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CVO Technical => General CVO discussion => Topic started by: fos41 on March 02, 2018, 10:25:50 AM
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Hi,
Wanted to ask, if anyone here has any experience with coatings to apply inside steel fuel tank as a rusting preventive? Have a tank that I am replacing a rusted out one would like to prevent this from happening again. The Creme product sold at m/c shops I have had not got great reviews about it`s longevity.
Know there are several things out the there would like to get the most reliable long term fix, if there such a thing. Talked with one place in Chicago that does a "Tinning" process, but I know nothing about this as far as a long lasting thing. Any thoughts on this?
Thanks,
Donnie
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I'm on Shovelhead USA quite a bit and sealing tanks has been a very hot topic over the past year or so. Everyone has an opinion and theirs is the best.
All I can say is that I reviewed a LOT of them and I went with POR-15's tank sealer kit for my Boardtrack's new gas and oil tanks. Even though they're newly welded up by me and don't pressure test with any leaks, I chose to eliminate any future leaks.
The stuff works well and sticks like its part of the metal. I've not filled them yet, but others on the other site used POR-15's kits and like them as well.
So do your research as there are many out there. Another one that got good reviews was Caswell tank kits.
POR-15: https://www.por15.com/POR-15-Fuel-Tank-Repair-Kit (https://www.por15.com/POR-15-Fuel-Tank-Repair-Kit)
Caswell: http://www.caswellplating.com/epoxy-gas-tank-sealer.html (http://www.caswellplating.com/epoxy-gas-tank-sealer.html)
Both have different size kits based on tank size.
I had to buy a kit for a 20 gallon tank and it came with 1 quart of sealer. The reason was that I have a couple undercuts, inside boxes, on my tanks for motor mounts and heads. So to get enough fluid to flow over the inside box corners, I needed more fluid.
I had three tanks to coat and I started with the one with the most inside boxing. Then I drained it back out into the can and reused it in the next gas tank and finally into the oil tank. When done, I had about 3/4 of the quart still in the can. The interesting thing is that they said to fill the can up with water over the POR-15 and let it set overnight and then throw it away. I poured in some water and it didn't mix, obviously, but the next night after work the can was solid as a rock. Into the trash it went.
I saw some samples of the POR-15 at a local paint supply and they had it on the outside of a piece of exhaust tubing. They had hit it with hammers and clamped it in a vice with pads and the POR-15 would not chip or flake off. That's what kind of sold me on that product even when Caswell was also well liked.
Good luck with your new tank and sealing it.
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The liner in my Road Glide's tank went bad. Stuff started coming off in chunks and fouled the filter. Grey slimy crap. Years ago relining these and doing it well was a somewhat common service. Doing it while saving the original paint could be a delicate and tedious task. Places that do this and do it well are very few anymore.
My Road Glide's tank went off to a place called GTL (Gas Tank Linings). They stripped entirely the original grey mucky mess, did whatever prep was necessary and relined with some magical mystery stuff (MMS) that is guaranteed to last for the fullness of time. They did all this without making a mark on the original paint. It's not the cheapest service in the world but it's nice to know we're not jeopardizing almost one-off and difficult to replace.
http://www.gastanklining.com
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The only product I've had experience with is Kreme, and I would not recommend it.
Jerry
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The only product I've had experience with is Kreme, and I would not recommend it.
Jerry
Tried that stuff twice many years ago on frame up builds. Back when buying a frame and MSO and rolling your own was no big deal. First time was such a mess and did such a poor job I just assumed it had to be me. That no product could be that underwhelming. Second time I tried it realized it wasn't me.
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Kreme was one of the ones on the Shovelhead forum that everyone says to stay away from.
And I did forget to mention that removing the old lining is a must do before re-sealing the tank. A lot of guys use MEK or acetone to do this, BUT BE VERY CAREFUL of the original paint. In my case with new metal, I used POR's degreaser and rinsed with water and then did the etching solution. This had to be dried out completely with air and heat guns. The actual sealing went well for my first time. Not a big mess or anything. The only issue I had was that I had welded in bungs for the crossover between tanks on the bottom and top vents along with the petcock outlet. These stuck inside the tanks by about 1/8", so it was impossible to drain the sealing solution 100%. I just turned the tanks on the center down which gave me the most surface area to be flat and let it just dry that way.
Just make sure that whatever you use it's rated for gasohol. Some are not for use with any alcohol.
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I have never heard any good reports on the Kreme product over the years. I have used Caswell coating on a composite tank, but not a steel one.
Does anyone have any knowledge of the Tinning process done by Archer Tinning of Chicago? Can not find anything on line about this process.