[May70]

For $18 I went out and got a carquest 'premium' mechanical fuel pump. Might as well narrow it down. Started the uninstall before it started thunder storming here. Noted that I only have about a foot, it appears, of rubber hose to replace. I think its metal fuel line all the way back to the tank and it looks to be in good shape under the oily gunk its been covered in for a while. The fuel pump outlet goes into a metal line which stops short about 5 inches from the carb. Then I have a few inches of rubber line with the inline filter.

I had prepared a plug because I was expecting a seep/drain of fuel when I took the hose off between the metal line to the tank and the hose to the pump. I got about 3 drops of gas and then nothing. There is at least a few gallons of gas in the tank. Is this normal? Can someone school me if there is a metal mesh filter or something in the tank outlet? Can I remove the gas cap and blow it out with an air hose or is that a bad idea? Just to make sure no debris is clogging it? Anything else I should do at this point or just throw the new pump on? Thanks