When one of the plastic T's on one side of this crossover tube failed for
me, i resorted to machining...
I just looked to find the picture only to find that yahoo has deleted their
photos section....
But using plumbing bits from the home depot and machining the barbs to
exactly the right size, i was able to make a t that would fit into the hard
plastic line.

The problem i found, was that i only made it for one side.... And the other
side (still plastic) broke. : (
So i went back to the stock design but still have my brass fitting for the
future. I plan to make a few of these, with barbs that fit 5/16'' flexible
fuel line so that anyone can just get a pair of my fittings, add some hose,
and be done.... forever. They fit the gaskets perfectly, and are even
"barbed" for a better bit. Anyone interested?
There is something to be said for keeping it stock though.....
And, the gaskets themselves are part of the problem. They do fail.

-Craig
'85Gl

On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 8:57 AM, Mike <mbucchino@charter.net> wrote:

>  I had my '87 Westy gas tank out to repair the broken vent t-fitting on the
> driver's side.  I took some pics and they're posted here;
>
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/7984329@N08/
>
> I epoxied the outside of the plastic t-fitting, reinforced it inside with a
> piece of aluminum tubing.  Then I replaced the split overflow tank vent
> check valve seals (thanks, Frank!) and put it all back together.
> I discovered that you can pre-position the crossover tube first, slipping
> into the 'ceiling' sheetmetal clip.  Then when the tank's in, you can reach
> into the wheelwells to pop the plastic t-fittings into the seals.
>
> I did make a very cheap plastic replacement crossover tube assy with
> plumbing parts from Home Depot.  I didn't install it for now, just to see
> how my repair holds up.  The last one I did like this, worked well for many
> years (I sold that van recently).
>
> Mike B.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Chris S" <szpejankowski@GMAIL.COM>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Thursday, May 08, 2008 8:15 AM
> Subject: Re: Fuel Tank Crossover Vapor Assembly
>
>
>  Just make sure your hose goes OVER the coolant pipes.  This normally means
>> you put the tank where it's nearly in place and push the hose ends over
>> the
>> white plastic fittings.
>>
>> One reason for a new assembly is crumbling plastic ends and shrinking
>> o-rings.  Oh, and that flammable gas thing.. yeah.
>>
>> Chris.
>>
>> On Wed, May 7, 2008 at 7:02 PM, Old Volks Home <oldvolkshome@gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>  To the Vanagon Community At Large:
>>>
>>> Is there any "hard" reason for the Fuel Tank Vapor Crossover Assembly to
>>> have a rigid, fuel vapor-resistant plastic tube between the two nylon
>>> pieces
>>> that insert the tank?  Can a more flexible piece of tube (or maybe even
>>> hose) be substituted in it's place?
>>>
>>> Reason for the inquiry - Looking to to repro this piece to offer at a
>>> much
>>> affordable price than the obscene $48 currently charged.  Don't want to
>>> cut
>>> corners, but if there's a better way, I'm all ears.
>>>
>>> Comments, suggestions and poison pen letter cheerfully accepted ;-)
>>> --
>>> Jim Thompson
>>> 84 GL 1.9 "Gloria"
>>> 84 Westfalia 2.1 "Ole Putt"
>>> 73 K Ghia Coupe "Denise"
>>> 72 411 Station Wagon "Pug"
>>> oldvolkshome@gmail.com
>>> http://www.oldvolkshome.com
>>> ***********************************
>>>
>>>