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Flushing wing tanks and adding sight tubes

29 posts in this topic

Posted (edited)

So of course I went through the entire fuel system on my new 4-1200, including a close inspection and flush of the wing tanks. I was pleasantly surprised to find the Skystar applied Kreem coating relatively intact and very little debris (at least to my thinking and prior experience) in the tanks. That did, however, get me to wondering just how much crap everyone else has flushed out of their tanks after being in service for a while. You DO pull the outlet finger strainers at each condition inspection, don't you?

You can see where the Kreem has started to separate inside the Rt. filler neck, if I was going to use E10 it surely would be an issue.

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Coating remains well adhered to both tank interiors but note the fiberglass selvage Skystar coated right over!

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Very little debris in the Rt. wing tank.

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Much more crapola in the Lf. wing tank, dried thread sealant, dead bugs and who-knows-what.

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The KF finger strainers are much finer mesh than the Avid supplied strainers. I replaced the nylon barb fittings with beaded brass and upgraded to ethanol proof SS strainer and gasket for the gascolator.

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Since I was removing and resealing all the tank fittings, I decided to try and make the fuel sight tubes more effective. Here's the old mess.

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New plumbing with chemical resistant clear Tygon sight and vent tubes and Gates Barricade low permeation fuel line.

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Did the same on the Lt. side then added root rib covers to both. Here's the finished product before marking fuel level graduations.

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Here's a pic of the sight tube through the butt rib window, I will now be able to see my fuel level!

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Gonna clean up the fabric cutout edges, add a little trim and call the job done. Was worth the effort IMO. :BC:

Edited by dholly

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Posted

No finger strainers in mine. Never had them, but the avids come out the bottom of the tanks not out of the end. I like the sight gauges, and the root rib cover you made looks damn nice! you do some pretty thoughtful work ya know it!

I could not tell from the pictures, but is there a floating ball in the line? I have looked everywhere for the little ball that is in the "supercub" fuel sight glasses and cant find a supplier. Any ideas oh master crafty one?? :lol:

:BC:

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Posted

Lol, I remember looking FOREVER for those damn balls years ago for my Mk-IV. I finally had to concede defeat. I think I did find some home-baked alternative somewhere but for some reason I never bookmarked it, my bad. I just used a piece of brass wire as a tube stiffener on these, typical scrap on hand like most of my projects.... :BC:

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Lol, I remember looking FOREVER for those damn balls years ago for my Mk-IV. I finally had to concede defeat. I think I did find some home-baked alternative somewhere but for some reason I never bookmarked it, my bad. I just used a piece of brass wire as a tube stiffener on these, typical scrap on hand like most of my projects.... BC.gif

Damnit.. I really would LOVE to find those friggin red balls !

On another note, you didnt have an EIS on your other plane you parted out did ya? Right now I am torn between just an EIS and the http://www.mglavionics.com/html/xtreme.html

Damn I hate all the choices we have to make... What happend to the good ole days when it was just whiskey, or whiskey n coke :lol:

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Posted

Damnit.. I really would LOVE to find those friggin red balls !

On another note, you didnt have an EIS on your other plane you parted out did ya? Right now I am torn between just an EIS and the http://www.mglavioni...tml/xtreme.html

Damn I hate all the choices we have to make... What happend to the good ole days when it was just whiskey, or whiskey n coke :lol:

Try finding a battery acid tester, or if they don,t float a radiator tester should have the balls or at least some that will work.

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Posted

Try finding a battery acid tester, or if they don,t float a radiator tester should have the balls or at least some that will work.

GREAT idea thanks!

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Posted

Another couple ideas lifted from an air boat site: HOLLOW ALUMINUM BALLS, or tear into one of your rattlin' bass lures... might get lucky if the balls are hollow.

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Posted

Leni & Doug,

Has anyone tried using the "little corkies" that are used in making fishing lures? I don't know if they are fuel resistant, but they come in many sizes and colors. Just wondering. We used to use them a lot to make up single egg salmon and trout lures.

Jack

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Posted

I have a secret.....Our local airport, Soldotna, Alaska has the little red balls

I bought some (3) of them but they are to big for the yellow tubing on my mod 1 sight tubs.

Some day I will change the elbows in the tanks to a same thread end larger tube end

I think the supplier was Univair...I'll look in my stuff as one is still in the package

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I have a secret.....Our local airport, Soldotna, Alaska has the little red balls

I bought some (3) of them but they are to big for the yellow tubing on my mod 1 sight tubs.

