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Re: SU FUEL PUMPS ( and Heath Robinson priming mechanisms)

To: british-cars@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: SU FUEL PUMPS ( and Heath Robinson priming mechanisms)
From: bryan@roborough.gpsemi.COM (Duncan Bryan)
Date: Wed, 3 Aug 94 09:12:03 BST
On Tue, 2 Aug 1994, Chris wrote:

> >My Healey has a brand new SU pump. If I leave it for a week without 
> >driving it I have to bang it a good one to get it going EVERY time. Looks 
> >great in the parking lot  and crawling under a Healey is hard for
> >SNAKES to do!
> >
> >I have cleaned and gapped the beast to no avial. Any suggestions? 
> >
> >Chris
> >triumph@io.org
> >

and Will responded:

> My brain is storming!  What about a pool cue?  One or two nice thumps with a 
> well chalked cue should do the trick.  You might even make it (the cue, that 
> is) out of genuine re-cycled steering wheel wood; very British, don't you 
> know?  Now *that* might draw a crowd!
> 
> Will "long gone" Zehring
> 

Hmmm...  A pool cue sounds more American brute force than the subtle
solution truly worthy of an LBC.  Particularly a Healey.   
May I suggest the following.  Install a turn signal flasher, thusly:

"Hot" battery terminal--->SPST switch--->flasher input||flasher
output---->12V solenoid taken from a doorbell (type with spring loaded
internal plunger).  Arrange the plunger so that it strikes the fuel pump
when current flows through the bell coil.  When pump refuses to pump, turn
on the switch.  The doorbell plunger will rhythmically hammer on the pump
until it starts pumping. 

Ray "signalling that he's gone 'round the bend" Gibbons

Heath Robinson would be proud!

I must admit that I have heard of worse bodges than this.
A student friend of mine had a 'small' oil leak in his Triumph 1500
( yes his steering UJ did once pop off )
Being a poor student he couldn't afford to repair the leak nor could he afford
to lose all the oil.  The solution was quite novel.  Nipping off to the 
scrapyard
he returned with a couple of windscreen washer pumps, some pipe and a few 
connectors.
Delving in the cupboard yielded a doorbell, some wire, tape and a large tin 
tray.
The tin tray was bashed a little to round it slightly and then 
lashed underneath the worst oil leak spot with a pipe leading to a washer pump.
The outlet from the washer pump led to a 5 litre oil bottle. Every so often 
whilst
driving he would hold down the doorbell to pump some 'overflow' into the oil 
bottle.
The system was later developed so that pumping was automatic every 5 minutes or 
so.

It all ended rather sadly, he finally got a job, rebuilt the engine and gearbox
completely and then managed to reverse the car into a lampost at 30 
( he forgot that double leading shoe drum brakes don't work too well going 
backwards)
Oops no more Triumph.

Happy bodging. 

    _/_/_/_/    _/_/_/_/    _/_/_/_/    E-Mail : bryan@roborough.gpsemi.com
   _/          _/    _/    _/           Address: GPS, Tamerton Road, Roborough
  _/  _/_/    _/_/_/_/    _/_/_/_/               Plymouth, PL6 7BQ, England, UK
 _/    _/    _/                _/       Phone  : +44 752 693431
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