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Message started by sluggo on 07/31/08 at 11:04:23

Title: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 07/31/08 at 11:04:23

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j257/dsluggo/IMG_3488.jpg

i'm in need of some body work as you can tell, this is the tank i bought from a fellow member thanks...

i need it fixed and paintd gloss black. i'll send tins also. black will look great withthe chromed fenders.

time is not a big deal, cash is. i don't want anyone to do it for free, i just need it cheep.

i would consider an equivilant indentation on the other side if we could get them to match.

shiny black with chrome fenders.... ooooooooooo. 8-)

my wife may spring for oem color , she really likes the purple.

thanks
sluggo\

i've got the box all ready for shipping.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/31/08 at 12:53:27

I was a bodyman for 3 years. I have the tools.I would need a Brad tool, that welds a brass tack to the tank, then pull on that to get the wrinkles out. I am still rasslin the Honda, of the 10 head bolt holes, 9 require a tap & findiong the tap has become a bit of a mystery. The one a machinist handed me just doesnt feel right. the one good hole that the new bolts run in freely wont allow the tap to run in, so I have to make certain I have the right one. I dont think I do.

So, if you arent in a hurry, let me get this car running, then, I'll do it.
The big expenses are tool rental, bondo, primer & sand paper & freight. I'll do the work for plenty cheap.Ill start looking at the tool rental & bondo & sandpaper costs & a can of spray primer is cheap. The painters would sometimes reject bodywork & send it back to the bodyman to redo. Mine was never sent back.

Since that is a gas tank, & since the brad welder does get the metal red hot, am I gonna get blown up? Is there a way to air it out & make it safe? Surely a few days of being open it would air out, wouldnt it?

OOOPS,,,I see a hard crease & the paint is ground off, the 2 dents that are together on the about 9 oclock position, then, there is a dent,running up & right, right where that dent connects to the upper dent of the 2 dents at 9 oclock, there is a place that is folded pretty hard. How thin did the metal get ground at the peak of that fold? It may crack when it gets pulled out. It looks like the grinder got a little carried away in that spot. That may require some brazing. I guess a tank can be brazed & not leak there. Ive never messed with fuel tanks.

IF brazing will work, I can drill & use the old method of a dent puller & avoid the cost of renting a machine & buting the brads. I can get it brazed ( if its safe & will work) for little $ & an 90 mile round trip. It will look like new, for sure. I did the bodywork on an oilfield Mack truck & as hard as it bounced down the road, none of the mud ever cracked or flaked off. It had been sandblasted using industrial abrasive & was warped from end to end. It took 6 gallons of mud to solve that & 6 weeks.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 07/31/08 at 13:23:43

I'll send it along give me an address in a pm and how much start up cash it will take to do the job.

i would rather it done well than fast. the original tank is still in use so the time thing is not that important.

tanks, just tell me what ya need.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 16:34:58

Dude, you MUST wash out the tank very ,very well with a cleaning solvent first (mineral spirits will work) followed by at least 3-4 flushings with a quality grade soap cleanser(i use "purple stuff" ) or the tank will explode the second you put the stud gun to it!!! You can also run your car exhaust pipe into it for a few minutes to neutralize the combustable fumes. I don't care how long the tank has sat empty and"aired out",it will blow!! Take my word for it,i have welded,cut,fabbed and modified more gas tanks than there are days in a year.... Please don't use a dent puller on it,it leaves little "volcano holes in it that then must be welded up(MIG or TIG will both work) and basically makes a butcher job out of it. Hope this helps....K.J. P.S I have been a bodyman/painter/fabricator for over 30 years.Also keep in mind that jap bike tanks are very thin (approx. 24 gauge ) and are quite difficult to weld properly. Thats where a TIG welder comes in handy.Later....

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 07/31/08 at 17:24:45

556B6D6A71737477731E0 wrote:

and thats why i'm farming out the work

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/31/08 at 19:59:28

well,,I wish I had a junk tank to mess with. I sure dont want to Create one, using Sluggo's tank to start from.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 20:05:59

Well Sluggo,Ya git whut ya pay fer!!!!!K.J.FROM####??????????

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/31/08 at 20:09:47

Kinda snotty there KJ,,

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 20:14:59

My Bad, me sorry!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 20:16:56

Hey, we are all online. HOW SWEET!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 20:20:46

Not snotty, just the TRUTH, can Ya take it?

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by strangeling on 07/31/08 at 20:26:16

Aaaaaw KJ are you stirring up the Savages again ? >:( ;D

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/31/08 at 20:28:26

Yea, I can stand what you think, you dont know me, your opinion is based on your own need to feel superior, & your opinion is meaningless, and snotty.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 07/31/08 at 20:32:12

I really didn't want to start a pi$$ing match here, i just need the job done well and i trust usz guyz more than anybody here in town.

as for how much, somewhere between dyi and wholesale? tell me what ya need. i can live without it, but it sure would be nice to have it done this season.

now i do have another practice tank. but bike fixer gave me a way to blow it up real good, and ya know me... any thing for a big bang.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 20:38:43

Sorry, my "opinion " is not is not ""meaningless% and opionated,it is based on fact and experience.take it as you may ,we listen to your "rantings" and I personally appreciate them, but God help the person that does not agree with you.....

