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Gas Tank Repair

  • Thread starter Thread starter dlsmith
  • Start date Start date
D

dlsmith

Guest
I just went out to my storage building to check on my 1985 Suzuki GS 700E and the gas tank was leaking. I took the tank off the bike and turned it over and there are six pin holes that have rusted from the inside out. I aquired the bike about 3 years ago and it is near mint (or was until I found this). I knew the tank had some rust started in it the last time I cleaned the carbs I noticed the dposits, but I didn't think it was this bad. The paint on the bike is in excellent shape however I have notice that in two spots on the lower sides of the tank that there are bubbles under the paint and I worry that these are pin holes also. I know the proper way to fix this problem is to bead blast the tank, have all the holes welded and then seal the inside of the tank with the Kreem tank liner available from any motorcycle shop. However, this will require a new paint job which I will do if necessary as I love the bike, but I was wondering if there is another tank liner solution out there that I am not aware of? I am very upset over this and want to get it fixed before the riding season roles around again. Any help would be great!
 
I'm no expert on this repair, but you may want to start your search on ebay for a NOS tank. Admittedly the chances are slim, but there may be one out there.

Three alternatives:

Look for a nice used one on ebay.

Contact the sellers on ebay that advertise NOS items and make your request to them. They may have one and it just hasn't gone on the block yet.

Repair your tank. I have a feeling that this tank is going to be a pain to fix as you described it. If any welding is to be done, remember to flush the tank with water first. Yea, new paint will be required - matching the side covers will be difficult. Finding decals may be tough also. A tank liner will have to be used.
 
Re: Gas Tank Repair

DLSmith said:
...I took the tank off the bike and turned it over and there are six pin holes that have rusted from the inside out....The paint on the bike is in excellent shape however I have notice that in two spots on the lower sides of the tank that there are bubbles under the paint and I worry that these are pin holes also.
Click to expand...

I was in the EXACT same situation with my GS700E that had been in storage for 10 years. It had little yellow blisters on the bottom of the tank near the petcock. I used a gas tank cleaner/sealer on it, and once the rust was removed from the inside, the bubbles turned into pinhole leaks. I came up with a temporary fix which has been in place for six months now, until I can find a NOS tank (I checked with a dealer, the decals are no longer available, at least the red ones).

All of my leaks were on the underside, so I could pretty much do anything I wanted and it wouldn't affect the appearance of the bike. I sanded the paint off the bottom of the tank everywhere I saw a blister (once the paint was gone, it was obvious they were pinhole leaks). After that, I mixed up some J-B Weld, and carefully patched each pinhole, with a little bit of extra to ensure the hole was sealed. After it cured, I primed the area I had sanded, then leak checked it by filling it with gas and letting it stand for a week. No leaks.

I then spray painted the primer with some automotive paint from an auto parts store (I used one of the whites, it didn't have to match because you can't see it when the tank is on the bike) and installed the tank.

No leaks so far, knock on wood.

About two months ago, there was a NOS GS700 gas tank on ebay, but it was blue/white. I think it ended up going for about $150 or so.

Good luck.
 
Gas Tank Repair

Take it to a automotive radiator repair store. The one in town here Bellingham Washington will coat the inside for $80 bucks. It may block the pin holes from leaking saving you the hassle of fixing or repainting yourself. If they are just pin holes one would think a proper coating from the inside would solve your problem. Carter
 
Holy Holy

Holy Holy

Had the same thing happen on my old 1000, after noting one pinhole I got to poking around on some suspect areas & found half a dozen more holes.....the original hole would open up to dime size, as it happened the whole underside was paper thin & the areas that leaked were less than paper thin.
The only real solution I believe is replacement......think about it.....if you "discover' many more leaks ....how thin do you think the metal is?
A repair may very well be just sticking fingers in the dam.....& you might just run out of fingers by the time your done.
Rick........
 
I had a similar problem last Nov. came home to find gas leaking from around the petcock. I found an epoxy based sealer at Parts America. There were about 6 pin holes, sanded it down, applied the epoxy patch, let it cure for 24 hrs, painted it. So far it has not been a problem. I've been looking for an NOS tank on eBay, no luck so far. A new tank is available for about 450.00, that?s more than I paid for the bike.
 
What the hell did they do to that thing? It almost looks like they taped the black stripe and the suzuki logo and painted it primer gray.
 
Several years ago I replaced a slightly dented tank with a "clean" used one. After having it painted, and new decals applied, I noticed bubbles in the paint. I took it back to the painter, and when he put his fingernail into the bubbles, the tank started leaking. The paint was actually holding it together. We drained it and took it to the local radiator shop, who soldered it up. It is not the prettiest repair, but it has held for a long time now. That should get you by until you can find a good replacement, but I fear a paint job is in your future.

Bike bandit has online microfiche that will let you know right away if it is still availiable new.

Good luck,
glyn
 
Hi,

If your still looking to restore the tank with another I may be able to help

I can cut custom or reproduction emblems for our Suzuki's..
Any color or style scheme so you can also get that custom look instead of factory. .
The engine covers will be professional exterior vinyl but look great.
I also have over 5000 graphics in my library do touch her up for Spring.
check it out at
www.blcustomgraphics.com

Still constructing so e-mail any requests if you don?t find it, I can probably get it...

Stimpy
 
It is interesting that some of the "pinhole rust" leaks developed on the bottom of some of the tanks, apparently from the inside out. Air has to be present for rust to develop and you would think that the one part of the inside of a tank that will have gas covering it would be the bottom. Do you think that this means that the tanks on these bikes have stood empty for a considerable period at some time in their lives? Or is having gas in the tank not an effective protection against rust? I have filled the tank on my 1983 GS750ES with gas when storing every winter and have been smug in the assumption that tank rust would not develop......now I feel the urge to peer into my tank the next time it is near empty. 8-[ Perhaps, being garaged all its life, and being in Colorado's dry climate, will have prevented rust starting in my GS's tank. [-o<

BB
 
Good question Bold Biker. I would expect water to collect at the bottom of the tank. Perhaps rust could form from the small amount of oxygen dissovled in the gas and water.
 
something like that, the water definitely sinks, so it should be in contact with the metal once it displaces any gas on the bottom of the tank, then it must be dissolved oxygen in the water that allows the rust (?). even underwater metal will rust, at least in my experience, but I've never verified that empirically... certainly holds true that it's the bottom of the tank that goes!!

and just so you're extra worried, my 650 has been in CO all it's life and the tank is rusted ALL TO HELL!@@#@!#!^%!$!!%#! :(
 
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