leaking gas cap

[Guest]

I have been having problems with the vent on my gas cap leaking on my Strikemaster Mag 3000 since it was new last year. I am currently on my third O ring. I called Strikemaster in Big Lake yesterday and the C/S rep told me that this is one of their major conusmer complaints. She is sending me two new O rings, and said a new cap would cost me $5.00. I don't have problem with the $5 it's the idea that this appears to be a pretty poor patent from Tecumseh. I also emailed their site last night and expressed my discontent. I'm tired of the Tahoe smelling like a service station. Anyone else having the problem? Do you have any solutions in mind? Thanks

[cold one sd]

Been doing the same as cpg suggests for years and have never had a problem. You do have to keep the auger on its side with the fill end of the tank up. This also keeps the cylinder on its side and prevents the motor from flooding while it isn't in use. Sometimes when you have the cylinder head down the engine will flood. Just my opinion.

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[Guest]

Mine was leaking, too. I just went to
Wal-Mart and bought some O-rings...fixed it right up!

[Guest]

thanks for the return input guys. I have been doing all of the above, 2/3 full gas tank up. I take it out of the vehicle when not using and hang on bracket in the garage. I just rec'd the new O rings and have replace it. Will give that a try and make sure not to wrench on the screw when re tightening it. Maybe it was over tightened and caused the O ring to spread out or crack. I'll find out about 500am tomorrow morning. Crappie attack. Thanks again...Bill

[gone fishn]

One other thing you can do is open and close the cap befor you start it and don't even touch the vent one. When I bought mine that is the suggestion I got from the place. They are also a small engine repair place and drill holes for alot of the tournaments. He said you can drill at least 20 holes just by opening it once.
Good luck.

[Guest]

Of course, that depends on how much gas is in the tank as to how many holes you can drill.
Air/Gas volume ratio.
PCG

[Guest]

Gone Fishin' Thank you also I will give that a try in the AM, along with the new O ring, and the other info I should be good to go....Good Luck to you as well

[Dave]

Ya could eat a plate of beans before you take off. The Tahoe would have the pleasant aroma of da hunting shack rather than a service station.

OK, not a good idea. I've been trying to be very cautious to not about overtighten the vent screw, lately, (new auger) and it's worked out well so far.

[This message has been edited by Dave (edited 01-19-2002).]

[Guest]

That would be the way to be....But if the wife goes it may not be an option......
PCG

[Guest]

Such a common problem; Such a simple solution.
1st of all, let the gasket do its job the way it's suppose to. When tightening down the breather screw, DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN IT. Just screw it down until the rubber gasket barely squishes. This will seal the cap good, and the gasket will last a very long time also.
2nd thing you can do is NOT fill the tank above 2/3rds full. When you set the auger on side, set it so that the cap is orientated upwards. This will prevent leaks also.
This has worked for me for many years.
PCG

[This message has been edited by Pro Crappie Guide (edited 01-19-2002).]

[Dan97]

Howdy Bill...

And the saga continues...

I had (repeat: HAD) the same problem. My Strikemaster had turned into a LEAKMASTER.

What I found was that my problem did not have anything to do with gaskets. The small "cylinder" of aluminum that the breather screws into is just pressed and "glued" into the cap body. It was at this point that the leaks occured.

Gaskets may be your trouble, but check it out. Are you 100% sure it's not this fine glue that gave up on you?

Thus ends my .02

Dan

Oh yeah, the fix: Buy a new one.
Here's the link to the last go-round: http://fishingminnesota.com/ubb/Forum9/HTML/000362.html

[This message has been edited by Dan97 (edited 01-20-2002).]

[Guest]

Replaced the O ring yesterday, and hit the lake at 500am this morning. Transported the Auger in the sled as I had been, drilled the holes eased the cap shut just to compress the O ring drove home and WOW no smell. Maybe I've got this figured out. I had checked the top of the cap and it did not appear to be the problem but a good tip and I will watch that if it shows up again. Oh by the way the crappie bite was on until about 900am also. So all in all a great morning on the hard stuff.

[jt24]

One other thing you can do when you are hauling your auger is to take off your gas cap and put a piece of wax paper under the cap then put it back on and you should have no leaks. of course you have to remove it when you get to the lake but better than having to deal with the smell. just think if ya were driving for any period of time and it was leaking, kinda get a headache after awhile from the fumes! anyways just a thought.

[Guest]

Bill,

If you really want to get rid of that gas smell do what I did. Last week I traded in my SUV for a Pick Up. Put the auger in the back, no more gas smell.

[bturck]

Thanks to all for the posts regarding my gas cap problem. I enjoyed all the tips and humor. I am presently packing for my next trip and will incorporate all of them. I have packed 2 extra O rings, 2 squares of wax paper, 1 roll of duct tape, 3 cans of BM beans (love beans) and have borrowed my neighbors pickup. I should be good to go no matter what should crop up. Thanks again, you guys are great. Bill Turck

[WarrenA]

The cap on my auger used to leak. bought a new one and tightened the gasket down to tight and then replaced it with an o-ring from a car carb kit then found it leaking around thecenter where it was glued on. I scuff sanded around the vent and cleaned it off with some lacquer thinner and mixed up some J-B Weld and epoxyied the darn thing to the cap now it doesn't leak. I also wraped some teflon tape around the neck of the tank and that seemed to help also. Doesn't take much of a leak to smell up a car, less than 1 drop. Take a magic marker and mark the tank so know where to fill to.

[Cliff Wagenbach]

The vent on my gas tank leaked also because the o-ring kept getting squashed and broken. I finally replaced the o-ring with a hard 1/16 inch thick plastic washer from a faucet repair kit. I have used the auger lots all winter and have had no more leaks or destroyed gaskets.
Cliff

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Cliff's Guide Service
CliffsGuideService-LakeVermilion.com
Lake Vermilion
Phone: (218) 753-2005