Close but no cigar

Hmmm, the trip out to the Triumph World picnic did not go according to plan - Oh we got there OK with both cars and had a good day there. Catching up with old friends was good and although the morning looked wet, the weather turned out to be great.
As I pulled up I heard the fuel pump noise change and the engine stopped - cavitation!


Arse!


So with lots of people having a look I canvassed opinion from the gathered PI intelligenci. There weren't any new ideas but some rationale for old ones.

The tank set up probably needs revising - it's a syphoner at the moment and that could be changed to a drainer by adding a union. Dave at Canley's recommended making a swirl pot inside the tank - I like this idea but I'm not sure my welding is up to it - maybe braze it. Also, heat in a petrol tank could be fun :-)

A helper pump could be one solution rather than the above surgery but that's two pumps = twice the potential for problems.

Also, the spill from the PRV and the Metering Unit currently go back through the filter housing - like the early TR5 plumbing. One of the theories discussed was that the fuel, warmed from the Metering Unit and PRV (as it's gone round the pump in the cooling coil) could be one of the problems. The warm fuel should really go back into the tank - the rationale being that with such a large volume of cool fuel it will absorb the heat. I could use the syphoner outlet as a spill inlet from bother the PRV and Metering Unit using the current "T" piece.

So, armed with all this info I set off for home, yup, she started to stutter and was in danger of dying on me - I knew the next thing would be the engine would stop death. HOWEVER! I was prepared, I had a fully built up spare pump, cooling coil and PRV - I plumbed in the spare pump (2 minute job if you leave it all unsecured) and was ready for the off again. So I got home with the spare but it's still not right. I have a slight misfire and I suspect that's No6 or No5 and that could be those troublesome banjo unions on the Metering Union - I have new ones but fitting them is a pain as you need to pull the Metering Unit out and then re-time it.

So now I'm sat with a cup of tea thinking "What the hell am I going to do and when? I've got 5 weeks!!!

More tea I think.


J

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