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knee indent question

  • Thread starter Thread starter pitbullmccoy
  • Start date Start date
P

pitbullmccoy

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Hey guys. I've used the search and come up empty handed. I tried every combination I could think of and had no luck. Anyhoo I'm thinking of denting my tank and have a couple of questions.
1) how hare is it really? I found a thread on a different forum and it looks hard even though that guy made it look easy.
2) should I try to find another tank first in case I mess up?
3) how much fuel do you lose? I want to dent the full length of the tank and I like to ride A LOT and don't want to stop every 50mi for gas.

I found a couple of videos on YouTube. They make it l
 
First of all, it would be downright HANDY to know what bike we are talking about.

For example, if you are asking about denting the tank on a Puch moped, the dents would take out about half of your capacity.
On the other hand, if you are talking about an ST1300, they might reduce your capacity to "only" 7 gallons.


How "hare" is it? Not all that "harD", but probably not as easy as it seems, when you are watching someone with experience doing it.

My question, though, if reducing your fuel capacity is an issue (and it seems to be, otherwise you would not have asked), why dent the tank?
icon_shrug.gif


.
 
It isn't that hard to dent a tank. The hard part is to do it so it looks good. You will need the right tools. As far as reduction in fuel capacity...really depends on how much you go into the tank.
 
Oh yeah. Sorry. It's a 78 gs1000. From what I've seen most of these tanks are shaped relatively the same. And kinda figured since this a gs forum I wouldn't be talking about a Honda ;). I did however post that from my phone and somehow lost half of it. Fuel capacity isn't a major issue I just don't want to cut it in half. I thought someone with them would know how much it changes. Any why. . . Because they look cool. Why do we do anything to our bikes? :cool:
The part of the post that I lost said if anyone has links or pointers they would be greatly appreciated.
 
All motorcycle tanks dent extremely easy. But, to do it intentionally to the point it looks good is quite difficult. Tanks are also extremely expensive. Most new range from 700 to 1500 new. I wouldn't even want to go there, unless you were paying someone else that new exactly what they were doing and stood behind their work.
 
pitbullmccoy said:
Oh yeah. Sorry. It's a 78 gs1000. From what I've seen most of these tanks are shaped relatively the same. And kinda figured since this a gs forum I wouldn't be talking about a Honda ;).
Click to expand...
True enough, but we do have members that own other bikes and occasionally ask what might be termed "generic" questions about them, like "how do I dent a gas tank?" which can apply to virtually any bike.

Evidently (pardon the pun), you have not seen many GS tanks. Some of the tanks on the smaller bikes and some of the "L" models are just over 3 gallon capacity, while the larger "E" and "G" tanks are almost 6. Yeah, dents will make a difference.

Anyway, put your location in your profile so we can tell if one of us is close enough to help you, and add your bike to your signature, so you don't have to remember to mention it every time you post a question.

.
 
I have reshaped two tanks to add knee-dents. It is not hard, but you should pick up a second tank to work on, just in case.

My tank shape is very similar to yours IIRC.

To bang in the dents, measure where you want the indents to be and tape off the borders to guide your shaping. I don't know what you mean by "I want to dent the full length of the tank" -- I knocked in the sides for the back 10" - 11".

Make sure you cut some wooden spacers to wedge into the frame channel before you start hammering. Otherwise, you will end up narrowing the channel and not be able to install the new tank on the frame. AMHIK.

Once your braces are in the channel and your dent shapes are taped off, take a ball peen hammer and start banging along the outside of the knee-dents and work your way in. Keep an eye out for creases. You want to avoid those, since the metal can pinch up and crack there. Keep the denting as even as you can, but don't worry about keeping the surface smooth and level - you won't.

At the back of the tank, kneed dents can interfere with the petcock filter, so don't go too far in, or you'll have a hard time getting the petcock installed.

Once you have the shape you want, use bondo to make the surface smooth. This is the biggest PITA, because spreaders and sanding blocks are difficult to use on a concave surface.

Here are some pics of my bike with knee-dents in the two tanks.

7419991906_7e2cbacd4d.jpg


The dents on the green bike are not as deep, and I had better luck with the bondo and sanding. That said, you can still see hiccups in the surface upon closer inspection (i.e., >5 feet).

7314573098_f6fc2c27b1.jpg


You can see the dents in the yellow tank pretty well here. The surface on these dents is not as smooth as the green one because the dents are a bit deeper, making the bondo work more of a PITA.

As for fuel capacity, I don't know how much the dents take out of the equation. My guess is about 1/2 gallon total.

HTH
 
pitbullmccoy said:
Any why. . . Because they look cool. Why do we do anything to our bikes? :cool:.
Click to expand...

I don't do much to the bikes unless they are performance related. Much nicer to have a bike that runs and corners awesome. Knee dents, for me anyway, suggest a need to hub the bike while cornering but if the suspension is not there then you may look cool while cornering like a squid.

Not saying don't do it but just my point of view. Bang on!
 
frostbitevinnie said:
I don't do much to the bikes unless they are performance related. Much nicer to have a bike that runs and corners awesome. Knee dents, for me anyway, suggest a need to hub the bike while cornering but if the suspension is not there then you may look cool while cornering like a squid.

