Packard Forum Index » General

could one theoritcally cut it open, clean it out, and weld it back shut. just wondering if that is an option to sending it somewhere. or is the metal to thin to weld?

could one theoritcally cut it open, clean it out, and weld it back shut. just wondering if that is an option to sending it somewhere. or is the metal to thin to weld?

Most gas tanks were made of terne plate, I assume the late Packard tanks were as well. Terne plate is mild steel protected from corrosion with a coating of tin/lead, not unlike galvanizing except that uses zinc. Problem with welding terne plate is the heat will destroy the coating, leaving a site of naked steel ripe for accelerated corrosion, so I suspect that if a tank is opened and rewelded, then the polymeric coating of gas tank sealer becomes nearly mandatory. This leaves the question of how the two tank halves were originally bonded; don't know, perhaps the anticorrosion coating was applied after the tank was formed?

Many tanks are welded by passing the flange thru a rolling seam welder. Essentially a pair of opposing narrow wheels, each having a copper disc or electrode comprising the middle of the circumference. Once the flange is inserted, pressure and power is applied and the wheels pull the material thru at a constant rate. A continuous spot weld if you will. The heat is minimal anywhere other than directly between the electrodes. Technology is old enough that Packard or their vendor may have done it that way.

That tank could be Renu'd. They would media blast it inside and out, repair any dents or holes and seal it with a baked on coating both inside and out that is guaranteed for life.

Speaking of which, I dropped my tank of this morning to have that done. Should get it back in about 10 days.

The process and where I took my tank:

http://www.macsrad.com/gastankrenew.php

Wow, that looks like a lot of work. Your tank should be like brand new! Very Cool.

The tank I cut in half would not have been a candidate for that process. You could have put a screwdriver through the metal just about anywhere. After they blasted it, there wouldn't have been much left.

Yeah, probably not a good fit then.

What is the approximate price?


Quote:

Quote:

Hi Gang,

I've been laid up the last few days with a bug and am just now catching up on my reading.

Keegan's idea is what I was trying to talk Classic into doing with their 55 - 56 tanks. They preferred that the buyer modify it and that's where is was when I got sick.

The filler pipe is just about the only thing that is still usable on mine so I second the idea about re-using them.

I'm going to try and hit Classic with the sheer number of '51 - '56 Packards made and see if I can get anywhere with that.

Barring Classic changing their mind, I second Keegan idea.

I'm going to take my old tank to Tom at Able and see if he has any ideas, but since a snow storm is threatening here, I may not get it to him until next week.

If he doesn't, if anyone wants my old tank for any reason let me know.

I'm going to try and hit Classic with the sheer number of '51 - '56 Packards made and see if I can get anywhere with that.

Maybe better to try to hit them as well with an estimate of the number remaining that are candidates for tanks. With a large number of cars emerging after long dormancies, it would seem the market could easily be several hundred tanks at the least, maybe much more if the price was reasonable. I might even buy one just to set it aside for insurance against future problems.

I've been lucky with gas tanks, neither of my cars was ever out of service for more than a few months since new and hence the tanks are pretty pristine though I finally had to have the 34 tank cleaned & coated some years back (and it's a dog to do with the 6 internal compartments/baffles). My 56 still has an untouched tank and I never get rust in the filters but I know some day the problem will hit.

PS - as to using the Chevy 16 gallon tank as a basis, I think most folks who tour extensively with their 51-56 Packards would really find that a negative - given the gas mileage these cars get even under the best of conditions, I think most of us wish the tanks were even a bit larger than 20 gallons.