Road Trip!

It's been a long day. I left the house at 6:00 a.m. to go meet Lapham3 to procure a gas tank for my Wildcat. I couldn't take the most direct route as that border crossing doesn't open until 8:00...sigh. Anyway, aside from the border crossing, which was quick as there was no line, I made one stop en route and got to the spot north of Brainerd around 12:30. I did have to avoid deer on #2 near Erskine and a turtle on the road somewhere south of Bemidji. We went over the tank and did the deal, and wound up chatting for over an hour and a half. It's always good to meet another Buick man.

The drive home was a bit longer...I stopped for a bite of lunch, and, having paid some attention to diesel prices along the way, planned my stops a bit to take advantage of some lower prices. Once again, I went by a '55 4-holer north of Plummer...it was raining pretty good at the time, so I didn't even consider stopping...I'd left the camera at home, thinking why would I need it. Last chance for cheap fuel, and supper, and it was time for the border crossing.

This time there was a bit of a line...then of course, I'd forgotten to get a receipt made up for the tank...that wasn't a show stopper, but they got a big more rigourous and went through the truck...of course, I had to pay sales taxes on what I declared I paid for the tank (something is wrong with paying sales taxes on used parts that are over 40 years old, but what can you do?). Eventually I was off for the last hour home.

So, 15.5 hours away from home, some $250-$300 total spent, and a sore butt. Was it worth it? You bet. As stated earlier, I got to meet another interesting Buick owner and learned a few things, and I got that which I needed to get the Wildcat back on the road. I'm happy...tired, but happy.

Time for bed now...good night.

Glad it worked out for you, Derek. Ever find what caused the vapor return to shut down in the first place?

Not yet...when I drop off the tank on Monday, I'll be asking. The shop I deal with farms it out to a rad shop, so I need to be sure that we open the lines of communication and have our ducks in a row so as to prevent a repeat event.

Dereck-Glad you made it home in good shape and it was very nice to meet you. I'd guess that tank is probably fine as is. It came out of a running car and then was well stored. It would be a good idea to lengthen your power and ground connections so you can tip the tank back and forth to check the sender/gauge for proper operation-also a little gas in there and oriented to verify that the sender o-ring is still sealing OK. I'm not sure I'd let the same guys touch it that handled your other one! good luck-Dan