Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums Showcase and Stories, Petroliana Do I restore this base or scrap it?

A friend is restoring a Bowser 300 crank gas pump. His base was broken, and he did not have any of the pieces that were missing. The crank style base is different than the standard electric one. He acquired a base for a electric one and was able to modify his legs of the pump so it would work. I told him not to scrap the other base that I would play with it and see if I could fix it. What would you do?.

I knew I had to try to fix the original one so here is the process. I drilled out and tape the holes of the bolts that were broken off. I then sandblasted the base. Next, I traced the base on a piece of plywood rotating it so I could get the ears of all the corners and could make sure the base was flat on the new pieces when it was done. The steal would be made in three different steps. First, I made the two straight pieces that would go between the ears. I drilled into the base and taped it so I could put machine screws in it to hold the steal in place until I welded it. Next, I made the bottom of the ears and attached them to the base with machine screws. Last I made the caps for the ears and connected them to everything with machine screws. Using the plywood piece, I made sure everything was in place and flat with the plywood. I then welded everything.

The next step was to make sure the holes were in the right place. I made a pattern out of an old folder, then traced it on the new ears. After that it was time to use some body putty to make everything look as it should. Last a shot of primer. Can you guess which is the original ear? Top left side. I never throw anything away. Even if I didn't restore it, someone might have needed the original ear for their pump. I could always cut off the portion they needed and then they could weld it to their base. Richard

Great save Richard.

Way to tackle a tough job instead of tossing it out . Well done .

Nice job, now to find the rest of the pump

Nice job!! All worth it in the finished product.

Save It.

I have had the same problem but used a different and simpler direction to solve the problem. As long as the base is symmetrical Cattail Foundry was able to cast a replacement base and it came out great. Just a thought

Nice Dick. We may be able to use it

Great craftsmanship! Great save!

Good job. I love saving things like that. Even if they might be available somewhere. Like I always tell people, I’ve got nothing but time so why not!?!….GB

Update on the base. A friend found a Bowser 300 that needed a base, so it now has a new home. Richard