Gas tank question

[axe]

Hey guys, just got a call back from my powdercoater and my tank is done. GOOD NEWS! Now the ineveitable question, what do i need to do to use it again. It's from a 2003 vulcan, I pulled everything off of it and cleaned it out before i sent it to him... including drying up any water. No chunky bits, no rust came out of the tank. and i noticed no obvious tank liner or anything. SInce it went to the coaters, it's been soaked in an acid bath, powdercoated flat black and baked.

What do i need to do to put it back on the bike? DO i need to buy that KREEM stuff? again, there was no rust and no dammage.

 

[hurley209]

sealing the inside of the tank would probably be a good idea.

 

[bobjohnson]

Yeah if its been acid bathed, i would seal up the inside of the tank because youre most likely right down to bare metal now. You can get a kit from POR15 to do it, or you can take it to a local shop and have them do it. Whatever you do, stay away from Kreem. I got one of my tanks Kreemed and it was the worst 100 bucks i ever spent. The stuff started to peel instantly. Theres also some red stuff, i dont know the name, but its what they seal radiators with. Any rad shop will be able to do it, but the trick is finding one that will work on a bike tank. I like that stuff, it dries like a plastic and its really tough. My buddy had his tank on a 97 CBR600 done with it, and we tried to chip it with a screw driver just to test it out. No luck. Seems like it will be permanent, which is a good thing. Only cost like 150 dollars as well, worth it in my opinion.

 

[Sonreir]

Stay away from Kreem. I've never used it, but I've heard enough bad stories to never want to use it, either. Try POR-15.

 

[Kong]

Don't do anything to it unless you have to. Just blow it out, put the petcock back on, put it on the bike and fill it up. If it leaks, the seal it, but if not, then don't.

 

[bobjohnson]

Don't do anything to it unless you have to. Just blow it out, put the petcock back on, put it on the bike and fill it up. If it leaks, the seal it, but if not, then don't.

Its less about leaking and more about preventing rust inside the tank. Now that its been acid bathed, any protective coating on the metal inside the tank is long gone, which means itll flash rust in fairly short order unless you keep the tank completely full of gas all the time.

 

[VonYinzer]

Cheap route: Get it home, fill it with a gallon of PB Blaster, shake it up a whole bunch. Keep doing that until you can fill it with gas. Will help to stop flash rust, but isnt permanent by any means.

Right way: Get a proper coating kit like the guys above mentioned.

 

[freerideordie]

POR 15 tank sealer, built my tank, worried I might find a leak from one of the welds even though i checked it a million times, lined it with this stuff and love it. It bonds to the metal (and your hands for a month) and is strong as can be. Actually, pretty much anything I have used from them works exactly as great as they claim.

 

[axe]

So, after checking all my local bike shops, my choices are Kreem, Kreem and more Kreem. I was hoping to have the bike on the road by the week end, maybe not have the parts changed over (bobbing a Vulcan 800) but at least having a rideable vehicle again. but it seems unless i want to kreem my tank, i have to mail order something. Theres a bike show this weekend in my area I am going to, so I'll try there first... i think they have a swap meet/dealers section

 

[freerideordie]

dont kreem it! just wait,you can still use the tank with no sealer, that por 15 means paint over rust so even if it flash rusts, it doesn't matter . Kreem just sucks.

 

[axe]

I sent a few emails to some local radiator repair guys, hoping one of them has or does Red kote, from my research it is the far better choice over kreem. and since Kreem is all i can find so far...

Dammit, guess i am buying a few more bus tokens, if i have to order in sealant my bike will be laid up for another week.

 

[VonYinzer]

No man. Just fill it with gas. Gasolene will stop it from rusting. Youll be fine. Just ride, and when your POR15 comes in, drain the tank, clean it and seal away. Use the tank as is in the meantime.

 

[axe]

Well, I decided to put it to the Radiator shop, 4 coats of hardcore internal coating... combine that with the tough powdercoat exterior i went with, the bike should be able to take some abuse... knowing my luck it'll get stolen or knocked over as soon as i have it back on the road....

The weather is AMAZING today and I am stuck on the damn bus. I was considering doing the self seal stuff later on and just riding it for now, but I have nowhere to do the tank coating aside from my balcony.... not the best idea. As it is, my bike sitting in the parking garage with the seat and tank off has garnered a few complaints, since officially i shouldn't have done ANY work on my bike on property...

Condos suck.