Making A Gas Tank

Duane WI

Member
I like to work on old pickup restorations and one common problem is gas tanks. Some replacement gas tanks are available some not. In the case of my current 52 Chevy I want to relocate the gas tank from inside the cab to under the cab or box. So I have been thinking of the best way to make a custom gas tank. I have a nice sheet metal box brake to do the bending but can't figure out the best method to join the corners. Here are my thought options so far:
1. Make it out of mild steel and mig weld the corners. Mig weld on the connection fittings. Line the tank inside with Red Kote for corrosion.
2. Make it out of galvanized steel and overlap the corners. Spot weld them with the mig. Then solder to seal the joint. Not sure best way to attach the connection fittings but would probably full mig weld them on and tin the inside. Could possibly braze the fittings on. The main issue I see with this is the spot welds on the inside won't have any galvanized remaining. So a potential corrosion hot spot. I could tin some of these spots on the inside before the tank is all enclosed but there will be some spots that won't get tinned.
3. Make it out of aluminum and use some of the low temperature aluminum filler rod which is basically aluminum solder. I would have to get aluminum pipe nipples and solder them on also.

What are your guys thoughts? Any other ideas? I have a basic mig welder and oxyacetylene torch.

Thanks,
 
Duane,

I have had a few tanks made, and the best one was stainless steel. If your mig has the gas attachment, and the right wire, you'd still be able to do it.

D.
 
With thr equipment you have plan 1 is your best choice. If you had a tig machine aluminum would also be a good idea.

If you can bend a u-shaped piece so you can weld the ends in first works best for me, that way you can weld the ends in inside and out which gives you an advantage in getting it sealed. For the fittings I usually cut pipe couplers in half and weld them to the tank and test them for leaks, then drill the hole. I've found that to ne easier than cutting the hole first.

Make sure you have at least one fitting on and drilled before you finnish welding the tank so it can breath or you wont get it sealed.

I use real blue Windex to test for leaks, I've found it bubbles better and finds smaller leaks than soapy water, and doesnt mess up the weld if you need to plug a leak.
 
Have you checked with the old Chevy parts catalogs? Several years ago they had a kit to do just what you want.
 
Duane; If Jon f says plan 1 is your best choice, it probably is. In the alternative, though, have you thought of making it from stainless steel sheet metal and welding with stainless steel MIG wire? I have no experience with that, but I've stick welded stainless with stainless rod. It's different than welding mild steel, so if you chose to do it that way you'd want to spend some time practicing to get familiar with the differences. SS MIG wire is about $20 a pound, and SS sheet metal isn't going to be cheap either. You might also need a different shielding gas.

Stan
 
There are several solutions.

Making your own as you described will work. That way you can build it to your exact needs, save money but not time.

I built one for a forklift out of sheared aluminum and a mig welder about 20 years ago. Didn't have a clue what I was doing, but it's still in service, no problems.

LMC Truck makes them, ready to bolt in, but very pricey!

There are a bunch of fuel cell type tanks on Ebay. Good prices, easily modified to your needs.

Someone suggested stainless steel. We had one made for a tractor, it didn't work! Within a few years it started stress cracking. Not sure what alloy SS they used, looked good, but a fail.
 
Thanks for the ideas and tips. I found the website for Tanksinc.com and they have something pretty close to what I am looking for. I have seen the fuel cell mounted below the box with the filler inlet in the bed. I am not a fan of this. I want my truck to be used so filling in the bed isn't so good. I am not going to go out and haul rocks with my truck but a trip to Menards for some lumber is totally in. So my plan for the 52 Chevy is to put the fuel tank below the cab. The original filler neck in the back cab corner would be piped through the cab floor into the tank. That way the truck looks original but I don't have a fuel bomb sitting in the cab with me.
 
Had a gas tank that developed a leak along the top of the seam between the two halves. Was able to fit a patch over damaged area. Welding it leak free was a real job. Used a fux-wire welder. Took a number of tries and tests to get it right. Used water for leak test.. Will not go in to how I mitigated the fire/explosion danger. Suggest you go to a good parts store and see if you can find a ready made tank for another model that will fit your needs.
 
I don't know. When a car is manufactured the government has criteria on size and location of a gas tank. Since you are re-locating the tank you may have state inspection issues with the new tank especially since it's homemade. If it were a factory made second tank I could see getting away with installing that one and doing away with the original.
 
My thoughts? Get one that's already made and fab it to fit your vehicle. It would already have the fittings and, more importantly, the internal baffles.
 
The 1947 Chevy pick up had the tank under the bed You may be able to order one of these. I?m not sure when they put them in the cab. You can see the filler in the old stock location above the running board.
a251249.jpg
 
(quoted from post at 17:04:18 12/22/17) My thoughts? Get one that's already made and fab it to fit your vehicle. It would already have the fittings and, more importantly, the internal baffles.
nd if you do build your own, don't forget those baffles. Presumably you want the tank to stay the same shape you made it!
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top