Yeah, i got the harness connector from jims rebel. Ill get the dizzy and carb in feb or march.

 

I've decided to first clean the tank and replace the hard line on the frame while I'm in there. Then I'll run a carb cleaner and see how it runs for a week before buying a new carb.

One question I have is if I need to take the egr system out of service how should I do
so? Plug the vacuum port on the valve or should I remove it and put a cap over the mounting?

 

Many EGR valves leak, so just plugging or capping it won't fix that and pulling it and placing a block off plate on the opening is the only way to fix that. You should be able to figure out if it is leaking badly by placing vacuum to the valve with something like a Mityvac, which will cause it to open fully. Then drop the vacuum quickly and the valve should clunk. If it does it is probably opening and closing fully, which means it should be sealing in the closed position. But if you don't have vacuum available then just block it off to be sure.

 

I dropped the tank last night and what did I find inside? Nothing! I've never seen a more immaculately spotless gas tank in my life, just a couple of what look like whitish paint chips in there (the reason I had suspicions to begin with) And what I thought had been a replacement may be the original tank? because it says ford made in canada on the top of it.

Anyways. time for a new carburetor.

 

We'll, thanks for the update. But I didn't understand the part about the paint chips.

 

It looks like somebody put something in the tank at some point. Maybe a piece of plastic was dropped in there and dissolved? Don't know what else it would be. Nothing else in there but clean galvanized tank.

Anyways I went and broke the crappy plastic filter off of the fuel pickup on the tank sending unit. Pretty bummed because that's an annoying fix with all the shipping and waiting around and I won't be able to drive to work on monday or probably tuesday. Can I replace the pickup or add an inline filter?

Well it's not an original tank it's a "spectra p-----" (something illegible) and I need to figure out whether it's the 19 or the 16 gallon without filling it up with water and counting one by one. I've never filled it with more than 13 gallons but don't usually get all the way to the e line, although gas pumps occasionally have a hard time- they sometimes sense that they're done pumping when they're not I'm assuming because of the shape of the filler hose. Well my best guess is that it's the 16 gal but when I look at the code on the tank it has a 19 on it. Does anyone know if I can find it in the code here?
It says "
Spectra
F-14
FM 19 A

19 or 16??

Thanks!

 

Yes, on at least one if not both questions. Many mechanics when thinking the sock on the pickup is plugged will put air pressure to the line going into the tank. If the sock is plugged it'll blow off and the problem is solved. And, since the sock is so coarse it doesn't do much filtering, so another filter will be much better anyway.

As for a replacement sock, I haven't replaced the one like you and I have, but have replaced the later one with an electric pump installed. So I don't know they are available. But personally, I wouldn't worry about it if it isn't.

 

Ok thanks. I'm going to use the same sender without the filter on the end. Don't know where I would find a replacement pickup filter. I'll install a fuel filter on the hose between the hard frame line and before the fuel pump where I probably should have had one anyway. Two inline filters plus the new carb's screw on filter be sufficient.

As for the size it turns out they invented this thing called math and using measurements and conversion equation the smallest estimate i came up with is 21 gal. (it's quite a shapely tank)

So I'm going with 19

 

That's where I frequently run a second filter as it protects the check valve in the fuel pump. And, on many trucks that have two tanks one of them is no longer in service so I take the switching valve out and put the filter there. But I found the sock for the later model fuel pickup at the local parts store.

As for math, I have a degree in that and I think you are talking about rather high level of that stuff in order to figure the actual volume of one of these tanks. Lots of calculus and integration. Yuk! But the gas station will soon be able to answer the question quite accurately.

 

The measurement that counts, is length.
~59" = 19 gal
~42" = 16 gal

The 16 gallon tank was mainly used on short bed reg cab 4wd trucks, while most long bed, or super cab trucks got the 19 gallon.

 

Interesting! I would have sworn that Rusty is sporting a 16 gallon tank as that's about what I get in him when he's dangerously close to the empty mark on the gauge. But, the tank measures ~59", by actual measurements seconds ago (nice to have it in the shop and not get wet ) so must be a 19 galloner. And, that means the gauge is more wonky than I thought.

By the way, this is a new tank someone put on fairly recently, so it could be any size regardless of what it was supposed to have from the factory.

 

1. The gauges never read 100% accurately.
2. There is always going to be 1-2 gallons that are not usable, since the pickup cannot sit directly on the bottom of the tank. There has to be a small gap between the end of it and the floor of the tank, or no fuel could be drawn out.
Even a 1/4" thick layer of fuel, spread over the length/width of the tank, can equal 1-2 gallons. Most pickup tubes have a bit more than 1/4" gap to the fllor of the tank.....

3, I would much rather have a gauge that reads "E" a bit before the *actual* usable fuel is depleted. Unlike the 78 F150 I had, which tended to read 1/4 tank while sitting dead on the side of the road.......

 

Or Dad's '72 Mustang Grande. When it touched E you were hearing the engine sputter. He didn't tell me that and loaned it to me. I was used to whatever we had that was just suggesting you might think about finding a station when its gauge hit E, so drove it home one night with the gauge showing just above E. Pulled in fine, but the next morning it wouldn't start. Not a sputter, not a hint of firing. So I assumed it was electrical and started troubleshooting. But, I soon learned it had fire, and lots of it. Hmmmm. Sure enough it was out of gas.

He sure laughed when I told him that story. But I wasn't laughing then, although I am now - to keep from crying. I love(d) that man! (Sorry, couldn't help it and I know it isn't helping you, but....)

 

Dad once borrowed that 78 F150. I warned him to not trust the fuel gauge, and that I usually filled it up when it read just below 1/2. He didn't believe it could be that far off, but changed his tune when he put 14 gallons in, with it reading slightly above 1/2 tank....... 19 gal tank.
The 74 always managed to go well beyond the "E" mark without leaving you stranded. Even now, the gauge can be reading below "E", and getting more than 16 gal in is rare.

BTW, it actually helps to tell stories about him, from way back.