Saving a Old B Gas Tank

I had one that looked like a screen when I got done cleaning it and I used Kreem brand tank liner on it and it's still holding fine. The Kreem is thick enough so it doesn't run out the holes but there were some some spots of Kreem that I had to sand off on the outside. Somehow I missed the thread on spliting a tank, how long ago was it?

I had a B with dents in the top, I drilled holes and pulled the dents out using sheet metal screws and a waterpump pliers. I called the Bondo company, but they said not to use it where it will contact gas. They sugested using fibreglass material and resin. The gas does not damage the fibreglass. A lot less work then aplitting the tank and then rewelding.

Hey.  I should have taken some pictures of this tank to show what happens when you use a stud welder. Ha Ha Ha. It don't do scat. No holes huh. Still had all the dents and all kinds of 1/8 in. holes. This gas tank tin is way to thick to use anything but blunt force trauma to knock them out, The same way the dents probably got in there in the first place.

I found it, very interesting. Ken, I thought I must be losing my mind if I posted on it and didn't remember but I see the other Lonn from MN was the one that posted on that thread.

I have sent two tanks to a outfit in ILL. that lines them with a baked on epoxy 400 degrees they say and have had no trouble yet , been about 5 years I think.

I patched a hole in the side of a carb with epoxy. It held for 8-10 years, then began to flake off. Guess where the flakes went.

Ken in Texas wrote: Yep. On auto door skins, fenders, hoods and roofs  the tin is so thin it works. Bring these guys a B gas tank with a bashed in top and in 5 minutes they will not have a youtube video to show off.      Now, I have heard of filling the dented tank with water and freezing it. Trouble with this theory is the pressure created by the freezing ice is not just pushing on the dent.

With something as small as a tank especially if it is cut in half I wonder how well a hydraulic press would work like those 12 and 20 ton shop presses.  If you could make a curved die the press could do most of the hard work.

Ken in Texas wrote: My thoughts exactly. I'm planning to try to do exactly as you sugest. Where I'm having a problem is the metal is streached. Smoothing out the wrikles is distorting the tank shape. I may just work out the wrinkles with body filler on the outside.

You can shrink the metal with the off dolly method without heat. There is two methods, at least, in the off dolly shrinking. Both work but they both may have to be tried to get the best results. I saw a short video on youtube a while back showing the off dolly method of shrinking a streached metal dent. The video was for auto body steel. Heavier metal takes a little bit of a heavier hand. The one I use most is placing the dolly beside the dint and tap around the dint just in from the edge of the dolly. You don't beat the daylights out of it. You can also buy a shrinking hammer which helps but not needed.

Ethanol will dissolve most fiberglass resin over time.  i have a Bertram yacht with fiberglass tank and I have to be very careful that I do not put ethanol gas in it.  The alcohol will dissolve the resin and deposit on the inside of your valves.  When you shut down the goo is soft and will then solidify, gluing the valve shut.  The result is a trashed valve train.  Google it if you want to confirm it.  Only the special resin they make station gas tanks out of will hold up.