Rust in the tank?

Marklx · May 2, 2002

Just picked up a '73 sl70 that is in pretty good shape, or so I thought. Looked in the gas tank, and it is pretty nasty peeling rust in there. Looks like a little crystal palace of rust. The exterior of the tank is perfect, original paint, so I'd love to keep this tank.

What do I do to get the inside cleaned up? There seem to be lots of mini trail sites out their, but does anyone know of one for the SL70's?

Thanks,

Mark

YZandrew · May 2, 2002

Can't help you with the SL70, but I used some stuff called Kreem to clean out the tank on my 72 Yamaha. Some one on here told me about it. I found it at a local Yamaha dealer, by the other chemicals. Not too hard to use, I think there's a pre-wash, then the rust remover, then some plastic liner stuff that you pour in. Just follow the directions, you should be fine. If I remember right, it was less than $20.

TransAm77 · May 2, 2002

Depending on how bad it is, you might be able to knock the rust out. Get a pice of chain about 6" long and stick it into the tank, and then shake it around upside down (so the rust can fall out of the hole), Once you get it cleaned out good, wash it with some gas. This is how I restored the gas tank in my car and it worked fine.

BRush · May 2, 2002

What about dumping in a scoop or two of clean pea-gravel and a cup of some non-flammable cleaner like Simple Green, then shake? You might have to repeat the cycle a few times, but I'll bet it would clean out a lot of the rust.

David Trustrum · May 3, 2002

The big bits aren't the problem.

Urgh. The silt gets through any filter & is a pain so you have to fix it or the problem will always resurface. It is a given & I have too much experience not to be pessimistic.

Yeah lots of pea gravel & shake a heap. Takes ages to get last lot out. Accept the burden.

Then buy some Kreem. As far as I know it is the best system (contains 3 bottles including rust neutraliser). Have tried a few others to my despair.

Let it dry well before use. A vacuum with a ‘clean’ Blow setting helps drying time.

yz250roost · May 3, 2002

or you can just take the tank to the local dealer and have them hot coat the tank and that will do the same as the Kreem....just incase you are lazy about it.

KLX4smoke · May 4, 2002

I don't get it, are you saying they used to make dirtbike gas tanks out of metal? :confused:

Marklx · May 5, 2002

Ordered some of the Kreem stuff from a local shop, as they swear it is da stuff. This restoration stuff is much more than I had bargained for, but hope the end result is worth it.

Thanks all for the tips,

Mark

jaybob · May 6, 2002

The KREEM will do the job real good if you follow the directions. I used it on a "66 BSA tank and it worked perfectly.

Rust in the tank?

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