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Looking at the picture from inside the tank. It almost looks like there is still zinc/tin plating on the inside. The rust/shellac/gunk is almost a layer that is coating everything as opposed to rust that is eating into the metal.

Now that is the bottom of the tank that was still covered with fuel. So not sure what the rest of the inside of the tank looks like. I guess I could put some chain, bolts and nut in the tank and rattle them around to see what I can break loose.

I am concerned that I can't get a piece of welding rod all the way through the pickup tube. Is there any type of tight elbow or screen at the end of the tube that could be blocking the welding rod rod?

The pickup tube makes a couple of bends and ends about 1/8 inch above the metal in a sump area on the bottom of the tank in approx the shape & location shown. Look thru the sender opening with a small flashlight and you should see it. There is no screen but I've seen tubes that make a "U" and point down and other years where there may be a small baffle or plate to help keep floating objects away. If the gas had varnish or dried at some point, have seen that sump full of congealed material.

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Thanks for the info Howard.

I wonder if I am jsut hitting the baffle or the bottom of the tank. If I spray some brake cleaner down the tube it doesn't back up, so perhaps it is clear. Maybe the stiff welding rod perhaps isn't bending when it hit the sumps and therefor I just think I am hitting a blockage.

Hi Kev,
Why not try and give it a blast with an airline. That should give some indication if its blocked or not especially if you fill it up with water up to the tube. Just a thought.
Terry

Take a 12 foot foot length of string and enter one end of it into the tube. Tie a big nut onto te other end of string. Blow string theu tube. Fish other end of string that is now inside of tank out thru the sending unit hole.

Now u have a fish line that can be worked backwards and forwards thru the tube. Tie bigger or smaller string as needed and pull it thru or small nuts on the string or small swabs of cloth soaked in carb cleaner to see-saw back and forth thru the tube.

OR a speedometer cable core on the end of a drill motor mite act as a good reamer.

Some 1/32 or 1/16 stranded cable from hardware store used for hanging mirrors and picture on the end of a drill motor. Fray the end of the cable to act as an abrasive.

I don't know much about gas tanks but I think they were commonly made of "terne plate" steel, which is cold rolled treated with an allow of 80% lead and 20% tin, no zinc. The high percentage of lead makes it inexpensive and yet be an effective corrosion-resistant coating.

Damn, Dave even spelled it correctly! I don't think anyone uses that anymore. They make it much cheaper.
Anyway here's a crude drawing of the pickup tube. The end rests in a small hollow punched into the tank. You can't pass a welding rod thru it and the end of it is VERY close to the bottom of that indent. (Edit : redrew gastank)

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Randey, tanks for congtulating mee on my speeling.

Your sketch of the pick-up tube is instructional, it's the lower portion of the tube that apparently rusted off on friend Ole Book's tank such that he "runs out of gas" with about 10 gallons left in the tank. I don't know what the best way is to fix that, access is damn near impossible without cutting an opening in the tank top. Be interested to hear how others have approached that problem.

Find a small boy with some dexterity. Get him to slip some plastic tubing up over the pickup tube to the point where there is 1/8 to 1/4 gap between the end of the tube and the bottom of the tank(the indentation in the bottom). Buy the kid a lot of camdy.

BigKev-

My local radiator repair place reworked my fuel tank for less than $200, did a great job, and now I don't worry about the fuel tank...

I broke the t-bolts holding my tank as well, my father in law fashioned some new ones out with a welder, they work great.

I used some of the original padding, but not all, between the straps and the tank. I notice they sell that stuff, not sure how important it is, my guess is to ensure a quiet ride, but it could be more important, like two metals rubbing against each other, causing friction, which may not be a good thing on a tank full of fuel.

-Carl