Ethanol proof liner for steel tank?

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A Rudge,eh? Don't want to put that at risk. Electrolysis & the Casewell sounds like the best option. Of course as the rust is removed and more holes appear they can be plugged then continue the cleaning.
The citric acid suggested previously would be about the mildest P&O I can think of to take care of future rust prior to the Casewell application....They made neat little motors with those bronze heads. Looked good.
 
comnoz said:
No such thing as ethanol proof liner.

Just varying degrees of ethanol resistance.
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I'll buy that for a dollar. Haven't seen anything that's brake fluid proof either. I fully understand someone's concerns over preserving original paint on an almost 90 year old collectible, or any vintage bike with decent paint. I believe he'll end up burning avgas w/lead sub and avoid ethanol altogether using a liner. The valves & seats, if original, would suffer damage with modern fuel. Right?.....I'm wandering again.....
 
jbruney said:
I'll buy that for a dollar. Haven't seen anything that's brake fluid proof either. I fully understand someone's concerns over preserving original paint on an almost 90 year old collectible, or any vintage bike with decent paint. I believe he'll end up burning avgas w/lead sub and avoid ethanol altogether using a liner. The valves & seats, if original, would suffer damage with modern fuel. Right?.....I'm wandering again.....
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I really don't know if Rudge valves and seats would be ok with unleaded fuel although I suspect they would handle unleaded as long as it was living an easy life.
Probably not good for a Cannonball run though.
 
Another option for rust conversion is the chelating agents such as Metal Restorer and EvapoRust. These are harmless to paint and skin and can be disposed of safely. One 4l jug can be reused many times. I used Metal Restorer on my HiRider tank and it did a good job on the lightly rusted innards.
 
I've got some of that lead substitute(snake oil) which I mix a bit in every now and then that's supposed to help protect valves & seats. It leaves some deposits behind which I believe are what is supposed to sort of take the place of the lead compound.
The most I can say about it is that aside from deposits it's done no harm, but having hardened valves & seats I can't sat it does any good either....I know.
 
cyclegeezer said:
I used Caswell epoxy to line mine years ago when Roadster tanks weren't available. A previous owner's angry wife had beaten the tank with a pipe and the body shop that pulled the dents recommended lining it in case of stress cracks. No problem with American ethanol gas at all.
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Blimey, that’s one angry wife!

Wonder what he did to cause that !?!
 
Fast Eddie said:
The point is, he has a pinhole leak, which he believes to be due to rust. Of course, if he fixes the pin hole, how long before the next appears, and the next, ad infinitum.

So, his thinking is, a good and strong epoxy liner would ‘repair’ them all. And keep his current beautiful paintwork intact.

It’s a 1930 sumthin’ Rudge, and tanks for those don’t grow on autojumble trees...
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I can recommend Ian Potter at Tank Care Products (google that and you'll get his website). He does all kinds of tank-related work, as well as lining with some fancy epoxy resin that actually is ethanol-proof. He's repaired tanks from pre-1920 bikes with soldered lap joints to relatively modern Jap things, and often fabricates new sections to replace totally rotten areas.

I had him cut the top seam out of a 1971 T120 tank (I don't like the look of the seams) and make some fixing points for a bracing bar across the bottom. He does superb paintwork too. Hope this helps?
 
There is a legal difference between something being proof vs resistant.

Proof means its 100% guaranteed, resistant means there is a point at which it will fail.

Note Tank Care Products description of their product.

Best selling products

Sureseal Titanium
Ethanol resistant tank liner
Sureseal Titanium is a premium 2 part ethanol resistant liner, developed exclusively for Modern fuels. Its metallic particles bond together and for a tough durable coating.

It may well be a very good product but if it fails then there is no legal protection.

Look up water proof vs water resistant.
 
ELLIS said:
I don't have a problem with ethanol destroying my lovely roadster tank . I take it out before putting the petrol in the tank. ;)

ELLIS
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Removing the ethanol also removes octane...Not a problem? Around here non ethanol fuel is readily available in a 90 R+M/2 octane.
 
LIke I said, I've got 20 years on a POR15 treatment with ethanol in there the whole time.
 
I've seen an innocent Sportster beat to death by an intensely jealous woman with a pipe wrench. The poor bike had no means of defense against the vicious attack. The carnage was devastating & shocked me to the very core my being.
 
What about some sort of plastic tank within the shell of the original tank? Not as a film but as an actual tank. Does anybody do this?
 
Donno

I put 3 fluid ounces of water into a clear container then add 1 gallon of petrol. The water amount isn't critical as Ethanol is attracted to the water and mixes with it. Give it a good shake and then leave it overnight. You will see the water/Ethanol mix in the bottom of the container . I then carefully pour off the petrol leaving the Ethanol mix in the container. This mix should be about twice the amount of water you originally put in. You can prove it is Ethanol by poring it into a metal dish and setting it alight. Once the small amount of petrol has burnt off the Ethanol will burn with no smoke. It is true you will loose about 3 octain points so i always use at least 94 octain fuel and my mk3 runs great on it and no more bunged up primary jets.

ELLIS
 
kommando said:
There is a legal difference between something being proof vs resistant.

Proof means its 100% guaranteed, resistant means there is a point at which it will fail.

Note Tank Care Products description of their product.

Best selling products

Sureseal Titanium
Ethanol resistant tank liner
Sureseal Titanium is a premium 2 part ethanol resistant liner, developed exclusively for Modern fuels. Its metallic particles bond together and for a tough durable coating.

It may well be a very good product but if it fails then there is no legal protection.

Look up water proof vs water resistant.
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From Caswell's website....I'm no lawyer but it seems to say permanent...Quite the claim...

Permanently Repairs Steel, Aluminum, Fiberglass and Plastic Gas Tanks
Buy Three Kits, Save 20%
Phenol Novolac Epoxies are a new breed of chemical resistant materials, able to withstand permanent immersion of many harsh solvents, fuels and oils. This Epoxy has much better bond strength than single component products, with strengths of up to 3000 PSI, and this higher strength reduces the need for a clinically clean surface, as the epoxy actually prefers to bond to a rough rusty surface. Our new phenol novolac is more thixotropic, which means it 'hangs' on the tank walls during the coating process. This gives a thicker overall coating. There is more volume of material in the kit to allow for this.
Click to expand...
 
Caswell has always been the brand name I heard tossed around as best for our old bikes
 
Onder said:
What about some sort of plastic tank within the shell of the original tank? Not as a film but as an actual tank. Does anybody do this?
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There's quite a few problems with plastic tanks though since the introduction of ethanol. Even plastic fuel containers can suffer as displayed here:
Ethanol proof liner for steel tank?


They're not my fuel containers, but they do belong to a Norton owner.
 

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