buffing fiberglass tank

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alan hodge

alan hodge

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here another fiberglass tank question tank is from (i believe) 72 bike it is black it is dull looking but pinstripe is still barely visible.....can the tank be buffed back shiny....is the color gelcoat? how you buff if possible? i will reveal soon why i am asking these fiberglass tank questions........
thanks
 
I buffed out the original signal red fiberglass tank and side covers on my ‘72 when rebuilding it in 1997. They came out so well I stayed with them instead of going production racer. All the fiberglass has been sitting in storage for the last 20 years in favor of steel.
Yes the color is in the gel coat, but the pin stripe is painted, so you will not be able to save that.
 
IMHO the ONLY place for a fiberglass tank is the scrap bin. as it is not steel it has no useful value
 
Talk to boat people, the gel coat can be polished - just don't go through it. If you polish off the pin stripes, they can be redone by hand. There is probably a remover that will take the stripes off without hurting the gelcoat - boat people will know. There are lots of YouTube videos on the subject.
 
I'm fixing up a 1971 SS model for a friend. The vinyl decals had to come off and underneath the gel coat was enough of a different yellow that you can still see the lettering. We are going to just polish it and leave it that way. It is a paint job that would take another 50 years to duplicate.
 
ok i corn-fess here's the reason for my questions....i am a member of britbike.com as well and am buying a tank from a friend in vermont for $50 one of the petcock holes has the metal insert missing but i have a short steel fitting with inside threads same as petcock and feel i can epoxy it in with JB Weld Marine epoxy and fix that...pictures of tank show faint gold striping on dull black main main body will need new cap seal as well and lining with Caswells probably (i used it on tank on my 72 T120 and it worked great) why i buy fiberglass tank? i got new amal carbs sorted out on my bike and was bored and needed new project/challenge might use on bike might not just want to see if i can sort it out..........
 
Alan as you prolly know , I been using my GF tank since I have owned the bike , the original owner did same as it was delivered that way , I did have it painted by a pro along with side covers , I have had zero issues …. I am careful to always use non-ethanol high test and do admit I lace it with 114oct race gas ( last year was 116oct) … the painter took the finish down past the spray bomb yellow and into the blue metal flake before he started with the re-finishing …. I’m sure you will get good results carefully buffing yours out …. like someone said ,it all in the details, eh ….
 
craig i ceased using ethanol tainted gas two years ago get the good stuff in a 5 gallon can at a local station and bring it home use it in everything i own mower, tractor, bikes etc except the Tacoma..............am eager to start this project will keep you'uns posted as i said it is as much a learning experience as anything and so keeps the mind sharp (or as sharp as it can be at this point)
 
Buffing gelcoat should be fine as it comes out well on boat work I've done in the past. just get the different grades of buffing compound from a local marine supplier and use according to how severe the patina is you want to remove. You might be able to save the vinyl stickers by taping them over prior to buffing. Ofr just source fresh ones and place later.
 
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