Dropped my tank finally... - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

TonyJohnson · 04-27-2010, 11:04 PM

My sending unit on my 71 died last winter and I've been putting it off for awhile. I had the new parts sitting in the garage and finally the guilt got to me, so I did the deed. Would have been relatively easy had the PO not welded a skid plate to the frame, under the tank. It looked like the tank would come out with it in place, but that was before I added the behind the wheel, dual exhaust. Turns out the hangers were in the perfect place to interfere.

I eventually want to swap the channel iron bumper for a sport bumper, and the skid plate interfered with that, as well, so it had to go. Now for a big plug for the Milwaukee Sawzall. WOW. It cut through 1/4" x 4" channel iron with no problem! Didn't even break a blade. It was the corded 11 amp version.

I used the Holly Red electric fuel pump to empty the tank into two 5 gallon buckets and that worked well, if a tad slow. I should have driven a little longer before beginning the job...

The other tricky part was removing the lock ring on the sender. Lots of dirt, but I used air and a fine pick to clean the grime off. Loosened it with a hard plastic rod that I used like a drift. Came off easier than expected with a couple of wacks. While I had it out I replaced all the hoses and relocated my fuel pump to a more hidden location on a cross brace at the back.

Spent all day doing it and was really happy to see the fuel reading again. Wish I had a motorcycle jack for lifting the tank into place, but empty it isn't too bad to just manhandle it up. A lot nicer working under a lifted truck...

Anyway, it was a job most anyone could do, so I thought I post this for encouragement.

rads42 · 04-28-2010, 08:50 AM

Thanks for posting this, your timing is great. I was thinking about doing a shackle flip from ORD and one of the cautions is that you'll likely have to drop the tank to remove the rivets from the stock bracket and that was making me a little nervous (opening a can or worms kind of nervous). Your post might be the push I needed to make the move. Thanks!

04-27-2010, 11:04 PM	#1
TonyJohnson Registered User Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Cheboygan, MI Posts: 998	Dropped my tank finally... My sending unit on my 71 died last winter and I've been putting it off for awhile. I had the new parts sitting in the garage and finally the guilt got to me, so I did the deed. Would have been relatively easy had the PO not welded a skid plate to the frame, under the tank. It looked like the tank would come out with it in place, but that was before I added the behind the wheel, dual exhaust. Turns out the hangers were in the perfect place to interfere. I eventually want to swap the channel iron bumper for a sport bumper, and the skid plate interfered with that, as well, so it had to go. Now for a big plug for the Milwaukee Sawzall. WOW. It cut through 1/4" x 4" channel iron with no problem! Didn't even break a blade. It was the corded 11 amp version. I used the Holly Red electric fuel pump to empty the tank into two 5 gallon buckets and that worked well, if a tad slow. I should have driven a little longer before beginning the job... The other tricky part was removing the lock ring on the sender. Lots of dirt, but I used air and a fine pick to clean the grime off. Loosened it with a hard plastic rod that I used like a drift. Came off easier than expected with a couple of wacks. While I had it out I replaced all the hoses and relocated my fuel pump to a more hidden location on a cross brace at the back. Spent all day doing it and was really happy to see the fuel reading again. Wish I had a motorcycle jack for lifting the tank into place, but empty it isn't too bad to just manhandle it up. A lot nicer working under a lifted truck... Anyway, it was a job most anyone could do, so I thought I post this for encouragement. __________________ Tony Johnson -- '71 Blazer w/L-31 Vortec 350, SM465, NP205, performer intake, edelbrock 1406, HEI, 4" lift, Boyd EFI tank, Vintage A/C My Blazer --

04-28-2010, 08:50 AM	#2
rads42 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Orange, CT Posts: 72	Re: Dropped my tank finally... Thanks for posting this, your timing is great. I was thinking about doing a shackle flip from ORD and one of the cautions is that you'll likely have to drop the tank to remove the rivets from the stock bracket and that was making me a little nervous (opening a can or worms kind of nervous). Your post might be the push I needed to make the move. Thanks!



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