Leaky Gas Guage

H

harleytoprock

Senior Member
I thought it would be a 10 minute job to replace the gaskets. Then I see at 10:00 and at 4:00 on the gasket surface why it was leaking. 4:00 looks like it rotted but it looks like someone did that 10:00. But why? I'm not coming up with an easy solution. What's your fix idea?
 

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I have not taken my gauge out yet but soon I will have to. I expect that the 10:00 notch is a factory item for locating the gauge. The 4:00 notch looks like a rust problem, but if the gasket covers the factory notch then it probably will cover the other one too.
 
i have never seen a notch for locating the gauge... repair it with jb-weld make it smooth then use a cork gasket with a little right stuff on it
 
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Mitch//pa said:
i have never seen a notch for locating the gauge... repair it with jb-weld make it smooth then use a cork gasket with a little right stuff on it
Click to expand...

-come over to my house and I will show you one LOLOL. the Company started putting a slot to hold the gauge vertical in late '31.
 
1930 coupe said:
Got some better pictures, it is just like the picture on page 555 of the service bulletins.
Click to expand...

thanks for the better pics, as the concept initially looks like it would increase leaks at the cost of improving centering of the gauge.
 
I have found that the very thin cork gaskets do the best job of sealing and looking correct. Some of the cork kits are way too thick and leave the top nut stuck way out from the gauge.
 
Seems like many of us are taking apart the gas gauge this week, I sprayed the ring before I took it apart.
 
actually I am fiddling with the gas gauge, it must be a virus LOL.

in reply to Mitch's question, I don't think the vendors offer that option. When I got my '31 sedan in the '60s, it had the slot but the float assembly was pre-slot, go figure. I ended up buying a float with the lug from Page's Model A in New Hampshire.
 
From the pictures I see here, the first picture shoes a notch on the gasket surface and the other picture shows the notch in the threaded section. JB weld and smooth out the gasket area.
 
My experience w/JB weld and corn gas was that the corn gas would soften up the JB weld. I never left it long enough to see it it would completely dissolve it or not.
I have heard, but don't know if it's true, that current production JB weld has been modified so that corn gas doesn't affect it.

Your mileage may vary.
 
I have tried the J/B weld and it just doesn't hold up. I'm a truck driver and have bought different types of compounds around the country and have yet to find one to stand up to fuel. With that said, take your gaskets to a local airport, small airport, and find the repair hanger, asked the mechanic to coat your gaskets with aviation fuel sealer, transport port the treated gaskets in a plastic bag home and install them.
 
I would scrape the metal very clean and fill the slots with solder. You could even fill the recessed ring area with a ring of copper wire to help reinforce the solder across the slot. If left as is the slots are right at the edge of the cork seal, but you might get lucky and have it seal. If you have a lathe you could also cut a brass ring to fit the recessed area, then solder the slot areas to fill them in. The brass would be stiffer than the copper wire I suggested earlier. Make sure the cork gasket goes to the extreme outside diameter.
 
if you use any flame to repair tank make sure you clean to properly prevent possibility of explosion!
 
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It seems, from what I have read on the internet, that about half of the people had no luck with JB Weld because gas eventually softened it up. So, if it ever stops raining, I will try solder first with my high watt soldering iron. It will be challenging to get the metal clean enough and for the solder to bridge the gaps vertically. But with a few tricks, I'll give it a try.
 
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