[jaguar]

i have some rust and old sealant that is flaking off in my fuel tank. been able to pick most of the falling stuff off and get it out. ive also seen a few different ideas of how to clean and re-coat the tank but i wanted to hear from you guys about what you have used and whats worked.
thanks


There is the right way, the wrong way and the british way to do anything!

 

[oldschoolorange]

You could always try acid washing the tank, or using electrolisis to remove the rust

http://antique-engines.com/electrol.asp

Hey someone pas me the wrench........ Ahh screw it where is the torch

 

[KeninIowa]

If you get on www.kawasakitriplesworldwide.com there's been extensive discussion on electrolysis and other methods. I've used muratic acid in the past. The problem with it is that it eats everything, good metal included and that if you don't get it coated right away it rusts back twice as bad. Some of the guys on the Kawasaki site use a product called Ospho. Which is I believe a phosphuric acid, like a pool cleaner or something. It doesn't harm the good metal and sorta caps the rust. I used electrolysis on my tank. It's time consuming but doesn't harm good metal and will leave you with a perfectly clean tank.

I did my tank twice. It looked clean, but when I washed it out with Metal Ready in preperation to coat it with POR15 I was getting an unacceptable amount of rust out of it yet. So what I had to do was make a larger anode to pull the rust out of the back corners. Once I did that it was fine.

I've used Kreem to line tanks on farm equipment, it's garbage. I lined my tank with POR15 based on the recomendations of the guys on the Kawasaki site. It appears to be a good system. I'm hoping that the combination of electrolysis and then lining it with POR15 gets me a tank that I never have to do again.

04 KDX 200
05 KX 250f- SOLD!
01 GSXR 750
75 GT 550
68 Chevelle

Edited by - Ratty-550 on Apr 29 2007 5:19:52 PM

 

[jbranson]

I've used this stuff and found it pretty amazing.

http://www.theruststore.com/

But...would be a bit pricey to fill a fuel tank with it.

JohnnyB

 

[smashedmelon]

I'm using a product called Rusteco. I've let my tank cure for 48 hours with it. I bought only one gallon of the stuff (a bit pricey) so I had to slosh it around constantly, leave it upside down over a bucket, on its sides....but I drained it and power washed it and the rust is gone. They recommend you put it back in for another 24hours to cure so thats where I am with it now.
My understanding is that its re-usable, so I will be dunking all my rusty parts in it. Its also safe on paint and chrome, and its ecologicaly friendly.
I didnt want to use any harsh chemicals since my original paint job is mint. I also didnt want to run the risk of getting pinholes in the tank from an acid etching. Also, ive heard of the lining wearing out after a few years....
The down side is that I will have to keep the tank topped right off to ensure the vile rust doesnt come back.
good luck

 

[UngaWunga]

This is all you need.

http://www.por15.com/Cycle-Tank-Repair-Kit?sc=2&category=170

Works great.

 

[fuzzybutt]

that por-15 is the best of any of the coatings i've used, hard as a rock

some people are like slinkies, basically useless but they still make me smile when i push them down the stairs

 

[Geeto67]

acetone will dissolve the old lining in there, and Naval jelly can dissolve the rust (and rinses out with water).

Por15 is a good kit. I used to use RedKote when I worked at the radiator shop and that stuff was awsome. Strongest stuff I have ever seen.

 

[Bellagio]

Bringing the topic back from the dead... Decided the inside of my tank was rusty enough to take some action. Scooped up some Naval Jelly today from a local hardware store. Anyone have experience with this business? What aditional steps do I need to take once I do it? I'm guessing a sealer. Any sugguestions?

 

[Geeto67]

Naval jelly is pretty cool. I usually throw it in there with a bunch of old bolts and shke it up to help the stuff break the scale loose. Naval jelly dissolves in water so you will have rinse it out with water before you thow a lining in. If you read above the por 15 kit is recommended. I also recommend redkote because it is tough as nails but the por15 kit is way more accessible.

 

[Bellagio]

If I do the naval jelly would I have to do the full por15 kit or could I just purchase the lining portion of it?

 

[Geeto67]

Why do you want to do things half assed?

I am sure you could just do the lining of it but you are taking an awful chance that the inside of the tank is going to be superclean after your NJ treatment and the reality is it will not be. The metal ready is the cheap part of it, the lining part is the expensive part. You are not really saving any money. If that lining doesn't stick your tank is going to be even more fucked up because you may have to then chemically dissolve or burn the lining out and do it all over again - at which point you will have wasted a lot of money.

When we used to do redkote at the radiator shop, and we would treat the tanks with acid and then blow it out with compressed air. All tanks are going to need some kind of prep right before the lining goes in. Redkote doesn't dissolve in anything btw and has to be burned out with a torch.

 

[Bellagio]

You've got quite a valid point. The way I'm looking at it is I've got a full month before consistant riding weather hits Wisconsin, so I want to get the most effective and quality work done before then. Is the POr15 available in stores do you know or is it online purchases only?

 

[Bellagio]

Did some research in the area and found that the only shop that services classics wants $120 just to clean the damn rust out. He uses a naval jelly style product and another undisclosed super secret product to strip it down to all bare metal, take it to a media blaster and run walnut shells through it to strip all the remaining rust out, and then rinses it out with some water. Doesn't even do a lining just because he does have faith in Kreeme (it sucks), hasn't used POR15, and believes the metal is good as a new tank once the process in done.

On the other hand I called up a radiator shop and they'll do a boil, steamclean, and redkote for $60. If Redkote is a as good as ya'll say it's a toss up between that or a new tank all together, just because I'm not in love with the current one and it's kinda cruiser like. Which tanks could be easily modded to fit on a CM250 Custom? I was hoping that the CX500 or any CB tank could fit.

 

[Geeto67]

Redkote is the shiznit. I had a fiberglass tank I made when I worked at the radiator shop. At the time I was very bad at fiberglass so they owner suggested I run redkote inside it. Well the redkote broke loose as one solid chunk, and the tank - thanks to my bad fiberglass work - disintegrated around the redkote lining. In the end I ended up cracking all the fibergalss off so I has just the redkote lining. It was like a giant fuel bag but I actually rode the bike home like that. The radiator shop still has my gas bag fuel tank although one of the other guys there crushed it by accident. That is how good redkote is you can use just the lining in a pinch.

Take some measurements of your tank and then hit ebay. Ask sellers to measure stuff for you, most will. I imagine the cm250 has a very small backbone so I don't imagine there are too many tanks that will be too small, most will be too big. Nothing is going to be strictly bolt on but that is the price of custom bikes...you gots to make it fit sometimes....

 

[freakycody]

I used the por15 tank kit (3 part kit) on my rusty tank (when bought the bike the tank had rust particles floating in the gas) and after following all the steps, my inside tank looks beautiful. I was very impressed with the por15 kit and would use it again.

 

[Bellagio]

I'm going to naval jelly the tank then do the full POR15 treatment. Hopefully that'll keep me satisfied until I can find a flatter tank instead of the standard style I currently have.