Gas tank sticker

[96eb96]

I had to replace a gas tank because it got some pinhole leaks. The new one got 3 coats of paint.
The old gas tank had a thin plastic sticker with with cement under it (seems the gas tank comes in contact with the crossmember).
I guess it could be installed bare but I'm thinking what I can use? I'm thinking maybe those silicon baking mats? A roof shingle?

Robot or human?

 

[J_C]

I don't understand. If it's in contact with the crossmember then it seems like that got bent off-roading? No? I'd bend it back to clear the tank?

If you put some sheet (thing) between them, that's going to trap water. Maybe a picture would help?

 

[96eb96]

I don't understand. If it's in contact with the crossmember then it seems like that got bend off-roading? No? I'd bend it back to clear the tank?

If you put some sheet (thing) between them, that's going to trap water. Maybe a picture would help?

It certainly don't look bent. There is a gas tank strap holding the tank to the frame (the old one was completely rotted out and the tank laying on the skid plate) and a depression in the tank that conforms to a crossmember. The old sticker/pad was worn thru.

If the tank wasn't pushed up against something, it would flop around, no?

I'll try to get a pic- for now, he is cleaning on that sticker:

 

[J_C]

I would have assumed that the tank strap, and the forward tank holes, bolts to bracklet were all that was needed to keep it from flopping around.

I don't recall my tank having contact with the crossmember. I suppose it's possible but I took that crossmember off when I did the front-rear brake line. Then again, there may be changes between '96 OHV and '98 SOHC? Maybe these aren't the same crossmembers.

How thick was this sticker? I'm wondering if something like self-adhesive bath tub tread material would work. It has to be reasonably water resistant... would seal instead of trapping water between it and the tank. I guess you could use adhesive to make most materials stick, though probably not a silicone sheet as they are hard to get adhesive to adhere to and many start losing some of their silicone oil after a while so even harder to get anything to adhere to it.

Just spitballing now, I wonder if it even needs to attach to the tank, or you could take a sheet of (anything softer than steel) recess bolt holes so the bolt heads don't rub against the tank, and mount it to the crossmember instead of the tank.

 

[96eb96]

I would have assumed that the tank straps themselves were all that was needed to keep it from flopping around.

I don't recall my tank having contact with the crossmember. I suppose it's possible but I took that crossmember off when I did the front-rear brake line. Then again, there may be changes between '96 OHV and '98 SOHC? Maybe these aren't the same crossmembers.

The 95-96 tank is a bit different but still, the strap has to push the tank up against something. The "sticker" is a thick, hard to remove roofing type cement with a 6-10mil clear plastic sheathing. Nothing rusted under the cement.

 

[J_C]

So material choices? Seems like there would be a lot of options.

Buy exactly what you want off Amazon or ebay as bulk material, but as mentioned previously you may have a hard time getting adhesive to stick to silicone rubber. If the tank does move around then I wouldn't want a roof shingle because the grit could abrade away the coating on the tank. lol, I'm no help at all, trying to shoot down your two ideas.

Plastic office carpet protector mat
Rubber mud flap
Rubber automotive floor mat
Vinyl/other flooring

There's lots of materials out there. You could get a piece of polycarbonate from Amazon or whoever and mold it to fit the tank contours with a heat gun. Everything I'm thinking of is much thicker than 10mil, but so is a shingle. 10 mil is about what you'd find on an old office binder, the ones that are just a plastic sheet, not vinyl with cardboard in the middle.

 

[donalds]

Mine has the same sticker

 

[J_C]

Then there is that other option, no plastic sheet, just a curing coating, something like polyurethane construction adhesive, though some of the moisture curing types can take several days to set up if put on thicker than a couple mm. Some other solvent cure would be faster to set fully but nothing acid cure should be used on metal.

To clarify I mean just to create the insulation layer, not to bond the tank to the crossmember.

 

[96eb96]

Mine has the same sticker

Wow, my gas tank I took out looks worse than the Titanic.