Gas tank sealer

[Sidehacker]

Right now what is the best gas tank sealer . Thanks

[jellywrestler]

whatever you use make sure you get an details of a product to remove it in case you need it removed in the future

[T. Cotten]

Sidehacker!

For several summers, I was testing the local fuel by immersing various sealers, paints, adhesives, etc. upon etched glass plates.

"Red-Cote" was the the only tank sealer product that survived un-changed, while Caswell's and POR-15 failed.

Nonetheless, unless you have soldered tanks, I would advise against any such sealer, because we never know what will come out of the pumps next summer. My philosophy is to give the P4gas as little to eat as possible.

....Cotten

[Sidehacker]

Okay Cotten , if your saying it's better not to use a sealer then what do we do with tanks we know very little about their history, they been sitting open for God knows how many years, and I would like to put a decent paint job on them . I was told years ago to use bbs and copper pennies inside the tanks and agitate for as long as it takes to get the surface rust off but with out having micro video equipment you can only see so much of the surface inside the tanks. I also think the previous post made since. What can remove Red-Cote if I do decide to use it.

[exeric]

MEK, acetone, and hardware store paint remover will take out Red Kote. I've used Red Kote on 4 or 5 tanks with success. Of course, I would rather not use any tank sealant but that isn't always an option. If you absolutely do not want to use a tank sealer then your only option is to get full access to the inside of the tank and that means taking off a back, or cutting an access port. Leading the inside of a tank is a great fix, but if you don't kill every trace of rust, or neutralize the lead flux, you're going to have problems in the future. Red Kote claims their product can be used successfully over light rust. Now, that's their claim, not mine. I try to get every bit of rust out.

[Sidehacker]

Thanks Eric , that's exactly what I'm going to do . I appreciate the info. I bought the Red Kote yesterday for $35 a pint so if you get what you pay for should work out nicely . As always you guys are great when it comes to sharing of information.as far as removing rust I've done naval jelly then put bbs and pennies in tank and agitate for as long as it takes to clean it out . Is there any other ways out there that might be easier and less messy .
Thanks FNA

[exeric]

There is the old dryer technique. I believe it was our knowledgeable fellow member PRG who originally suggested it and I tried it with very good success. Fill your tanks with aquarium stones, and/or other abrasives, seal all the tank openings, wrap the tanks in furniture blankets, and put them in the dryer without the heat. Oh yeah, and make sure your wife isn't home.

[wideglide38]

I feel the best sealer is a full tank of fuel! No oxygen to oxidize! I've had friends use cream, red kote, POR 15 and they wished they hadn't sealed their tanks. As for rust removal and the "dryer technique"; this made me think . . what about a rotisserie type set-up/stand. You bolt two tank halves on a shaft/jig, partial fill the tanks with media and a penetrating/rust cutting solution, then drive the rotisserie with a very low rpm motor and chain drive..... probably more practical if you did a lot of tank prep work for others. My 2₵'s

[Sidehacker]

William I agree totally but as I stated before unfortunitly I have to use a sealer. There is nothing worse than having a paint job ruined because of a fuel leak and when you resurrect some of this old sheet metal u have to compromise as to what is the best solution . I wish I could look inside these tanks and see my eye ball reflection in the bottom of the tamk . But with what I can see and feel ( after cleaning the mouse **** out of it) it is pretty rough. Plus mice pee and that's caustic so they been pressure tested but until they been on a Harley with that vibration day in and day out anything can happen and I want to to what's best for situation. I almost popped the back off to soldered them up but that's a compromise also . Sealer works if your careful of what fuels you run . As far as cream is concerned I consider that a resin Instead of a sealer. I've seen tanks ruined with cream. As was stated previously this Red Kote seems to be the best out there at the moment and it can be removed and reapplied if need be in future with minimal effort .
Eric right now I'm tring to devise a way to get all the women out of the house So I can do the drier method.. I'm the only male in my home and I have three kids and my wife I have decided to use media stones because it's more controllable as far as how fast rust is removed . I will let u know what happens .
If any one has anything else to add I'm al ears thank guys for all the ideas
FNA

[indian45]

This is along the same line. A bike builder friend of mine in Phx. has all of his new tanks electro nickel plated prior to paint. This keeps the inside of the tanks looking new for years but does little for older tanks with small pin holes. Just my two cents worth.

[49 pan]

I agree do not use a sealer UNLESS absolutely necessary.

I do believe that Harley has been sealing the tanks on all new bikes for some time, it would be nice to know what they use.

I do know it is an EPOXY product----------------------Caswell has had an EPOXY product out for some time know, I do not know how it performs but I would try to check it out.

Dick from Eustis

[Carl Olsen]

I used a product called Rust Away on some very rusted tanks recently and it worked so well I bought a 5 gallon bucket in Davenport. It did not hurt the paint on the outside and dissolved the rust on the inside in short order and had no fumes to deal with. I have been using the dryer method for years with self taping sheet metal screws, but discovered roofing nails work better. I bought my dryer at the Salvation Army for $8 and it is a 110 volt gas model with the igniter disconnected, it sits outside my shop and has survived 3 brutal South Dakota winters and if it fails I will have no trouble replacing it. I do not like to use sealer on tanks and have removed it with acetone, but use plenty of ventilation, preferably outside is best.
Carl

[rwm]

i use this for antique hand saws.https://www.google.com/search?q=elec...63803&imgdii=_
as far as the dryer goes i would never use it. it may work great i just dont want lucy to know i'm able to turn it on.

[Jim]

I had some tank sealer go bad after "many years" in my '36 H-D. (I "THINK" it was from Eastwood) I used Paint Remover to remove the old sealer. After the sealer was removed, I still had to use a little more paint remover WITH screws/bolts/small links of chain to finish removing the "stuck" stuff. What a job swishing that around by hand!! I had to be EXTREMELY careful too as to NOT ruin my paint. I put a ton of masking tape around the filler and just "held my breath". So... after it was removed, I didn't put any more "sealer" in it. I think originally I just put it in for a pre-cautionary move. Ah well... live and learn.

Sounds like the Red Coat that Cotten mentioned held up well....