Fuel pipe.

[vhgmcbuddy]

I’m having a go at bringing a Ransomes Certes 18″ back from the dead.
The fuel pipe takes an unusual route from tank to carb, passing between the lower cooling fins on the cylinder.
The original pipe is the plastic reinforced type, and has hardened so is no longer useable. Would ordinary clear pipe be suitable, or will it melt? The original pipe hadn’t, but were they made of more durable plastic 50 years ago?
Andy

[wristpin]

I believe that the original was unreinforced clear plastic but most clear plastic pipes are suffering from the current ethanol adulterated fuels. They either go hard or floppy depending on the particular plastic. The (usually) yellow Tygon pipe seems to be the most fuel resistant around at present. The original routing in the clips under the flywheel cowl can be a bit of a pain so if concours originality is not important it is easier to route it under the fuel tank over the left of the engine (as viewed from the operating position).

[vhgmcbuddy]

Thank you for the advice. I had assumed the clips under the cowl were for the HT lead. The fuel pipe IS routed under the tank at the moment, and has been for a long time by the looks of it. My concern was it being damaged by the heat by the hot cylinder fins which it touches. (yes it is a sloper, forgot to mention that!)

[wristpin]

Never seen one suffer from heat, don’t think that those old Slopers ever get hot enough to cause a problem. If your engine has an ignition switch in the cowling just to the left and level with the top of the recoil starter the wire to that usually shares those clips with the fuel pipe.
From memory the HT lead goes upwards and under the fuel tank but all my Sloper engined machines are well buried in the shed for the winter!

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