SuzukiSavage.com - tank sealant

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tank sealant
11/25/11 at 18:23:09

Hello group, I am looking for some advice about sealing a 31 year old motorcycle gas tank. It is not in real bad shape (no leaks or pin holes) but there is a little rust showing on the inside and rusty crud is working its way down into my inline filter.

I was thinking of using the product called Metal Rescue to clean out the rust. What would you recommend for coating and sealing the inside. I have some slow setting epoxy and thinner. I wonder if that would work? I would appreciate your suggestions.

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MotoBuddha

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Re: tank sealant
Reply #1 - 11/25/11 at 18:36:44

On my modded Ryca tank I used some stuff Caswell makes. It's epoxy based and isn't bothered by ethanol. It dries clear and VERY hard. The instructions say not to worry about getting all the rust out. Just rattle a handfull of drywall screws around in the tank to get off the worst of it, then rinse, dry and coat.

http://www.caswellplating.com/aids/epoxygas.htm

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BurnPgh Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 1732	Re: tank sealant Reply #2 - 11/25/11 at 20:29:46 id just wrape it well in a towel, throw a length of small chain in and put it in the drier on tumble.
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justin_o_guy2

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Re: tank sealant
Reply #3 - 11/25/11 at 22:25:07

A quart of Ospho costs about 12 bux at Sherwin Williams. It chemically changes iron oxide to iron phosphate. It has phosphoric acid in it, It wont kill scale, only one layer of rust. Id rinse the tank & let it dry, then put a cup O Ospho in & move the tank so every part of it is the low point for a few seconds.
When you dump the Ospho, put it in glass & see what it looks like,.
A flashlight to see if the tank is black . If it is, thats iron phosphate. I think its pretty hard,

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Boofer

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Re: tank sealant
Reply #4 - 11/25/11 at 22:38:26

Since you have a 31 yr old bike, I assume it will be hard to get another good tank and you really don't want to mess this one up. I have NO practical experience other than what others say, but the three part sealers seem to work well. You have to follow instructions to the letter and allow drying time as needed, and they are fairly expensive. Also Justin og2 has a lot of experience, and like others on here, can get away with the cheaper version, so I trust his judgment, as well. What kind of bike is it? Just curious.

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verslagen1 YaBB Moderator ModSquad Offline Where there's a will, I want to be in it. Posts: 28884 L.A. California Gender:	Re: tank sealant Reply #5 - 11/26/11 at 01:54:17 A little more on the dryer technique not just. Towel stuff it with foam you don't want it bouncing around then I'd ospho it.
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Re: tank sealant
Reply #6 - 11/26/11 at 17:49:06

Thanks for the suggestions. It is an old Honda CB125S. It's a lot of fun and I rode it around in the back lawn this summer. It had been stripped down and made into a dirt bike with some enduro parts but this winter I plan to restore it back to original condition. The guy who stripped it saved most of the original parts. It only has 2000 miles on it and I got it for $250 with title.

That ospho sounds good. I think I will clean out the tank and give it a try. There are some old blankets and things around the house I could fill the dryer with to cushion it.

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2005 S40, Intruder shocks, Dyna, 52.5/150, 3 washers, 2 turns, modified seat, Raptor

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: tank sealant Reply #7 - 11/26/11 at 20:00:43 Use a blow dryer, man,, thats risky tossin it in the dryer. Do it outside.
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Boule’tard Serious Thumper ModSquad Offline Master of the Obvious Posts: 1620 Austin TX Gender:	Re: tank sealant Reply #8 - 11/26/11 at 20:13:23 I've heard good things about POR-15. It is supposed to be like 'kreem' but better. 40 bucks for a turnkey solution. http://www.amazon.com/POR-15-Cycle-Tank-Repair-Kit/dp/B000H9K4JQ
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sbaugz

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Re: tank sealant
Reply #9 - 11/26/11 at 20:14:32

i Used a product called evaporust to dissolve all the rust away. Pour it in and let it sit overnight. I purchased at harbor freight tools. Then, once the evapo-rust does its job, put a handful of drywall screws and some water in there and shake the hell out of it. THen, rinse with acetone and let air dry.
Finally, use some caswell tank sealant. Its an epoxy that dries glass hard. You do not have to worry about flaking or failure like you do with kreem and POR products. Caswell is great stuff and is what Ducati recommends for sealing all their new tanks (ducati had a problem with ethanol eating through their plastic tanks fairly recently and caswell is applied now through ducati dealerships as a fix). Easy to use and great stuff. Cannot recommend it enough.

I did this process with my '75 Honda CB200 tank that was probably the worst tank inside I have ever seen. Looks almost new now.

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: tank sealant Reply #10 - 11/26/11 at 21:06:21 Doesnt sound to me like this tank is in such bad shape as to require such efforts & expenditures.. Owner?
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Markusublime YaBB Newbies Offline Thumpin through the great white north. Posts: 33 Ontario,Canada Gender:	Re: tank sealant Reply #11 - 11/26/11 at 21:17:47 I second the evaporust idea,another benefit is that you can drain and reuse the evaporust again.not to mention,it works great also.
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justin_o_guy2

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Re: tank sealant
Reply #12 - 11/27/11 at 05:31:18

Whats the $$$ on Evaporust? I think I saw that stuff advertised on a Hot Rod show. If thats what I saw & it works even almost as well as the ad made it look like,, its good stuff.. I dont know about how easy sometjhing so treated rusts again. If youve got the $$ & the time for an Old Feller type test, get a piece of metal, rust it up some in the back yard, treat one end w/ Ospho & the other w/ Evapo & then toss it on the ground & walk away & see which end rusts up. No difference? Take yer pick!

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MotoBuddha Serious Thumper Offline Let's roll! Posts: 1416 Charlotte, NC	Re: tank sealant Reply #13 - 11/27/11 at 06:07:34 I got a gallon jug of Evapo-Rust at Pep Boys for less than $10. It worked very well on some rusty external parts. I didn't think to try it on the tank.
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houstonbofh

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Re: tank sealant
Reply #14 - 11/27/11 at 08:32:17

The problems with coatings is tomorrows fuel. Every time the fuel changes, you see posts all over the net about peoples coatings partially dissolving and gumming up the carbs. It happened with MTBE and with ethanol.

I wrote up a way to "restore" a mildly rusted tank for the Rauder folks. Spacer Jim posted it to his site here. http://www.spacerjim.com/faqs.htm It is "Get the Rust Out of Your Tank" and you can link directly here. http://www.spacerjim.com/Fuel_System_Hygene.txt

Please ignore the spelling errors. I banged it out in a post, and it was copied here.

There is also a difference in the petcock on the Marauder, and therre is a fuel pump, so adapt as needed.

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