Well, that was a pain in the ass. It began well enough. Removing the metal clips from the plastic fittings was pretty straightforward. Push the pin in and then gently tease them apart and you don't have springs flying everywhere. I'm a bit confused as to why I needed to save the bits as the new fittings come with clips, but I'll hang on to them anyway.Following the directions online, I next took out the lower plastic fuel fitting in about thirty seconds. The upper one (that leaks) immediately broke (I suspect it already was) and proceeded to spectacularly fall apart. I spent the next two hours with a hot pick pulling bits of brittle plastic out of the metal fuel tank threads. It turned into tedious dental surgery rather than a quick repair.
With the plate now clear of detritus, I should be able to install the new metal fittings and resolve my leaking fuel tank once and for all. Since I have to remove the tank to pretty much do any engine maintenance at all, this fix will make the Tiger maintainable again.
With the fuel tank fittings sorted I'll next be doing the fork oil (never done that before), change the plugs and do a coolant flush (which requires multiple fuel tank removals). The Tiger will be fit should spring ever arrive.
Online Notes on Fuel Fitting thread sealant:
What to use for fuel fitting thread sealant:
https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/document.do?docId=563
Don't use teflon tape for fuel fittings!
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/teflon-tape-vs-gasoline-question.264585/
These guys make it:
https://www.permatex.com/products/thread-compounds/thread-sealants/permatex-high-performance-thread-sealant/
It's available locally:
http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/permatex-high-temperature-thread-sealant-6-ml-0383777p.html#srp
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| The metal plate the fuel pump is connected to on the gas tank has a couple of plastic fuel fittings screwed into it. The top one is leaking and was a pain in the ass to get out, the bottom one came right out easily. |
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| The plastic male ends go into plastic female ends in a metal fuel pump plate. Shortly it'll all be stainless steel. |
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| Getting it that clean took some patience. |
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| The big, orange Triumph Tiger in maintenance mode - the battery pack is on the back to raise the front wheel off the ground for the coming fork oil change. |
