Scarey Moment!

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2012: Scarey Moment!
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By George Button III (Chip), Lake Clear, NY on Tuesday, July 31, 2012 - 11:57 pm:

We were coming home from a car show Sunday evening with the T and when I got about 20 miles from home, I had to go through downtown Lake Placid , NY. As I went through the light at the beginning of town, a car behind us was pointing at the car and waving. He then pulled up next to me and told me we were pouring gas out under the car! I pulled over and looked under the car to find the guts of the petcock on the bottom of the sediment bowl had fallen out. Gas was pouring out on the road and I had no way to stop it. The valve at the top of the sediment bowl was frozen up and I could not close it! I had nothing with me to plug the tapered hole. and gas was flowing out right past a hot exhaust pipe. First thought was call 911 and then grab my fire extinguisher. By then someone else had stopped (people that knew us) and offered to help. Then the people that warned us originally came back after going up the street to a convenience store and purchased a gas jug. We put the jug under the car and caught the last 2 gallons of gas left in the tank. I had just filled the tank and there was about 9 gallons in it when we sprung the leak, so around 7 gal. was on the ground and in a running down the side of the road. The fire department showed up and with all the gas out of the tank, we maid a kind of diaper with a piece of inner-tube and a hose clamp and secured it around the sediment filter. The owner of the local garage had come down to help out, and ended up towing us three blocks to his garage. I asked him if he had a tip from a tube of RTV silicone(the long tapered type you cut to the size of the bead you want) buy he could not find one. I pulled my tool bag out and noticed a Bic Stick ball point pen (the straight type with a cap), and looked at the cap and realized that it was the perfect size and with a taper! We drove the pen cap in the valve hole of the petcock and it fit perfect. I put some gas in and no leaks!! I put just enough gas in to get the rest of the way home and we were set to go( I hoped!) The couple that knew us were still there and offered to follow us home, but I thought we would be able to make it. They had already been there an hour and had also gone back and followed the gas trail we left, in. hopes of finding the brass valve on the road(no luck) The garage owner would not let us pay him for his time and said"just let me know you got home safe".
I didn't know that while the Fire Department was on the scene, they had closed the main street going into Lake Placid on a busy Sunday afternoon. I found this out later. We did get home safe and the plug did hold. Monday morning I got a 1/8 inch brass pipe plug and replaced the petcock until I can get another.(I bought two plugs and a couple of pens) I now know what to do in this kind of situation, but hope it never happens again! I think the vibration of the rough road loosened the screw on the valve and the spring fell of, letting the tapered valve work it's way out. When repaired, I will wire the valve or do something to make sure it does NOT happen again! Needless to say, when I got home and settled down, it sunk in as to what could have happened!!!! There will also be a few new spare parts in my tool bag to cover such a situation!!!!....Chip


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Danial - Veneta OR US Earth Solar System on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:06 am:

Wowzers...very glad that ended well, Chip. Sounds like you had a lot of good people rallying around lending their aid and assistance.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mike Garrison on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:34 am:

Scary stuff Chip. For some reason I'm imagining a plethora of State and Federal pollution control agencies becoming involved with your hazardous waste spill. I'm imagining built in containment devices, foam applicators and large absorption devices with vacuums attached. The street closed off for months to determine the environmental impact from such a major spill. Has CNN, CNBC, Fox and all the other kids knocked at your door yet. Or maybe they won't overreact, let the stuff evaporate and send a street sweeper over the area next spring some time after the snow melts. At any rate I hope such a thing never happens to you again. Hopefully the prevention steps you've taken will never have to be tried. Happy motoring
-Mike


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Craig Anderson, central Wisconsin on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:36 am:

HOLY COW.......NEVER heard of that happening!
It's usually the other way around........they're stuck shut.
Talk about dodging a bullet........yikes.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By George Button III (Chip), Lake Clear, NY on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:47 am:

Mike, yes that thought did cross my mind!!! Ha Ha!!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By George Button III (Chip), Lake Clear, NY on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:51 am:

A little Spedi-Dri and a few brooms NASCAR style did the clean-up!
And yes it was nice to know, even a T in trouble brings good people around!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Tom Carnegie on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:57 am:

And the moral of the story is?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mike Garrison on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 12:58 am:

Really glad they were there for you. I would have been in such a panic they would have needed to give me an IV of something to quiet me down. I'd still be shaking. I don't do good in situations like that at all. I'm happy things worked out OK for you.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Erik Johnson on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 01:05 am:

An original sediment bowl petcock has a spring, washer and cotter pin - no screw.

