I'm looking at purchasing a used fuel tank off ebay, claims it doesnt leak and there are only minor scratches/dents here and there. I would want to paint the exterior of the tank (its blue my bike is red and white) i was wondering if it was worth it before mounting the tank on my bike to use one of the sealers to prevent any rust or holes in the future? Something like POR 15 or caswell fuel tank sealer.

A few things to think about IMHO:

A) Do you have painting skills? It takes a bit of practice and potentially equipment to paint. Unless your not concerned about a match.

B) Have you looked up cost and how to's on the coating of the tank? Those kits are not cheap, I would say spend the difference to get a nicer tank. If you dont coat all the internal serface you still have a potential rust issue.

C) Its my understanding that those coatings can and eventually will breakdown.. how long do you plan to keep the bike?

D) Whats wrong with your current tank? If its a rust issue try to fix that first then get a filter (frowned on a lot, but I would if its rusty).

Just a few thoughts. I would keep your current tank or buy a quality replacement, not someone elses bad tank.

Test it.
Put some fuel in the tank,shake it & collect via a removed petcock....see if there are flakes of rust or discoloration in the fuel.If all is good i would use it,after cleaning the petcock.

If there are no leaks and just a little surface rust inside, I use a product called Prep & Etch from Home Depot. Its a phosphoric acid mix. I fill it about half full with the Prep & Etch, spin the tank around for 5 minutes or so in that all sides get covered. Then I flush it out with water and use a hair dryer to quickly dry the inside. Then I coat the inside of the tank with Marvel Mystery oil by pouring in a bottle, spin the tank around for a few more minutes coating all sides, dump the excess and immediately fill to the top with gas.

Havent needed to do this with my GS tank, but my Nighthawk tank turned out GREAT when I did this.

Quote from: PatheticPuma on June 05, 2013, 02:30:32 AM
If there are no leaks and just a little surface rust inside, I use a product called Prep & Etch from Home Depot. Its a phosphoric acid mix. I fill it about half full with the Prep & Etch, spin the tank around for 5 minutes or so in that all sides get covered. Then I flush it out with water and use a hair dryer to quickly dry the inside. Then I coat the inside of the tank with Marvel Mystery oil by pouring in a bottle, spin the tank around for a few more minutes coating all sides, dump the excess and immediately fill to the top with gas.

Havent needed to do this with my GS tank, but my Nighthawk tank turned out GREAT when I did this.

Does that help prevent bike fires?

(FYI: PUMA is not that pathetic. Did you know adidas and PUMA are related? PUMA was started after a family quarrel with the Dassler's. You know? Adi-Dassler the founder of adidas?)

Quote from: adidasguy on June 05, 2013, 02:32:07 AM

Quote from: PatheticPuma on June 05, 2013, 02:30:32 AM
If there are no leaks and just a little surface rust inside, I use a product called Prep & Etch from Home Depot. Its a phosphoric acid mix. I fill it about half full with the Prep & Etch, spin the tank around for 5 minutes or so in that all sides get covered. Then I flush it out with water and use a hair dryer to quickly dry the inside. Then I coat the inside of the tank with Marvel Mystery oil by pouring in a bottle, spin the tank around for a few more minutes coating all sides, dump the excess and immediately fill to the top with gas.

Havent needed to do this with my GS tank, but my Nighthawk tank turned out GREAT when I did this.

Does that help prevent bike fires?

(FYI: PUMA is not that pathetic. Did you know adidas and PUMA are related? PUMA was started after a family quarrel with the Dassler's. You know? Adi-Dassler the founder of adidas?)

That's low Adidas.

While interesting, my name of Pathetic Puma actually spawns from a rather pitiful Papier-mâché project in 6th grade, and is in no way associated with apparel.

Quote from: Snake2715 on June 04, 2013, 06:13:05 PM
A few things to think about IMHO:

A) Do you have painting skills? It takes a bit of practice and potentially equipment to paint. Unless your not concerned about a match.I am in no way a great painter but i have the ability to make it look decent, my bike is my starter bike just got into riding only cost $1000, im not looking for a show bike just something that is easy to ride and easy to work on.

