Ignoring the fuel gauge might not be a good idea.

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

And, don't take off with one tank empty and only 30 minutes in the other.

This is what I found after pulling the right fuel tank. Don't know if the seam split in flight or on the ground (my landings weren't THAT bad).

 

[steingar]

We once had a stuck engine sump drain a whole tankload of gas onto the hangar floor. Thank Odin nobody smokes.

 

[dell30rb]

Here's what you need.

 

[Blackhawk]

The statement that the fuel gauge need only be accurate when on empty is one of the great aviation OWTs and results from a partial reading of CAR3/FAR 23.

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

Here's what you need.

Ummmm. No.

It's welded back up and doesn't appear to leak water. I'll dump in some mineral spirits tomorrow to be sure.

 

[rbridges]

Ummmm. No.

It's welded back up and doesn't appear to leak water. I'll dump in some mineral spirits tomorrow to be sure.

if you use flex seal, you can turn your gas tank into a boat. I saw it on TV.

 

[dell30rb]

if you use flex seal, you can turn your gas tank into a boat. I saw it on TV.

Now we're talking. Imagine how much fun you could have with a boat.

 

[DaleB]

If you use the clear stuff from the other commercial you won't even need the fuel gauge, You can just look and see how much fuel you have in the tank.

 

[ARFlyer]

Here's what you need.

Haha, my roommate used that stuff to fix our toilet. The tank split in half after a recent cold snap. Landlord never bothered to show up and fix it. So my roommate duck tape the tank back together and sprayed that stuff to seal it.

 

[JasonM]

What a great thread!

 

[danhagan]

Haha, my roommate used that stuff to fix our toilet. The tank split in half after a recent cold snap. Landlord never bothered to show up and fix it. So my roommate duck tape the tank back together and sprayed that stuff to seal it.

Between both products (seal and duct tape) everything is fixable now

 

[jpower]

And remember...

 

[focal_plane]

Here's what you need.

It also great for bald spots!

 

[Keith Lane]

We once had a stuck engine sump drain a whole tankload of gas onto the hangar floor. Thank Odin nobody smokes.

True story, according to my Dad.

During WW2, my Dad was in a test squadron @ Patuxent River, Maryland. Their job was to fly Lockheed PV2's as many hours as they could to evaluate failure rates so the Navy could stock up on the right stuff for the planes after they went into the fleet. They turned into a glorified taxi service for all sorts of officers, basically.
These planes were fitted with 1,500 gallon ferry/patrol tanks. There was a sump valve on their plane that always leaked. About 5 gallons of 130 octane a day, on the days when it wasn't flying. The solution was to put a can under it with a funnel attached and collect it. Well, you shouldn't fly with that gas, should you?????
Solution. The Pilot drove a Packard automobile. Ran mighty fine on that avgas, too.
No matter how the mechanics tried, they just couldnt stop that leak. Nor leaks on the subsequent PV-2's that captain flew, either.

 

[timwinters]

And, don't take off with one tank empty and only 30 minutes in the other.

Too bad it wasn't a Flight Design airplane...you could have joined the resident idiot and his lawsuit!

(Somebody had to say it)

 

[Clark1961]

True story, according to my Dad.

During WW2, my Dad was in a test squadron @ Patuxent River, Maryland. Their job was to fly Lockheed PV2's as many hours as they could to evaluate failure rates so the Navy could stock up on the right stuff for the planes after they went into the fleet. They turned into a glorified taxi service for all sorts of officers, basically.
These planes were fitted with 1,500 gallon ferry/patrol tanks. There was a sump valve on their plane that always leaked. About 5 gallons of 130 octane a day, on the days when it wasn't flying. The solution was to put a can under it with a funnel attached and collect it. Well, you shouldn't fly with that gas, should you?????
Solution. The Pilot drove a Packard automobile. Ran mighty fine on that avgas, too.
No matter how the mechanics tried, they just couldnt stop that leak. Nor leaks on the subsequent PV-2's that captain flew, either.

And auto fuel was rationed...

 

[frfly172]

Too bad it wasn't a Flight Design airplane...you could have joined the resident idiot and his lawsuit!

(Somebody had to say it)

I thought we where finished with that idiot.

 

[Clark1961]

I thought we where finished with that idiot.

idiots, like cockroaches, can be difficult to eradicate

 

[Silvaire]

Fuel gauges may be notoriously inaccurate but if you look at one and wonder "Why's it doing that?" you'd best land and find out.

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

Ok, Youtube is good at coming up with unrelated related videos - but when I watched the video of my fuel tank leaking, it came up with this one:

Really?

 

[Keith Lane]

And auto fuel was rationed...

Exactly.
The captain always had a full tank. Just never admitted how much he drove the car. Dad said he was always careful to never, ever sell any of it to anybody. (Though he did give some away). He'd give other people rides when possible, but never took anything for the favor. Was a bit like the FAA rules of thday regarding renumeration, but with much harsher (think wartime) penalties.

 

[ChrisK]

It is a video of a gas leak. I think YouTube was right on target.