I really like the look of glass fuel filters on older style fuel pumps. Although I'm not running an older style fuel pump, I'd like to mount a glass bowl fuel filter on my firewall. Post up your pics of what you've used! Stevie
On the way to the street rod nationals in 1988 a friend of mine had a glass fuel filter (the type you could unscrew to change the filter) and the vibrations and rough roads actually broke the glass. Hauling the mail at around 75 MPH the fuel filter wasn't getting gas to the carburetor but pumping gas on and around the exhaust and as you can imagine it erupted in fire,,we managed to extinguish the fire but not before significant damage was done. If you do try using some sort of glass filter make sure you mount it where there is no chance to hit any hard objects. HRP
I'm just a messenger as well Ron White: "If I could offer one piece of advice to the planet, it would be this: You can't fix stupid. There's not a pill you can take; there's not a class you can go to. Stupid is forever."
glass bowl fuel filters are inherently dangerous... right on a par with whiskey bottle site gauges for fuel...
I was a NSRA safety inspector years ago, that was the #1 biggest don't do that there was. Heard and saw many a horror story about these.
But does it have be functional? Why not mount a bowl with some dummy fuel lines and a colored liquid in it, like olive oil? Then add the novelty item of your choice - dice (over-done?), an eye ball (funny and great at Halloween car shows), a couple of rusty 3/4" nuts, plastic gold fish, etc. Gary
I'm with the rest of the folks;not a good idea.I had one on my 55 Safari for a short time and could not get it to stop leaking.Even tried using neoprene seals and it still leaked. The problem I found was not so much vibration but a change in temperature.It seemed like once the weather started getting cooler it would spring a leak.Also when you tighten them you have to make sure that the little bell shaped piece above the knurled nut is absolutely square against the bottom of the fuel bowl or it will loosen up quickly. Just my twopence.
Great timing. I just came across a bunch of glass bowl AC fuel pumps for Y-blocks. Though I'd rebuild them and sell 'em (they look pretty cool). May rethink this after reading this thread...... Never had problems myself. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
I guess the peer pressure is getting to me... I just figured if they were used on Flatties for years, it ought to be somewhat safe.
I don't see a problem with them. 99.99999% of the Model As I work on have them and most are still original. As long as you take good care of the seal and don't overtighten the bail it would be fine. I have one under my car between the gas tank and the fuel pump. Its suspended with rubber hose.
Truth be told, mine was a little leaky until the seal took a set. Never use tools to tighten the nut. I had a friend crack one once when he used channel locks to tighten it.
Happens everytime. Somebody thinks it needs to be balls ass tight to seal and breaks the glass using a pair of pliers. I always use a thin coat of hylomar sealant on the gaskets so they don't need to be too tight to seal.
It is amazing that something that for many years worked perfectly now is horribly dangerous and will destroy your car every time you use it! The problems are caused by the idiot that doesn't know what the hell he is doing then blames his problems on an inanimate object. They don't mysteriously shatter, some idiot tightened it with a pair of pliers! When I was 10 years old, I was taught how to empty and clean them because on a farm back then every piece of powered farm equipment had one.
Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking. Due to overtightening, yes. But due to just vibration and rough roads, I'm not so sure. Still, a gas fire is bad news...so I might consider not using them ever again, even though they've got the old-time look. Sort of like using clear fuel line...looks cool I guess, but maybe not the best choice.
The clear bowl on the IH Scout V8 engine mounted OEM fuel pump is visible when on my knees peering at the plow frame. I'm not sure if it is in the suction or pressure side of the pump. It answers a lot of questions, quickly, about fuel contamination and quality and fuel delivery. So does the semi clear inline filter, up near the carb, but some of those, like my favorite AC GF 454 are metal now too. The WIX equivalent claims it has a ~ 50 micron ( 0.002 inch ) rating - http://www.wixfilters.com/Lookup/PartDetails.aspx?Part=33027 But unlike the tiny clear filters installed by a quality BMW independent shop, GF 454s actually catch the fine junk that makes the floats stick on my motorcycle and catch my attention by soaking my boots. The modern ones sold for marine use have metal covers for the plastic bowls to buy a couple of minutes of fire resistance. Marine apps generally have pretty cool (not hot) exhausts. Even so, the instructions are likely to say not to install them in the engine bay with an inboard engine. And also say some styles belong in the suction line, which would pretty much eliminate squirting leaks, but some types of fuel pumps, or pump locations, handle a functioning filter's modest inlet restriction better than others.
A common cause of leaky fuel bowls is a distorted housing. They are often made of pot metal which suffers from "creep". Over time, the housing gradually succumbs to the tension of the bail and the surface that the gasket is supposed to seal against will no longer be flat. The usual "remedy' is to tighten up the bail a bit more, which might work in the short term but only makes things worse in the long run. If you have a bowl that leaks, try offering up the glass bowl to the housing without a gasket and see if the bowl sets flat and square against its seat. If you can rock the bowl back and forth you'll probably find its only sitting on two high spots where the bail has pulled the housing out of true. You can straighten them if you're really carefulwith some improvised tooling and a little heat or you can machine the surface flat. Once it's flat you'll be surprised how little tension you need on the bail to keep it sealed. As far as Model As go, the early cast iron bowls are the way to go - everlasting and trouble free.
I use my fuel bowl as a fuel gauge, as I can see it as im driving my Caddy powered 29 Dodge coupe. I get about four seconds, depending on what speed im doing. then it`s jerry can time, I love my Hot Rod.
I find it quite interesting that many on this forum object to a glass bowl fuel filter as being dangerous from leaks, yet still preach Holley carburetors I have been around various gasoline powered vehicles now for about 60 years. As I grew up on a farm, this would include tractors, combines, stationary engines, cars, trucks, lawnmowers, etc. During this 60 + years, I have personally had 2 cars that I bought new catch on fire from a leaky Holley 4-barrel within the first 9K miles ; and 1 additional used car catch on fire from a leaky Holley 4-barrel. I wanted to convert one originally equipped with a 2-barrel to a 4-barrel. My Dad said OK, but it was going to be done by a professional shop. This conversion used a new Holley which lasted about 4K miles before catching on fire. Yet never has anything that I have been around with a glass bowl filter ever given problems, well filter problems, tires were a different story. Of course everyone knows that back in the 50's and 60's tractors were always driven only on blacktop streets (never in brush or trees), so the environment was friendly for these unreliable filters . So which is the most dangerous????? On a side note, it seems that today here in Missouri the authorities frown greatly on individuals riding in the back of a pickup truck. Wonder what they would say about riding on top of a loaded hay-truck? Jon.
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