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 20:42:14

Glad you "know me " so well >.......Its great to be appreciated!!Ha!K.J.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/31/08 at 20:46:27

Well, my bodywork always passed muster, I changed the frames on 2 pickups, no come backs, No, Ive never worked on a motorcycle gas tank, I did start off with the brad gun idea, just needing some input is not necessarily reason to believe I would do a crap job. What say you about that area in the pic? Is that gonna split?

Yea, you are right, I dont just sit & let others poo poo what I say, because Ive spent lots of time, digging this stuff up, It wasnt spoon fed me on TV, or the papers & more often than not flies in the face of everything commonly held to be "Truth". The majority dont want to know it, the commonly held beliefs are so much easier & dont interfere with the cook outs.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 21:18:54

Believe me , i know where you are coming from,i would also appreciate being taken seriously.,butt that aint happen here, right STANGELING????!!!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by strangeling on 07/31/08 at 21:21:53

KJ I ain't biting today !

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 21:31:15

Chicken!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Ha! Ha!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 07/31/08 at 21:35:25

is this pi$$ing match going to fill up my 2.6 gallon tank? :o

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by strangeling on 07/31/08 at 21:38:26

I think what we are full of would clog your tank :-[

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 21:38:49

Not in the least, will you pay my mortgage??!!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 07/31/08 at 21:41:53

Stangeling ,you have earned your "name" God bless & good Knight, Adios,"Amigo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Robertomoe on 08/01/08 at 22:26:09

:-?

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Jonny_Chicago on 08/01/08 at 23:09:07

HAHA, you guys need to stop flirting and help sluggo out. You guys crack me up!

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 08/01/08 at 23:48:31

4643424255734F44454F4D4B432C0 wrote:

HAHA, you guys need to stop flirting and help sluggo out. You guys crack me up!

thanks j, i had no idea things would go so off da hook as the kids sasy today.

i do so love the shape of the tank.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Robertomoe on 08/02/08 at 07:38:39

really? I dont care much for the stock tank.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by sluggo on 08/02/08 at 08:59:09

556865627573686A6862070 wrote:

really? I dont care much for the stock tank.

i was chatting with a local bike builder, and the tank was one of the things he really liked. i agree it's got an old school look. and the lines it gives thumper are great. nothing against those who;ve changed tanks, but everyone i've seen has lost those the lines i brought out so well...

thats the reason. no i am considering covering the hole and move the instrument panel.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Paladin. on 08/02/08 at 09:46:58

487670776C6E696A6E030 wrote:

As a Tech I don't take anyone's word for anything without verification. Especially on a rather fantastic claim such as a gas tank exploding no matter how long it has sat open. Hence:

http://paladin.savageriders.com/images/GasTank.jpg (http://paladin.savageriders.com/images/GasTank.AVI)(click and wait a long time for the original .AVI file)

View instantly with this: YouTubeLink (http://www.youtube.com/v/htQMr-Onrbc)

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 08/02/08 at 09:55:28

Seems to me that a few days of sitting open, in a hot shop, would evaporate everythin that could go "Boom"

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 08/02/08 at 09:56:02

Sluggo, I sent you a PM,,

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Sandy Koocanusa on 08/02/08 at 10:26:20

With all due respect to that guy and his single match, Paladin, I would rather err on the side of caution. I've spoken to several welders over the years on this very topic. The consensus has been that a tank is never aired out enough. One even told me of a barrel going poof after years of sitting with the bung open.

Everyone I have ever asked told me the only safe way to weld on a fuel container is to have it full of water while you are welding. I realize this would make brazing difficult, but I'd hate to see Justin walking around with no eyebrows. I would think if you are going to air out a tank for a few days, you might as well do it with the tank full of soapy water for a couple of those days.

Suit yourself, and let me know how it goes so I can tip my own mental scales one way or the other for the future.

One question I don't have an answer for: Is it possible that the vapor doesn't exist until you heat the varnish that has accumulated on the inside of the tank? Maybe a match won't do that, but prolonged heating with a torch would?

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by Kustomjim on 08/02/08 at 10:54:53

Sandy,years ago i was welding on a tank that had only been flushed out once (was trying to save time) and even had the tank full of soapy water at the time.The tank was upside down on my bench,it probably had a small air pocket near the top surface. As soon as the mig welder struck an arc it went boom! Didn't explode per se (as in blow up in a million pieces),but the "boom" was enough to split the tank at the seams! Imagine it without flushing and filled with water... That is just one example,have others from different sources that also weld/fab. K.J.

Title: Re: bodywork needed
Post by photojoe on 08/02/08 at 11:03:00

This company describes how they prepare a motorcycle fuel tank for paint, they actualy put it in an oven first: http://www.gas-tank.com/bike.htm. Not pro or against, just thought that it was interesting reading.