My Salvation And Strengthening Of The Original Fuel Tank Straps

[47heaven]

Some of you know that sometime back I purchased a new fuel tank from Tanks Inc. I figured that I was just going to use the original straps, instead of the aluminum ones that came with it because they were in good shape, so I thought. The original ones worked, but the only problem is that they barely tightened into the long bolt head that is used to attach and tighten the tank to the bottom of the trunk. As seen in this photo, this is as far as I could get it to tighten with the new tank.

 

 

Though the tank felt tightly snug, I didn't like the idea of the bolt end not being able to go in all the way. When I did the other side, the bolt snapped from where it was riveted to the strap. I must have tried to tighten it too tight. Of course, this tank is a bit taller than the original. This bummed me out because I really wanted to stay with the originals because of the way they attached behind the fuel tank to the body of the car, as if they locked in place. So I tried to see what I could do with the new ones that were sent with the tank, but I didn't like the fact that they were aluminum, and not steel. I tried to get those to work, but ended up messing them up. So I thought on how I could still salvage the old ones and make them stronger, as well, based on the design of the new straps. So here is what I came up with...

I figured that I had to extend the ends of the straps that the bolt ends were riveted to by a few inches so that it would fit around the tank just right. Since I don't have my own machine shop to fabricate things, I decided to go to Lowe's and look around for something that might work. So I found this below.


Not sure what it's called, but I found it in the construction section of the store. I took the original and the new strap with me to see if it would be long enough to work as an extension, and it did. So I got that, new bolts, nuts and lock washers, as well as new bolts to connect it to the original strap. 


Then, I drilled out the old rivets that were holding the bolt end piece to the strap. After that, I took the ends of the original pieces and pounded them straighter.
 

  Then, I took the new angled pieces and drilled the bottom hole a little bigger, then one above it to match, according to how the holes were on the strap. Then, took the other side and drilled a 3/8" hole.

 

 

Then, I cut the end off where the bigger hole was drilled and removed the burrs and sharp edges with a flat file.
 

 

 
Then, I bolted the new piece to the old strap.

 

Later today, I will clean it up, paint it black and put rubber back on the inside of it, then hook install the tank. Not the prettiest thing, but I'm sure it will do the job. I will get back and let you know how the installation goes.


 

Edited March 31, 2013 by 47heaven

[james curl]

One does not need to own a machine shop when most things can be done with just a few hand tools and a lot of thought to figure a solution to the problem and execute it.  Nice to see you figuring out a solution to your problem.  I think I might have used grade 8 bolts instead of screws as that tank full of gas when you go through a dip in the road will put a large load on the screws in single shear.

[Don Coatney]

Good Job. But I do agree with James on the use of Grade 8 Hardware.

[47heaven]

Wow...you guys are right about the Grade 8 bolts. I didn't even think of that. Okay...off to the auto parts store. Most of the mom and pop hardware stores here are closed on Sunday, especially today.

[bamfordsgarage]

Looks good -- suggest when you are otherwise finished with the "extender clamp bolts" that you cut them off so only a thread or two sticks out past the nut and peen the threads such that the nuts will never come off.

[thrashingcows]

Great idea!  I too have installed a new Tanks Inc tank in teh Ol'Desoto and ran into the same problem.  I did manage to tighten mine up without anything breaking, but it's just too darn tight for my liking.  Think I will have to do this...Thank you for taking the time to post up the info and pics!!

[47heaven]

Great idea!  I too have installed a new Tanks Inc tank in teh Ol'Desoto and ran into the same problem.  I did manage to tighten mine up without anything breaking, but it's just too darn tight for my liking.  Think I will have to do this...Thank you for taking the time to post up the info and pics!!

Brian, before you do that let me get back to you with the exact measurements of the parts you need to get because I have had to get longer extenders from the ones I first showed in the pics, along with the bolt and nut sizes, as well. I will post more pics and info tomorrow.

Darin

 

[thrashingcows]

Thanks Darin...Appreciate it!

[47heaven]

Okay...I went back to the drawing board and made new extenders for the straps. The steel framing brackets that I had previously used weren't long enough, due to a miscalculation on my part. Went and bought some longer brackets and fabricated those to reach. Below are pics of the tank strapped into place with the finished strap extenders.
 

 

I decided not to cut the bolt ends so that I will be able to remove them in case I ever have to remove the tank. Again, I'm not concerned on how pretty it needs to look. I just want then to hold. Before I tightened them to the body, the extenders were about 1/2 inch from touching the bottom of the trunk. I wanted to make sure that the strap ends would have enough space so that the straps could be pulled tight when I tightened them. I used locknuts on all the bolts shown. I feel this makes the straps a lot stronger in the areas where they take on most of the stress. In fact, I think they are more secure now than they were originally.

 

Looking from inside the trunk.
 

