Fuel filter

[Rich P. Bingham]

My '13 has been missing the fuel filter for some time. While it's down for the winter I thought it would be good to replace it. The new one is a close fit - any tips on soldering it in place would be welcome !

[TWrenn]

Texted ya Rich!!

[Steve Jelf]

Following. I want to learn how to solder brass cloth in place, keeping the solder around the edge.

[speedytinc]

Since I didn't trust my solder skills, I went another way.
I cut a groove in the outlet fitting to fit a large snap ring on my lathe.
Formed a piece of fuel filter screen around the ring, put in place & trimmed the excess screen.
Works fine. Bonus, the screen is easily replaceable for the next caretaker 80 years out.

[Allan]

Steve, I solder {not sodder} a marked circle around the mesh before fitting it. That way any excess can be directed away from the centre circle. With that tinning done, and the fixture tinned too, it is just a matter of sweating the two together.

Hope this helps.
Allan from down under.

[DHort]

I just install this fuel filter on top of the sediment bowl. Fits perfectly. The only problem is that your tank is empty when you are down to a gallon since this raises the bottom level of your fuel tank. Sold by Langs.

[DanTreace]

A very good soldering iron will give good results. I used just simple low watt pistol shape gun and got that screen on.

Lay first some solder to tin the recessed rim groove, and that will allow the round screen to be placed into the groove and touch the iron in places around the rim to hold it in. Follow with more solder to complete.... my job is amateur, but sealed the screen ok to prevent stuff from going to the fuel line.

Doing a few more got a bit better practice, rather fun to do.

[RajoRacer]

I like John's lathe procedure - I might have to try that !

[TRDxB2]

My '13 has been missing the fuel filter for some time. While it's down for the winter I thought it would be good to replace it. The new one is a close fit - any tips on soldering it in place would be welcome !IMG_5158.jpeg

Make life easy, put a small bead of Ultra Black or similar around the inside lip of the cap and then lay in screen. No mess, no fuss & nobody knows its not original

[Rich P. Bingham]

fair question - the new screen barely spans the rim of the piece that screws into the "spud". It could almost be a press fit Further, at least on this item, there is no evidence anything was ever soldered to the flange - so, is the screen meant to be pressed in, or perhaps a screen is/was not a universal feature of all sediment units ?

[RajoRacer]

All Ford sediments bulbs had a screen that I've ever taken apart.

[DanTreace]

further, at least on this item, there is no evidence anything was ever soldered to the flange - so, is the screen meant to be pressed in, or perhaps a screen is/was not a universal feature of all sediment units ?

Rich


All sediment bulbs have screen disc, the screen lays inside the rim and was held with a very neat small outline of solder, must have been some nice equipment at the time. Only the recess had the solder, the solder did not go over the rim. And don't forget the lead washer to seal the screen nut back onto the bulb.

Example of original with screen, and one with the factory screen removed for replacing.

Here is cutaway for your early type of bulb that has the long neck tube in the casting, later bulbs didn't that that long tube.

[TWrenn]

further, at least on this item, there is no evidence anything was ever soldered to the flange - so, is the screen meant to be pressed in, or perhaps a screen is/was not a universal feature of all sediment units ?

It's been years since I worked on one. But looking at your picture of the cap it seems to me once you would lay the screen on that thin "lip" you could then "ring it" with a small bead from this Seal All stuff. It's thin, clear, and starts to set up fast...making it perfect for this. Then wait overnight before reinstalling the cap and you're good to go. I'm not sure if the RTV is as gasoline proof as this stuff is. Seal All is definitely gas proof...its been holding back a small gas tank leak for me for years now. Just another thought.
Rich


All sediment bulbs have screen disc, the screen lays inside the rim and was held with a very neat small outline of solder, must have been some nice equipment at the time. Only the recess had the solder, the solder did not go over the rim. And don't forget the lead washer to seal the screen nut back onto the bulb.

Example of original with screen, and one with the factory screen removed for replacing.

IMG_6024.jpg

Here is cutaway for your early type of bulb that has the long neck tube in the casting, later bulbs didn't that that long tube.

IMG_1423 (695x416).jpg

[Adam]

The original screens WERE NOT SOLDERED IN.

They were placed into a machined flange and it was pressed shut to hold the screen. Take a close look at Rich’s picture. You can see it.

[Oldav8tor]

I have a screen in my sediment bowl but I also added the finger screen like Dave H. Reason, if any big flakes are dislodged in my tank I don't want them drifting over the outlet and blocking it.

FWIW - when I restored my car I did clean the tank and coat the interior with the stuff provided in the POR 15 kit. In 5 years and nearly 10,000 miles I've had no issue. The only thing I discovered is don't use a copper-nickel brake line for a fuel line, the ends will collapse. Stick with steel.

[Rich P. Bingham]

Adam, thanks for that ! From other pics shown, I suspected the screens were crimped into a rebate. Often, earlier items are quite different from the majority of production in the '20s. Unless the crimp has been filed off (not impossible) the edge of the part where the screen should go is dead flat, and shows no evidence of any forming that would have crimped a screen disc. The screen replacement is far too small to adequately span the opening and be retained either by a crimp or by soldering.

Perhaps the long tube in the "spud" was considered adequate protection against "crud" in the earlier models ?

[Rich P. Bingham]

Here's a better view of the part. The opening measures 1.210", the screen disc measures 1.240". Thread depth is .285" into the "spud". Not possible to crimp nor solder this screen into this piece. I doubt if it ever had one.

[TRDxB2]

Here's a better view of the part. The opening measures 1.210", the screen disc measures 1.240". Thread depth is .285" into the "spud". Not possible to crimp nor solder this screen into this piece. I doubt if it ever had one.IMG_0935.jpegIMG_0936.jpeg

Try prying up from the lit in the edge of the rim, all the way around. The screen fits under that gray material (lead?)

[Rich P. Bingham]

Thank you for the suggestion Frank, however, no such luck. The casting is solid, nothing to pry up. I have to confess to jumping the gun and tinning the rim, anticipating I would be soldering a screen onto it.

[Allan]

Just maybe the original screen was spun in to keep it in place, rather than pressed. That would account for no solder on an original part. There's no way the spun lip could be prised up all the way around to allow the same fit again. A neat solder job will do the job nicely. Even an ugly one will not be of real concern for this application.

Allan from down under.

[Rich P. Bingham]

Allan, a reasonable surmise, but trust me, there is no lip, it’s a solid casting. The threads taper up to the edge of the flat surface, and anyway, I would be surprised if the bronze casting would be malleable enough for the kind of forming your solution implies. ?!? More research is indicated.

[Allan]

The remains of the mesh trapped under the lip in Adam's photo show what i suspect was the way the screens were fitted. Somehow, the edge of the brass was folded/pressed/crimped down over the screen. The most logical way to do this to my mind is to roll the edge of the casting in over the screen. I'll have to ask the guy who spins my muffler ends what he thinks.

Allan from down under.