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sunchaser
05-17-2002, 04:52 PM
My spring broke inside my T valve. The on that separates the water to the headers. Can I replace it with spring from a hardware store? Is it a special spring?

HYDROMOBILE
05-17-2002, 05:22 PM
you must have the same spring pressure, or you will get to much water or not enough, i carry them or call bassett and get one Jim

LVjetboy
05-17-2002, 05:27 PM
Other than the fact that it's stainless steel, I don't think it's so special. In fact, they have a history of breaking, my theory from metal fatigue caused by the pump pressure flux...but that's not important.
I think as long as you replace with a SS one with about the same rate and size, all should be well. Even a steel one may work for a season. The other thing is to make sure the small end is towards the ball to keep it from sinking down the middle. If you need to adjust opening pressure, ss washers under the spring will work.
I believe Rex also sells replacement springs if you want to order backups.
jer

sunchaser
05-17-2002, 06:37 PM
I just want to make sure this is right, the spring goes in first with the ball on top of it and the screw the top of the T valve on. Because when I took it apart the ball was in the middle. Would it be good to put a flat washer beneath the spring?

Hotcrusader76
05-17-2002, 07:08 PM
No on the flat washer. That would prevent flow of water, completely defeating the purpose of the valve...
tpcracing76@hotmail.com
[This message has been edited by Hotcrusader76 (edited May 17, 2002).]

Hotcrusader76
05-17-2002, 07:08 PM
No on the flat washer. That would prevent flow of water, completely defeating the purpose of the valve...

flat broke
05-17-2002, 09:56 PM
Originally posted by Hotcrusader76:
No on the flat washer. That would prevent flow of water, completely defeating the purpose of the valve...
Sorry Crusader, but LV is right. Its been done. You can get flat washers in a bunch of OD/ID combinations to ensure you have a large enough orifice to allow adequate flow through the valve. If you can't find a place with a good stainless harware selection in your area, just get the correct OD, and slap em on the drill press. http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif
Chris www.liquidaddiction.net (http://www.liquidaddiction.net)

LVjetboy
05-17-2002, 10:34 PM
I've found ss lock washers are a perfect fit...just straighten for uniform flow. Spring opening force can be adjusted with washers at the base of the spring, opposite the ball side. At the pressures (and header cooling flow rate) we run, the ball will not close off the flow through a washer at the base.
Sunchaser, when you install the spring, check for the "small" end towards the ball. One end of the spring should have a couple extra turns, which helps hold the ball better. Bassett really needs a few design tweaks to fix that problem and the tendency for ball flutter...which breaks springs.
jer

Taylorman
05-18-2002, 07:25 AM
Why not just call Bassett and get a new spring from them instead of trying to jerry rig the t valve. It cant cost more than a few dollars. Besides, the spring is larger on on side than on the other and Im sure its designed that way for a reason. Avoid the hassle and just do it right. I put my spring in the wrong way on accident once and the bearing slipped into the spring causing the valve to stay open even at idle.

LVjetboy
05-18-2002, 09:31 AM
Actually, I think Bassett's T-valve design CAN be improved with a little "Jer"ry rigging. http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif
Starting with the ball flutter problem...

LVjetboy
05-18-2002, 11:55 AM
Presto! Just fixed with a Jer'ry http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif rigged piece of plastic.
Problem: Bassett spring breaks from metal fatigue due to ball flutter. Although replacing the spring can be easy (or difficult depending on T location) and I carry a spare in my sack, I've got better things to do than wrench on a T at the lake...copy?
Also, and more importantly, although springs are cheap, it's easy for a broken spring to go unnoticed and run half a day or more with water at low rpm: Milkshake = more $$ parts at risk?
Solution: Modify the Bassett design to eliminate ball flutter. I just tested a plastic fitting cap with the end cut off, inserted into the T-valve inlet fitting. This Jer'ry http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif rigged part eliminated ball flutter for all pressures up to an estimated 35-40 psi with standard spring force (no spacers)
Will post pics later if anyone's interested...
jer

HammerDown
05-18-2002, 02:38 PM
Bring on the pics....

LVjetboy
05-19-2002, 02:51 AM
My desktop crashed so I'm working from a lame laptop, different graphics processing and O.S. (Windows Xp) That idiot search dog is pissing on me right now, but here goes:
http://users.lvcm.com/lvjetboy/Bassett.JPG
My guess is the sharp edges of the orange cap transistion flow to turbulent sooner, dampening vortices shed from the ball, and helping reduce ball flutter. I measured ball flutter with my hand on the valve housing...not scientific...but better than listening to chatter http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif Especially when comparing a ss seat to a plastic seat.
The mod damper is a sprinkler filter I cut to fit...thinking it would also dampen spring oscillation. Although it didn't seem to dampen as well as the end cap, it does provide a positive stop to keep the ball from sinking into the spring.
So there you have it. About 30 minutes with a garden hose and a T-valve; a potential fix for Bassett's spring fatigue problem. Something they should've done long ago...but then...maybe they wouldn't sell as many headers??
jer

HammerDown
05-19-2002, 05:27 AM
Hey Jer...your outta control...Question, it looks like the end cap is the new seat for the check ball? Don't ya think it may work its way out from water pressure and get cocked or something like that? Keep up the R+D!

LVjetboy
05-20-2002, 01:28 AM
Yep, the cap is the new seat. I thought about the cap loose dealy and the ball doesn't travel as much as the cap shoulder, so all should be good. Of course, can't say for sure if this rig will fly 'till I've run it a season.
jer