Bleed screw on Lucas / CAV filters

[JimC]

Changed the bowl on my water separator and obviously needed to bleed the air out to allow the new bowl to re-fill. Other Lucas / CAV filter heads I've worked on have had a bleed screw accessible down a cast-in tunnel on top of the head. The Lucas unit fitted to my 2004 boat doesn't have such a screw, the tunnel is just a blind hole with no screw at the bottom. I had to bleed the unit by slackening off the central clamping bolt which wasn't ideal as it allowed fuel to seep out of the various circumfrencial joints. Has the bleed screw been value-engineered out of existence?

 

[pvb]

Can't you just bleed the system at the engine?

 

[JimC]

Can't you just bleed the system at the engine?

Probably but it would take a long time to draw all the air from an empty CAV filter & bowl through the lift pump. With a bleed screw on the CAV and gravity feed from the tank you just had to open the bleed screw till fuel came out.

 

[lpdsn]

I've no bleed screw on the CAV filter. I bleed it at the secondary filter and use the lift pump to draw the air through.

 

[pcatterall]

Probably but it would take a long time to draw all the air from an empty CAV filter & bowl through the lift pump. With a bleed screw on the CAV and gravity feed from the tank you just had to open the bleed screw till fuel came out.

About 150 pumps last time I did it.........the first 50 pumps are nothing but the last 50 are a different story!!

 

[pvb]

Me too, doesn't take long.

 

[pvb]

About 150 pumps last time I did it.........the first 50 pumps are nothing but the last 50 are a different story!!

Sounds like the cam wasn't in the right position!

 

[smb]

I bought a CAV in April this year and that has the bleed screw..