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MG MGA - Fuel tank sealer


Anyone had any luck with any of the proprietary branded fuel tank sealers?

I have scoured the outer face and sealed up all the obvious "sqirts" but am now left with the "weepers"
The tank looks as if it now has bronze measels.

Am I prolonging the inevitable next step- a new tank - or is there a way forward ?
M THOMPSON

Mark, as far as I am concerned POR have the best sealant. It is quite a lengthy process, but worth the $130 or so for the ingredients. Go on their website for a list of their dealers, mainly car paint suppliers.
Gary Lock

Pin hole leaks can be sealed from the outside with epoxy. Internal rust would still need to be addressed with a good cleanning and sealant. I successfully used epoxy for about a year before buying a new gas tank. One of the deciding factors was that when I used a couple of short pieces of chain to knock off the loose rust in the gas tank I ended up with a couple of pounds of rust in a bucket. The "sealant" applied by a radiator shop was gone in less than six months, hence the need for epoxy. I have had good luck with POR-15 so their gas tank sealant may well do the trick.

John
jjb Backman

I too used the POR tank sealer. That was a few years ago. So far it seems fine.
GTF
G T Foster

For $130 you are well on the way towards the cost of a new tank
dominic clancy

Dom, my thoughts exactly! $196.95 US

Apparently Moss have improved the fit of the tank in the last year or so too, so the usual valid reason of poorly fitting replacement parts may not be valid in this case.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4ssRz4X8bk
Neil McGurk

Yes, Dominic, but a new tank costs A$320.00 here in Australia. For getting one from the States costs over $100 in freight, so thats A$300 approx. anyway. I suppose it's how much money you have to throw around.
Gary Lock

Thanks Gary- even with the Ozzie dollar pummelling the collapsing greenback, I reckon the $130 for the sealant is a good temporary option
M THOMPSON

Hi Mark,

When I was in the RAF we use an epoxy called Fastweld on the aircraft fuel tanks. It is supplied as a sausage of two grey putty like materials which you mix in your hand and press into place. The stuff gets quite warm and sets hard in about 15 minutes. These days you can get it very cheaply sold as ABS bumper repair putty in most car parts stores.

I used it to fix a couple of weeping areas on my Magnette tank about two years ago and it is still perfect.

You can use the same stuff to fix cracked radiator tanks as well.

Paddy
P Reardon

The short way out would be to epoxy from the outside and paint the inside. On motorcycle tanks, we used to rinse with muriatic acid then water then alcohol, then dry with air and paint the inside by pouring 50% thinned rustoleum rusty metal primer and sloshing around, then pour out the excess. Wait and repeat (using what you poured out).

You can epoxy pinholes or weepers from the outside, but it might not last forever - I used JB Weld or PC7.

I like PC7 better...but I haven't seen it lately (years).

I have heard that POR15 is great - though pricey. Do not use Kreme type liners - they will fail with the new modified gasolines. My tank had a Kreme lining that peeled off. I couldn't remove it, but I sloshed the tank with MEK (the solvent) after knocking out the big flakes and chunks and was able to re-activate/soften it and it looks good now.

JIM in NH
AJ Mail

I have had great success with tank sealers, once with my Honda 350/4 (not very old but standing for a long time with a bit of water in the bottom of the tank!) and my F2 Magna (in fact, it blocked the fine gauze in the tank pick-up!). Both done many years ago and absolutely no sign of weeping. Both from USA I think, not POR 15 (which is probably an excellent product).
Barry Bahnisch

I have Bill Hirsch's sealer in my A since restoring it in 1986.Also have it in my boat,tractors and motorcycles with no trouble.They also have a whole kit with cleaner and etch.
http://www.hirschauto.com/prodinfo.asp?number=GTS&variation=QUART
gary starr

This thread was discussed between 04/11/2010 and 06/11/2010

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