I will try to hold back on the profanities as I post this. My bike has developed a fuel leak and my luck being what it is the leak is virtually unreachable. Underneath the tank there is a plate welded on at the front which the front mounting then welds onto. The first plate is leaking, on its front edge, behind the front mounting plate. Could it pick a worse spot

I had it at a specialist tank repair shop today and the guys there say to repair it properly it needs to be acid flushed to remove all fuel vapor then they use silver solder. Either the acid or the heat from the solder will damage the paint work which is still original and immaculate. I can't bear to have that happen. They say there is no other option, but I know you guys are smarter and will know what to do, please help

 

I'm assuming it's a small leak David. Weeping fuel rather than a dribble?

I know people (who know people ) who have used the POR products and swear by it. Not cheap, but cheaper than soldering and repaint - and supposedly very effective.

http://ppcco.com.au/fact_sheets/pi/p...erepairkit.pdf

You have to make sure all of the rust is out of the tank before sealing - best way to do that is put some small gravel (or nuts and bolts) in there and shake the bejeebus out of the tank until you feel your arms are about to fall off.

Cheers, SB

 

Shadow has sealed his tank a while ago, you may want to PM him for his opinions.

 

Things are going from bad to worse on this one. I took it to a guy today who assured me he could silver solder the tank without damaging the tank. Job done, cheap as chips too and not a mark on the paint. Ok the underside looks a bit rough but nobody sees that. Then I tried to put it back on the bike and my heart sank. The tank is wider than it was before and now does not fit between the fairings ?!?! All I can imagine is that they pressure tested the tank at hopelessly too much pressure and it has no bulged out. The only solution I see now is to take off the fairing, fit the tank and then carefully measure the fairing panels and sandpaper them down to fit. Some days its just not worth getting out of bed

 

Bad luck David I'd say, how far off/out are they ? small enough for a ratcheting strap to pull back in line maybe ?

 

I have long since accepted that if anything bad can happen it will eventually happen to me. I have gotten it fairly close by folding a rag over the airbox and leaning on the tank. Will need some tweaking to get it perfect but I just wanted to get her home. As it is the tank is about 2cm higher than the side panel groove it's supposed to line up with. I'll probably need to do some more scientific bending and shaping to get it right. All this because of a stupid leak...(profanities once again removed)

 

My tank leaked in exactly the same place. Its a common problem.

None of what happened was necessary. The people you have spoken to are idiots, sad to say. I had my tank repaired with a ceramic filler which did the job perfectly and has a lifetime guarantee.
Contact PAZ COATINGS in Durban, speak to Mike 0741729626 Not that cheap but a brilliant job.

 

Hi Shadow,

Yes, I had guessed as much. I asked the guys about coatings for the inside of the tank. I was told they don't last more than a year or two. I can only imagine I was sold a BS story. This will most likely cost me getting a replacement tank if I am to have a decent looking bike again. I have a good friend who does panel repair as a side line and he is about as OCD as I am. If he can't get the fit right I'm throwing this tank in the bin and kicking myself for having rushed to get it fixed. Thing is after 3 months of almost solid rain I was itching to ride and wasn't going to let a leaky tank get me down. Turns out now the bike has a few other issues that need sorting anyway so it was all a waste anyways. I have a starting problem and overheating issue to sniff out. Bike starts fine off jumpers and shows a charge rate of 14V but after a long ride won't start even if it cools off. Today it dumped water when I got to work and on the way home after the joy of push starting a 1000cc I had the temp gauge well past the halfway mark. Fan was singing away so it's not that. Right now I'm so disillusioned I just dumped the thing in the garage, couldn't be bothered. I know its all stupid little things I could easily fix but I'm past it now. Put so much money and effort into this project and it keeps biting me. I think its time to dust off the old CBX for a while till the intense hatred of this bike subsides. I'll still hang out on the site and help out guys where I can, but me and CBRs are parting ways for now.

 

It's actually good to walk away from a problem sometimes David. Lets the brain cool and what I find is that my brain usually works on the problem while I'm not 'thinking' about it and I come back refreshed with the solution(s) in my head.

Even if it is a 'new' tank, it's not the end of the world - and these bikes are so rewarding to ride!

Best of luck with it.

Cheers, SB

 

David dont feel bad about the bike, they give us all fits from time to time. Right after I got my 94 this year. I took the bike on her first journey me and with 3 other riders. Got to our destination and my bike was slightly dripping coolant. I was 2 hrs from the house. The temp guage never got into the red so I was lucky that way. Well I let her cool down a hour then checked the coolant level. It was fine. What I did fine was a small crack in the 3/8s rubber hose where the wire clamp holds it on the radiator nipple. Its the coolant line that feeds the overflow reservoir which is located on the right side of the bike behind the plastic side panel. Well drove her home and ended up replacing the old rubber hose. Flushed the entire cooling system that I should have done in the first place when I got the bike. But I was in such a hurry to ride her. LOL Hopefully it may be something that simple on your bike.

I also am planning a clutch replacement and cam chain/ tensioner this winter. Loads of fun... But there worth it. After that she should be just about perfect.

Seabastionbear- you are so right they are rewarding to ride. I get a grin on my face every time I get in the saddle.