VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1929-1932 1930 1/2 Ton NOT wanting to run Happy

I lucked into a stash of original cork gaskets to rebuild mine with. I didn't know about this issue with composite gasket material. Thanks for the info.

The odd part is that i rebuilt the fuel pump in the 1929 with the same kit per say from TFS. not a single issue to note, the gasket never swole up or anything like these last 2 i got have done. and it is was not a long time exposure to cause them to swell. it was within 10-15 minutes !!

I buy new glass bowl gaskets from the Model A suppliers (I have used Snyder's for nearly 50 years). All I have to do is trim a little off the outside and they fit the Chevy pumps just right. They are not expensive and are much newer stock (not dried out) than most you will find elsewhere.

My guess is that the kits (many produced in De Leon Texas) may have a different supplier for the rubber gaskets.

buy plenty of goodies from Snyders as well
i will give them a look

any knowledge on the Cork style from TFS ?? are they cork or Cork Rubber ?? I have one at home on the bench i can look at, any definitive way to determine the difference ??

You can call TFS and ask. They might have to ask Steve as their Jerry Adams may have finally totally retired. He is very knowledgeable guy. Same name as well.

Look for black rubber chunks in the cork. Modern replacement valve cover gaskets typically have rubber mixed into the cork. May help straighten bent valve covers so they don't leak?

ok will do, i did call and talk to TFS earlier this am, they did not at all seem interested in the ordeal. i offered to send one back to look at, not interested, offered to send pictures, not interested. asked if they knew the material or such, said not a clue, and not worth looking into. said they would send me a replacement cork-neoprene to use, and that the ones in the kit are ethanol safe and should not have an issue, and that i am the only one that has had this issue to date.

i have one of those on hand (FG-1) at home as bought one when i bought the last kit.

found Snyder's has the A-8110-A Cork gasket, is that the one you acquire and mod as needed ?? can get a 5 pack for under $2 then shipping.

Dem's the onez. A-8110-A-Q5 is what is on my packages. I buy a bunch at a time with other parts as well so the shipping gets spread over a large number of items. Have to cut a little off the OD so they fit in the depression in the pump casting. Have used them for too many years to count.

Steve from TFS here. Just talked with our supplier of fuel pump kits. They changed to a cork-rubber composite gasket for the fuel bowl about 6 months ago. We changed our FG-1 individual bowl gasket to cork-rubber about 2 years ago and have not had any trouble with swelling or fit. Chip, would be interested to know if you have seen or experienced any swelling with cork-rubber composite gaskets. I have not.

would explain why the kit i bought about a year ago to do my 1929 has a different looking bowl gasket then the last 2 i have bought.

the first kit bought for my 1929 looks like a solid black rubber, not a composite and has worked great. the last 2 kits i bought (one for spare fuel pump i got and one for the 1930 fuel pump rebuild) look like a composite. they are nearly black as you can see in the picture but look to have some small amount of cork (brown in them) and a different feel to them. the FG-1 Cork-Neoprene i also purchased looks like the traditional cork composite, brown with a few specs of black in it. that is the one i was going to try next in the fuel pump.

thinking of doing a bench test. put a little bit of gas in a pan and then drop in the gasket let it sit and see what happens. also do the same for the one from the kits. measure before and after see how much it grows :)

I have used the solid rubber gaskets and had good luck with them as long as they are not removed after installation. They do swell up once they are exposed to fuel and will shrink when dried out. That was the main reason we changed to the composite cork-rubber gaskets. I think you will find the composite does not swell. You won't have to measure, just try fitting them into the fuel pump.

what material were the old ones you guys had in the kits ?? that is what is on the 1929 and not an issue at all. seated it more than once and seals every time.

The old material did swell and that is the reason we changed. I experienced it both swelling and staying the same size. Not sure why but all I did was let it dry out and it shrunk right back. Always carried a couple of spares with me to swap out. Now with the cork-rubber gasket, it is not necessary.

Steve, thanks for your input and feedback,

I have a cork rubber from you that i bought as a spare when i bought the kits. i will put it in and see what it does. the ones that are swelling were the ones in the box kit i bought. between the 3 rebuild kits and the spare gasket i bought i have 3 different material compositions.

1-rubber (neoprene) bought this gasket for rebuild, and is the one in the 1929 currently
2-composition (not sure) one in the last 2 kits i bought, 1 for the 1930 and one for the spare fuel pump
1-cork-rubber spare one i bought with one of the kit (spare gasket just in case)

the composition one was used from the kit in the rebuild for the 1930 fuel pump it is the one that swelled and pushed itself out of position.removed it and then put int he other one from the spare fuel pump that had the same composition gasket in it. picture attached is the first swollen gasket removed from the 1930 and the one i pulled from my spare fuel pump before installing it. once they dry out the return to normal size. but once installed and exposed to fuel this is what happens within 15 minutes.

had some free time when i got home so put in the spare cork-rubber i had on the bench and re installed the glass fuel bowl. got everything ready to fire up and see what happens.

hoping to have time either friday after work or this weekend.

i am ready to be able to drive and enjoy

got 2 packages today on my porch...

one from TFS, they sent me replacement gasket, one of their cork-rubber ones :) always good customer service from them !!

one from Chipper, my fresh rebuild & tested 1930 Carburetor. took it out and looks great, will get it installed soon.

was a beautiful Saturday morning out so went out and tinkered with the 1930
once fuel bowl filled, then carb bowl filled, it fired right up. had to choke a bit initially then closed choke and away it went.
checked timing and all everything is per recommendations.

idles nicely around 550-600 rpm for now

then go for a ride around the block for a test and tune. when i try to accelerate it coughs through the carb. if i accelerate with NOT accelerator pedal and ease up it works fine, but if i try to press the accelerator it coughs.

any thoughts on what is going on ?? i am thinking timing is a little to advanced ??

Maybe the accelerator pump in the carb. not working. If a 1930 has one?

no tested that, the one i have is a NOS one that was checked and all is well, or so i was told. also got Chipper to go over the 1930 one and have it back in hand now.

Have you checked valve clearance? I'm wondering if an intake valve is not closing enough.

yes, did an initial cold set, then checked and reset after warming it up

will go back and check again

also gonna remove the plugs and do a compression check

decided to pull the plugs, check them and do a compression test... ran the cylinders twice, and not the same cylinder twice in a row !!

Compression Test:
Cyl 1: 55
Cyl 2: 70
Cyl 3: 75
Cyl 4: 75
Cyl 5: 60
Cyl 6: 70

Then took a look at the plugs:

pictures a labeled number and a/b
cylinders 1-3

cylinders 4-6

all plugs in line cylinder 1-6 (left to right)