Old timer's advice on fuel filters saved me $800 last winter

Back in 2019, a grizzled mechanic named Tom at the Union 76 near Bakersfield told me to always replace the water separator on a Cummins ISX before winter hits. I ignored him and ended up with a frozen line on I-5 in December, costing me a tow and two days of lost work. Has anyone else had a seasoned mechanic give advice that paid off big?

3 comments

3 Comments

wade_anderson8d ago

@matthewking my buddy Dave listened to an old timer and fixed a fuel line leak with chewing gum, held for 300 miles.

jessica3318d agoMost Upvoted

Wait, hold up, chewing gum actually held for 300 miles? That's wild lmao. I've heard of people using gum for temporary patches but I always figured it would just melt or blow out after a few miles. Dave must have gotten super lucky with that one, or that old timer's gum was some kind of industrial grade stuff lol. Still, I'd be holding my breath the whole drive wondering when it was gonna give out.

matthewking8d ago

Maybe it's just me but I feel like stuff like this gets blown out of proportion sometimes. I mean yeah it sucks to break down on the highway but calling it a $800 lesson seems like a stretch when you could have just called a buddy with a truck and a torch for way less. Generational mechanic hero worship is kind of a thing too where one old guy's tip gets treated like gospel just because he's been turning wrenches since the 70s. Not saying Tom was wrong about the water separator but maybe the real takeaway is to actually check your own damn truck instead of relying on some guy named Tom who probably forgot to clock out that day. Idk, maybe I'm just bitter because I've gotten bad advice from old timers before that cost me more than it saved.

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