Even with the replacement rebuilt carburetor I was still having the problem although it seemed I didn't have to wait as long for the engine to start again but would only run for a few minutes. It took me an hour and half to make a normally 20 minute drive. I replaced the hose from the gas tank to the steel fuel line, blut out the line and also took the top off the pump to see it was filled with some reddish type crystalline stuff. I blew that out as well. It stays running for around town trips so far but looking at the glass bowl of the filter, it does not seem it is pumping as strong as I think it should. So my guess is that the fuel pump is crudded up with the crystalle stuff. The stuff is not magnetic so I do not believe it is rust or or iron based - it seems more like sand. The tank was removed a couple of years ago and tanked to get all the residue from sitting for 20+ years and when I look into the tank from the gauge sender port, it looks good and clear - I don't see any of that stuff on the bottom.
Being that the season is about done here, it will go back into the garage for the winter and while its there, I want to see if I can fix this properly. So the pump which is maybe a year old will have to come off and be cleaned. I would also like to rebuild the pump that was originally in the truck that had the extra vacuum pump on it. Are kits available for rebuilding these? I have thought about a filter before the pump but a mechanic friend says no, the pump will have a hard time. Another thought is a pick up tube in the tank that does not suck from the actual bottom of the tank. Lastly, I could remove the tank and pressure wash the inside but I am hoping to avoid that. Thanks for any useful ideas!