B) Have you looked up cost and how to's on the coating of the tank? Those kits are not cheap, I would say spend the difference to get a nicer tank. If you dont coat all the internal serface you still have a potential rust issue.Yes i have looked up how to coat and refinish these tanks so i am aware what is involved and the cost, ive looked into electrolysis, metal rescue, apple cider vinegar and the kits. Kits generally run around $40 and i know the outcome is only as good as the prep work.

C) Its my understanding that those coatings can and eventually will breakdown.. how long do you plan to keep the bike?Like i said this is my starter bike so if i feel like i want something different in a year or so then i may sell or i may have it for a while to come its a big enough bike to grow into for a while. It seems like the caswell has the longest lifespan but im sure with the right prep work the tank will outlast my ownership.

D) Whats wrong with your current tank? If its a rust issue try to fix that first then get a filter (frowned on a lot, but I would if its rusty).I really should have taken a picture of my tank before my neighbor tried to "fix it" The tank was previously patched up there were a ton of pinholes on both sides of the tanks which were just patch up with some type of epoxy and then painted over. The bottom of the tank was where the hole opened up. The hole was about the size of a dime and simply covered with epoxy previously to stop the leak. While riding on a hot day i noticed it started leaking so i picked off the epoxy when i got home and notice the large hole.

Just a few thoughts. I would keep your current tank or buy a quality replacement, not someone elses bad tank. The tank i am looking at does not leak it only has some falsh rust from sitting for a month with no gas in it. I just didnt know if some preventative maintenance before putting it on would be worth it.

Quote from: popnlock on June 05, 2013, 04:18:08 AM
Just a few thoughts. I would keep your current tank or buy a quality replacement, not someone elses bad tank. The tank i am looking at does not leak it only has some falsh rust from sitting for a month with no gas in it. I just didnt know if some preventative maintenance before putting it on would be worth it

This is what I wanted to know... The actual condition of the replacement tank.  Its a bit of a judegment call concerning how bad the rust is inside... But, a little bit of surface rust? I would do something like Pathetic Puma suggests, and don't bother with the coating kits - A little mess up with the coating kits, and you will be worse off than what you started with.  Just use something to get rid of the existing rust, then immediately dry to protect it from flash rust.  Added precaution of MMO to coat the bare metal sounds like a good idea, I just don't have any experience on that one... doubt it would hurt though. 



- Bboy

Thanks for all the input. I ordered the replacement tank today, i should get it within a week. From what i seen and from all the input i got here i think i will skip the sealers and try to do a quick metal cleaning like the prep and etch and ill try that MMO. I have heard good things about mmo used in different scenarios.

An older TW200 I brought back I did the bb trick and it turned out pretty well. I just used a pickup magnet to pull out the bb's. So if you dont want to got with an acid, etc that may work. Dont do nuts and bolts, use bb's if you do this method.

Also given the current tank has holes its obviously best to get this new tank.

Keep us informed.

Quote from: PatheticPuma on June 05, 2013, 02:41:52 AM

Quote from: adidasguy on June 05, 2013, 02:32:07 AM

Quote from: PatheticPuma on June 05, 2013, 02:30:32 AM
If there are no leaks and just a little surface rust inside, I use a product called Prep & Etch from Home Depot. Its a phosphoric acid mix. I fill it about half full with the Prep & Etch, spin the tank around for 5 minutes or so in that all sides get covered. Then I flush it out with water and use a hair dryer to quickly dry the inside. Then I coat the inside of the tank with Marvel Mystery oil by pouring in a bottle, spin the tank around for a few more minutes coating all sides, dump the excess and immediately fill to the top with gas.

Havent needed to do this with my GS tank, but my Nighthawk tank turned out GREAT when I did this.

Does that help prevent bike fires?

(FYI: PUMA is not that pathetic. Did you know adidas and PUMA are related? PUMA was started after a family quarrel with the Dassler's. You know? Adi-Dassler the founder of adidas?)

That's low Adidas.

While interesting, my name of Pathetic Puma actually spawns from a rather pitiful Papier-mâché project in 6th grade, and is in no way associated with apparel.

You know I mean that in the nicest way.   

Quote from: adidasguy on June 05, 2013, 11:29:37 AM

Quote from: PatheticPuma on June 05, 2013, 02:41:52 AM

Quote from: adidasguy on June 05, 2013, 02:32:07 AM

Quote from: PatheticPuma on June 05, 2013, 02:30:32 AM
If there are no leaks and just a little surface rust inside, I use a product called Prep & Etch from Home Depot. Its a phosphoric acid mix. I fill it about half full with the Prep & Etch, spin the tank around for 5 minutes or so in that all sides get covered. Then I flush it out with water and use a hair dryer to quickly dry the inside. Then I coat the inside of the tank with Marvel Mystery oil by pouring in a bottle, spin the tank around for a few more minutes coating all sides, dump the excess and immediately fill to the top with gas.

Havent needed to do this with my GS tank, but my Nighthawk tank turned out GREAT when I did this.

Does that help prevent bike fires?

(FYI: PUMA is not that pathetic. Did you know adidas and PUMA are related? PUMA was started after a family quarrel with the Dassler's. You know? Adi-Dassler the founder of adidas?)

That's low Adidas.

While interesting, my name of Pathetic Puma actually spawns from a rather pitiful Papier-mâché project in 6th grade, and is in no way associated with apparel.

You know I mean that in the nicest way.   

Someone needs to go off the deepend with Puma like Adidasguy did with Adidas.....and change their screen name to Pumaguy. Puma makes motorcycle riding boots....I'm just saying. 😄


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Quote from: jdoorn14 on June 05, 2013, 11:47:33 AM
Someone needs to go off the deepend with Puma like Adidasguy did with Adidas.....and change their screen name to Pumaguy. Puma makes motorcycle riding boots....I'm just saying.

Already been done lol.

http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=63600.msg758478#msg758478

Still not sure who it was, but I highly doubt it was a random newcomer... and if it was, even better!   

- Bboy

So yesterday my new (used) tank was delivered and i was able to put it on my bike. The tank is a slightly different shape than the one i originally had on it is a bit wider at the top and I had to modify the seat by removing the rubber bumper where it touches the tank so that it would sit right but it doesnt leak.

Here are a few photos as an update:

Here is the blue tank as it sits now. The paint is in pretty good shape so i am just going to leave it for now. Maybe over the winter ill end up doing something with it.



I did what was recommended and poured some prep and etch inside the tank then i let that sit for a while and rinsed with water. Then coated it with Marvel Mystery Oil and filled it with gas.





It is now clean as a whistle on the inside. Turned out better than I thought.


Here is how it sits on my bike now




Its not the prettiest looking bike but it runs great and now it doesnt leak.

That looks great inside there! Nice job.  Glad you could get her back on the road. 

- Bboy

Sounds like a winning situation all around.

Good deal. nothing better than being back on the road quick and problem free.

That Prep and Etch is an AWESOME solution for what $15ish?

Glad it worked for you too, looking good. 

Yea it was about $15 at home depot, worked great. Nothing better than peace of mind, especially when riding.

Your peace of mind went with the prep and etch ...

The tank had a very thin electrostatically applied zink coating.

Prep and etch ... basically removed that. That thing attacks good steel very very very slowly, attacks rust very quick, but eats aluminum and zinc very quick as well.
You need to have coated it @ that point. You prepped it and etched it ... what was the next step ?

If you were not going to coat it, I'd have sloshed it with gas and dumped that gas and let it be and used it.

Cool.
Buddha.

I have not been on my bike for a few weeks and finally cleaned and reoiled the k&n lunchbox filter and went for a ride into work today. When i got to work there was gas leaking out from where my air filter connects to my carbs.

Before getting a new tank i had the carbs taken apart and cleaned at a shop but everywhere i have read has said that the probably cause for this leaking is because the floats are stuck so fuel is continually pouring into the float bowls  does this sound right.

I also had the issue when i came to a stop light the bike bogged down and stalled, it took a bit to get it started and then it limped along in first for a while and finally picked up, because of too much fuel.

Anyone have any suggestions let me know. I was thinking about sea foaming the bike or do i need to remove the carbs and clean out the float bowls/needles? If you remove the carbs for a cleaning is it necessary to sync them afterwords?