Pin hole in fuel bowl

Bodaver32

Member
Hello,

I am restoring a 230 Farmall that was not running when I bought it.

When I bought it I noticed a JB Weld type product on the exterior bottom of the Zenith fuel bowl, obviously to fix a leak.

Yesterday I removed the material and found a pin hole in the bottom of the fuel bowl. I didn't spend much time on the project, I just wanted to see what the issue was under the putty.

I would like to repair it. Is the fuel bowl aluminum or pot metal? If aluminum, couldn't I solder it?

Thanks,

Greg
 
I don't know what the bowl is made of but you could solder if it was made of ether metals. You could clean it up and JB Weld it again and it would hold for a long time if done right.
 
Neither Pot metal nor aluminum weld at all well. Zinc alloy because it doesn't wet well and falls apart, and aluminum
because the part is too thin. I would drill the pin hole to 1/16" then put a small (tiny) sheet metal screw in the hole.
Make sure it does not contact things on the inside. Jim
 
Polish the part with steel wool to clean it, and repair on the inside with gas tank repair(most auto parts stores)
 
I would solder or a type of brazing cause
welding might blow out a bigger hole. I
don't know your skill level with a welder
so that would be your discretion.
 
The fuel bowl is supposed to be glass, so you can see inside it and see if there's gas flowing, crud accumulating, or water in your fuel.

I would just replace it with the correct fuel strainer assembly with glass bowl, or a ball valve and an inline filter if you'd like.
 
The pin hole is in the carburetor bowl that contains the float.

I saw this stuff and it looks interesting. It has a 350 degree melting point that would keep from melting the pot metal. It can be worked with a propane torch.

http://www.muggyweld.com/pot-metal-repair/

The stuff is pricey, but have read good comments from users.

I also considered the fuel tank sealant, but worry about the sealant being down stream of a fuel filter should any of the material come loose.

The tractor is a restoration that I am hoping to keep near to original as cost/sanity will allow. It will not be for shows, but I like original representations.

Thanks all!
 
This is where I am at with it right now.

Currently assembling the engine after getting it back from the shop.

Tractor_5_17_16.jpg
 
That's pretty slick! I wouldn't use a
sealant in the carburetor for the reasons
you mentioned. I have had a very bad
experience with that stuff in a tank and
ended up cutting 2 holes in the bottom of
my H tank and wire wheel all that nasty
crud out and weld it back up. In my defense
I did not out the sealant in there, I got
the tractor that way. I'm on a tight budget
myself but I have learned if I spend a
little more now I spend alot less later. I
might go with that solder stuff you talked
about.
 
We had a John Deere mod A that had a small leak in the carb bowl similar to yours, and a previous owner had brazed it. It held for years and years, was on the bottom of the bowl and wasn't unsightly. We chose to leave it alone as it held fine. I don't know if the metal composition would be similar to your IH, so I'm not sure if brazing is an option.

BUT..., the float also had a small hole in it and someone had attempted to repair it by brazing also. The carb flooded so bad it made Noah's flood look like a heavy dew!! :lol:
We tried removing enough brazing material so it would hold but be light enough to float...with no success. We finally tracked down a tractor supply house and got a NOS float.

good luck, nice frame btw.
ET
 
Who ever put tank sealer in your tank must have not done it right. I have a tank on my F20 that I did 46 years ago and it is still good. The only thing is the liner has changed color over the years but is still good. If you want a liner to stick you have to get tank perfectly clean and dry before applying it.
 
(quoted from post at 15:02:35 05/16/16) Neither Pot metal nor aluminum weld at all well. Zinc alloy because it doesn't wet well and falls apart, and aluminum
because the part is too thin. I would drill the pin hole to 1/16" then put a small (tiny) sheet metal screw in the hole.
Make sure it does not contact things on the inside. Jim
Done this several times. Drill and tap a #4 machine screw in place with a little JB weld. Wait 24 hours, cut the head off the machine screw, and you'll never know it was there.
 

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