- Joined
- Jan 27, 2015
- Messages
- 64

Bit of a sad story to tell, but the information I pass on should help others decide to "never" buy a Indian made gas tank, unless you are able to mitigate some of the potential problems.
I purchased a Norton Interstate gas tank from "vintage_motors_zone" off ebay for $300 plus $80 shipping to Vancouver Canada. After three weeks, I got an email to say the tank they had for me failed a leak test and they had to make another one - another six weeks went by and a parcel arrived from New Dehli - happy days, well maybe not.
The tank was nice and shiny silver metallic with decals and stripes. Hey wait a minute the right side is not the right shape - the curvature is off by about 3/4" and the painted lines exaggerate the issue.
I contacted the seller and was told to return the tank to India. After contacting Canada Post, UPS, Fed Ex - prices ranged from $365 to $780 for basic shipping - this is ridiculous. After some more time passed seller agreed to a $25 refund, which I never received. At this point it is past the ebay timing for a claim and I have not had any contact with the seller since, despite numerous emails.
I decided I would look at fixing the tank, the paint needed to be stripped anyway. Once I started with the stripper on the underside, I found that paint on the top and sides peeled right off, down to the bare metal. I used a scraper only and in 10 mins had the tank stripped. The paint was still pliable and had never had any proper primer coat.
The inside of the tank looked very rusty, which surprised me, since he said they made a new tank for me. The extent of rust as I was soon to find out was significant, like the tank had been left outside for months, or years.
I decided that a filler strip TIG welded down the right side would be a solution, so I zip cut the side off the tank. What I found inside just sickened me. Not only the extend of the rust, but the quality of the welds - they were all contaminated, poorly done and not sound.
I was pretty done with the tank at this point and wanted to make sure it never saw the light of day on a Norton. I sent it to the destructive testing department and watched it succumb to the 20Ton press. What happened next again sickened me - the seam welds just broke apart and popped open. Clearly the welds had been ground back on the top side to the point of no more structural integrity, over grinding/sanding had severely weakened all the seams. Some of the welds were also contaminated and disintegrated under the pressure.
Thankfully the tank will never see use on a Norton and will be kept on the wall as a reminder of my folly.
Looking at the way the original tank is made, it is made from several pressings and machine seam welded - no opportunity for grinding any welds. The Indian method of production is hand shaping many pieces, butt welding together, grinding and sanding into the larger shape. I saw this first hand when I visited New Delhi a number of years back, I watched a chap hand imprinting the serrations of a file on a dirt floor, metal file blank held between his feet, hammering with a chisel to make the serrations, all the while his wife and children were nearby. The process of grinding the seams is where this process is flawed. I wonder about if the tank had come OK to use and I was riding with a full 5 gallons of gas and those weak seams give away and my life ends in a ball of fire - there is no recourse on the manufacturer, no lawyer would be able to extract any compensation for my estate.
Maybe I got a dud, but the lesson here is clearly the original manufacturers products prevail with integrity and safety, even 40 years later.
Jim Bush
Vancouver, BC
71 Norton Interback
69 Norton S
69 Norton R
68 Norton 20M3 Fastback
62 Norton 650SS
52 Norton Model 7
I purchased a Norton Interstate gas tank from "vintage_motors_zone" off ebay for $300 plus $80 shipping to Vancouver Canada. After three weeks, I got an email to say the tank they had for me failed a leak test and they had to make another one - another six weeks went by and a parcel arrived from New Dehli - happy days, well maybe not.
The tank was nice and shiny silver metallic with decals and stripes. Hey wait a minute the right side is not the right shape - the curvature is off by about 3/4" and the painted lines exaggerate the issue.
I contacted the seller and was told to return the tank to India. After contacting Canada Post, UPS, Fed Ex - prices ranged from $365 to $780 for basic shipping - this is ridiculous. After some more time passed seller agreed to a $25 refund, which I never received. At this point it is past the ebay timing for a claim and I have not had any contact with the seller since, despite numerous emails.
I decided I would look at fixing the tank, the paint needed to be stripped anyway. Once I started with the stripper on the underside, I found that paint on the top and sides peeled right off, down to the bare metal. I used a scraper only and in 10 mins had the tank stripped. The paint was still pliable and had never had any proper primer coat.
The inside of the tank looked very rusty, which surprised me, since he said they made a new tank for me. The extent of rust as I was soon to find out was significant, like the tank had been left outside for months, or years.
I decided that a filler strip TIG welded down the right side would be a solution, so I zip cut the side off the tank. What I found inside just sickened me. Not only the extend of the rust, but the quality of the welds - they were all contaminated, poorly done and not sound.
I was pretty done with the tank at this point and wanted to make sure it never saw the light of day on a Norton. I sent it to the destructive testing department and watched it succumb to the 20Ton press. What happened next again sickened me - the seam welds just broke apart and popped open. Clearly the welds had been ground back on the top side to the point of no more structural integrity, over grinding/sanding had severely weakened all the seams. Some of the welds were also contaminated and disintegrated under the pressure.
Thankfully the tank will never see use on a Norton and will be kept on the wall as a reminder of my folly.
Looking at the way the original tank is made, it is made from several pressings and machine seam welded - no opportunity for grinding any welds. The Indian method of production is hand shaping many pieces, butt welding together, grinding and sanding into the larger shape. I saw this first hand when I visited New Delhi a number of years back, I watched a chap hand imprinting the serrations of a file on a dirt floor, metal file blank held between his feet, hammering with a chisel to make the serrations, all the while his wife and children were nearby. The process of grinding the seams is where this process is flawed. I wonder about if the tank had come OK to use and I was riding with a full 5 gallons of gas and those weak seams give away and my life ends in a ball of fire - there is no recourse on the manufacturer, no lawyer would be able to extract any compensation for my estate.
Maybe I got a dud, but the lesson here is clearly the original manufacturers products prevail with integrity and safety, even 40 years later.
Jim Bush
Vancouver, BC
71 Norton Interback
69 Norton S
69 Norton R
68 Norton 20M3 Fastback
62 Norton 650SS
52 Norton Model 7