[31chevy]

Looking for some advice on shortening a gas tank. I know its dangerous and that i should make damn sure theres no gas in there but aside from that how to i make sure i get the job done right.

Im going to be shortening a 1954 4100 chevy series dumptruch tank by a foot or so.

I plan on either filling the tank with sand or water before i cut the tank.

about the tank:
the tank is rectangulat and sat behind tyhe seat up right. in stead of flat like in a 70's vw beetle so im going to have to locate ne exit holes and even put a sender unit in there.

seems like alot of work but i feel i have the time and can to it.

i have heard of people making gas tank out of mufflers, air compressor tank. Where are you guys??

[timothale]

Welding-torching a gas tank can be very dangerous. I always take the tape measure to the wrecking yard first. I saw a neat one made out of an aluminum rv water tank. We used a hydralic tank out of a dump truck for the Willys ... HYd oil is a lot safer to work around. it still wil burn though. when doing a gas tank .. do a good drain ...rinse with hot soapy water a couple of times. fill with water and don't leave any air space' heating will cook the residue and the vapors when mixed with air will explode. sometimes I leave the garden hose running inside to keep the water inside. when reweldng the same applies but you have to have a little air space so as not to cooll the weld too fast..IF you have it cut open tilt it up and just leave a couple of inches dry and cook off the residue easier to weld cook off bothe pieces ...it would be best to take the tank to a radiator shop and have them clean it in their caustic dip tank and do the job. but we ask here because we do it ourself

[31chevy]

are there coatings on the inside of old gas tanks?

[Cape Cod Bob]

only if it was restored. maybe a sealer inside.just frlush with water and cut with sawzall well its opoen get all the rust out. use a cleaner , metal prep like you were gonna paint it. weld in all youe new connections. nrw picup tube. u can use fuel line for that. put a screen on it. get youyr sender in and adjust it so float is at bottom . its ok if it don,t go to the top.
get some por 15 after u close up the end put the por 15 in and follow there instructions, make sure u take out the sender first.

[timothale]

reformulated gasoline starts to deteriate sooner than the fuel did 40 years ago... the coating today comes from the breakdown of the fuel. It messes up your fuel pump, and carb.. that is why today when you put your lawn mower or other equipment away for the winter you should use a fuel stabilizer. if the fuel sits over the winter you will have gum inside by spring..