Immolation imminent...

This is not a new problem; Nick and I fought with my gas tanks all last trip.  Actually, the tanks themselves are fine - its the friggin' hose connectors that wear out.  Since this is the integral component that holds the fuel line to the gas tank, it's kind of important that it doesn't leak.  The best scenario is where gas leaks into the dinghy, turning it into a potential source of the Viking funeral that I so desperately want.  (But not yet). Worst case is where the fitting leaks so bad that it allows air into the fuel line, which runs the engine out of fuel.

How about both cases at once?

So I'm cruising over from Nawi to the Savusavu shore when the motor sputters.  And coughs.  And sputters.  And dies.  I row out to give me some space and manage to frantically pump the priming bulb enough to get some gas to the carb.  The engine starts and I manage to make it (almost) all the way to Copra Shed Marina, where there is a Yacht Shop.  With the replacement fitting for my gas tank.

Or not.  "That item is not in stock."  Great.  I don't suppose you can tell me who might have it?  "Nawi."  Well, Sparky, I'm on the other side of the creek and rain is coming.

I hoof it all the way through Savusavu to a gas station known for its ample stock of boating supplies.  (By all the way I mean four or five blocks.  Maybe six.  It was raining, though.). Counter guy happily finds me the fitting and I pay him the $39.50 FJD and head back to my parked dinghy.

Now there is another interleaving story here about my oil filter, but I won't dilute this narrative with extraneous details.  Spoiler alert - I can't find an oil filter.

Now I knew I was going to need a screwdriver to replace the fittings, so I stopped in at a hardware store and bought two screwdrivers since I didn't know which head I would need.  

Feeling very smart, I go back to the dinghy, take off the old fitting and put the new one in the line...the line that's too big for the new fitting.  Turns out I have a 10 mm (3/8 in) line and I had bought a fitting with a 6 mm barb.

Hoof it back down to the store to swap out the fitting for the right size. Oh no!  All - repeat all - the Yamaha hose fittings in Fiji are made for 6 mm line.  

Trudge back to Copra Shed and row across to Nawi and a cold beer.

But I was not to be deterred!  Oh no, not me.  I tried every combination of o-ring I could find.  I even dug out the rubber liner from the fitting and tried to push o-rings in there.  Every time I thought I had it figured out, the damn thing leaked.  By now I have a dinghy floor awash in two-stroke oil (the gas having evaporated) so my feet smell like I'm a wildcatter.

And then came the inspiration.  What is it that Edison said about inspiration?  Or was it perspiration?  Have more of the latter.  I decided to glue the fitting onto the receiver fitting for the tank.  See pic.   Half the tanks I see have a direct connection to the hose that can't be removed anyway.  I just made a different kind.  It's on the tank now.  We'll see how the tank does in the hot Fiji sun.  

If this doesn't work, I'm going to build a whole new line.  It'll cost a fortune, but at least I should be rid of the pesky leakage problem for good.  Or I'll have another beer...