Very productive weekend with the Cruisers, I even took the 45lwb to town and almost died from the gas fumes in the cab :eek: I guess removable tops have more that one advantage.

After returning from my adventure I went ahead and removed the seats & fuel tank from the 45 and the tank has some rust and appears to be leaking at the seams (seam tape and fiberglass found) The good news is the floor pans are in great shape and no rot was found.

What are my options for a tank for the 45??? I'de rather keep the setup I have since the gauges and sending unit work as is but I'm not sure boiling and relining the tank are viable options due to the seam rust.

Opinions???

pics to come...

The fj 45 tanks are discontinued, I have a fj40 tank in mine. spector has them 1958-1967 fj40 for $289.00.new. you will have to change the sending unit to a later one.

I can't speak to the $OR tank specifically (in case it is something different) but I have installed the OE FJ40 tanks for the 69 that are still available from the dealer. They have the the standing seams front and rear, which are a PITA. Bent the seam in the front til the legs of the seat frame would pass. Trimmed the standing seam in the back of the cab until the rear seam of the tank would clear. Then I cut the filler neck down (it faces straight back) to a point where I could put on a hose that would face diagonally towards the 45 filler neck. It's work, but hey, no more fumes! :)
If $OR really has the RIGHT tank (that fits properly and has the correct filler neck) I would recommend it even though I am not thrilled about recommending them. :p

They dont have the corect tank. They have a 40 tank like you discribed.

my tank is pretty rough but I found a liner kit locally (Kreem) and I might strip the exterior of the tank too and paint it with some sort of sealer???

Have you considered an under-body/bed tank? It would screw the authenticity of a resto but I love the NWMP tank in my 40. In cab storage space under the seat is a nice side effect of the swap as well.

me working on a Cruiser and "RESTO" don't belong in the same sentence, what tank is it? (link or picture?)

I don't want the 45 sitting for 6 weeks while I ponder the million possibilities, should I remove the sending unit or put gas back in for now???

Another option is to take it to a radiator shop and have it boiled out and sealed by them. this is most likely the least expensive option.

screw it for now, take some bar soap(starts with a E) and rub it in the seams and anyplace ya think its leaking........it will prolly stop the leaks for a good while.

BTW I have never treid it myself but the old timers tell me it works great......and is almost a perment fix.

me working on a Cruiser and "RESTO" don't belong in the same sentence, what tank is it? (link or picture?)

I don't want the 45 sitting for 6 weeks while I ponder the million possibilities, should I remove the sending unit or put gas back in for now???

Here is the place that made mine, www.nwmp.com - they are a pretty proud of their stuff now though. Cool guys to work with and they will do about anything you need, I think the guys name was Wes, not sure about that though.

me working on a Cruiser and "RESTO" don't belong in the same sentence, what tank is it? (link or picture?)

I don't want the 45 sitting for 6 weeks while I ponder the million possibilities, should I remove the sending unit or put gas back in for now???

It didn't occur to me that you WEREN'T interested in a resto. I took a ConFerr rear FJ40 22 gallon tank and mounted it under the bed of the LWB45. Fit in CLEAN! Welded 2"x2" angle iron tabs to the front that lined up with the tire carrier hinge bracket tabs, and a 1" by 16" strip across the back to bolt into one of the bed ribs. Getting the angle for the filler neck in the corner of the bed was a PITA, but it's basically done.

And it would give you mucho storage in the cab :D :D

pics...

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

I Called around and found out that none of the local radiator shops will touch a gas tank anymore so I'm looking in the next county, I'm also considering lining it with a kit and then aircraft stripping the exterior and Rhino lining it.

You won't find one in Jefferson Co either. At least I couldn't. Might have to hope one of the GA or TN folks will chime in with a place that isn't too far off.

tom

I went through the same thing on my FJ40 and ended up putting everything back together without a new liner (it wasn't leaking but had previous repairs) amazing to me that this is such an issue when it used to be common!

Out of 12 or more parts stores I only found one relining kit made by a company called Kreem, I do worry about the lining getting into the fuel system later on though, I'm going to look at the POR15 kit right now.

http://www.gas-tank.com/
http://www.leakersgastanks.com/
http://www.gastankrenu.com/welcome.htm

The last link is the one I see used most by antique/resto dudes...

I took the dip-strip-seal approach on one of mine and it worked fine. It did have a moisture spot at the top seam by the drivers door so I just don't fill it to the top and it dissapeared. I paid less then 100$ for it and it made the process simple cause it just bolted right back in.
Try it...

Goebs

ps what does restoration realy mean anyways?

I Think P0r 15 Makes A Gas Tank Seal Kit

My radiator guy said the only way to patch it safely was to use an old fashioned copper iron and solder it without a flame. He wasn't offering to do it though. I said I would gladly give it a whirl. He loaned me the iron and the solder and I had a good go of it. After making a royal mess of it, he looked at my globs and took pity on me, since he saw that I had actually tried, and he smoothed them out, also with the copper iron.

I've often found that people can be more helpful when you make a serious effort to 'walk a mile in their shoes'. Then they know that you have a real understanding about their talents.

Just a thought.

I called to a machine shop across the street and talked to some of the fabrication guys about working on it and after some discussion about trying to weld old tanks filled with water the consensus was that it would be easier (but not cost effective) for them to actually fabricate a tank.

I got a phone call from a friend late last night and he has a local contact to boil my tank out so I'm still going to try that route.

well all be... found a guy locally that picked up my tank here at work this morning :p

If everything works out and he has good service I'll get you local guys a number for him (TRW). He thought he could find a aftermarket tank through one of his suppliers and I all but laughed out loud but told him to check anyway.

About 4 years ago Toyota had 12 of these tanks left I bought 3 of them . They are sitting on my shelf waiting for the 45's to be restored.

About 4 years ago Toyota had 12 of these tanks left I bought 3 of them . They are sitting on my shelf waiting for the 45's to be restored.

:flipoff2: :flipoff2: :flipoff2:

ps what does restoration realy mean anyways?


This:

http://pic10.picturetrail.com/VOL326/691553/4233613/52740656.jpg

About 4 years ago Toyota had 12 of these tanks left I bought 3 of them . They are sitting on my shelf waiting for the 45's to be restored.


And what did you do with the 3 existing tanks??? I don't know whether to hate you for stockpiling parts or to be nice and hope for scraps.

B.T.W. I pulled the tranny hump and the Clarion 8 track out of the 45 last night :rolleyes: the fab work was stellar :laughing: