Ok Ken, got a break.....
If you look at the photo in the first post, it is a little deceiving. When I remove my hatch, the hoses aren't really directly under it, they are sorta off to the side and I don't have small hands. That was problem #1, getting my hand in there.
I decided to remove the vent hose first to make room for the larger hose. I loosened the hose clamps on the tank side. Remember, the hose is also probably attached with a small bead of adhesive. I used a razor and split the last inch or two and was then able to pull it off the tank. I then removed the vent hose from the vent itself. I duct taped a rope to the vent side of the hose (a good bit of tape) and slowly pulled the vent hose from the tank end, out of the access plate opening. It wouldn't budge.
Problem #2.... I discovered later that the vent and fill hoses are taped together with masking tape below deck not too far from the fuel fill on the washboard. I had to YANK the vent hose hard from the washboard side to break the tape but be careful not to lose the ability to grab the hose on the tank side. I taped some rope to that side also just in case. Once I got the vent hose free from the fill hose it then came out of the floor pretty easily. I cut the rope from the vent hose and left it under the deck for the replacement.
Next came the fill hose. Same deal, take hose clamps off tank side, slice it with a razor but remember it is also reinforced with steel "belts" as well as adhesive so you'll need snippers also. Once that's off, I removed the other end from the fill neck and took the fuel fill off. This is a good time to make sure the wood core is still protected also while the fill neck is off. Tape another rope with duct tape on the fill hose and pull the hose out from the floor access. Once that is out, I had two ropes coming out of the floor and the other ends coming out of that molded glass box under the gunwale. Also I should mention, be careful NOT to lose the green grounding wire which you'll see attached to the fill neck. I almost lost mine.
Don't force these hoses when you are pulling them out. They WILL get hung up, just back up and try again…….patience…..twisting it sometimes helps.
Replacing them would be a heck of a lot easier IF the fill hose actually fits through the hole in the washboard. Mine did not. I did not have the time to enlarge the hole, having to deal with sealing the exposed core etc. So the only alternative is to start feeding it into the floor side first. I just taped one of the strings that was still under the floor to the fill hose and pulled from the other end.
One thing I found made it easier is to have someone GENTLY pulling on the string while another guy pushes on the hose. Here is where Problem #3 comes in…….Once you do get the fill hose up to the washboard, there is no where for it to go. It won't fit through the hole in the gunwale and it is too stiff to bend over and pull it out of the molded glass box that is there. So I had to feed it onto the fill neck and re-bed the fuel fill at this time. Then came the issue of getting the fill hose attached to the tank.
This hose is VERY rigid and doesn't bend much at all. 4" or so of the end was laying right next to the neck on the tank but I had a hell of a time getting it on since it really doesn't bend. I put some vaseline on the neck and used a piece of 2x4 to push it as hard as I could until it sorta "fell" on to the neck. It really needs to go past the fuel fill on the washboard, and then back toward the tank to slide over the fitting on the tank. That's not possible. I would have bet it never would have made it on but it did.
The vent hose went on pretty easily once it is fished through since it's flexible and has some slack for the loop. I was talking to a mechanic who actually had a pretty good idea once he looked at it (after I was finished). You could enlarge the hole (but you'll need a wider fuel fill flange) and you could even notch an area out so that the hose clamp would also pass through. If it's set up like this, you could leave the fill hose attached to the fuel fill and just pull it from there once it's disconnected from the tank and then reverse that to install the new hose.
Good luck, I hope I need a new tank before I have to do that again!
My hands were all chewed up and bleeding by the end of the day. :shock:
