I have a to-do list for my carby which I am steadily working my way down, eeeking out all the niggles & weirdness which they are known for & hopefully making this into a very competent tidy reliable motorcycle! (stop laughing at the back!) :biggrin: This was next on my list - sorting out any tank rot issues... The carby tank's will rust the same as any other tanks? The trouble being their shape - any water/condensation will sink to the bottom of the petrol itself, this is at it's lowest point at the back two corners where it will gather in a large puddle??! Rust never sleeps... it will eat through the base of the tank/tank seams, the first you will know of this will be petrol dripping through your tank?! The wet patch at the back is water. There was a similar patch on the right, the clamp gubbins in the middle holds the fuel pump/teabag filter & the silver blob at the back-right is the drain bung bolt. Bought myself one of these kits: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/280693090...WNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649#ht_500wt_922 The infamous POR-15 treatment... all the washing etc will take a few hours, the sealant itself takes FOUR DAYS to dry... seeing as its been peeing down for the last week or two I saw fit to get this out of the way before Summer/I did have any leakage issues... Run fuel down low. Get out and cane it for an hour or two. :wink: Undo the breather on top, lift the tank, shut off the fuel tap, undo the pipe clamps (7mm socket works best), have some rag handy to catch any errant petrol spillage, there is always some... remove the overflow, feed & return lines & tape the ends up to stop any gak getting in there. Get somebody to support the tank whilst you remove the pin & pivot from the back of it - hard to do both yourself & dropping it is not an option! Pop the tank cap & drain the tank by using either the drain bolt or the tap itself? Found it easier using the drain bolt as it then pees straight down into the container rather than having a hectic horizontal beer-pee everywhere. Rest the tank on something soft - old cushions, blankets or cardboard is good? With the cap up loosen the six retaining allen grubscrews (2mm key, use a GOOD one!) by 3mm, no need to take them out. Now the fun part. With the tank on the floor between your ankles, hook two fingers in the cap in a g-spot stylee and PULL. Pull harder! Be prepared for a fight, farting & swearing, they don't come out easy. Got it? Good. Had mine out before Xmas to remove & bypass the fuel filter (new smaller filter added here on the left externally, also extra handier fuel tap) so didn't give me too much grief? Disconnect the overflow line inside the tank & remove the cap. **Sidenote** On further inspection my overflow pipe was blocked, also the metal bend inside the tank??! Must had accumulated crap & debris down it over the years falling down the overflow hole? Cleared out the metal bend with copper wire held in pliers & all good. :smile: Feed pipe is on the left, bends round from the rubber tube on the right, middle is the return pipe, exits at the top front of the tank, righthand is the tank overflow. Pop the fuel pump out of its clamps... will be a very tight dry fit, may be worth giving it a quick careful squirt with gt-85/wd40 or similar? Enough wire length to let you take it out without disconnecting the wires - you will need to remove them to remove the fuel sender unit though... take your time as there are small washers & nuts involved... Remove the fuel tap (14mm spanner?), one of the threads is lefthand so it will unscrew off both threads when undone, retrieve the small plastic or copper washer. Remove the fuel sender. This nut is a big b*gger & my largest adjustable only just fitted?? Rinse the tank out with water. At this stage before throwing and chemical nastiness inside my tank I saw fit to bag it up to stop any paint marking etc... Duct-tape off all holes left, pipes etc. Follow the instructions in the kit. WEAR GOGGLES/GLOVES & GLASSES. No shortcuts, no "I cant be bothered with that bit". The kit's end result will depend on you doing a Proper Job. Add the Marine Clean (heavy duty degreaser/varnish remover) pre-mixed with another litre of hot (not boiling, or all the duct-tape will fall off and you will be in a right state....) water & swish it around, leaving the tank in different positions. When you are happy it has done its job then rinse the tank out with cold water (hosepipe :biggrin Add the "Prep & Ready", this nasty blue stuff will remove if not neutralize any rust and also acid-etch the inside of the tank. Take all the time you like to swish it around, can't be in there any longer than two hours mind?
