Two questions for the collective hive mind

[CornerSpeed]

Hey everyone, more questions from me, the Club Ford noobie: As I’ve made my way through the process of car ownership and learning about its care and feeding, I’ve learned the importance of having spares of the bolts, nuts and washers that hold the thing together. To that end, I’ve been taking out the various bolts and measuring them, using my newly acquired thread gauge and Bolts.com bolt template (a nifty piece!). That way I only buy bolts, nuts, etc. that are specific to my car (1979 Van Diemen) and I’m not lugging around stuff I’ll never use or need. Plus, they’re expensive!

Along the way, I came upon two bolts in my rear suspension I’ve never seen before, which attach to the upper and lower portions of my rear uprights. See the attached photos. One is ?-inch X 24 tpi and the other is ½-inch X 20 tpi. What do you call these bolts with the unusual head on them (where a rod end connects)? And are these bolts Van Diemen-only purchases from an availability standpoint? Where do I buy spares like them? Didn’t see them on Primus’ parts site or the Medina Spares site.

The other issue I’m dealing with is how to fuel the car between sessions without having to remove all the upper body work to access the fuel cell’s filler cap. I could cut away portions of my nice bucket seat insert as well as a portion of the body work where it wraps around the lower portion of the roll hoop, to give me working room with a long, skinny funnel. But I really don’t want to do that. I’m thinking an 8-inch extension up from the fuel cell filler would solve the problem nicely, if I knew where to get one that threads into the Fuel Safe OEM filler cap threads. I don’t see anything like this on Fuel Safe’s parts site but emailed them anyway. But do any of you other 77-80 Van Diemen owners (or any one else for that matter) have any solutions for this that doesn’t involve cutting up my seat and the inside of my body work? See the third photo which depicts the rough dimensions of the snorkel/filler cap extension I am envisioning/seeking. Lots of smart people on this site who have forgotten more than I will ever know so please enlighten me! Thanks!

[CornerSpeed]

The fuel cell filler neck on this 1978 Van Diemen is a good example of the solution I’m seeking for my near-flush mounted filler: https://www.apexspeed.com/forums/sho...an-Diemen-RF78 Thanks!

[Lotus7]

AFAIK, your '79 fuel filler is the same as our '81.

A Scribner (or similar) fuel jug with a flexible neck cap works just fine for us.

[Bob L.]

I found a nifty little battery (2-D celll) pump at Tractor Supply... later at HF. Does about 1.8 gpm, with tygon extentsion, can be made to fuel almost anything, just stick pump into can (has to have neck big enough for pump, fuel jugs worked fine). No heavy jug to hold, slow enough you don't have to worry about overflowing before done, just set jug in seat, pump in jug, stick hose in car, and flip switch. Last I bought at HF was about 10 bucks.... so buy several, and carry some spare batteries.

https://www.harborfreight.com/batter...ump-63847.html

As to those clevis bolts....expect you'll have to build spares....not common to anything I know.

Okie

[Rick Kirchner]

I'm kind of bandwidth restricted right now, but there's a place in England that carries spares for a lot of english made cars. They might have the clevis bolts. Perhaps someone else out there remember the name. Motorsports Spares? The guy to talk to there is Simon.

The way to make an extension is to take the part you have now, bandsaw it in half below the threads, and weld a piece of tube of the appropriate length in between. I made one for my 94 because filling that car involved fuel around hot headers. don't forget to install an adel clamp or a piece of bar stock at some point near the top that can be attached to the firewall to support the long neck.

[Robert J. Alder]

I had a pump like the one suggested and it was great -- for a while. They're obviously not a real quality tool, but for the price why not?

But when it failed, I went for a more expensive unit, Amazon for $50. Neat. Has a off/on lever on the handle in addition to the off/on electrical switch. Hope it lasts 'cause it's nice, light, and very easy to use.

TERA PUMP TREP01-T Multipurpose Battery Powered Fuel Pump with Quick Stop Nozzle for Diesel, DEF, Kerosene - Gas Liquid Transfer Pump with Telescopic Suction (2.4 GPM, 360 Swivel Nozzle)

[JHerscher]

I believe Rick K was trying to recall Universal Racing Services in the UK as a potential source for the clevis bolts.

http://www.universalracing.co.uk/

Simon will indeed take care of you.

[BeerBudgetRacing]

Possibly Medina was well....
http://www.medinasport.co.uk/MSSpares/index.php

[BeerBudgetRacing]

Been using the Mr Gasket unit for the last few years....
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mrg-8000mrg

Believe this Tera unit is identical
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/tep-20066

Both go on the fuel jug (no open container)

I cut off one of the tabs and it auto shuts off perfectly.

[wake74]

I've never been able to fuel my RF81 by pouring out of the jug without making a mess. I've got one of the super cheap electric units, but the issue is that is designed for the standard household red 5 gallon gas jug. It's not long enough to reach the bottom of the taller race jugs. So I can only pump out about 3 gallons. I tried adding a short length of hose to the bottom but it messes up the pumping action.

I borrowed someones Flo Fast hand pump, and that was the bees knees, but geez they are expensive. I'm looking for a basic electrical one with a longer shaft, so the input above will be helpful for options.

[CornerSpeed]

AFAIK, your '79 fuel filler is the same as our '81.

A Scribner (or similar) fuel jug with a flexible neck cap works just fine for us.

Thanks, Lotus7! Yeah, I do have one of the Scribner jugs with the hose. The problem is seeing the filler opening atop the fuel cell in order to get the jug hose inserted properly.

