Gas Tank Removal

[gregw98]

Other than the straps, what else do I need to know about removing the gas tank on my 66. I know the filler has to be detached. Does the neck to tank connector have a neoprene hose or is it a metal tube. Found a small drip today. CRAP!!!
greg

[wildbill]

when i took mine off ,the filler neck had a rubber hose connecting it to the tank. you will also have to disconnect the fuel line and sending unit . where is the drip coming from. if you can get to it without removing the tank, you can try using red and black jb weld to seal the leak. just don't make any sparks!
wildbill

[gregw98]

Right in the middle, where it looks like a drain plug might have been an afterthought. A small little flat area about 2inch by 2 inch.
greg

[painterchris]

You can get a gas tank patched. First, you need to have it hot-tanked to get any leftover gas out of it. Then, a weld shop can braze the hole shut for you. The hard part is finding a weld shop that will take a small job like that.

BTW, if anyone needs the rubber filler neck hose for a 64-66, I have one. I had to replace the rubber hose section on my 64 and the replacement hose was twice as long as I needed, so I still have the other half for anyone who wants it. I'll part with it for $10 (that includes UPS shipping). I think I paid $25 for the entire piece, so I'm not ripping anyone off. Just thought I'd offer it...

Andy.

[solid side 65]

Some radiator shops also repair gas tanks. Motorcycle shops used to sell a gas tank flush that was used before welding to neutralize the fumes, it's been awhile since I bought any. If you want to check the condition of the inside of the tank you can use a string of the small white Christmas lights. You have to be EXTREMELY CAREFUL so not to break a bulb. By gently moving them around inside you can evaluate the condition, also check coverage if using a coating. BTW, did you find an cast iron ballast below the rear doors?

[greyfoxmc]

What are those ballast's suppose to do ?

Help you out in the winter months ?

[solid side 65]

IMO, to adjust the front to rear weight bias and aid in control during panic stops without a load. Had a 65 with the HD rear axle (12 bolt) and HD springs (5000 GVW) which came with larger rear wheel cylinders and wider rear brake shoes. Removed the ballast as a test, and quickly reinstalled it as braking got even worse. Went to standard width shoes on the next brake job, which helped somewhat. I remember seeing an early 64 which didn't have the ballast, no carriage bolt heads showing on the rear floor.

[pat69chevan]

hey greg, i want to help too!!!! Right after i got my 69, i had to drop the tank because it was full of rust, clogging my carb up on a regular basis. well, after dropping the tank, i attempted to clean out the inside of the tank, but i had no luck whatsoever. i was able to find another tank that had no rust in it but it had a small pin hole that i was able to patch with some epoxy. i wanted to put a liner inside of the tank but that was kinda expensive so i did a little research and found out that i could line the tank myself for a reasonable price. a friend told me to go to a motorcycle shop and pick up a POR-15 GAS TANK KIT FOR MOTORCYCLES. he told me to that the kit had enough supplies to line a tank like mine, so i bought one. if you want to see the inside of you tank throughly, the trick that i did was i took a dowel rod and i attached white christmas lights to the rod so that they would light the entire inside of the tank. i took a new brake line and attached a small wire wheel brush to the end of it to bend it in a certain direction to scrape any existing rust that might be in the tank. after running a metal prep through the tank, i took a small hair dryer that fit right on top of sending unit opening and let it run on no heat setting for a full day. the hair dryer completely dried the inside of the tank out and then i took the sealer and poured it in one end, sealed the opening so none would leak out and slowly swished the tank around until all surfaces were coated. i drained out the excess and stood the tank up on one corner so the existing sealer would settle in that particular corner. i then took a section of fish tank tubing and attached a 50cc syringe to it to draw the last small amount of excess out of the tank. the directions on the sealer can stated to allow 48 - 72 hours to dry, but at the time i was not driving my van so i let the tank set for 10 days, just wanted to make sure the stuff would work right.
i have had that tank on my van for over a year now and i havent had any problems with it. knock on wood! well, i hope my little bit of info could help you out greg, this is PATS69CHEVELLE signing out!!


later

pat

he he he he he he he

[gregw98]

PATS69CHEVELLE--Am I going to haunted by this the rest of my life. LOL.
Anyway it took about 3 hours for the tank to drain after polking around the pin hole and opening it up a little. Backed it up on an inclined and let it air dry. Wittled around the pinhole alittle and sanded it area. Applied some Permatex Gas Tank repair putty (like JB Weld) and let it dry about 4 hours. Good so far. I don't have any rust on my van and think it was just a spot, at the lowest point on the tank, where condensation sat for a while and rusted throught in that spot. If it starts to leak again, I'll drop the tank and do it right.
gregs89yugo

[aka Trebor]

I want to echo how improtant it is to be VERY CAREFUL in dealing with fuel tanks. A friend of mine has a Harley shop and he damn near blew himself up because he didnt quite clean the tank completely. Any welding might be a job best left to professionals.

[gregw98]

Not that I plan on doing any welding on the tank, I have heard that you rinse the tank out and fill it with water the best you can before doing any welding. My old 66 Mustang tank had many pin holes in it, I used a gas tank repair putty and then put 3 layers of fiberglass on that. Worked for me.
greg

[pat69chevan]

you want to talk about being careful, i got a story for you!!! warlock, you might have heard about this one since you live in same general area as i do. well, about 20+ years ago, there was this trucking business at the end of the next block from my house and this place worked on everthing from dump trucks to flat beds, anything you could think of. one day, one of the workers was getting ready to repair a empty tanker truck. what i was told is that he flush out the truck and got rid of all the gas content before starting. after cleaning out the tanker, he fired up his welding equipment and BOOM!!!!!! i did get to see what happened, but my dad told me that the guy had to be scraped off of the bulged garage doors!!! not long after that the place closed down. so if any of you van nuts plan on welding any gas tanks anytime soon, please be careful!!!


later

pat