Farmall M runs and dies update. . .how to clean fu

If you did not unscrew the sediment bowl, do that and clean out the inlet. You can do this with a full tank of gas. Since the flow path is offset you cannot push a wire through from the bottom.

As you unscrew it, you will find out if the bottom of the tank is plugged by how the gas rushes out. Have a plug handy to screw in while you clean the bowl housing. You won't lose more than a quart of gas (which, by the way, will seem like a lot).

It is probably just a little trash in the inlet to the sediment bowl. Or the gasket could be dislodged on the shutoff valve. It has a back seat to seal when the valve is wide open and this can come off. I've had this happen and plug up the flow path.

If you are seeing trash come out while you are putting the plug in, you may want to drain the tank out the open hole. This makes a big mess, but I hope you understand there is a certain hazard to draining gas, out in the open on a gravel drive is a good place. Wear rubber gloves if you are concerned with getting gas on your skin. Flush the spilled gas on the tractor with water and let it dry and you are OK to start it. I've had to do this in the hay field and use my water jug to flush so it doesn't take a lot of water.

When it is all clean and back together, put an inline fuel filter on to keep more trash out of your carburetor. You may have to repeat the inlet cleaning a few times, but I have done this procedure many times on many tractors and have never taken a tank off to clean. I also have never had to replace the inline filter. Most of the junk gets in the bowl. The only major problem I had was leaves in the tank. My hay hand finally admitted maybe somebody left the top off a gas can and got leaves in it. Maybe.

The best way I have found to clean a tank is slosh gas while you are driving. Tell you rwife you have to go clean the tank. Drive it several time sper week. It is a pleasant repair job. Regular use is the best remedy. Keep running the gas through and you need no liner to flake off later.

A word to the wise:

The best way to screw up a fuel tank is to check the level with a stick. You get fired around my place for that.

You can also try a quick fix of getting in there with a wire brush and scrub off the rough flakes, wave a 2" diameter magnet on the end of a clothes-hanger wire over the floor, rinse and leave the magnet in the tank near the outlet port. I did this three years ago on a moderately-rusted tank and haven't had a clogging problem since. Every year, I pull the magnet out (snag the eye-bolt I put through it with a clothes-hanger hook) and clean off the flakes it has caught. I put in an in-line filter but that hasn't needed changing yet.