86 vf500 diy

yup that was it exactly! I was afraid to tap it out cuz of lack of meat.

 

Anyone have a link to patching a leaky gas tank? Rust holes on the outside are leakin thru. I was thinking of permatex but I also heard of Bondo. Any thoughts?

 

Here is what I found when restoring the gas tank on my '84 VF500F (Candy Aleutian Blue with Fighting Red and Shasta White).

The tank was near mint but...there were telltale signs of lower corner rust which is a common malady on this design.



To repair these rust spots the tank was carefully taped off to protect the stock decals and the Candy Aleutian Blue top color. The corners were then media blasted.



Lots of pinholes.



After welding the pin holes shut the tank was re-masked and the Shasta White was repainted to the stripe line:



After the Shasta White as painted (before clear coating the entire tank) I sent the tank to Empire GP to be coated inside with Casewell's Gas Tank Sealer (you can also order a kit directly from Casewell, see link below).



Caswell Inc. - Epoxy Gas Tank Sealer

Home | EmpireGP Gas Tank Repair

This method allows you to keep the stock decals and upper tank color without having to dive into a complete tank restoration.

Hope this is of some help. Good luck with your resto and let us know how you make out!

 

Thanks again! I know that is what I need to do. I'll try to take some pics to show the damage. I may not be so lucky as I have rust spots above in the white stripe and some in the blue. A complete tank restore would need to happen. (I think)

 

Sounds like you may also have some surface rust happening from the outside as well. Hopefully this isn't too deep and can be filled.

The lower corners are usually what give up the ghost as water sits here and over time rusts out the metal from the inside.

 

Ok, lets look at another option.... what are the chances of finding a different tank having the same issue? I was thinking of looking on e-bay and our local bone yard. I don't want to pay for the same thing. My present tank is really spotty. More than double the pics of the repair.

 

Update:

Went for the maiden voyage yesterday. It was a success! Started with full choke (barely) any throttle and she died. Started again and held idle and kept choke on until she warmed up. (about a 3rd on the guage) Slowly released the choke and worked the throttle until no choke. Rode for about 10 min with ALOT of duct tape keeping the gas in the tank! Anyways having not ridden one before I had no reference to compare power and takeoff. But all worked! Today I yanked the tank...... and drained the carbs. I just about puked. 48 deg out, no rain..................... I wanna ride. :frown: But it'll be a while until this gas tank gets fixed. (see attached photos.) Looks like a complete rebuild if possible. I also pulled No. 1 plug. Bone dry and white. Sooooo...... looks like the pilot idle needles are not correct. (2 1/2 out) A manometer and shop tach are in order. I have the jets described in the dyno jet kit, just not the adjustable needles. (stock cleaner,cans) But I digress... Any thoughts on this tank? Fixable or start over?

 

Not to be insolent but if my gas tank was being held together with duct tape I would not be taxiing the bike out of the hanger bay. Leaking gas on a hot engine does not sound like a very good combination.

 

Yes. Thank you, I need a slap on the wrist. But it has been 3 or 4 years scince I rode, it wasn't raining, and I had the tape

 

Looking good keep up the good work.

 

Tank

Are you still thinking about a different tank. I bought one with a small dent not knowing it was a 86 and that they are different. I am in Portland Oregon.

 

ooooooo!!!!!!!! Send me an e-mail, I'm interested! mecrutio30@yahoo.com Let's talk.

 

Email sent.

 

Thanks j! got a new tank today. NO LEAKS! excellent deal too. Replaced the pilot idle screw o rings as well. still starts hard. full on choke, had to crack the throttle for her to start, slowly wean her off of choke, then went for a 10 mile ride. after about 9 miles she wouldn't hold idle speed. I didnt pull a plug cuz the sun set. Need a carb tune cuz im sure the sync is off, however i know thats not the problem. Soooo, I'm guessing 2 things. Spray starting fluid around carbs for vaccum leaks. If no leaks re-adjust float level. I think she is still lean. but honestly I would rather stick in the bigger slows first cuz im 100% the floats are correct. Anything I missed?

 

yanked the plugs yesterday. Some good news! #2,3,4 were nice. light brown color with black rim, #1 was oil fouled. Does the valve seals swell up like in the carb? cuz that has got to be the source of my smoke.... It has stopped smoking scince my 10 mi ride. ???

 

I love that Caswell stuff. Better than anything I've used before. It seals up hard. I'm going to brush on some around the filler hole to keep the paint from peeling there.

Great write up on the tank fix.

 

5x5, Caswell is the bee's knees.

 

Ok, went for another ride yesterday. No smoke at all. NONE! I am perplexed cuz all I did was clean the plugs. All 4 are now uniform in color. (Still need to sync the carbs correctly. There is still a motor vibration.) Do the valve guides swell up like the o rings in the gas pass thru tubes on the carbs? Does oil collect on the side the bike leans when on the kick stand? Any little nuances like this on this bike? Anyway, she purrs like a champ now and I'm lovin it! She feels a little dogish in between idle and about 5 grand, after that it feels like it got a cattle prod in the rump. I'm kinda thinkin about uping the slow jets to help, but maybe I should wait?

 

That sounds about right from idle to 5k, I general keep mine above 7k and let the torque do the work.

 

Thanks Matt. By the way, do you keep it at 7k in general or just around the twisties? After my couple of rides I felt that around 4k was cruise rpm.