A view showing the fuel tank strapped in. This baby is staying put. I will repaint the straps and tank again, as well as paint the new extensions.

 

This is the reason I had to reconstruct the strap ends.


 

Edited April 4, 2013 by 47heaven

[47heaven]

Now that I have the new fuel tank installed, I'm running into problems with trying to get the filler neck to align and angle out the hole correctly, as well how to get the rubber grommet to stay on the body of the car. Is there a secret or trick to this?

 

 

 

[Alshere59]

It can be tricky. The rubber grommet on mine only stays put when the end of the tube is parallel to the fender. With the new tank and looks like a new hose how much difference is there is the angles on those? You may have to move the tank a bit in the straps and adjust the length to get it aligned the way you need. Or as a last resort you could take your fill pipe to a muffler shop and have it bent to bring it back in alignment.

[T120]

Nice work...I would consider using locking nuts on the bolts (nyloc)

[Don Coatney]

Looks very good. I will follow your practice should I have a need to re-do my straps. It is normal to assemble the lock washers below the nuts not below the bolt head. It is much more likely that the nut will spin before the bolt will turn.

[fourleaf]

I tell you for not having a machine shop you are doing a fine job! good thinking

[47heaven]

It can be tricky. The rubber grommet on mine only stays put when the end of the tube is parallel to the fender. With the new tank and looks like a new hose how much difference is there is the angles on those? You may have to move the tank a bit in the straps and adjust the length to get it aligned the way you need. Or as a last resort you could take your fill pipe to a muffler shop and have it bent to bring it back in alignment.

The tank is pretty much where it has to stay because the hole where the sending unit goes is in line with the whole on the bottom of the trunk. I'm just going to have to work with it somehow. If anyone knows any tricks to this, please let me know.

[Guest bewillie]

Install the rubber in the fender first. You might have to cock the hose a little or even cut a little off the metal tube to line the bottom up.      DONE 

Edited April 4, 2013 by bewillie

[DCurrent]

Install the rubber in the fender first. You might have to cock the hose a little or even cut a little off the metal tube to line the bottom up.      DONE 

This is true! The tank is probably fairly stationary. That said, the rubber that surrounds the filler neck probably needs to be installed first before the neck is brought up through the fender. The neck will find home then and a little vasoline will help it through the neck rubber.

 

Darren

[TodFitch]

This is true! The tank is probably fairly stationary. That said, the rubber that surrounds the filler neck probably needs to be installed first before the neck is brought up through the fender. The neck will find home then and a little vasoline will help it through the neck rubber.

 

Darren

I'd use soap instead of Vasoline. . . I don't know of any rubber that will degrade when exposed to soap but some will if exposed to greases and oils. . .

[Daliant.]

The filler neck has to be centered in the opening and parallel to the fender, it looks like you have the neck down too far, causing a little bit of an angle. Try putting it together without the fender grommet, get everything lined up where it should be, then marking the hose and neck with a sharpie so when you put it back together with the fender grommet you can align the neck to where it should be. You might have to trim the rubber hose to get it to sit right and a little lube always helps when dealing with rubbers

[47heaven]

Managed to get the filler neck positioned and connected today. The soap trick on the rubber worked great. Now, since I'm not using the venting system that came with the new tank, I need to know which one of these is the correct vented cap?

 

[47heaven]

Started to connect the gas line to the new tank I bought, but ran into a problem. Turns out that the bolt at the end of the line is too small for the threads of the inlet to the tank. The bolt was replaced when I had a new line installed a few years back, and it screwed into the original tank. It's flanged on the end, of course, so I can't remove it, and I definitely do not want to remove the tank again.

So what I need to know is what was the size of the opening of the original tank? . I'll have to call Tanks Inc. to see  what the size of the opening on the tank so I can get some kind of adaptor to make it fit, I guess.
 

[thrashingcows]

You just need a brass adapter.  You should be able to ge one from any inustrial supply house.  I can't recall what the dimensions were, I used misc fitting I had laying around on my tank in the desoto. The one form the original tank worked fine, and the other one I'm not sure what dimensions it was.  I know I did have to carefully rebend the line back a bit to line up though.

 

[thrashingcows]

Looks great...Thanks!!

[55 Fargo]

You just need a brass adapter.  You should be able to ge one from any inustrial supply house.  I can't recall what the dimensions were, I used misc fitting I had laying around on my tank in the desoto. The one form the original tank worked fine, and the other one I'm not sure what dimensions it was.  I know I did have to carefully rebend the line back a bit to line up though.

 

Yup, this an easy fix Darren............

[Don Coatney]

This is getting hard to follow. Third thread on the gas tank install issues. Would be nice to see all three threads combined. It would make it easier for someone who wants to do the same project as there is some really good information in all three threads. Perhaps a moderator could combine all 3 threads.