Fuel Cap 82 Offshore

[Uncle Joe]

Hello All.....this might be a silly question but I have been wrestling with this for a few years now. I bought a 1982 Offshore a few years back.....did a ton of work and I am very happy with the boat but......when I bought it the previous owner told me the aux fuel tank was no good and not to use it....the main had been replaced. Well, when I started to look at the aux tank I found it was pristine.....it was just full of bad gas and the tank selector switch was bad....disposed of the fuel....changed all lines....in and out and replaced the diverter valve. The last issue with the tank is that the fill cap was lost somewhere along the way and somebody cross threaded a metal cap on the forward inlet.
I have looked high and low for a replacement.....online....boatyards....called Grady...all with no success. Everything on this boat is non standard. Long store to get to a simple question.....can I just take the existing cap from the main tank to a 3D printing outfit and have one made? I know nothing at all about how they operate.
Thanks for your input.

 

[DennisG01]

The things on the boat ARE standard... but from 40 years ago. Things change. I've never done 3D printing - can't help with that question.

BUT... you have Marinium fixtures (cleats, fuel fill) - which are actually FANTASTIC stuff. The problem is that it got expensive to produce. Somewhere along the way, Perko bought the rights to and still manufacturers some of it. In the end, though, you just need to match up the diameter and thread. I'd have to think that a cap can still be found - but it might mean a little more time/research. Count the threads per inch and the diameter to compare.

 

[Captglasshole]

Not to hijack the thread, but did the Offshore come standard with 2 tanks? Mine only has 1 fuel fill and another one that looks like someone did a poor job of glassing over it. I wasn't sure if that fill was for the fresh water tank which I am told was removed from my boat or an old fill from a 2nd tank

 

[seasick]

If your threads are cross-threaded you will need to replace the entire fitting. You need to know if you have a vented type fitting or a sealed unit. Do your tank vents go to a outside (on the hull) mounted vent ( a clamshell fitting) or do both the fill hose and the vent hose connect to the deck fill fitting.
There are models with different diameter caps but as long as the fill hose and vent hose (if attached to the fitting) are correct, the size of the cap doesn't matter. Although getting a new fill fitting is easy, the screw holes may not line up. No big deal but a little more work. Try to make sure that whatever fixture you get, it will fit in the gunnel cutout. All you really need to do is to get a fitting that has the same or close to the same outside diameter.

 

[Uncle Joe]

The things on the boat ARE standard... but from 40 years ago. Things change. I've never done 3D printing - can't help with that question.

BUT... you have Marinium fixtures (cleats, fuel fill) - which are actually FANTASTIC stuff. The problem is that it got expensive to produce. Somewhere along the way, Perko bought the rights to and still manufacturers some of it. In the end, though, you just need to match up the diameter and thread. I'd have to think that a cap can still be found - but it might mean a little more time/research. Count the threads per inch and the diameter to compare.

Zackly Dennis! The whole fuel fill arrangement is bigger and sturdier than anything I can find now. It is only a plastic cap but nothing else will fit.

 

[Uncle Joe]

Not to hijack the thread, but did the Offshore come standard with 2 tanks? Mine only has 1 fuel fill and another one that looks like someone did a poor job of glassing over it. I wasn't sure if that fill was for the fresh water tank which I am told was removed from my boat or an old fill from a 2nd tank

The 2 Offshores I have owned both were standard with 2 tanks.

 

[DennisG01]

Zackly Dennis! The whole fuel fill arrangement is bigger and sturdier than anything I can find now. It is only a plastic cap but nothing else will fit.

Now, I haven't had the luxury of having to look for a replacement fuel cap yet But it "appears" to be the same, or awful darn close, to readily available caps like this one ("internal", so to say, caps). I CAN tell you that it was easy to find a replacement o-ring for the cap - which leads me to believe (or at least assume!) that a new cap is available.