Well it will all come together in the end i suppose. I got more answers off this board about the fuel sensor and how to take it out. If this actually works out, the tank doesnt explode from welding, were able to get the tank smoothed out for a good paint job (the surface is pretty rough, someone popped a dent out and left the tank cracked, badly bondoed and pits and little chunks taken out of the tank) Im thinking about painting it matte black instead of gloss black, then putting a dark red ducati logo on it. Man even being carefull i wound up getting gas everywhere, on my bike, and on me trying to drain the tank out and get the tank off. This is only step one of this process. I think my bikes gonna be down for a month or so til i get this done and back together. 

Stop saying welding, you want it brazed.  Welding won't work very well, and you want to ask for the right thing when you get it done.

Quote from: toolfan on January 29, 2009, 04:24:22 PM
Stop saying welding, you want it brazed.  Welding won't work very well, and you want to ask for the right thing when you get it done.

my father in law is doing the welding (brazing) im just along for the ride.  He used to weld MC gas tanks hed go racing and crash and crack them all the time. So i dont have to really worry what i tell him other than, ahh its leaking gas out right here....and point.  Ducpainter told me brazing is what you do to the hinge when it cracks. Hell i dont know the difference. What is the difference?

Welding melts and fuses the base metal, and brazing ("braze welding" when done with a torch and rod) essentially glues and fills without melting anything. It doesn't cause stress and won't distort the base metal.

So instead of burning and potentially widening the crack you're trying to kill, on top of changing the dimensions and properties of the tank thanks to heat, you're filling it without disturbing the delicate-ass tank walls. It also looks prettier when done and isn't as hard on paint.

wait -

is yours not leaking at the hinge?

mine is leaking at the hinge haha.

a word of advice to everyone.  When you have to take the tank off.  Use a gasoline hand cranking pump to get the fuel out.  Use a piece of wire to help guide the tube into the bottom of the tank(figure out how to mount the wire to the tube yourself).  I got about 98% of the fuel out of my tank just last weekend when I did this.

Just need to call Macs Radiator and schedule a time to head up there with the tank.


Good luck

~JD

Quote from: toolfan on January 29, 2009, 07:44:44 PM
wait -

is yours not leaking at the hinge?

No thats jducati, my actual tank is leaking someone dumped it then pulled out the dent where the handlebars hit and put a crack in the tank on the side of the tank itself.

Quote from: JDucati on January 29, 2009, 09:32:14 PM
mine is leaking at the hinge haha.

a word of advice to everyone.  When you have to take the tank off.  Use a gasoline hand cranking pump to get the fuel out.  Use a piece of wire to help guide the tube into the bottom of the tank(figure out how to mount the wire to the tube yourself).  I got about 98% of the fuel out of my tank just last weekend when I did this.

Just need to call Macs Radiator and schedule a time to head up there with the tank.


Good luck

~JD

Hey i just took my tank off today, went and got one of those tubes from harbor frieght with the bulb in the middle. Did a good job getting most of the gas out, but these tanks have some hiding places for gas.  It all went fairly well in the end. I got the tank off, and in the end no matter what i do i cant get that little bit of gas left out of there. I hear it in there when i turn the tank upside down and rock it back and forth. I need to get all of that out, did you have any problems getting every last drop out of your tank? Did you take out all the inerds?

There is still some fuel left in the tank.  I will be taking the pump and filter out of the inside of the tank so it will make their job that much easier.

I know that Macs Radiator has the tools required to get rid of all the fuel inside the tank.  I did ask them about that when I talked to them.

~JD

Quote from: JDucati on January 29, 2009, 11:04:01 PM
I know that Macs Radiator has the tools required to get rid of all the fuel inside the tank.  I did ask them about that when I talked to them.

~JD

I think they call it a match!

Take rags

put in tank

lay tank upside down for a day

take rags out

No gas in tank

I took the tank off my SV with it full of gas.... no leaky.... he he he.... but it is really farking heavy that way. 

Quote from: SaltLick on January 29, 2009, 09:48:55 PM
No thats jducati, my actual tank is leaking someone dumped it then pulled out the dent where the handlebars hit and put a crack in the tank on the side of the tank itself.

Leaking at the tank is common, and an easy fix.

I hope your FIL is good.  That's going to be a tough fix, and really hard to make it look pristine again.  I guess you will need it welded though, brazing probably won't work if the sheet metal cracked in a crash.  I'd probably be shopping for a tank if I were in your shoes. 
Good luck.   

Quote from: toolfan on January 30, 2009, 08:25:24 AM
Leaking at the tank is common, and an easy fix.

I hope your FIL is good.  That's going to be a tough fix, and really hard to make it look pristine again.  I guess you will need it welded though, brazing probably won't work if the sheet metal cracked in a crash.  I'd probably be shopping for a tank if I were in your shoes. 
Good luck.   

I figured id see how it goes since its free (welding) and use it as a project. If in the end, it looks like crap and i cant seem to get it good even with bondo then ill skip the paintjob and just buy one off ebay. No matter what, i have to pull my tank off my bike, and pull all the hardware and innerds out of my tank to swap it to a new tank. So i havent really lost anything.  At least this way im giving it the old college try, and learn something in the end of all this like whats inside the tank, how to take my tank off and take all that crap out and put it back in. Whatever, im old and have nothing better to do.

You might try putting a lit match to the tank while the remaining fuel/fumes are present, this may result in dent removal 

Just my 2 cents boss!