Not saying don't do it but just my point of view. Bang on!
Click to expand...

Yes, there are countless tales of riders that low-side after tucking their knees in that additional 2" going into a corner. :rolleyes:

Just FYI - this is the Appearance Forum. Not a lot of tips on running well and cornering awesome (ly) in this forum.

Running well and looking good is not a zero-sum game. If your suspension is bad, your tank shape will not be a problem.
 
MisterCinders said:
Yes, there are countless tales of riders that low-side after tucking their knees in that additional 2" going into a corner. :rolleyes:

Just FYI - this is the Appearance Forum. Not a lot of tips on running well and cornering awesome (ly) in this forum.

Running well and looking good is not a zero-sum game. If your suspension is bad, your tank shape will not be a problem.
Click to expand...

Yeah, your right. My bad.
 
I recommend finding a used tank. that particular model and year are not easy finders anymore. you will ANGER many members here if you destroy a good 1000 tank... just say'in...
 
Steve, I updated location but for the record I live in Lula, GA about an hour north of ATL. It would be awesome to meet a few local gs'ers. I can't ever manage to find long term riding buddies.

MistertC, I appreciate the info. I've read several of your posts you do a pretty good job explaining things. It would be nice if we lived closer together so I could bounce ideas of of you.

Spyder and Rusty, my tank isn't in "bad" shape but its far from perfect. Been dropped by PO's has a few dents and chipped paint. It needs to be fixed and painted anyway. Oh and one other thing, IT'S MY F@#$ING BIKE!!!! I bought it with MY MONEY! When YOU buy me one then YOU can tell me what to do with it! Apparently you haven't noticed but most of the people on this forum actually care about these bikes and wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt one so stop telling people what to do with their own hard earned money.
 
I'd just like to add - it doesn't take a lot of force to dent a tank. Some thick leather will help to "even out" the blows, so you won't have hammer faced rings. Speaking of hammers, there's actually a specialty tool for shaping metal........can't remember the name of it, but it looks like a little steel football with a handle.
 
Now that is some handy info right there. I have an awesome local part store I will hit up those guys and see if they have one or know where I can get it. Thanks man
 
Before you get stuck in - and I couldn't care less what you do with your tank, I'm not one of "those" members - you may well be able to find a tank that fits that already has knee dents. My '82 GS1100G tank does. You can still get these tanks new from here:
http://www.cmsnl.com/

Check out Ebay too - there are often used tanks on there which already have the shape you might want and they are often very cheap. I only mention this because it might save you some hassle. I love the shape of my my bike's tank and have modified it to attach to the bike differently because I am using a much smaller seat than stock. Plus it's being powder coated right now. But apart from filling the sides where the logos attached I haven't altered the shape - it's cool. Kneed dents are cool!
 
pitbullmccoy said:
Oh and one other thing, IT'S MY F@#$ING BIKE!!!! I bought it with MY MONEY! When YOU buy me one then YOU can tell me what to do with it! Apparently you haven't noticed but most of the people on this forum actually care about these bikes and wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt one so stop telling people what to do with their own hard earned money.
Click to expand...
Dear Mr. Pitbull... Where did I tell you what to do with your bike? I suggested that IF (read carefully) that tank is in good shape that you find another tank to hack up. Do you care to think about all the rea$ons I suggested you don't hack it up? If you do, try looking on Ebay and see what those tanks have sold for... But hey, after all it's your F@#$ING money and you can throw it away any which way you'd like.
 
Rusty, you said a different model tank. If i wanted a different model I would get one. If you meant for that to sound different or it was different in your head I'm big enough to apologize but what you said was get a different one and don't hack up the 78 model.
 
Pitbull, in good condition those 78 tanks can sell for upwards of $400 and I suspect quite a bit more if one could find a NOS fuel tank. Even $200+ for an average one can help fund quite a few needed bike parts.

Either way, I don't matter one iota to me as I already have two of those fuel tanks. But, it might matter to you.

Regards,
Dale

P.S. even with quite a few dents in it, as long as it isn't rusty inside, it is worth quite a few $$$...
http://thegsresources.com/_forum/showpost.php?p=1673573&postcount=566
 
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He said that because the '78 tanks were a special one year only tank that is highly sought after by those who want it to restore their bike.

You made no metion about the condition of your tank until after you copped an attitude. Now that we know that your tank is likely not worth rescuing,
feel free to do what you want, without offending anybody that might have paid you good money for a pristine '78 tank.

By the way, an attitude like that will keep many of us that might have the perfect answer to your question from providing you with the information that you seek. :o


pitbullmccoy said:
Spyder and Rusty, ... Apparently you haven't noticed but most of the people on this forum actually care about these bikes and wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt one so stop telling people what to do with their own hard earned money.
Click to expand...
No, we have never noticed that, thanks for pointing it out. :rolleyes:

OK Spyder is relatively new, but Rustybronco and I have only been here for seven years now. We have both done many things behind the scenes that the rest of you will never know about, and you will probably never fully realize how much we do like these bikes and what we will do to help keep them going.

.

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