I just started the truck and fuel pump is puking gas. The engine is a 1954 235. I was wondering if it is better to buy a new fuel pump ( recommendations for sources) or rebuild the old one, and if so where do you get parts/instructions?
So many people on this site have had new fuel pumps fail to work properly it's hard to keep track of the number. If your pump is original or a replacement pump from 1990 or older, rebuild it yourself or have it done. I had mine rebuilt by Then and Now.
The silver topped pump wouldn't pump a drop straight out of the box. The gold topped one failed in a few hundered miles. The original replacement Airtex pump was rebuilt by Then and Now and has run 8000 miles in the last 2 or 3 years.
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
New fuel pumps are two basic types- - - -the ones that are bad right out of the box, and the ones that might get you around the block half a dozen times before they quit. They're all made in some offshore sweatshop by 12 year old slave laborers, no matter what brand happens to be on the box or where you buy. If you can find a used pump that is assembled with screws, (not crimped together) send it off to "Then and Now" rebuilders. They will send it back in better than new condition, with rubber parts that are compatible with today's alcohol-added gasoline. Lots of the bolters here will be along shortly with complimentary comments about their customer service. Welcome to Stovebolt.Com- - - -where the inmates have taken over the asylum! Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
Go electric. I got a suitable pump from Autozone last winter for ~$35. Pumps something like 30 GPH at 3 PSI. Requires a filter between it and the tank and some sort of shutdown device if you're safety contious. I rigged mine up to an oil pressure switch with an extra pole for the ignition. Both ignition and fuel pump quit if I lose oil pressure. I used a push=button over-ride switch for starting. Maybe sounds complicated but at least on this rig I don't have to listen to a low-air buzzer.
1951 3800 1-ton "Earning its keep from the get-go" In the DITY Gallery 1962 261 (w/cam, Fenton headers, 2 carbs, MSD ign.), SM420 & Brown-Lipe 6231A 3spd aux. trans, stock axles & brakes. Owned since 1971.
I am 100% with Tommy up there. I've been using an electric fuel pump since 1997 and it is cheap, puts out 2.5 to 3 psi (which is all you need with a 235) and very dependable. Mine is an AutoBest F4027. Amazon sells it for $30. Mount it back near the fuel tank because electric pumps are made to push and not to pull and you'll be good to go. Since I wasn't going to be using the mechanical pump any longer I ran lines out and back in and added a spin-on oil filter.
~ Jon 1952 1/2 ton with 1959 235 | T5 with 3.07 rear end
It's also possible to run a dummy mechanical pump with the internal parts removed, and drill a couple of extra holes in the crankcase near the oil pump for full flow oil filter lines, if you want a less efficient method of cleaning up the oil than a bypass filter. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
Only other idea I suggest is look for NOS or NORS on eBay. They got sold by a variety of vendors under a variety of part numbers in the distant past. Some people are leery of rubber in older parts, and there are certainly risks. I have found that rubber manufactured long ago is borderline eternal, whereas anything new-ish is almost guaranteed crap, right out of the box.
Your NOS pump will not be ethanol tolerant and will eventually fail with ethanol use. Then you just rebuild it with a kit from the aforementioned “Then and Now.”
It's also possible to run a dummy mechanical pump with the internal parts removed, and drill a couple of extra holes in the crankcase near the oil pump for full flow oil filter lines, if you want a less efficient method of cleaning up the oil than a bypass filter. Jerry
Setting aside the oil filter mod, what would need to be removed/re-plumbed to run a mechanical pump as a true “dummy” with the electric doing the work?
Probably simple enough, I’ve just never had one apart.
I don't think it's necessary to remove the guts from a mechanical pump.
I know a lot of people who use electric pumps in their antique cars full time and just pump through working and non working mechanical pumps.
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
There's a rebuilt dual diaphragm one on ebay for $250 right now. Seems pretty steep.
The Filling Station will rebuild your old one for $167. They also sell a new single diaphragm pump with the glass cover for $89. They seem to have a good reputation around here but I have no idea where their new glass bowl pumps come from.
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
Setting aside the oil filter mod, what would need to be removed/re-plumbed to run a mechanical pump as a true “dummy” with the electric doing the work?
There are two "check valves" (they allow one way flow only) inside a typical mechanical fuel pump, All you need to do is remove the valves and the operating arm that rides on the cam and causes the diaphragm to push up and down. That way the diaphragm wouldn't be moving and less likely to rupture (which causes gasoline to be dumped into the crankcase). If you are real paranoid you could remove the diaphragm and replace it with something gas proof.
'57 GMC 102, Original 347 V8, HydraMatic, 3.08 rear gear, added A/C, disk front brakes, HEI, AFB carb, '98 Honda Black Currant paint. T-boned and totaled 10/12 '52 GMC 152 Stake Bed, Original 228, SM420, added A/C, HEI, disk front brakes, '67 Chev 3.55 rear gear. Gets used as a real truck.
Just use an angle grinder with a thin cutoff disc on it to slice the lever arm off flush with the pump body. Unless the rubber diaphragm has a hole in it, nothing else needs to be done. The check valves can stay put, since the electric pump will overcome the slight resistance to flow they provide and they will prevent fuel from backing up to the tank when the electric pump shuts off. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
~ Dan 1951 Chevy 3 window 3100 Follow this story in the DITY Gallery "My Grandpa Carl's Truck and How it Became Mine" 1966 Chevelle (Wife's Hot Rod) | 2013 Chevy Silverado (Current daily driver) US Army MSG Retired (1977-1998) | Com Fac Maint Lead Tech Retired (1998-2021)
