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TR2/3/3A Gasoline fumes and winter storage

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TomMull

TomMull

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I'm putting the TR3 away for the winter and now have, for the first time in my life, an insulated garage with heat. The problem, which was never a problem in previous drafty and cold barns, is the fumes from the TR3.
I've pretty much ruled out leaks and fixed the one I did find.
I am quite sure the culprit is the vent. I get a good whiff if I put my nose near the bottom of the vent tube. The tank is close to full, but not overly so with 60 or so miles since fill up.
Do I just ignore this? Drain the tank and system? Plug the vent or put some kind of charcoal filter on it?
Your thoughts will be appreciated.
Tom
 
I plugged mine years ago; as it dumps raw fuel on the road when you make a hard left turn. More recently, since I was working in that area anyway, I removed the tube and banjo entirely, and plugged the hole with a short bolt & washer.
 
TR3driver said:
I plugged mine years ago; as it dumps raw fuel on the road when you make a hard left turn. More recently, since I was working in that area anyway, I removed the tube and banjo entirely, and plugged the hole with a short bolt & washer.
Click to expand...
Interesting. I assume, then, that there is sufficient venting through the cap.
Tom
 
TomMull said:
Interesting. I assume, then, that there is sufficient venting through the cap.
Tom
Click to expand...
That may vary. Certainly no problem with the cap I have. Could be an issue if yours doesn't have the little hole (but it would be easy enough to add)

Gastankventholeincap.jpg~original
 
I wonder if a small hole in the cap will be less stinky than the vent pipe. Also wonder if I there is any reason I couldn't just plug the vent for storage.
Tom
 
Tom,
I plugged one of mine that was smelling. Strangely enough, not all of them smell. Maybe the ones that don't smell are already plugged?
Charley
 
Thanks, Charlie. Good to know.
Tom
 
Certainly no reason you can't plug it for storage. But even without the hole, the cap is not air tight. That steel disc (the rusty bit in my photo above) has some clearance to the post it mounts on (so it can move as you close the cap), which means air can get through the gap between disc and post.
 
TR3driver said:
Certainly no reason you can't plug it for storage. But even without the hole, the cap is not air tight. That steel disc (the rusty bit in my photo above) has some clearance to the post it mounts on (so it can move as you close the cap), which means air can get through the gap between disc and post.
Click to expand...
Thanks, Randall. That's what I saw when I looked at mine but was going to check some spares to see if it was missing a seal. You save me the trouble. The plug, for what it's worth, will go in tomorrow. Tom
 
NutmegCT said:
...shouldn't there be a circular rubber seal/gasket in that gas filler cap in...
Click to expand...

I think I see it in the photo - it is black and sits in a groove in the lower half of the fitting. The metal lip on the hinged half presses into that seal when closed. Of course over time that seal can get rock hard and less effective.
 
Right. The seal is there, just somewhat faded and hard to see. The photo isn't the best either; the flash on my old camera tends to wash out colors pretty bad and it was after dark when I took that shot. I have a better camera now, but I prefer to use the old one around the garage so I'm not out much if it gets damaged. The new one also lacks "macro mode" and sometimes has trouble focusing on extreme closeups.
 
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