The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Removing gas tank...

How do you do it? That's what I would like to know so I can stop blowing in to the air vent of a gas can to start the fuel flowing to my truck.

why do you have to blow in the can? where are you setting the can? the fuel pump should draw it up the same as it does from the gas tank ... got a bad fuel pump too?

Bill

Take the back of the seat off and you should see the straps holding the tank.

Red58, no, don't know about the pump if it's good. I have the can on the fender. I have a line into the can going into the metal piece of line that screws into the carb, and when I cover the opening that normally has the nozzle in it, the pressure pushes gas into the carb. 54tow, I don't know how to take the back of the seat off.

I CAN see the straps, but that's it.

There are three screws along the top of the seat - pull them out, and you're on your way.

easier to unscrew the carb top and pour it into the bowl ... you should be able to put the can on the ground by the front wheel and put the line into it that comes off the fuel pump toward the gas tank, let the pump do the work

is your tank behind the seat or under it? the fixed type seat back should pull foward at the bottom and lift to unhook from the top ...

Bill

Hmmm, that seems too easy! Wonder why no one told me before, maybe they think that it is common sense?

Sometimes figuring out the easy things can be the most difficult.
That's why two heads are better than one - It can give you a different perspective.

But it does sound like a bad fuel pump also
And be careful fooling around with the gas tank Jordan,
It is pretty simple to remove, You also should replace the fill neck & vent tube rubber JUST PLEASE BE CAREFUL

Tabdoo, I haven't ran ANYTHING through the pump! I don't know if it's bad or not, I just haven't put anything in the tank. Where I have the line hooked up to the can is where the filter is, up close to the carb. The fuel pump is on the other side, under the distributor. I really have no idea but once I get the tank out I'll clean it and put it back in, then hook it up and try the pump!


P.S. They sure make it hard to get the nuts off of the straps! I may have to remove more of the seat.

It won't hurt anything to hook your gas can up before the pump and give it a try like Bill said.

I would take the whole seat out,it's not hard at all and it will make getting the tank out easier.I guess you already have the back of the seat out?And you know how to get the bottom seat out,so all that's left is the seat frame.There should be 4 bolts that hold it down, right on top of the sliders for the seat,take them out and you can lift the whole thing out.You can work it out without taking the skirts off but if your going to pull it out by your self take them off so they don't get bent.

Ok, thanks for the info 48 one ton! I was wondering how to do that! Guess for now I'll see about hooking it up where the rubber hose from the tank goes to the steel line.

JDL - there are a lot of "home remedys" for cleaning the inside of that tank but for my two cents taking it to a radiator shop and having them steam it out and pressure test for leaks is more than worth what it will cost you. I personally would avoid any of that gunk that you can buy that is suppose to create a new lining in your tank. I am sure there are success stories but money wasted as far as I am concerned. If you are not going "totally stock" you can add a filter in front of the fuel pump for extra protection.

I still need to get my tank out, but it's been raining and all that. But there's good news. Just like I said, the pump wasn't being tested. So when you guys suggested that I hook it up before the pump, I did just that. And it didn't work. But I took the lid off of the pump, filled it with gas, and replaced it. When I did that, it practically blew gas out of the fuel filter. The rubber hoses weren't held on good by the pinch clamps that I just love(not really) so much, and the fuel pump blew so much gas through that it pushed a hose off.

Good for you Jordan! I may even try to open up my fuel pump now. If I don't start the truck every couple days, the fuel drains out of my lines. I think I may have some grit/dirt in the pump itself. I hadn't thought of taking it apart. Thanks

Yes, but be careful. If you have a lot of fuel in your pump, it'll start leaking out very quickly. After all it is pressurized.

You can also buy a bulb type hand pump, like you would use on a boat. You just squeeze the bulb and it pumps the gas into the fuel pump to prime it. The hand pump just goes in the line on the supply side of the fuel pump. Don't forget to crawl under the gas tank and unhook the cut off and the line. That is if it is one of the bottom mounted lines. If you don't you can't pull the cut off valve through the hole in the bottom of the cab. You may not have the cut off valve just a elbow. The hand pump will keep you from eating gas blowing on the can.

Neil

Neilroy, I have the lines disconnected where the rubber hose from the tank connects to the steel line that leads to the fuel pump. As long as the fuel pump is full of gas, the only thing I have to do is submerge the hose I have connected to the steel line into the gas in a can, and the fuel pump pumps it to the carburetor like it would normally if the line was connected to the gas tank in the cab.

But if it sits and the pump goes dry again you just give the bulb a squeeze and you are back in business. My truck is under construction and when I get ready to start it I use the hand pump that I leave in line to the fuel pump. You can just do what you did again it worked the first time.

Oh, I understand. I don't really have to do anything if it goes dry except put a little gas down the carb, pump it like you normally would do, and then start it. The gas in the carb is enough to keep the truck running long enough for the fuel pump to get gas flowing regularly.

That is good news Jordan ! Is it running better ?

OH, YEAH!!! It is running a HOLE lot better than than on the gas can/line/blowing into can until your face is blue method before! I have a leaky gasket somewhere on the carburetor though, but my mom said(SHE OFFERED TO GET ONE BEFORE I SAID ANYTHING!!!) she'd stop and get a rebuilt kit since it will probably need it.

Might also need a float.

your mom rocks...............dave

Yep, I KNOW!!! The kit comes in on Wednesday.

I agree with Dave...Any Mom who would not only get her son a carb requild kit but would come up with the idea before asked really does rock!

Hey! More good news!!! Got the tank out, but the driver's side strap rusted out on the other side of the tank(between tank and cab) and broke off. And after a 1/2 hour of getting the nut off of the strap! It just pops off after the nut comes off and I start to move the tank to get it out. But the passenger side sure was easy to get off. Anyway, after I got the straps off, I undid the clamps for the filler neck and vent, took the vise grips to the rubber hoses to get them loose, pulled up on the filler neck and down on the tank, pulled the tank out,(oh, and disconnected the wires for the sending unit) put everything back in like it was supposed to be(minus the tank, of course) and took the tank around to the shed before it started to rain. Also, there was a little gas(if you could call that horrible stuff gasoline!) in the tank so I poured it out and what came out looked like Coca-Cola and smelt like Turpentine that had been unopened on the shelf for 10 years.

Way to go Jordan - one more step out of the way.

Now I need to get it cleaned. I found(or at least found one reason) why the gas gauge wasn't registering properly. The sending unit is covered in rust and the long metal band that goes to the float is oxidized so much that it looks like it was painted green. Looks like a new sending unit is in order. I'll see about getting it(tank) cleaned. I'm pretty sure that the tank only has a couple pin holes and there's only two areas that have paint missing, which are the locations of the pin holes. Reason for the suspicion of holes is the gas(again, if you could call that horrible stuff gasoline) coming out! But I can't see any holes so they have to be very small.

So Jordan,

I've been following your exploits and you sure have accomplished a lot. We're proud of you! Anyway, I noticed in another thread that you're driving the truck around the yard. That's great... how are the brakes and other things?

Uh, brakes? I don't have any at the moment! But my yard is for the most part flat(no hills) but has enough small bumps to stop the truck just as fast as with brakes. Everything in the driveline and at least %55 percent of the electrical is in good condition. Next thing to do is brakes and then on to fixing the holes, and then it should be ready for the road.