At 03:52 PM 3/17/2010, courtney hook wrote:
>So last summer all was well with my stock 77 Westy factory propane
>tank/stove setup. This year I went out to give it a test, opened up
>my tank valve, then went inside to turn on a stove ring. Nadda.
>Nothing at that end. My regulator has a knurled ring that is spring
>loaded (excuse my poor knowledge of this) that you can wind back a
>bit, and propane hissed out from here. I wound it back down, (this
>is NOT the on-off valve that closes the tank), to where it should
>be, so there is propane in the tank, yet it does not get up the

Dear Courtney -- I've never seen a '77, but from your description I
think that the knurled knob you're talking about is the manual vent
valve on the tank itself or a vent valve on the auto-stop filling valve.

To check regulator output, loosen a fitting on the  output of the
regulator and smell for gas at much lower pressure than the tank.  I
suspect the problem *is* the regulator, and you can replace it for
($30 or so ten years ago) from an RV place or online vendor.  It's
made by Marshall Brass and someone else will have to quote the number
as I'm having a senior moment.  If you still have the square one it's
due for replacement with the newer round one which is an inch or so
longer and involves bending the copper output tubes a bit.  The
square one is NLA because of premature failures at the diaphragm corners.

Yours,
David