new fuel tank availability / advice? 31 PU

[Kube]

Originally Posted by Phil Brown

Not particularly hard but time-consuming
This one needed a fair amount of work

Thank you so much! This really added clarity to what I need to do.
Much obliged to you!

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by Kube

I plan on removing the tank, acid bathing it, cutting it open, blasting the inside, welding it shut and sealing.
Shouldn't be a difficult task, just time consuming.

Is there a baffle inside?

Originally Posted by Kube

Thank you so much! This really added clarity to what I need to do.
Much obliged to you!

Below is one of my pictures as we likely restore more gas tanks than any other company or person. It definitely sounds like you have a plan however let me give you a few more things to think about. After cutting the tank open and prior to welding it together again, it is HIGHLY advantageous to place the tank into a fixture to make sure it does not get twisted or warped during the welding process. If it does, the tank will not fit the cowl well and it will leak water into the cabin.

Next, after welding has been complete, you will need a method to pressure test the tank. And finally, the tank will need to have the insides completely coated. This includes all areas of the baffles. Any area that does not receive a full layer of Sealer will rust again causing the fuel to seep under the sealer and for rust to begin forming under the sealer. As soon as this happens, ithe sealer will no longer adhere to the tank.

If you are planning to use the sloshing method, you will need a minimum of 4 gallons of sealer which is enough to submerge the baffles on each end of the tank, plus enough sealer to thoroughly coat the inside of the exterior walls. At that point, you can drain all but about a quart, to maybe a quart and a half of sealer. It has been our experience that only using 1 - 2 quarts of sealer is not enough to be able to coat the centers of the baffles. I hope this helps you some. Good luck with your project.