Fuel Tank sock orientation

I'm getting quite a bit of practice dropping fuel tanks from these cars in pursuit of fuel issues..... Out of the three tanks I've looked inside, this is the second one that the filter sock has been installed in the wrong (clock position) orientation.....In addition, the pump mount module had been twisted so that the pump wasn't completely vertical, and the module is about completely rusted out.....
For anybody that has yet to replace a fuel pump and sock on a TBI car......the sock MUST be in the correct orientation in order to lay flat in the bottom of the pump well..... There are two available "stock configuration" fuel socks available.... On e that has the attachment cup in the middle and one that has it offset to one end......
Either of these install with the sock "left to right" in the tank with the offset cup style mounting to the left with the long end of the sock towards the passenger side of the car.....
These two styles are specific to the well in your tank and are likely to suck air if the wrong one is installed. If you aren't sure which your car takes, they are cheap enough to buy both!
The installation is a one-shot deal as both the sock and pump are probably ruined if they need removal for re-orientation, sooooo.....GET IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME!

OR......

Carter makes a ROUND fuel sock which makes orientation concerns irrelevant, however the round sock has much less surface area and inside fuel storage that may or may not be the cause of future issues.

I've ordered a new sender module from RockAuto ($62) and I'm gonna install a new Carter pump with round sock.....

Thanks for the info. Like you I"m a black belt and dropping tanks by now (at one point I dropped the tank in my OCC 6 friday nights in a row...) I never really paid much mind to which way the sock went on. Maybe that's why I fuel starve going around corners with a 1/4 tank.....

I've been told by local pro mechanics to ALWAYS keep the fuel level above 1/2 tank because the pump depends on being immersed in fuel for cooling.....
The first wagon I had with fuel issues had the end of the sock turned 90 degrees and it blocked the float from dropping below half a tank....
This wagon was showing "full" all the time and I found the float, arm, and wiring missing from the module. By "grounding" the sender wiring (for testing) the gauge drops to "empty", so the gas gauge is also going to work when this thing is re-assembled

AzDon wrote:

I've been told by local pro mechanics to ALWAYS keep the fuel level above 1/2 tank because the pump depends on being immersed in fuel for cooling.....
The first wagon I had with fuel issues had the end of the sock turned 90 degrees and it blocked the float from dropping below half a tank....
This wagon was showing "full" all the time and I found the float, arm, and wiring missing from the module. By "grounding" the sender wiring (for testing) the gauge drops to "empty", so the gas gauge is also going to work when this thing is re-assembled

It's funny though the fuel starve issue on hard cornering (or enthusiastic on ramp g-force experiments) only happens on the TBI cars. I've had 5 tbi and 4 LT1 B/D bodies.

I agree that running on empty will shorten the life of the fuel pump.

So I also failed to mention that I had to cut away side straps and about a foot of 2.5 inch square tube of a class3 style (Homemade) hitch to drop the tank.......It had puzzled me that the pump module was twisted funny and missing parts for the fuel level.....
Then, when re-installing the tank, I looked up and noticed the floor bubble had been cut and was being held in place by duct tape.....The hole obviously was not cut big enough to access the entire length of the hard lines......
Since I have now replaced the entire module, I'm going to cut the lines on the old module (near the module) to see if I can get dual-ferrel unions that fit the lines so that the lines can be disconnected closer to the module so that the hole in the floor only needs to be slightly larger than the module..... On my own wagon (91 OCC) I'm going to cut a hole the next time I replace a pump and I can get any size overlapping sheetmetal cover I want from the floor of my OCC parts car.....
If the experiment of the metal lines works, I'll post pics.....

How about the sock orientation on the LT1 cars? Just replaced the pump and sending unit and have no idea how I oriented it.

It really was a PITA to squeeze the pump in and I remember having to clock the sock somewhat to some direction to get it in. Damn.. if I only had seen this thread earlier!

I don't know if the setup is different inside a tank on LT1 models....... The correct sock orientation is obvious IF you are paying attention........The module itself is specifically oriented and the pump only fits a certain way in the module......If you look down in the tank BEFORE snapping the sock into place on the bottom of the pump, you will see that the pump well only accommodates the sock laying flat in a left-to-right orientation with the long end of the sock to the right (for TBI cars and maybe LT1, but not sure).... There is a hard plastic perforated "straw" inside the sock to keep it from sucking shut and this helps the sock to suck air if the end is turned upwards

Well, I kind of screwed this one up.. I swapped the whole sending unit. I'm sure it would have been obvious if I had been paying attention. But I was too concentrated to get the unit in. I guess the only way to ensure the sock is not kinked by a splash baffle is to drop the tank and lift the sending unit up again. Maybe I just wait and see what happens when the tank is starting to get emptier.