1970 Triumph Tiger 650

Wow...that tank has indeed seen better days! Going to try to find a new one or a decent used one?
 
o1marc said:
The calipers are powder coated in a Gold Vein. Veins are powders that cure with a black base and a colored top, in either Gold, Silver, Copper or Penny. The same texture type powder that has the same color but different shades in the base and top patterns is called a Hammertone, where the low sections are darker than the higher pattern. So mine are coated in Gold Vein, the name Triumph is a vinyl decal, and then the caliper is clear coated in powder to seal the lettering in and bring out the texture of the powder.

Awesome, interesting stuff - cheers for the explanation.
 
Started looking around for a place to mount the rear master cylinder, there's not a lot of places to put one. As it turns out it was an easy mod to put it in the only place it will fit and be an extremely easy hook up to the pedal. I'll just make me a new passenger peg mounting plate that has an extended bottom to mount the m/c to the back side of. Fortunately the actuating arm on the brake pedal is removable and can be clocked in 45° increments. I just needed to turn it down so it is pushing instead of pulling. Unfortunately the actuating arm is not bent in the correct orientation for this application, but heating and bending it is an easy fix to clearance the frame rail.




 
Looks like it all can be located on the passenger peg bracket. Bored a hole through to locate the hose and made a small strap to bolt the reservoir to.



The m/c fitting was in the wrong location so I had to cut it off and clock it in the correct position before JB Welding it back together.

 
Clearer pics ;) of the master cylinder set up. Found a 90° banjo fitting so routing the fluid line shouldn't be an issue. This all worked out amazingly simple:




 
The rest of the tank seemed structurally sound after inspection and I realized what had happened. Some time during the 40 years this bike sat water got in the tank. The bike apparently spent many of those years on the side stand leaning left. All the holes are on the left edge and petcock. I am going to try and braze the holes and seal it after.
 
This sort of thing happens a lot around here (especially on the thinner gauge Japanese tanks)...so much rain and fog. it's obvious that you "know your stuff" but here's a suggestion: It can be very time consuming and downright frustrating trying to get all the little pin holes brazed up, but it can definitely be done. When you think you have it all nice and fuel tight,I suggest you find a way to pressure test it like a tire tube before you apply a liner....only needs one or two psi and some soapy water. Even tiny pin holes will eventually leak despite the liner and ruin a gorgeous paint job.
 
goldy said:
This sort of thing happens a lot around here (especially on the thinner gauge Japanese tanks)...so much rain and fog. it's obvious that you "know your stuff" but here's a suggestion: It can be very time consuming and downright frustrating trying to get all the little pin holes brazed up, but it can definitely be done. When you think you have it all nice and fuel tight,I suggest you find a way to pressure test it like a tire tube before you apply a liner....only needs one or two psi and some soapy water. Even tiny pin holes will eventually leak despite the liner and ruin a gorgeous paint job.
To an untrained ear this sounds ludicrous, the top of the line tank sealers leak? I have to fix it because replacement used units are almost impossible to find and cost $500 or more for rough ones that needs work.
 
that jeep rescue green looks really good. I have been thinking about painting a project with that color. nice work. if the brazing doesnt seal that tank up i would use some silver solder for the pinholes. It wicks into small holes and will make a good seal. also its pretty easy to use then you dont have to deal with tank sealers.
 
doc_rot said:
that jeep rescue green looks really good. I have been thinking about painting a project with that color. nice work. if the brazing doesnt seal that tank up i would use some silver solder for the pinholes. It wicks into small holes and will make a good seal. also its pretty easy to use then you dont have to deal with tank sealers.
You would be really foolish to not use a sealer on a tank that has this much rust through. Silver solder may work on the outside but it doesn't stop what's going on inside the tank.
I set out to tackle the hole issue today and ended up with this, copied and pasted from another thread.

So I start searching for a welder today to braze up my holes. Was striking out as none of them do brazing. Then it dawned on me that this is not a welding job, but a braze job most likely accomplished by a radiator shop. I just happen to know one locally, they used to sponsor my race car. So I grab the tank and raced on down there only to find that the guy who does the radiator repair there died of cancer last year and they haven't been able to find a competent replacement. We talked and he told me the tank was definitely fixable and referred me to 2 other places about 25 miles away. He told me that even a 2 part epoxy could be used to fill the holes. I called one of the shops that said they could fix it and hem and hawed and changed his tune without seeing the pics and said they probably wouldn't be able to help me, but bring it down to look at. It was at this point I said screw it and went home and got out the JB Weld and started filling holes. Looks like this is going to be adequate. I sold another $285 worth of Honda parts today so I'll go ahead and order some Caswell sealer and try and finish the tank.
I pushed on the holes areas with my thumb and you can't move any of the metal because it is too thin.
Earlier in the day I made a call and found a brand new unpainted tank in the box for $500, it's a deal , but I don't have $500 right now. No I won't say where I found it, I may get it later.








 
DohcBikes said:
Neither does 'sealer'.
If the metal is not exposed to oxygen it shouldn't promote the continuation of the oxidation process. Either way his statement about silver solder eliminating the need for a sealer is incorrect. Someone told me today that even if the tank is sealed a pinhole in the metal will still leak. :eek:
 
Over the past 40+ years I've done this sort of work time and time again and he is right...even the best sealers will leak at pinholes and cracks(eventually). I would never do this sort of work without applying a high quality liner afterward, but gasoline has incredible capillary action...make sure it is air tight before you apply the sealer.
 
Whatever you say. I guess all the brazed, leak free atc tanks (some of the worst leakers out there btw) I have are just plain luck. ::)

If you have leaks after brazing, you didnt do it right.
 
The Duc tank I got at Barber turned out to be trashed under braze and Bondo. It was a turd that did not leak.

92b8e861c58b7b440e0cdd4db8629724.jpg
 
goldy said:
Over the past 40+ years I've done this sort of work time and time again and he is right...even the best sealers will leak at pinholes and cracks(eventually). I would never do this sort of work without applying a high quality liner afterward, but gasoline has incredible capillary action...make sure it is air tight before you apply the sealer.
Have you used the new Caswell liner? I have heard nothing but good things about. Caswell says you don't even have to fill the holes, just put tape over them on the outside and line the tank. It's crazy that your telling me there isn't a sealer out there that will actually do what it's intended to do.
 
Yeah, I know it sounds crazy...beaten that dead horse long enough :)
YES, yes, yes, Caswell all the way! I have nothing but good things to say about that product. I've used Kream, POR15 and Redcoat, but in the past couple of years I wont use anything else but the Caswell product. IMO the best thing about liners is that they will prevent any of the rust and crap that may still be lurking in the hard to clean parts of the tank from getting into your carburetors.
 
goldy said:
IMO the best thing about liners is that they will prevent any of the rust and crap that may still be lurking in the hard to clean parts of the tank from getting into your carburetors.
Ever heard of fuel filters? Maybe in 40 years you have overlooked them. They are placed in line with the fuel line, and they, get this, filter the fuel before it enters the carb.
 
Back
Top Bottom