Fuel Sender. Oh no; you idjut!!!!!!!

[Jimmy Cooper]

Anyone else had this?
Really rainy day in Hampshire so might as well look into an issue that has been annoying me. That of a fully brimmed fuel tank leaving some fuel on garage forecourt as you pull away. Either a sender gasket issue or a leaky tank at high level.
Stripped interior of carpet etc to reveal the sender via the boot floor access hatch.
Filled tank via plastic fuel containers. Right to the top. Yep, leaking around the gasket. Well, that's better than a leaking tank.
OK, remove and reseal or replace gasket. Damn tight in there. Anyway to cut a long story short I managed to 'lose' the float in the tank when removing the sender!!!!!!!
Oh bo**cks!!!!!!!!!
How do you get that float back?
So, syphoned out most of the fuel (yuk; I hate the taste of unleaded). Still no way to 'catch' the float as it went back & forth across the viewing area (hole!) so had to use a 60ml syringe and tube to remove nearly all the fuel. Then, bouncing the car the float got in place and after messing about with a long cable tie lasso I got it. Trouble being you can't see down the access hole very well with cable tie and poking screwdriver in place.
Looked at wall clock. From the start of the loss fiasco to reclaiming it from the tank had taken nearly three bl%dy hours!!!!
I modified the float retainer with some stainless steel locking wire to lock the float in place and nipped a bit off the open end of the retainer to make it easier to fit through the access hole.
Resealed the gasket. Hylomar always works for me but has to be the stickiest stuff in the universe.
Filled up the tank to the brim with fuel again. No leaks!! Hurrah.

The main bonus of all the fuel removal grief is I now know the tank is basically 16 litres and that from an empty tank & the fuel gauge showing '0' the tank takes 3 litres to move the gauge at all so I can say that from a full zero showing I have probably 2.3 litres (half a gallon) left as a 'reserve'.
The numbers by the way in the first pic are preceded by BT 12-12 so I am guessing it was built 12-12-1989?

[howardjs]

Do you think the leak could have been caused by ethanol melting the gasket?
Howard

[Jimmy Cooper]

No, as upon removal the gasket was inspected and found to be spot-on/just like new. I found the three fastening screws had been slightly loose initially so the leak had allowed a bit of rust to form on the gasket seal area. I blocked the tank access hole and used wet 'n' dry to clean up the area. I also countersunk the screw holes very fractionally (de-burred really). Fingers crossed it works. Hope so 'cos that'll give me about half a litre more usable fuel capacity including the filler neck!!!!

[trikehound]

Hi,trying to get the reading right is all a game of luck! I have a friend ,who makes a living ,fixing 2CVs & specials ,he cannot do it Even on his own Avion! So best stick to the knowledge that you have got fuel,even when it says empty!Good Luck!

[Geoff Ryall-Harvey]

The 2CV sender simply does not work with the long shallow Avion tank. Best carry a length of dowel and dip the tank.

[Jimmy Cooper]

The thought did cross my mind for the Lomax after about two hours of 'fishing' yesterday Geoff.
Early Lotus 7's used that method too.
Great conversations I imagine; not about gallons per mile but more like 59 miles to the inch!
The way my luck was running yesterday the end of my fuel dipper stick would splinter off in the tank!!!!!

[Geoff Ryall-Harvey]

Fuel gauges on specials of any sort are problematical. In the hot rod I've gone mechanical;

[Jimmy Cooper]

That's a great gauge Geoff!!!
My old Ruston Hornsby 5 IP stationary engine had a brass tube with a cork in it. Off the cork stood a vertical rod (like piano wire) that then went through the screwed on filler cap via a small central hole with a bit of white paint on the looped over, non poke your eye out end. Just watch the white section descend; then fill up again.
Efficient and never failed!!!!
Going to have this fitted next w/e. I am assured it'll work by the eBay seller in America with the addition of a switch. Just needs some alteration to the float.............................OK, I'll get my coat!!!! Ha ha

[Jimmy Cooper]

UPDATE:-
Totally brimmed the tank AND the filler tube. Fuel sitting just at the height of the newly fitted breather which is about 30mm below the flip- filler cap's underside.
Wet away on business for four days. Came back and checked fuel height. Exactly the same as I left it.

RESULT!!!!!!!

[tomnorth]

Hi
I am new on this site - just bought a lomax as a pile of bits and had a tank made locally for the three wheel version I am building.
Fitted the sender unit this weekend and it has just dawned on me the sender unit is also the fuel outlet yet the tank has a tapped outlet SO what happens with a 3 wheeler - is the sender outlet simply blocked off?
thanks
Tom