Oil & Fuel PT422 Fuel Line Rubbed by Front Engine Coupling

[BobRip]

I was talking to Clint Blake and he mentioned that his engine on his PT422 was surging (I hope I got that right Clint). He inspected the engine compartment and found that the fuel line was melted from rubbing against the front of the engine flexible coupling. I was surprised and inspected mine. No issue there. I suggest others might want to take a quick look. By the way, I believe that PT recommends replacing this hose every year. I replaced mine with an automotive fuel line. That should last a long while.

Clint, I figured that with six kids you would not have time to post this.

Bob Rip

 

[RegL]

1430 owners might want to check their fuel lines also. I wore one of mine right thru where it was rubbing against the engine cover. was squirting fuel all over the lawn. I cut off part with the hole in it and still had enough length to reconnect the line. me guess it was to long to start with.

 

[Charlie_Iliff]

I had a chafe through at 290 hours on my 1845. It was a short line from (to?) the fuel filter through a tight gap.

 

[pequeajim]

The way my fuel line is run, I don't see any way that it would rub against anything. It is run down from the tank on the left side and up underneath the carb on the engine, (again, left side) It doesn't get anywhere near something that would hurt it.

Maybe they changed this on the new 425 based on user feedback.

Anyway, something that you guys might consider is spiral wrap. It is used in hobbies, (I fly RC airplanes and Helicopters), to prevent vibration induced cutting of cables and lines.

Check this out:

http://www.action-electronics.com/jtsw.htm

I wrap all of my electronics on models with it to keep the cables from wearing through. It is very east to wrap a cable or hose and you do not have to disconnect it.

Jim!

 

[ernemats]

My fuel line on my 422 runs the same as yours . Another line to watch is the hydraulic line to the quick attach hydraulic cylinder, mine has rubber part way through the rubber where it bends at the arms.

 

[Yardscaper]

I developed 2 leaks in the main hydraulic lines to the wheel motors from excessive vibration against the motor mounts in the belly pan of my 2445. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif I replaced the hoses with extra heavy duty hose and kevlar covers. I have done this to all of the hoses on the backhoe as well. Have not had a problem since. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Bill

 

[tracdoc]

I experienced fuel line problems in my new 425 in the July-August heat. The engine bay was hot enough to soften the clear plastic tubing, causing it to sag tremendously. The sagging line was chafing against all manner of hard parts in the tub, and it was just a matter of time before it would leak. A bigger part of the immediate problem was that the fuel in the line vaorized virtually completely, resulting in a classic vapor lock stalling. Only after the engine cooled off and the fuel re-condensed, could it be restarted. I spoke with Terry about it and also had a good dialog with pairodime. Using a tire pyrometer, I measured ambient temps well over 200 degrees in the bay around the fuel line. When I mentioned that to Terry, he indicated that they would consider going back to conventional fuel line.

My solution was to change the line from the clear plastic (which BTW is not gasoline rated), to standard thick-wall, cord reinforced, fuel-vapor line which I picked up at my local auto parts store. I also re-positioned the in-line fuel filter forward of the firewall which separates the exhaust manifold from the battery. I then shrouded the entire fuel line with racer's heat shoud tubing [HERE]. This is a fiberglass material bonded to an aluminum fabric. It's available as a tube, or as a (slightly more expensive) velcro closure. The tube version is applied by disconnecting the fuel lineand sliding the shield over it and then reconnecting. The velcro version is applied w/o disconnecting the fuel line, and is large enough to cover an in-line fue filter as well. I bought the shroud from Summit Racing [HERE] Good folks, prompt service, and discounted price. Problem was solved completely. The shroud also absorbs any chafing, protecting the line itself

Without veering too far off the thread topic, I also managed to get better control in general of the heat in the engine bay using racer's 'floor and tunnel' heat shield, 'cool tape' and 'exhaust/header wrap'. What a difference it made. If anyone is interested, pls send PM and I'll be happy to provide details.

 

[ontheweb]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( My solution was to change the line from the clear plastic (which BTW is not gasoline rated), to standard thick-wall, cord reinforced, fuel-vapor line which I picked up at my local auto parts store... )</font>

That bums me out. As a possible future PT owner I hate hearing about obvious engineering oversights like not using proper fuel line? What the heck (I sugar coated that remark) could they have been thinking?

I guess it never occured to me that a USA manufacturer could just keep flip-flopping its design all over the place, sell it openly to the public, and then just fix it on the fly if a problem shows up, only to change the design again in the next quarter. Man, if there were a gasoline fire caused by lack of use of proper fuel line the lawsuit would kill a small company like Power Trac. You wouldn't even need a lawyer to win that one.

I don't want to stifle innovation, I love the PT's, but that is just silly you guys having to worry about your fuel lines and exceedingly high temps in the vicinity.

OnTheWeb

 

[pequeajim]

Pretty cool solution TracDoc, however, I would be suprised if the line that is in my tractor is not gasoline rated. It looks like Tygon to me which is the same stuff that I have been using in my airplanes for years. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[cqaigy]

<font color="red">squirting fuel all over the lawn. </font>

Bet that slows the grass down some /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif