A/C Flat Head Fuel Pump

[Bill Ingler #7799]

I am helping a friend sell his excess 41 parts and below is a Rebuilt A/C fuel pump with a steel bowl instead of glass. Was this the standard for a rebuilt A/C factory pump or did they run out of glass? About what year did A/C start using steel instead of glass?   Bill

[harry s]

Bill, I have wondered about the same thing as to glass vs steel.      Harry

[Bobby B]

Bill, I have wondered about the same thing as to glass vs steel.      Harry

Bill,
I've never seen that before....
                             Bobby

[Bob Schuman]

That's a WW2 military fuel pump. I think it is identical to the car pumps except for the metal fuel bowl on top.

[harry s]

Bob, That makes sense. I've had a couple over the years but they are not as desirable as the glass which allows you to see the fuel level before starting and just generally looks better (IMO).    Harry.

[Bill Ingler #7799]

Thanks Bob for the answer.   Bill

[Steve Passmore]

I had thought about suggesting WW2 issue pumps as it would seem logical not to depend on a glass bowl during battle but a check through the internet showed these things were being sold well after the war in domestic wrapping and almost all genuine War department parts that I have owned are in Ministry of defense boxes.
They could have been war use refurbished after the war when originals were no longer available.  The glass would have obviously been more prone to braking so they would have had to use an alternative. Would have been easier to reproduce the metal bowls rather than glass.
The question has been asked on other forums without a satisfactory result so chances are we will never know.

[harry s]

Steve, Now that you mention how fragile the glass bowls are the metal alternative in civilian use also makes sense. Cleaning the glass bowls was a maintenance item and they got broken more often than imagined. They were not uniform across applications making inventory a pain.     Harry

[Paul Phillips]

I remember one of these showing up on a car at a GN in the past couple years, and it was deemed as "not authentic" as originally delivered to the first owner.  The decision was supported by our Chief Judge.  Perhaps that is a caution if a potential buyer intends to show their car.

Paul

[Brad Ipsen CLC #737]

I say it is a potential caution that we cannot possible know for sure how cars were delivered when we get down to this level of detail.  I have several of these metal fuel pump bowls in my collection of parts.  I carry one in spare parts on tours.

[Steve Passmore]

I agree Brad. Manufacturers fit whatever they can get to keep the production line going still to this day.