Hi, I recently purchased a Tilley, and its turned out to be a 234A, and is dated 1964 on the bottom. Was told it had been pressured tested, seals changed etc, so duly, filled it up, and lit, and it burned nicely. Switched it off, and left it overnight, when i returned the next morning it was sitting in a puddle of fuel ! So I bought a parts kit from Tilley, swapped the various seals and tried again - same again ! Stripped it down, removed the frame etc, checked everything was on the right way round, tried again but with no fuel this time and seemed to hold pressure, so tool the plunge, (literally), and did the bucket of water test, and greeted with several streams of bubbles ! 1 - from the pump where it screws into the fount 2 - from the plunger into the pump 3 - from the adjuster ring where the control vavle screws into the fount ! and 2, I suspect can be eliminated by carefully redoing the maintenance kit 3 however has got me stumped - the ring the control valve screws into appears to tighten and loosen but doesnt unscrew - is that correct, should it even be moving ? Or is the Fount dead and i need to find a new one ! Any advice, thoughts etc gratefully received ! (I'll try and get some pics posted)
I assume you mean X246A and it's leaking from this area. That "ring" should not move at all but if you can solder, it should be an easy enough fix. Looking at this next image you can see that the ring enters the tank from above, is held fast with a circular nut and sealed with solder - all done before the base plate is put in place during the manufacturing process. Use a suitable degreaser or strong detergent to clean outside as well as inside the tank and remove all traces of fuel. Use a gas blowtorch with a fine flame to heat the area until the existing solder runs, this is often enough but there's nothing to stop you adding a little more solder around the "ring". It's a good idea to wrap water-soaked kitchen towel around the pressure pip and the studs to which the frame legs attach to keep them relatively cool, you don't want to fix one leak and start another. You can use the same method if there's a leak around any of the leg studs. The boss into which the pump screws can drop into the tank so after removing the pump leather and rubber seal, replace the pump and suspend the tank by the pump knob, this will keep the joint tight while you effect any repair.
Wouldn't it leak air from that joint rather than fuel? I don't see that one responsible for making puddles.
Did you fixed this? I have same problem with air bubbles coming from the insert of the plunger into the pump. Also a X246A.