Some day I will change the elbows in the tanks to a same thread end larger tube end

I think the supplier was Univair...I'll look in my stuff as one is still in the package

You been holding out on me hammerhead.gif:lol: Me thinks its about time to pull the plane off the lake and get the ski's back out! While I have the plane home I would like to install the sight gauges so a part # on those lil red balls would be AWESOME!

:BC:

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Posted (edited)

You been holding out on me hammerhead.gif :lol:/>/>/> Me thinks its about time to pull the plane off the lake and get the ski's back out! While I have the plane home I would like to install the sight gauges so a part # on those lil red balls would be AWESOME!

:BC:/>/>/>

Leni and All,

Maybe I missed out on this while my puter was sick, or the virus had struck - Sometime earlier this year I posted about buying the sight tube kit from the ultralight vendor and wished I had only bought the red sticks from him because most of the kit was unusable on our planes. I hate being so old and forgetting to take my memory pills - cant bring up the vendors site right now, but it was recommended by someone on here, maybe Suberavid?

If you can find a cheaper source for everyone to use, then please post it for them. Cheap battery or antifreeze testors sound interesting - someone needs to do some testing. I paid too much for what I got.

ED in MO

Edited by Ed In Missouri

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Posted

http://www.bearperkins.com/accessories.htm

This is where I got the sight gauges from and he sells the little red floaties separately too.

:BC:

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Posted

http://www.bearperkins.com/accessories.htm

This is where I got the sight gauges from and he sells the little red floaties separately too.

:BC:/>

Well, maybe it was you who steered me to that site - from the posts thought you didnt know about the high-priced little red floaties.

Thanks,

Got to go take memory pill before I forget.

ED in MO

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Posted

On ebay i write " cork ball fuel" and he have a lot of size

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Posted

really i get no results

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Posted (edited)

really i get no results

Next trip to the hanger I will look for the box of stuff I got from bearperkins and see if there is an address on it - I found his website easily on internet.

The fittings I got with the site gages are for metal tanks, I guess - no use to me.

EDMO

Edited by Ed In Missouri

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Posted

Give Bear Perkins a call and check out his website. He is a powered parachute guy but carries lots of parts and pieces we can all use.

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Posted (edited)

KFfan,

Those cork balls will be eaten by mogas and really fall apart in alcohol - We found that out back in the 80's when our carb floats were going to hell when we started mixing mogas with 100LL to keep from leading up the plugs in our Contisaurus engines - That is when the carb makers started making floats out of other material - The first materials didn't work, and eventually sank - then they got better float material.

The red pellets that Bear Perkins sells are supposed to last, and can be easily seen -

I tried some other plastic balls in my sightgage on the Ercoupe and they just got ate up by the gas - and they were only in the fumes, not really in the gas.

EDMO

If memory serves me right - 100LL has 4 times as much lead in it as the old 87 avgas...

Edited by Ed In Missouri

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Posted

Ed,

Understood. I was just trying to lead TJay by the hand. :flush:

I looked at Bear's web page and saw the floats he has available. While looking around I saw something about various size aluminum balls....but I can't remember where it was.

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Posted

Hummm....not good idea..

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Posted

KFfan,

I addressed it as a reply to you, but wrote it for the general public info.

TJay has been busy flying in this good cool weather!

EdMO

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Posted

Cool is right.

Snow yesterday in Indiana tundra...

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Posted

I looked up McMaster Carr and found some buna-n close tolerance sized balls.  Should be impervious to fuel as its buna n.  They only come in black.  Would they float?

 

 

High-Strength Oil-Resistant Buna-N Rubber
  • Color: Black
  • Temperature Range: See below
  • Tensile Strength: 1,500 psi
  • Use indoors

Also known as nitrile, acrylonitrile butadiene, and NBR, this rubber has a good balance of oil and solvent resistance when compared to other rubbers, but is not as weather resistant.

Tight-Tolerance Balls—Precision Ground Finish
1854tp1s.png?ver=1308211587
 
  • Temperature Range: -20° to 200° F

Durometer hardness is 70A (hard). Durometer tolerance is Â±5.

Dia. Dia.
Tolerance   Each 3/16" ±0.003" 1854T42 $1.31 1/4" ±0.003" 1854T44 1.56 5/16" ±0.003" 1854T46 1.57 3/8" ±0.003" 1854T48 1.85 7/16" ±0.004" 1854T52 1.91 1/2" ±0.004" 1854T54 2.32 5/8" ±0.004" 1854T56 2.80 3/4" ±0.004" 1854T58 3.24
 
 
 
 

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Posted

Density of gasoline is about 0.7 gm/cc. Buna-N rubber is 1.2 to 1.3. The balls will sink.

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