The non-original style sold by the vendors has a screw instead of a washer and cotter pin.

I suggest getting an original style without the screw. Reproductions are available from the vendors.

Turning the valve on and off probably caused the screw to work its way out and loosen over time. I have a hard time believing vibration in and of itself caused the problem.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Will,, Trenton,,,New Jersey on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 06:10 am:

Glad it turned out well for you, With ten gallons of gas pouring out on the road it would not had been good at all in this dry weather we have been having should it had ignited. I had kinda the same thing two years ago when my carb float craped out but I was able to shut the gas off. Maybe before summer is over I might take a drive in my T up there to see you. It would make a nice weekend trip from the Watertown area.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Hap Tucker on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 06:51 am:

George,

I'm so glad it all worked out ok and it is great to know that so many folks were so helpful. In addition to replacing the drain petcock, recommend you consider repairing the Sediment bowl so the on/off valve works properly in it also. You will be under the car in that area anyway replacing the petcock.

Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By George Button III (Chip), Lake Clear, NY on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 07:45 am:

Erik, I will look into the style with the cotter pin. Don't really know what the cause was, I just know it was gone. I don't remember if it had a screw or a pin, but it will be replaced with the pin style.
Hap, I agree. When I repair the petcock, I am going to fix the valve on the sediment bowl also.
Will, by all means, please come and see us. A follow T'er is always welcome here, and we are real easy to get to from Watertown.
Mike, the moral of the story is, I am learning about more spare parts that need to be in my emergency fix-it bag and always carry a Bic pen!
Chip


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dennis Halpin on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 07:49 am:

I can sympathize with you. A few years back during a parade, the float on my carb stuck. I noticed that the engine wasn't wasn't running right but I managed to keep it running. I left a trail of gas down the entire parade route. It wasn't until later that I realized what one guy with a cigarette butt could have done.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Allan Richard Bennett on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 09:47 am:

In Australia the early cars did infact have a petcock with a screw and washer to hold the tapered tap part in place. As there was no spring fitted, when the taps wore they got loose and leaked. I rolled up to the start of a tour in my 12 Van once, leaving a trail of oil. The lower petcock on the pan had vibrated open, fortunately only a couple of hundred yards down the road. I keep it wired closed now!
Just for interest.

Allan from down under.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Norman T. Kling on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 11:03 am:

Now that you are fixing it and have spare parts in your car, it will not likely happen again! It seems that the part to fail is usually one which you don't have, or don't have the proper tool to fix it. I'm glad that you got home without further mishap.
Norm


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Joe Van Evera on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 05:26 pm:

WOW... Glad it wasn't worse, Chip. Yeah, Model T's have a way of "yanking our chains," huh? Besides, what else do you have to do with your time, besides working on them?!?!?!?!?!? Joe


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Wayne Sheldon, Grass Valley, CA on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 - 08:33 pm:

I am glad it all worked out okay. It just shows how good you are! Yes, model Ts do have a way of yanking your chains. That is why they are not for everybody, just the best people.

A few roadside repair thoughts to consider.

A 3/8-24 standard fine thread bolt is close enough to that size (1/8 inch?) pipe thread that it will start and run in far enough to nearly stop the flow. If you do not have a spare bolt, borrow one from between the block or hogshead. One missing for a few miles won't hurt anything.

Use a grease fitting or cup from almost anywhere on a T. I did that once when the petcock under the radiator vibrated out.

I almost always carry a nearly empty tube of Form-a-Gasket number two. That and a piece of a stick will stop most gas leaks for some distance (not as long as it used to because the alcohol in gasoline today slowly dissolves Form-a-Gasket).

I try to make the drain bulb's shut-off function for just this reason. I put a good shut-off near the carburetor to routinely shut off the gas and almost never touch the one on the drain bulb. I seal it and lube it with common bar soap when I rework it. That usually works really well. Soap as a lubrication seems to work well for awhile, but after being turned some number of times, it works out and becomes tight or even seizes. Left unturned, it seems to last a long time so that it can be used if something before the added shut-off under the hood fails. I had a fuel line break once and was very glad the bulb shut-off worked.

Drive carefully, and enjoy, W2


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