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Engine basics => Engine set up tips => Topic started by: Frank Sheridan on May 01, 2009, 10:53:49 PM
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I have a couple of Brodak BH-476 3.5oz medium wedge tanks. They've never been used, but when you shake them you can hear particles inside the tanks. What is it and is it worth taking the tank apart to fix?
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It's probably solder resin or solder flux beads that flowed in. Pop the back off and clean it and the inside out with alcohol. Put the back back on and resolder. Pressure test the tank with an empty fuel syringe and plug the other lines. With the tank submerged in a glass of water, apply air pressure from the syringe and fix any leaks with the soldering iron.
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I have a couple of Brodak BH-476 3.5oz medium wedge tanks. They've never been used, but when you shake them you can hear particles inside the tanks. What is it and is it worth taking the tank apart to fix?
I don't know, but its either open it up and clean it out, send it back for a clean one, or not use it.
Brett
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Frank, 99.99% of the time what you are hearing is solder beads and 99.99% of the time, they will not be a problem.
You can flush the tank with alcohol and by holding the wedge down and with the pick up slightly lowered and a vent capped, you can some times get small solder particles out. You can also shake all the particles to a rear corner away from the fill and vent and apply a little heat in order to remelt and stick the solder down. Phil
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Frank, 99.99% of the time what you are hearing is solder beads and 99.99% of the time, they will not be a problem.
You can flush the tank with alcohol and by holding the wedge down and with the pick up slightly lowered and a vent capped, you can some times get small solder particles out. You can also shake all the particles to a rear corner away from the fill and vent and apply a little heat in order to remelt and stick the solder down. Phil
If these are solder beads they will make more noise when you rattle the tank and you can heat up the tank on one of the front corners and melt the solder into the corner of the tank and they will no longer be a problem. Old Chinese trick tought to me by confushious! HB~> HB~> HB~> H^^
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Frank, 99.99% of the time what you are hearing is solder beads and 99.99% of the time, they will not be a problem.
You can flush the tank with alcohol and by holding the wedge down and with the pick up slightly lowered and a vent capped, you can some times get small solder particles out. You can also shake all the particles to a rear corner away from the fill and vent and apply a little heat in order to remelt and stick the solder down. Phil
HMMMM... I never thought about doing that way! I've always taken the hard route by opening the tank and then trying to get it soldered back air tight.
That's a simple solution for us "solder impaired individuals"!
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HMMMM... I never thought about doing that way! I've always taken the hard route by opening the tank and then trying to get it soldered back air tight.
That's a simple solution for us "solder impaired individuals"!
Yeah Dick, I have done a few over the years with no problem, and it beats taking the tank apart and resoldering ......and making more solder beads.. HB~> LL~ Phil
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I have also had Brodak tanks that had large "burn marks" where they were obviously overheated in the soldering process. This overheating apparently(?) burnt the plating off the inside of the tank resulting in many tiny flakes of ash(?) / burnt plating(?) to constantly fill up the fuel filter. No amount of flushing seemed to clean out the "stuff". The repair was to replace the offending tank!
W.
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I have a couple of Brodak BH-476 3.5oz medium wedge tanks. . . .
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is it worth taking the tank apart to fix?
It is a good policy to pop the back off all store-bought tanks and peek around. Overflow vents are typically cut short, giving less capacity than purchased. Pick-ups can be short or out of place. Uniflow vents (the BH-476 isn’t uniflow, so no problem with this one) can terminate in imaginative places.
The Brodak tank ends are formed, so no distortion of “tabs” in removal. Use the skillet method for easy removal. A flat skillet on the stove, tongs to hold the tank, and screwdriver / pliers to pop the back when you see flow. (save the juice for your morning eggs)
Re-soldering is easy with the formed ends – just snap firmly and completely on (no jigs needed), and flow.
An easy, bullet-proof test for leaks is to plug two vents, put a piece of tubing on the third, and suck as hard as you can. Plug the line with the tip of your tongue to make sure it holds a vacuum. Say the Lord’s Prayer twice (the “thy’s” make a nice tongue twitch) and if you still got a vacuum, you are good to go. If not, get out the water, and . . . you know the drill.
Besides, you gotta know what it is. Maybe it's a 2 carat diamond?
Larry Fulwider
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I understand soldering theory better than I practice it. I was fueling when the overflow plugged with a tiny ball of solder. I had cut the tube with a tubing cutter. I had rounded off the lip on the outside but not on the inside. Got out the #11 and trimmed the lip off the inside and got the solder ball out.
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To check for leaks I do what Larry suggests, but put the tank in a pot of water, then blow through the third line. A lot easier to see bubbles in the water than to listen for leaks or pass out from lack of oxygen!
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I submerge the plugged up tank in a basin of hot water. I put the tank in the freezer for a few minutes before I plug it up. I think this method will get about as much pressure in the tank as is practicable. It has been pointed out that a leak might seal under pressure but leak under suction, so there is something to be said for a suction test.