Here's the tank just before I rinsed it out: S'better! Empty the "Prep & Ready" out (Its reusable! Empty it back into the same container & keep it for later.), & rinse the tank out with warm water. With the aid of my understanding partner I took the tank upstairs and jetted it out with the showerhead. Remove any tape to ensure no trapped water & dry it out with microfibre or similar - paper towel can tear on any rough spots inside, make sure you get it all out! The tank has to be 101% dry before you add the sealant. Get a hairdryer or hot air gun and give it a good blasting... I got mine so damn dry I nearly burnt myself whe I picked it up again. :biggrin: Retape any pipes & mix the sealant thoroughly. Add the can's contents to the tank, use a paintbrush to do any metalwork inside (pipes, pump holder etc), tape up the inside rim of the filler hole and now tape it shut completely. Slowly roll the tank around allowing the inside the get completely covered by the sealant - the previous acid etch will ensure it sticks like sh!t to a blanket so no worries... When you are happy its all been done remove the filler hole tape & drain the excess back into the pot through the drain bolt hole. No pooling of any sealant is allowed - use the supplied foam brush to mop any up, this will take about 30 minutes so keep an eye on it... Let tank dry - this will take 96 hours/4 days, more if you aren't sure? And this is where I am now... had a peek last night & its looking good!
This one I reckon........mount it on a small plate just forward of your fuel tap.....bolted to the frame bracket where the full fairing mounting tube fits.....if you use the 'special' mounting rubbers it will stand proud of the plate and won't impede the air flow to the vertical cylinder. http://www.fuelpumpsonline.co.uk/fa...h-filterhose-union---special-offer-2019-p.asp AL
Pressure regulator is recommended too... expensive. Could be a plan b if mine stops working - need a recon diesel pump for the car first to do in the cambelt swap, will have to wait.
Bloody electrickle technimijazzle... What next, fuel injection? :biggrin: It can wait. I'll fix it as and when it breaks, right now I have other more pressing matters with the car to absorb my spare £oney. :wink:
Those taps are available everywhere at the moment....just Google 'petrol tap'............common as muck. AL.
Hi Pict, One of these: eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace - and some of these: eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace Sorted for under £9. :biggrin: Easily turn-off-and-onable.
Just wanted to say thanks for putting this thread up. I did my tank at the weekend and all went well. Oddly enough, the tank was actually just about the only bit of the bike that wasn't knackered, and was actually quite free from rust. However, I had already bought the kit so did it any way as preventative maintenance. The only thing I would add to the list of instructions, is to not bother with latex gloves. You really need marigolds or similar, the longer the sleeve/arm bit the better. Halfway through the final stage my latex gloves gave out and ripped. I had no choice but to soldier on as I had already started. Both hands and wrists are coated in POR15 sealant. Believe me, this stuff just does not come off. I tried brake and clutch cleaner, swarfega, even petrol. Nothing shifts it. I now have silver hands and look like the metal cop out of Terminator 2. When I emailed the manufacturers in the States for advice they told me to just keep applying hand cream to reduce the itching, and it should come off in two to three weeks.
:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin: OMFG! :biggrin: Yep, will second that - the POR-15 silver sealant is TERRIBLE stuff to get out of anything? I have two tiny spots on my tank - tried Autosol at one point but No Joy... it's designed to be petrol-proof inside the tank so I am clueless as to what would remove it?? Get it off anything it shouldnt be IMMEDIATELY! I used a pair of heavy-duty long-sleeve chemical gloves for all the nastiness - too many risks not to...
I remember the POR15 on hands well nothing will get it off just have to wait for skin to shed there is a small bit stuck steadfastly on the kitchen sink that has resisted all attempts acids oven cleaner yiu name it damn good stuff though been in my ST for years still looks new in there Steve B
Hey no prob! Its quite straightforward, set yourself a good amount of time to do the prep and of course to let the sealant dry? My tank looks amazing inside now!
A point no-one has mentioned here is where did or does the rust come from??? rain in the top, no, rain in the fuel, no. its actually seawater! thats why it rots the tanks so violently. now before you all start laughing your cocks off, i know this for a fact. when the fuel is delivered by sea the tanks are flushed out after delivery with sea water as ther is plenty of it, this is then measured and entered on the waybill as FREE WATER. this free water then gets delivered with the next load and subtracted from the delivery calculation to balance the figures. when its delivered its violence of delivery leaves the water suspended in the fuel that some ends up with the end user, yep your ss tank. (oh and dont forget they even charged you for it). This is why aircraft fuel is treated differently and delivered by road and rail.
(WTF?) Its condensation. Cold metal in Winter condensates, the water sinks to the bottom of your tank and corrodes it? Water corrodes steel. I'll believe the "fuel tanks washed out with seawater" jibble when Captain Kirk rides a pink tricycle across the Sahara. Oh, were you aware tarmac is made from squashed beetles? Yep! Hundreds of them.
