Just add fuel

I am one of those who never knows the direction of my journey until I have almost arrived.
Anna Louise Strong

So, in my previous post we got the fuel tank cleaned and sorted. Now we need to fit it and test it.

We already fitted the engine so that we could do a test run with clean fuel and fuel hoses. It's not quite right as the vacuum advance for the timing is not working and the engine won't rev up properly under load. I'll organise some new parts for that during the week.

Of course, the fuel tank cannot be fitted without removing the engine...yet again. It was a real fiddle but we managed to squeeze in the tank after dropping the engine to the floor.

Not a comfortable way to work but the job's a good 'un.

 I have replaced the fuel pipes and the connectors on the hollow steel breather pipes. All refitted and ready for testing.

A little bit of hassle to sort out the timing and I can fit the new distributor that I bought. It was only slightly more expensive to buy a whole distributor than to buy the vacuum advance unit!

That set the scene for a load of fiddling and head-scratching. The engine simply wouldn't start again. It was cranking okay, the sparks were there, the newly overhauled fuel system was doing its thing...but no life. Sigh. We replaced the old points, the old condensor, and eventually the entire old distributor. Still nothing. Hmmmm.

Eventually we realised the engine might be cranking a little slowly so we connected up some jumper cables from the trusty old diesel bakkie and - shazam! - like magic she fired up and ran perfectly. Whew what a waste of time lol. Lesson learned and we'll keep the battery well charged from now on.

It's been a long night but the engine and fuel system seem to be sorted, for now anyway.

Thank you for the visit, see ya next time,
CooP