Hi. I posted a while back, about a lot of gas fumes getting out into the cab, and the top of the tank being damp around the sending unit. Well, I finally got around to making a new gasket for it, and all is good, no more fumes. My problem is, when I got the thing done, and lowered the seat back down, I noticed that the metal cap they had on there, with one screw tab on it to hold it in place, which is used to cover the wiring from shorting out against the bottom of the seat, was in fact hitting the bottom of the seat. I got to looking, and finally realized, that the previous owner, I THINK, had drilled out the tank with a hole saw, plus 5 holes for screws, and put in a new sending unit for the new guages, and had done it over towards the drivers side of the tank, and just happened to do it right where one of the underside seat supports would hit it, so he put that cap on there to prevent the sending unit wires from hitting the metal seat frame. Can someone verify my suspicion on this? What im thinking is, that the location right in the center of the tank, that is sunk in a bit, is where the stock sending unit was/is located, and that this hole that I was working on, has in fact been drilled by someone else. Did the fuel tank in a 47 only have one hole in it, right in the center, sunk in, where the stock sending unit went? What I'm thinking, by looking, is that the steel cap with the screw tab, which he used to cover the wiring, may in fact be a stock piece, which originally covered the original sending unit wiring.

 

post a pic of this, sounds like your correct

 

I'll snap one tonight, if possible.

 

yea me also at work now

 

My sending unit is dead center of the tank and the cap is a stock piece designed to keep the gunk out of the connection spot. Like this:

<a href="http://s1097.photobucket.com/albums/g349/newold46/46%20Ford%20rebuild/?action=view&amp;current=DSCF0974.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1097.photobucket.com/albums/g349/newold46/46%20Ford%20rebuild/th_DSCF0974.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" ></a>

 

bigf350sd, your suspicions about the location of the sending unit are correct, including the little metal "hat" which it sounds like the P.O. of your truck reused. Lee's picture there is a perfect showing of the stock setup, unit being sunken into the top if the tank to clear the seat springs.

 

Yep, that's exactly what has happened. The stock sending unit is still in place, minus the wiring, and the cap, which he moved over to the new location, which is about 2/3 of the way over from center, towards the drivers side. Now I'm wondering why? I'd have tried to used the stock location, even if I had to make a plate/adapter, with the correct screw pattern, because I know some of the after market sending units use a different amount of screws than the stock setup. I may hafta see what I can do about moving it back to the stock location, and making a flat cover plate to screw down over his new hole, if I can find some type of Permatex or something resistant to gas, that'll seal it up good. I suppose I could just use the gasket I made for the sending unit when I fixed the fume problem. Any other ideas on how to repair the hole, or how to get a newer sending unit to work in the stock location? I assume he changed to the new one for the new guages, because they read a different ohm than the stock one? Not sure, other than that, as to why he just didn't use the stock sending unit.

 

Haven't I seen adapter plates for newer sending units somewhere? I have looked at so much stuff I can't remember where now...

 

79-9284 .. Cover-Electric Fuel Tank Sending Unit / Obsolete

Applications: 1938/47 122" wheelbase 3/4 ton / 1939/47 122" wheelbase 1 ton / 1939/47 truck / 1941/47 Commercial (1/2 ton).

Cover illustrated along with the fuel tanks, sending units and etc on pages 397/398 of the 1928/48 Ford Passenger Car-1928/47 Ford Truck Chassis Parts Catalog. Available on a CD from hipoparts.com.

 

Thanks everybody, I'm going to mess around with it tomorrow, see what I can do

 

You can get a 6 hole to 5 hole adapter from either Classic Haulers or Sacramento Ford. This makes using an aftermarket sender an easy job...

 

Yep, thanks GreatWoodsNorth, I've seen a few now, since I got to looking. Actually found one on eBay at a decent price.

 

I had to just say on my 47 someone had replaced the - Gas Tank Sending Unit m with a - " Vintique " - which was supposed to have been made with STAINLESS STEEL and it totally desolved from Rust plugging up fuel lines/filters and gave lots of greive !!!!
I replaced with with one from Bob D - which was also supposed to be Stainless Steel - but noticed a magnet will stick to its parts - so far its ok . !

 

Yeah, it's crazy, you can't get good parts anymore.