[CornerSpeed]

I found a nifty little battery (2-D celll) pump at Tractor Supply... later at HF. Does about 1.8 gpm, with tygon extentsion, can be made to fuel almost anything, just stick pump into can (has to have neck big enough for pump, fuel jugs worked fine). No heavy jug to hold, slow enough you don't have to worry about overflowing before done, just set jug in seat, pump in jug, stick hose in car, and flip switch. Last I bought at HF was about 10 bucks.... so buy several, and carry some spare batteries.

https://www.harborfreight.com/batter...ump-63847.html

As to those clevis bolts....expect you'll have to build spares....not common to anything I know.

Okie

Thanks for the pump suggestion, Bob. And “clevis” bolts. . . . .doh! Know I know what they’re called and what to shop for. Thanks!

[CornerSpeed]

I believe Rick K was trying to recall Universal Racing Services in the UK as a potential source for the clevis bolts.

http://www.universalracing.co.uk/

Simon will indeed take care of you.

‘Thanks very much, Rick and J.! I will check out Universal Racing Services’ website.

[Thomas Wirtz]

Try Lee Chapman Racing.
The have several sizes and lengths for various cars.
Call and see if they have what you need or if could they fabricate
one for you.


http://www.leechapmanracing.com/chevron.html

[CornerSpeed]

Try Lee Chapman Racing.
The have several sizes and lengths for various cars.
Call and see if they have what you need or if could they fabricate
one for you.


http://www.leechapmanracing.com/chevron.html

Thank you, Thomas!

[DSR3]

Super Siphon. It might look like your giving your fuel jug a happy ending, but...

[CornerSpeed]

Hey ApexSpeed friends! An update for you and also my heartfelt thanks for all that reached out here and offline. Wanted to let you know that Simon from United Racing Services happened to see this thread and also responded to an email I’d sent him concurrently and he does indeed stock the rear suspension clevis bolts I inquired about. Yay! Also, I’ve been in contact with Fuel Safe and one of their reps has a possible solution or two for me regarding the fuel cell filler extension, so we shall see how that develops.

Thanks very much everyone! — Michael

[Roland V. Johnson]

You might find that an extension gets into your shoulder and is uncomfortable. Mock it up first and get into the car with it..

[CornerSpeed]

You might find that an extension gets into your shoulder and is uncomfortable. Mock it up first and get into the car with it..

‘EXCELLENT suggestion, Roland. Thank you!

[APEowner]

I've tried a variety of jugs and funnels for filling the tank on my Crossle and finally bit the bullet and bought one of the pumps that goes directly in the jug. It was pricey but I can slip the hose in behind the seat and I never spill a drop of fuel.

https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/pr...sp?RecID=30125

[DanW]

Michael,

Since our budgets are similar....

https://www.summitracing.com/search?...ransfer%20pump

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=gasoline+...f=nb_sb_noss_1

[CornerSpeed]

Michael,

Since our budgets are similar....

https://www.summitracing.com/search?...ransfer%20pump

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=gasoline+...f=nb_sb_noss_1

Thanks, Dan!

[Steve Davis]

Seems to me that you guys are WAY over 'expensing' this fueling thing. I just bought a cheap 'facet type' fuel pump and attached a couple pieces of fuel hose to it. One drops in the jug and the other drops in the tank. I 'stick' the fuel cell, decide how much fuel to put in and use the marks on the jug to know how much I'm pumping in. Total cost was about $20 for the pump and $15 for the hose. I DO have to have a battery handy, but I just use the spare that I keep for my race car.

Steve, FV80

[Mark_Silverberg]

Seems to me that you guys are WAY over 'expensing' this fueling thing. I just bought a cheap 'facet type' fuel pump and attached a couple pieces of fuel hose to it. One drops in the jug and the other drops in the tank. I 'stick' the fuel cell, decide how much fuel to put in and use the marks on the jug to know how much I'm pumping in. Total cost was about $20 for the pump and $15 for the hose. I DO have to have a battery handy, but I just use the spare that I keep for my race car.

Steve, FV80

I use a two jug process as the real issue is the difficulty of lifting and controlling the 5 gallon jugs. I use the 5 gallon dump jugs for storing and transport and use a 2.5 Gallon white jug for dispensing. i can set the 5 gallon jug in the door of the trailer and the smaller jug on the ground - dispense the exact desired amount into the dispensing jug and then that (very light) jug is used to fill the car. that way I can have a larger hose to fill the dispensing jug and a longer smaller diameter hose for filling the car. I always know exactly how much I am adding because I see the level in the dispensing jug - and you can have a long hose to reach in the car. No need to calculate when fueling - just dump the premeasured contents.

This does require an additional pour but it allows me to leave the storage jugs in the trailer where they remain cool. I typically keep the dispensing jug prefilled when I have slack time so if I get into a thrash between sessions I have my fill amount ready to dump.

[CornerSpeed]

Gents,

Just a follow-up on my original post. Wanted to let you all know that as was predicted by Rick and J., in earlier responses to my post, Simon at Universal Racing Services did indeed go beyond the call of duty to help me source the rear suspension clevis bolts I was trying to purchase to have spares handy. And, in an very agreeable effort to help me reduce the shipping costs, he shipped the bolts to the hotel I was staying at while on a trip to London and Edinburgh with my wife and I popped them into the bottom of my luggage for the trip back across the pond when the trip ended. Thanks, Rick and J and thanks, Simon and URS! As for the other concept I sought advice on, I’ve decided to abandon the idea of extending my fuel cell filler pipe. Enough of you advised against that idea in the thread as well as in PMs. I’ll just continue to hassle with removing the center bodywork. Safer and smarter.