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fuel shut off valve repair kit- any luck?

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  • fuel shut off valve repair kit- any luck?

    Hello all-

    I purchased the shut off valve repair kit (part #13270) to address a fuel leak in my Model A. A quick note to those of you new to Model As trying to diagnose the source of a gas drip leak- if the fuel is still leaking from your Model A in the garage (you can smell the gas) a few days after you shut the valve and parked the car, it's most likely the valve under the gas tank and not the carburetor that is the culprit, even though you see it drip from the carburetor. Empty the sediment glass fuel bowl after shutting off the fuel valve in the cab of the model A (you can just pour the contents back in the gas tank), and assemble the fuel bowl back empty & dry, then return the next day to inspect if any fuel is accumulating in the bowl. That will be your proof.

    My valve looked rather new/modern (I purchased this Model A a few months ago), and I thought for a couple of bucks why not try the shut off valve repair kit? I took the valve apart as instructed, and cleaned the stem and housing inside. There were no grooves or debris present- the surfaces looked almost new, but the packing material was all gone.

    Well I spent quite a bit of time trying to get that packing ring inserted on to the valve stem with the provided paste, and put the valve back together with no luck! I even tried filing down the packing material so it would fit better. The parts would not assemble back with that packing placed inside. Eventually it started cracking from trying to make it fit, as it is made of some graphite based material. It seemed to me, there was no physical way the original size of that packing ring / material would fit successfully on the valve stem and allow the valve to operate. I wanted to know if others experienced the same challenge or not, or if I was missing something in the process?

    I ended up purchasing a new fuel shut off valve, which seemed a waste, but at least now my MOdel A is not dripping gas anymore! And it has a 3 year warranty so I hope not to have to revisit this problem again for a while.

    Thanks, Doug

  • #2
    Welcome Doug
    I experienced the same thing once years ago. The carb had a good float valve but yet still dribbled and stunk out the garage. After changing the shut off valve it never happened again. The original was scored so i just bought a replacement assy. You would think that a good float valve would still stop the carb leak even if the shut off seeped, well i guess not.
    Did you install a new little stand up filter in your shutoff? It helps to stop fine particles from screwing up ball valve
    3~ Tudor's & 1~ Coupe
    Henry Ford said,
    "It's all nuts and bolts"
    "Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible."

    Mitch's Auto Service ctr

    Comment


    • Mitch
      Mitch commented
      Editing a comment
      A side note,, i can now leave the shutoff on and it wont seep, with the same carb valve
      Go figure

  • #3
    On my 29 Tudor, I lapped the carb and tank valves with toothpaste to fix each of them. I installed a filter screen in the tank valve, and a new packing.
    I don't recall if the packing came from A&L, Bert's, Bratton's, or Snyder's, but it went in easy and sealed the handle perfectly.

    Comment


    • #4
      Hey Doug, WELCOME to the VFF!!

      I too lap the valves with toothpaste, not enough "o's" in smoooooth when I finish with them.
      You wana look waaay far up da road and plan yer route because the brakes are far more of a suggestion than a command!

      Comment


      • tbirdtbird
        tbirdtbird commented
        Editing a comment
        "not enough "o's" in smoooooth when I finish with them" LMAO you got a way with words Wiz!

      • DaWizard
        DaWizard commented
        Editing a comment
        tbird, one of our club members was so pissed at his valve he put a For Sale sign in the window, cheap. When I finished with the valve in is car he took the sign down!

    • #5
      What we do is to try to minimize use of the stock valve by installing a ball valve resistant to modern gas. When parked short term, we close the ball valve. With valve inside the car, we remove that valve and place a 90deg. fitting in the bottom of the tank and cut the stock gas line for ball valve w/ compression fittings.(No leaks on floor!) I think the vendors sell these now but most hardware stores have the valves for $10 or so. Not fine point but OK for drivers.
      Attached Files
      Last edited by plyfor; 01-07-2018, 02:07 PM.

      Comment


      • #6
        I have several original valves that I was going to lap this winter. After reading this it may be a waste of time if the rebuild kit packing is not usable. Is there more than one choice for manufacturers of the packings? If there is more than one, which is better and who sells a good packing. I assume it would not be Mac's, so maybe Berts. Rod
        "Much of the social history of the Western world, over the past three decades, has been a history of replacing what worked with what sounded good." Thomas Sowell

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