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There is a small weeping fuel leak at the bottom of the plug shown in the photo, marked with the blue tape. Not sure what the part name is. It is very slight and there is a slight moisture and smell of gas when you swipe the area with your finger. Can I seal this with sealer without any disassembly? Thanks
Last edited by jtranger; 12-14-2016 at 05:17 PM.
Reason: add
That is called a Welch plug. Common on carburetors, and RP FI units. And they commonly leak after many years of use. Yours is a modern replacement rather than the original that came in your unit. I sealed the plug in my FI unit without removing it, by cleaning the seam area real well, and smearing the seam with a fine coating of JB Weld. The FI gurus might scream at me, but it is holding.
That is called a Welch plug. Common on carburetors, and RP FI units. And they commonly leak after many years of use. Yours is a modern replacement rather than the original that came in your unit. I sealed the plug in my FI unit without removing it, by cleaning the seam area real well, and smearing the seam with a fine coating of JB Weld. The FI gurus might scream at me, but it is holding.
Don is very much on the money. It is in fact a welch plug, concave in shape (or convex, depending on which side your looking at) and designed to expand when tapped on the center. When I started rebuilding FI units over 40yrs ago, I did in fact use JB Weld around the recessed area where the plug fits. But I now use what is considered to be a better product, PC7, and it's available at ACE Hardware. Thoroughly clean the recess area for the plug (I like brake cleaner). Mix up a sufficient quantity to THOROUGHLY fill the recess for the plug. Install the plug (make sure it is all the way in), place some kind of flat punch against the plug (such as a 1/2in bolt works) and give it a moderate smack with a hammer. Clean off the excess which squeezed out around the plug with brake cleaner (or equivalent)----------------------LET IT CURE UNDISTURBED FOR AT LEAST 24hr!!!!! It's now there forever and no more leaks.
I must give proper credit for this fix to John DeGregory who taught me this method using the PC7 instead of JB Weld MANY years ago.
Don is very much on the money. It is in fact a welch plug, concave in shape (or convex, depending on which side your looking at) and designed to expand when tapped on the center. When I started rebuilding FI units over 40yrs ago, I did in fact use JB Weld around the recessed area where the plug fits. But I now use what is considered to be a better product, PC7, and it's available at ACE Hardware. Thoroughly clean the recess area for the plug (I like brake cleaner). Mix up a sufficient quantity to THOROUGHLY fill the recess for the plug. Install the plug (make sure it is all the way in), place some kind of flat punch against the plug (such as a 1/2in bolt works) and give it a moderate smack with a hammer. Clean off the excess which squeezed out around the plug with brake cleaner (or equivalent)----------------------LET IT CURE UNDISTURBED FOR AT LEAST 24hr!!!!! It's now there forever and no more leaks.
I must give proper credit for this fix to John DeGregory who taught me this method using the PC7 instead of JB Weld MANY years ago.
Tom,
Can I use the PC7 with the plug already installed? I was going to give it a good cleaning first.
Tom,
Can I use the PC7 with the plug already installed? I was going to give it a good cleaning first.
Yes, you can----------------------but you're going to have ugliness on the outside of the plug. Go to a parts store (O'Reilly, NAPA, etc) and get a new welch plug (Droman part number 550-008). The part number is stamped on the inside (concave), so it will not show when installed. If you cannot find a store to order the plug, let me know and I'll send you one. I keep a big inventory of plugs just for this reason for customers' units.
By the way, Jim Lockwood is in your area, he may be able to help you.
Yes, you can----------------------but you're going to have ugliness on the outside of the plug. Go to a parts store (O'Reilly, NAPA, etc) and get a new welch plug (Droman part number 550-008). The part number is stamped on the inside (concave), so it will not show when installed. If you cannot find a store to order the plug, let me know and I'll send you one. I keep a big inventory of plugs just for this reason for customers' units.
By the way, Jim Lockwood is in your area, he may be able to help you.
Thanks Tom,
I tapped the middle of the plug with a punch and ball peen. No seeping overnight. I will give the car a run and see if that expanded the plug. If not we will go to plan B!
12-14-2016, 05:16 PM
'61 FI Leak Advice
Go to a parts store (O'Reilly, NAPA, etc) and get a new welch plug (Droman part number 550-008). The part number is stamped on the inside (concave), so it will not show when installed. If you cannot find a store to order the plug, let me know and I'll send you one. I keep a big inventory of plugs just for this reason for customers' units.