Easy Gasket Replacement

Here's a situation that most all back-to-landers and farmers face at one time or another. When you're changing the oil in your truck, tractor or roto-tiller, the drain plug gasket is sure to break or get lost. You don't have to go to town for a new one. Simply dig that worn-out leather shoe from the trash, place it, soft grain up, on a block of wood, and find a piece of conduit or even copper tubing the same size as the plug stem. Hammer a hole in the leather with the conduit (always the small hole first), then use a larger piece of conduit to cut the outside diameter. The leather will soak up oil, won't leak, and will outlast the original. This replacement will work for any gasket other than those for exhaust or manifold, and will even work for crank bearings.

SID COWAN
Republic, Washington