Fixing Rusted Out Gas Tank

[Badooka]

Have you ever tried what we called speed tape? It's the metallic tape with heavy adhesive for skin repair- also sold as furnace tape- and real duct tape.
Not the type with fabric on the mix.

[Nessism]

Managed to get the tank derusted over the weekend. Patched over the known holes with JB Weld and dumped in a gallon of phosphoric acid and some aquarium rocks. Tank sprung a few more leaks during the derusting but the phosphate worked a treat.

Going to dress down all my hack brazing next and see about rebrazing everything now that the rust and old liner is gone. The plan is to get this tank liquid tight without a liner, then it will get a Caswell's epoxy liner. Caswell's liner is really thick and should help reinforce the metal. Por-15 is another consideration, but I like Caswell's when the metal is thin in places.

[Badooka]

Nice! Caswell's has some great products!

[chuck hahn]

ED...you can add a shot glass full of laquer thinner to the Daswell to make it flow better. As you roll it around a little more will build up each time and youll end up with a much more uniform thickness throughout the entire tank. I drained mine and let it sit upright with nthe purpose of allowing anything still flowing to settle along the bottom seamed areas.

[Nessism]

ED...you can add a shot glass full of laquer thinner to the Daswell to make it flow better. As you roll it around a little more will build up each time and youll end up with a much more uniform thickness throughout the entire tank. I drained mine and let it sit upright with nthe purpose of allowing anything still flowing to settle along the bottom seamed areas.

Chuck,
Can't find instructions on the epoxy where they authorize thinning it. Does it say that on the can or do they provide instructions with the product? That stuff is killer thick so thinning is a good idea I think.

Bought the phosphate from Home Depot per a suggestion you made. Great stuff! Completely ate all the rust off the tank in only a few hours. Had some crud hanging inside the tank in places and the aquarium rocks did the trick on them.

What did you use inside the tank to stop any flash rusting? Don't want to use WD-40 since the oil will inhibit the sealer from sticking.

[chuck hahn]

Yes ..it is stated in the instruction sheet that will be in the kit.

[chuck hahn]

Mix up a few ounces of gas with a shot of motor oil in it and swish that around. When it comes time to do the coating you can rinse it with some acetone again and get it oil free for the lining..in fact the kit will give degreasing suggestions in the instruction sheet. Paint isnt an issue obviously, so the acetone wont hurt anything...just get it degreased real good .

[rustybronco]

In the instructions for the product.

In the event that working in higher temperatures are inevitable, you can add a small amount of Xylene or lacquer thinner to the mix (no more than 5% - i.e. 1 fl
oz in the motorcycle kit, 2 fl oz in the car kit). This serves to retard the cure cycle and thin the sealer somewhat to expand coverage). This is also advisable if
you plan to split the sealer between two tanks.

http://support.caswellplating.com/index.php?/Knowledgebase/Article/View/142/19/gas-tank-sealer-instructions

[salty_monk]

Nice! Good to see it's working out

[chuck hahn]

A shot glass is "approximately" 1 ounce. Close enough for this application. And when they say stir for 2 minutes,,stir for 2 minutes... TIMED... and scrape the sides of the mix container often to be sure its as mixed as you can possibly get it.

[pete]

I only have one complaint to make on this thread Ed... there's no pic's!

Good luck, sounds like it's going to turn out a-OK...

[Nessism]

Okay Pete, today was picture day.

Finished the derusting and patching today. Used phosphate wash to derust which leaves the metal a little dark. After rinsing the tank was doused in WD-40 to reduce the flash rust tendency.

Have some Caswell's sealer on the way. Going to use the entire batch to reinforce the patched areas.

The worst is over, but will be glad when this thing is all done. I'll most likely sell it so if anyone needs a serviceable skunk tank, please PM me.

[azr]

Quite the project Ed. Seems like a lot of effort to sell it, were you bored and needing something to work on?

[Nessism]

I was looking for a project, but had no idea it would be so much work. Seller said the tank was sound, just needed a failed liner stripped. NOT!

[rustybronco]

Ed, you were right, that must have been one heck of a leaking tank to try and plug up.

Is it your plan to grind away most of the patches, leave them in place and hammer them down so you can resurface the underside, or just leave it like it is and concentrate on the top side after you re-line it.

Just curious...