Painting (gas cap and petcock areas)

[Guest]

Any opinions on how to handle these areas? I have seen (searches) people that paint/clear over the petcock area and also taping it off so it is a bare metal joining surface. If taping off is recommended how do you handle the (seal) between petcock area and clear coat(2K). I am afraid this will be a problem area for gas to get under paint. I am just looking for experienced painters opinions and or advice.

[JTGS850GL]

When painting tanks I tape off around the gas cap area about 1/8 inch past the top of the sealing surface. On the petcock area I just mask over the openings to keep over spray out of the tank. If you're using a good 2k paint then you shouldn't have to worry about the gas attacking it.

[nvr2old]

I wouldn't be very concerned about the area around the petcock. The gasket there helps a lot. The filler neck, though, is another thing. Depending on how tall your filler neck is, I always sand it completely down to bare metal and mask about a 1/4" down from the opening. If it's like my GS1000 and only a 1/4" total, mask the whole thing flush with the top of the tank. Spray it all the way through the clear stage, unmask it. Then mask 1/16th" on either side of the paint line and cover it with a thin swipe of JB Weld. I've been advocating this method for years and believe me, it works to keep the gas and fumes from getting under that paint line and lifting/ruining it.