Fuel line needed

[amizerin]

Hi All,

I need a new fuel line. The old one is leaking. I could not find it in the on-line shop (probably, I was looking at a wrong place). Any help is appreciated.

[Golfdad75]

Fuel line

Where exactly does it go to.

[amizerin]

From the main fuel line to the fuel pump

[tenders]

That is a beautiful, custom, braided, reinforced, old-school fuel line…past its useful lifespan.

Let it R.I.P. and replace it with two brass angled fittings, threaded on one side and barbed for 1/4” hose on the other, along with alcohol-resistant 1/4” fuel line you’ve cut to the right size, and two hose clamps. You can get the fittings in a home improvement store. I think they sell the fuel line too, but if not, an auto parts store will.

If the angled fittings bump into the engine as you screw them in, just use straight fittings.

[sunnnnseeeker]

Carburetor Life Span??

Hello,

My A4 is having some fuel starvation issues. I cleaned the fuel filters twice on my recent 9 day motors sailing trip. That helped for about 8 hours of motoring. I didn't see any dirt in the fuel that came out of the line when I blew through the hose and filter in opposite direction of fuel flow. The fuel looked clean in the water separator filter. I cleaned the fuel tank in 2005 and have used the boat every year so I don't think sludge is in bottom of tank.

Cruising along at 1700 rpm the engine rpm's isolates slightly which is something new it started when this fuel issue began.

Now I am thinking the carburetor (new from Moyer Marine in 2005) has reached EOL and needs rebuild. So that 17 years. Anyone know the expected life span on the carburetor?

Electric fuel pump new last year.

[W2ET]

Clogged vent? Crack the fill cap and see if that helps when it acts like it's starving for fuel.

Bill

[sunnnnseeeker]

Do you mean fuel tank cap? When I fill with fuel it will come out the vent so I it must be open.

[Dave Neptune]

Sunnnseeker, you say you "cleaned" the filters twice on your trip. First did it help? Cleaning a fuel filter by "backwashing" is a poor temporary patch at best. Before going to the carb "replace" the filters. You should have a primary fuel/water separator at the tank end then the pump and then a polishing filter is a good idea too. This would be a good time to install a fuel pressure gage after the polishing filter so you "KNOW" if the carb is being supplied properly for good performance.
Another point is the Facet pumps are known to have the check valve ball stick a bit, a pressure gage will show this too as it is very difficult to diagnose without a gage.
I ran my carb for well over 20 years without touching it! I used E-10 and ran the engine many hours a year.

Dave Neptune

[Sam]

I have an early model die cast carb from 1966 - clean it every few yrs but only rebuilt once about 20yrs ago. I would check for little water accumulating at bottom of the tank. As your cruising around it sloshes & mixes with the gas and may give you an rpm drop or some hesitancy. Pump out a couple of gallons from the tank bottom in a jug and see what you have,

[edwardc]

An oscillating RPM is often caused by fine dirt in one of the jets. It momentarily leans the mix slightly as it passes through. Small amounts of water can do this too as a tiny droplet of water passes through.

The A4 is tolerant of a lot of things, but one thing it insists on is clean fuel.

The only way to insure this is start at one end (the tank) and systematically work your way to the other end (the carb), insuring that each step is clean before you move on. It does absolutely no good, for instance, to clean a carb, if the filters are overloaded and shedding fines downstream. Similarly, it does no lasting good to replace the filter(s) if the tank is harboring fines or water. 17 years is plenty of time to have accumulated "stuff" in the tank.

As for carb life, I've had mine running for 12 years, and the previous owner for 3 years before that. The only problem has been a defective float that filled up on one side and was easily replaceable. A full rebuild has never been necessary just an occasional cleaning.

When cleaning the carb, be sure to use a fine wire to ream out each of the orifices. Simply spraying "carb cleaner" through it isn't enough. The wire from the center of a bread tie is about the right size. You can also use a gas welder's tip cleaner wire.

Good luck and keep us posted!