72 2wd project "No Daggum Money"

[jjzepplin]

I bought the Tanks inc unit. I also dug deep into the pump install.

[jjzepplin]

I cut the BIG hole. I positioned the stainless ring on the tank after measuring 40 times and just screwed it down. I then took the pilot drill bit out of the big OL hole saw and used the ring for a guide. I cut the plastic in reverse because the saw would grab too much in forward. I knew the surface would not be level for my gasket to seal so I thought a heat gun should be able to soften the plastic and make it pliable enough to mold it back straight enough. I bent this trim tool to hold the plastic where I wanted it to be flatter. It worked. The trick was getting the plastic hot but not melting. It's just right when you begin to smell plastic.

[jjzepplin]

You can see the divot and the couple places where the tank is not flat. I set the heat gun inside the tank and put the setting on high. I just unplugged it when I smelled plastic. I then put my tool under there and used a couple small pair of vice grip pliers to hold it. I just made sure they were no clamping hard at all, Just enough to bend the plastic. I think I can get a gasket to seal it up now.

[jjzepplin]

So the bottom of the tank has this crud in it. WHT THE HECK is it? any suggestions on how to clean it out?

[jjzepplin]

I am going to use the cut out piece to cut a round piece and plug the hole where the sender was. That will be tricky as I think I am going to cut a small area around the edge of it for the O ring. This is all a pain but should be cool when done. I am not doing anything else but training to be a Water Plant Manager. I manipulate Bacteria on a huge scale for a living now. THAT is very tricky business.

[jjzepplin]

Well I did some looking and I think I am going to try some Chem Dip for carburetors to clean out the tank. I Have some in a gallon can. I will test it on a piece of the tank that I cut out.

[jjzepplin]

Well I left a piece of the tank in the Chem Dip for w eek and nothing happened but it is very clean. I tried to go after this crud on the bottom of the tank before I Chem Dip it just to get the majority of the thicker stuff out. OMG! This stuff is crystalized and 1/8" deep in some spots! WHAT the heck is it? Tank Liner? Soft in some spots but not gooey.

[Prof]

Do you still have the old 4x4 frame?

[jjzepplin]

I just sold the last piece of the original frame. A lot of guys on here wanted pieces of it. I bought another frame that is also a 4x4. It just has a 1973 up front cradle that is 2wd and still runs the leaf springs out back. I will probably end up 4 linking the rear when I bag it.

[jjzepplin]

So this is the pile of crud I removed from the bottom of a plastic tank. Was it there all along or from the time that I owned it? Dunno. What's in the bottom of your tank? Maybe a pound or so...

[NDM]

Originally Posted by jjzepplin

So this is the pile of crud I removed from the bottom of a plastic tank. Was it there all along or from the time that I owned it? Dunno. What's in the bottom of your tank? Maybe a pound or so...

This is why I made my tank from Stainless steel. That is a whole lotta junk in there.

[jjzepplin]

This was in a used poly tank that I bought from someone here. I would have never known if I didn't cut a great big hole in it for a fuel injection pump. Imagine me scratchin my head for years wondering what is wrong with my truck. Now I am not sure if it was already in there or not. I did have my truck running very well with this tank before I decided to LS swap it. So maybe the new gas sitting in there with stabilizer for about 5 years did this. I routinely put new ethanol free gas in it and ran it through heat cycles as it sat there waiting for me to finish working on my house. I winder what is in my aftermarket 40 gallon tank? It is steel and that truck runs great!