Got a quick question for everyone, but first the specifics.... I'm working on a 1953 Chevy 3100. I'm trying to install a new replacement gas tank into the original location behind the seat. I'm also trying to switch from connecting the fuel line from the bottom to the top of the tank.
My problem is that when I set the tank in place, the replacement straps were about 1/2" - 3/4" too short to allow for the nut to thread onto the fixed bolt. I tried to move the tank around to see if that would help, but it did not. I'm wondering if I've put the anti-squeak pads on incorrectly and if they could be the cause of the straps not fitting correctly? The factory assembly manual wasn't exactly clear on the placement of the pads. It shows the pads between the tank and the bracket that the bolt inserts into, but I can't tell if the pad is supposed to go under the tank, too. Currently, I have the pads under the tank and between the tank and bracket. Is this wrong? If so, where exactly should the pads go. At this time, there are no fuel lines around the bottom of the tank to make it not fit. BTW, these are the tar paper pads. At this point, I'm kinda frustrated and looking for some advice.
Take off the pads and get an idea how much difference it makes with the nut fit. A baseline. Maybe there is something else wrong. Did you put pads under the tank AND under the straps? If you did both it will shorten the straps. Looks like pads lay flat on the two tank supports. Just one pad thickness. None on the straps. Maybe study the FAM a little more.
The generic pads are for 49-72, so you don't use them all on every truck. You will need to "stretch" and pull the straps, especially if they have been bent during handling. Just moose it until the nut starts. Flatten and re-curve the straps to proper original shape. No kinks, no bends. Use a clamp, vice grip, channel locks to squeeze the taps together to get the nut on.
Tank must be in cradle and straps must be in depressions.
Right is right, even if everyone is against it, and wrong is wrong, even if everyone is for it. - William Penn
My tank which had never been moved since leaving the factory only had pads at the bottom of the tank. It was hard to tell exactly what they were made of...a little like rubber and a little like leather. Not at all like tar paper. I replaced them with solid neoprene 1/16" thick. No trouble with straps or nuts. I retained the bottom fuel line connection.
Good luck! Jon
~ Jon 1952 1/2 ton with 1959 235 | T5 with 3.07 rear end
I'll have to agree with bartamos. There ain't a whole bunch of slack on the straps. Moving them and bending them out of the way during an install makes them not want to line back up.
I installed a new gas tank on my 51, one pad under each strap bracket on the floor, no where else. And Channelocks to squeeze everything back together. It will go, may be the easiest, but it will.
A little clarification for what I wrote. The pads are on the bottom bracket that is permanently attached to the cab floor and in between the gas tank and the bracket that the bolt attaches to. I thought that the FAM showed the pad in between the tank and bracket. My confusion was whether or not there should be a pad between the floor bracket and the bottom of the tank. It sounds like it should be on the bottom and I still think that the drawing shows it in between the tank and front bracket. (I'll try to add that page to my response....)
I can try to moose it into place, that's no problem. I just didn't want to break anything unnecessarily. To use the channel lock method, I'm assuming that you put a nut on above where the bolt goes into the bracket as the leverage point for the channel locks? Then use the underside of the bracket and the nut to close the gap with the channel locks?
You said: 1. Bottom bracket 2. Floor bracket 3. bracket the bolt attaches to 4. Front bracket
I really don't know how many brackets there are. I thought just one cradle bracket attached to floor. That's all the shop manual talks about. Can't read the pic too well but I see a bracket, anti squeak pad and anti squeak cement.
Right is right, even if everyone is against it, and wrong is wrong, even if everyone is for it. - William Penn
You are right, I should stick to the correct names for parts. So here goes:
Tank Support (no part number provided in the drawing): pads attached here
Lower Strap Assembly (part number 3690133): pads attached here
Upper Strap Assembly (part number 3690131): no pads here
You'll note (if I succeeded in attaching the correct pic) that the drawing shows the pad extending from above the lower strap assembly, bending around the bottom of the tank towards the tank support. This is why I thought that the pads went on both the bottom and side.
Thanks! The original tank pic tells the story on the pads. It was interesting to see that you got your strap tightened to the end of the bolt. Did you have to do something like use channel locks to get it started or did it just fit?
