Paint Bubbling

[Anonymous]

I have some paint bubbling going on just to the left of my gas cap. Its spreaded out in the past 2 weeks. I was thinking that air from the gas cap vent was seeping into the paint somehow. Whats this all about?

[bwringer]

Is the rubber gasket around the gas cap old and cracked?

Sounds like it's letting a bit more gas and/or gas vapor out than it used to, and it's affecting the paint.

You may have seen it more recently because the weather is warmer, increasing the vapor pressure in the tank.

[Anonymous]

ok I'll check that out. Never thought. How does the gas cap alow air to get in and out?

[Bolder Biker]

I just had this happen to my bike. After 20 years of perfect fuel tank paintwork, I noticed that the paint had bubbled in a few small patches close to the filler. My diagnosis was that I had overfilled the tank in an attempt to inhibit rust formation during winter storage, and then a warm day had caused fluid expansion to the extent that some gas seeped out. Have you possibly left the bike for a while during warm weather with an over-filled tank?

When I removed the paint bubbles last weekend, I found that the (red) paint undercoat was perfectly intact: only the color coat of paint had lifted.

BB

[Anonymous]

no, I havent left it too long. Its been quite full, but hasnt been left too long. Can I poke a pin prick in it letting the air out so it doesnt expand more?