Thanks csnow,

I'll try to take the strainer out and clean it since the mesh screen is visible once the strainer is pulled from the tank. The strainer only traps macroscopic particles so cleaning it should suffice. I will get a spare Oring to reinstall. The socket size to remove the strainer is huge and it doesn't line up with the access hole so it will probably be tricky to remove and i may revert to what you did, just leaving it in place.

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1972 450SL
1982 300D Turbo