Franklin 11A Fuel Tank Fitting

[theKiwi]

My "new" Franklin 11A was delivered last week. After a busy few days on our annual genealogy seminar I've had a chance to look it over some today, and so now have a few questions.

 

First - apart from it being broken, what is this that is in the left side of the fuel tank? It is presumably the original outlet from the tank? Is there a valve in it also? A filter too?

 

I've discovered that currently the car has a new rubber fuel line run from what I assume is normally the bung at the bottom left of the tank along the chassis to the electric fuel pump that's mounted where the vacuum tank should be.

 

I do have the vacuum tank and plan to get that working again to replace the electric pump. The original fuel line "seems" to be in place too - at least it's at the back of the car by the tank, and comes out and runs up the firewall in the front too beside the electric pump. Hopefully it's intact still.

 

Here are a couple of pictures of what is on the left side of the tank.

 

How does it come out of the tank - is it screwed in or ?

 

Ideas on where to get a replacement?

 

Thanks!

 

Roger

 

[theKiwi]

So from a couple of messages, and finding the parts drawing online last night I've learned this is the remnants of what should be the "Gas Tank Reserve Cock and Gauge" and also the outlet from the tank.

 

As I wrote above, this has been bypassed and the fuel is currently drawn out through the drain plug via rubber hose to the front of the car. Not a very safe situation for sure!!!

 

The unit is threaded into the tank with a 2" 24tpi thread, so hopefully I can find some kind of large plug that can go in there and I can then put in the needed fittings to reconnect the steel fuel line to it.

 

Any suggestions on where to get such a large plug with that 2" x 24tpi thread on it?

 

I have contacted Jeff Hasslen whose father apparently had some replicas of this made.

 

Thanks

 

Roger

[Franklinguy]

Roger,

Congratulations on being the new owner of a Franklin 11A.  The car should be a delight to drive and a beauty to the eye.

 

I couldn't agree more that a fuel connection using a rubber hose connected to the bottom of the tank is very unsatisfactory and also dangerous.  The unit in your picture looks beyond repair.  The best thing to do would be to get another unit that can be reconditioned.  This unit does several functions: A tube carries fuel from the tank to the fuel line, There is a hole in the tube about 2 inches from the bottom which stops the fuel when the level of the fuel is below the hole.  Turning the lever on the top covers the hole to provide a reserve.  And, there is a fuel gauge. 

 

I have a 10B Franklin.  The unit in my car is similar, but not identical to the one in your car.  I have attached a picture of the unit from my car.  When I bought the car, the fuel gauge did not work.  I found that the cork float was split in half.  I made a new float from Nitrophyl (available from Restoration Supply Company).  A new float and cleaning the dirt and corrosion did the job and I have a functioning fuel gauge.  It is much better than using a wooden stick.

 

There are several club members who might help you with a replacement.  If Jeff Haslen cannot help you, I suggest you ask Richard Harry; he had the parts I needed to rebuild a vacuum tank.

 

Best of luck,

Frank Pennypacker

[theKiwi]

That fuel gauge works exactly the same as my modern day Sears lawn tractor does ;-)

 

My plan it so try and remove what's left of that by drilling a couple of holes in to it and making a tool with two prongs to go into the holes. Then see just what shape the stuff that goes down into the tank is in.

 

If the guts under the top is OK, maybe try and incorporate at least some of that into a new top.

I'm going to see if I can find a machine shop locally that will make up a new top piece of out aluminium and at the very least thread that to accept a pipe fitting for the fuel outlet with a suction tube down in to the tank.

I found on Amazon I can buy 2" hex aluminium bar in short lengths (2" long for example) for just a few dollars, so that the new plug will have a 2" hex top on it and then get the machine shop to turn it down to a circle, and cut the threads in to it.

 

I've so far been unable to find aluminium hex bar larger than 2" to get a larger hex top - did find brass up to 2.5" but it's expensive!

