Pole pruner oil tank quandary

[madpogue]

I have a Ryobi ZR15520 Expand-It pole chain saw/pruner attachment with an oil tank issue. The oil cap is threaded, but the tank itself just has a ridge inside the opening that the cap threads engage. Well that ridge has broken away, so the cap has nothing to engage. No biggie, I figured, the tank just bolts on, I'll go to one of the direct parts sites and order a replacement. NOT. It's discontinued / not available on EVERY site I've tried.

The pruner is evidently the same as a Homelite UT15520, and the part number for the tank is PA03312. If anybody knows of a source for the part, I'm all ears. The pruner has been superseded by a newer model with a slightly angled head, and unfortunately the tank is a completely different design.

Alternately, I wonder if there's some other way to secure the cap. Maybe find a larger cap that seals by expansion or something.

I hate the idea of tossing this thing just because of obsolescence. Granted, I bought it 11 years ago, but I doubt there's more than 30-40 hours on it. It's super-versatile; works with my Stihl KM90 Kombi head, my 4-cycle Ryobi power head, even my Ryobi 40-volt.

In the pic, you can just see where the ridge was in the opening, that sheared away.

Ideas?

 

[sean donato]

Tried to do a bit of digging for you, seems it's gone the way of the dodo bird. You should be able to get a rubber expanding plug off amazon, to work in a pinch. Just need to take a measurement. Less handy then the screw on cap, but I would think that's about where your at with it.

 

[madpogue]

Dang, forgot about this thread. Thanks for the expansion plug idea. I considered it, but they're kinda heavy and it would be clumsy to use. My solution was inspired by the expansion plug idea, however. I cut a short section of bike innertube and stretched it over the threads of the cap. This creates a pretty tight interference fit; and the o-ring on the shoulder of the cap actually provides the seal. I originally used a MTB tube because it fit easily over the threads, but it slipped off too easily. Ended up using a kinda medium-width tube; took some effort to stretch over the cap threads, but it stays in place.

 

[GenXer]

Get someone to print a new one on a 3d printer