[Will]

I had the tank off the other day and I put it on the garage floor, propped on a old coolant bottle so the petcock wouldn't hit the ground. I came bake a little while later and smelled gas, and saw a wet spot surrounding my tank. I guess I had more gas in there that I thought, because it had leaked out the cap vent and run down the top of my new tank, taking the paint with it. Needless to say, I cursed a little bit.

What do I do now? Is there touch up paint available for these bikes? Maybe its time for a stripe of some other color in that area? Or a whole new paint job... I assume I would need to prime the area first, then paint, then clear coat?

 

[LRCXed]

If the paint was so weak that the gas took it off then the entire paint job is weak. I would strip it down to the metal and start fresh with a new paint job.

The best part of any paint job it the preparation and what's under it. You can do a nice job on top of it, but if the old paint is bad, the new top coat won't hold for long.

 

[Panther]

If your tank is really clean, I would talk to a reputable paint shop to either fix it/match.

or cheaper, and I think cooler, have the paint shop add a accent stripe down the middle of the tank.



You can get quality automotive paint at a lot of Carquests that can be put in a rattle can too,

 

[Will]

Hmmm...I really don't want to have to take it to someone. It is the original paint, and it sat with the gas on it for a few hours. I'm not really sure what I want to do with it now, but its got to be cheap, at least for now. I have never been that much of a fan of the stock paint color, so maybe I should just do the whole damn bike rattle can style. I guess first I'll just prime that spot to keep it from rusting while I decide.

 

[DARK FATHER]

This tank must have been painted with the One-Step paint and NO clear coat. I never would have guessed that gas would have hurt it either.

 

[Will]

Really? I bought it as a NOS on ebay and it definitely matches the stock paint, and the pinstripes decals look original. I think maybe there was some corrosion around the cap, so maybe the gas got under the paint somehow then dripped down the front?

Any tips or stories on cheap easy and effective rattle can jobs would be awesome. I am thinking a gloss black silverwing might look pretty nice...

 

[marshallf3]

Gasoline and paint never have mixed well, and the new gas (if you can call it that) they're selling nowadays has all sorts of things thrown in with it which just compounds the problem.



Acrylic Urethane paints are about the only thing I know that have a decent resistance to gasoline.

 

[Blindstitch]

That doesn't look right. Stock tanks should be able to have gas splashed on them for a lot longer than that to do harm. I would be tempted to take it down to nothing and have it painted back up to a similar matched color. I'm not a fan of decals so I don't care about the sides. But then again you might.

 

[kingston73]

I did that back in march this year, and it was right after I had re-painted my tank using the semi-expensive clear coat 2 part paint, so don't feel too bad about being dumb.  Like everybody said, just strip it and redo the whole thing if you want to do it really cheap.  If you want to do it so it'll hold up for a while, you maybe want to price out having a pro do it.  

 

[marshallf3]

I did that back in march this year, and it was right after I had re-painted my tank using the semi-expensive clear coat 2 part paint, so don't feel too bad about being dumb.  Like everybody said, just strip it and redo the whole thing if you want to do it really cheap.  If you want to do it so it'll hold up for a while, you maybe want to price out having a pro do it.  

Did you use the proper catalysts for the basecoat and clearcoat paints? Without it they never truly harden as intended. If the price of the catalysts (they're high) is prohibitive you can sometimes talk a paint shop out of an ounce, just be sure it's the correct one for the paint or clear you're using and take glass or metal bottles, the stuff will eat through anything including causing serious damage to your skin and/or nasal passages.

 

[Sidecar Bob]

That doesn't look right. Stock tanks should be able to have gas splashed on them for a lot longer than that to do harm.

I agree.



It almost sounds like your tank was freshly painted but not baked. 25+ year old paint should be fully cured and any fully cured paint (except maybe latex) should hold up better than that.



Heck, my 650 is painted with urethane based rust paint and it has held up much better than that. The gas station is too close to home so when I fill up on the way home on a cold day (its my basic transportation in the winter) and then park inside the garage the heat rising from the engine makes the fuel expand and in about a half hour it starts to run down the tank. I can't remember how many times the tank has overflowed like that over the years but the paint is still intact.



BTW: If you are considering a colour change, now would be the time to do it. I have had good results in the past using PlastiKote Engine Enamel in a spray can to paint bikes and the paint held up for years with no damage from spills.

 

[vern401]

I would re paint the tank from scratch. There is realy no way to know how far the gas has soaked into the surounding paint

 

[Will]

Yeah, its really weird. I don't know the story of this tank, but I always assumed it was original stock. The color matches perfectly and it even has the faded warning sticker below the filler hole. Where does NOS stuff come from anyway? Is is somehow lower quality that what is put on bikes?

I still think somehow the gas got under the paint. There was some bubbly rust under the cap as you can see in this pic. When I got this tank it was solid, but rusty inside. I did a complete POR-15 treatment, but I guess i missed around the cap. Still, it seem unusual. I have spilled gas down the side and rear of the filler hole before without problems.



Well, now I have a reason to paint, which is something I was considering somewhat anyway.

 

[Sidecar Bob]

New Old Stock parts are supposed to be just that: Parts that have never been used but have been in stock somewhere for a long time. The term usually implies original replacement parts but aftermarket parts can be NOS too. They usually come from dealers or distributors that are cleaning out stuff that hasn't sold for a long time in order to make room for parts needed for newer models but sometimes NOS parts (in their original packaging) show up in estates of people who are involved with antique machinery.



If the tank was rusty inside and the sticker was faded I would question whether it was really NOS or whether someone just called it that because they thought it would make it sell better.

 

[Blindstitch]

The picture looks like it has a liquid liner in it. Did you do that? Someone else or am I just seeing things?

 

[Will]

Yes, that's the POR-15 treatment I mentioned in the previous post. I highly recommend that stuff.

 

[Blindstitch]

I don't know how I missed it either since it's clear as day.



I highly recommend the stuff too.

 

[cxer4]

WILL, I feel your pain. IMO you didn't do anything wrong, paint on a gas tank should be able to handle a little spillage now & then. As suggested above, most likely the paint, at least in this area, is not original.

Incidentally, automotive paints are usually not fully fuel-proof. It is the clear urethane lacquer used on top that renders it resistant to spills. And another thing, gasoline formulations have changed out of all recognition since this machine was made. Even here, where we have very little in the way of alcohol additives, I find that fuel is more aggressive than it used to be.

I don't know how much this helps but in our local auto supermarket, I found a Peugeot/Citreon metallic red paint for a cuurent vehicle that was a better match than Honda's own. Probably because my paintwork had aged but Honda were trying to duplicate the original colour.

Yes, the real answer is to have a professional job but if you can re-do it yourself, you will feel that warm glow of satisfaction. Doing the whole tank is the way to go as joining new metallic to old often leaves a permanent witness. The really good news is that the clear lacquer is easy to apply & has the effect of improving the appearance of your painwork.

 

[uber hund]

what might look cool is to mask off the side portions and paint the top a flater color than the sides kinda like the old 70's muscle cars did on the hoods Think 440 cuda just a thought

 

[Will]

what might look cool is to mask off the side portions and paint the top a flater color than the sides kinda like the old 70's muscle cars did on the hoods Think 440 cuda just a thought

Yeah I was thinking something along those lines too, at least until I decide to paint the whole thing. Maybe even just primer for now. call it my cudawing..