[supereal]

If the car sat for a long time, it is likely the pickup tube rusted or rotted, reducing the length. I had the same problem with my '47, which sat in a junkyard at one time. I replaced the tank with a plastic one because the original tank had pinhole rust on the top, as do most very old original tanks, and a collection of debris on the bottom. Original tanks had an internal coating called "tern" which was sort of like solder. When it failed, moisture attacked the exposed places, resulting in rust.