesterday so I will make some dies to get a good precision cut on the material as suggested by Michael @ Thirdgen. I put a new diaphram in the fuel pump which is a 32-33 years only application. It will be a few days before I get this finished up and post another update.
John
 
My 33 played up a few years back, conking out on hills etc, finally stopping completely, turned out to be a cracked fuel line to fitting solder joint on the top of the tank,
Lawrie
 
As others have mentioned, your OEM hydrostatic fuel sending unit pick up tubes are made of brass and they can, and often do, fail with age as fuel eats through them. There can be several other issues at the fuel sending unit as well but the most common and easy to spot is damage to the pickup tubes which spend their lives submerged in fuel. Sometimes the repair is relatively straightforward, other times they are quite involved and others yet are non-repairable at all. Worth pulling and taking a look though
 
Thank you Michael Driskill at Third Gen for your suggestion re: Viton. I made gaskets using Viton rubber (Amazon - expensive) and it seals the 1932-1933 fuel pump really well, no vacuum leaks and it is pumping about 2 1/2 pounds of pressure. I changed the needle valve and seat and messed up the float level specs and flooded the carb. Got that figure d out and the old girl purrs like a kitten. What is the correct specs for the float level on a 97 Stromberg?
 
John,
5/16" from the machine surface to top of float. If you are running the "s" jet modern seat with a ball bearing instead of a needle, I have had nothing but issues with those.
 
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