 

The joys of owning an olde car already...

 

Roger

[Mkgage]

Roger

I have a gas gauge that is not complete, but would allow you to run the car until you can get a complete unit. Call me at 919-846-4708

[theKiwi]

42 minutes ago, Mkgage said:

Roger

I have a gas gauge that is not complete, but would allow you to run the car until you can get a complete unit. Call me at 919-846-4708

 

Thanks so much for the offer. I look forward to getting it and put into the tank in place of the mess I currently have - then I can get that rubber fuel line removed!

 

Roger

[Franklinguy]

Roger,

I was able to unscrew the gas gauge in my car using a large pipe wrench, one large enough for 2 inch pipe.  I avoided marring the finish be wrapping the gauge with a cloth before applying the wrench.  If you don't have  one, perhaps you can borrow one.

 

The tube seemed to be pressed into the casting and I concluded that I could not separate the tube and the casting without breaking something.  There is a square rod twisted into a spiral that causes the float to turn the gauge needle.  There was enough corrosion, that I did not expect it to come apart without breaking.  I think you will not be able to combine parts of two units to make a single good unit.  Please let me know how you make out.

 

I just looked at the parts drawing and I now know that the cast part at the top is the same for Series 10 (like my car) and Series 11 (like yours).  The difference is the length of the tube and the location of the hole in the tube.  The different tube lengths are necessary because the tanks have different depths.  Be careful of the tube length when you put in another gauge.

 

I still think that you can get a complete gauge that only requires cleaning and (perhaps) a new float.  There are a lot of Franklin club members who have spare parts. 

 

Frank

[theKiwi]

52 minutes ago, Franklinguy said:

Roger,

I was able to unscrew the gas gauge in my car using a large pipe wrench, one large enough for 2 inch pipe.  I avoided marring the finish be wrapping the gauge with a cloth before applying the wrench.  If you don't have  one, perhaps you can borrow one.

 

I've got the pipe wrench - what is missing on my car is most of the top that you'd grip - it's been broken off, presumably by someone else trying to remove it in the past. As you can see in the photos above the neck of the tank is mostly what is showing.

 

There might be enough meat in the part that's left to get it out with a pipe wrench, but even that is cracked where the fuel line fitting should be screwed in to it. I'm thinking I'll probably end up drilling holes in what's left to try and get it levered out with a tool with two pins on it.
 

 

52 minutes ago, Franklinguy said:

 

The tube seemed to be pressed into the casting and I concluded that I could not separate the tube and the casting without breaking something.  There is a square rod twisted into a spiral that causes the float to turn the gauge needle.  There was enough corrosion, that I did not expect it to come apart without breaking.  I think you will not be able to combine parts of two units to make a single good unit.  Please let me know how you make out.

 

We'll see - in my case the top is shot, and so breaking it away from the tube won't be a loss - getting the tube into a new top maybe not so easy, unless I have a new top made and then the old tube could be re-used if I decide to try and replicate the gauge etc. The main thing I'm after is getting the fuel line connected there - the gauge is secondary and the Reserve switch is the least important part of it. Mkgage is sending a new blank top that has been threaded to go into the tank neck and not much else done to it - that will achieve the main aim of being able to do away with the rubber fuel line coming out of the bottom of the tank.

 

52 minutes ago, Franklinguy said:

 

I just looked at the parts drawing and I now know that the cast part at the top is the same for Series 10 (like my car) and Series 11 (like yours).  The difference is the length of the tube and the location of the hole in the tube.  The different tube lengths are necessary because the tanks have different depths.  Be careful of the tube length when you put in another gauge.

 

I still think that you can get a complete gauge that only requires cleaning and (perhaps) a new float.  There are a lot of Franklin club members who have spare parts. 

 

We can live in hope - I will be trying to come up with a list of things I need to get published in the next Newsletter - having just yesterday noticed that there is no visor over the windscreen.

 

Roger