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I have a small leak in my 1978 Ranger Lariat. I was thinking about trying to spray "flex seal" over the area that is leaking. Any thoughts either way? I mean, it held that guy in the boat, right???LOL I'm curious on the thoughts of others. I thought it might be an inexpensive fix.
"The Versachem Heavy Duty Fuel Tank Repair Kit permanently repairs gasoline and diesel fuel tank leaks in less than 20 minutes. Use it to repair pinholes, rust-outs, hairline cracks and holes up to 1/2" in diameter. Works best on metal and plastic tanks, fuel tanks, and oil pans."
And since you are going to maybe ask this next...the web says: Q Can you JB Weld a plastic gas tank? (Notice it says PLASTIC gas tank).
A: When fully cured, J-B Weld is completely resistant to water, gasoline, and about every other petroleum product or automotive chemical. For wet-surface or submerged water or gasoline repairs, see our J-B Stik or Waterweld product information. https://www.jbweld.com/projects/gas-tank-repair
I carry a package of J-B Weld 8267 SteelStik Steel Reinforced Epoxy Putty Stick in my trail repair bag in my rock crawler.
It is leaking from under one of the support straps? Probably on a back corner, bet it is rusted thru? Get a new Spector tank (and sending unit since you are right there) and replace the tank. Here is what my blue truck PO did for me. Bondo, JB Weld...who knows, looks like a bunch of stupid to me.
Well we do not want to see you burst into flames and take out a bus full on Nuns....or was it a mini van full?
Also replace your tank support to tank itself anti chaff material with new. Use something that will not hold moisture. My ol ratchet strap suggestion (in the walk thru) was a bad idea, but I have since learned.
At one point in my ife tried using JB WEld on a float arm inside a tank - had occasion to replace the float arm a couple of months later and the formerly hard JB Weld came off in my hands like you-slice-it chocolate chip cookie dough. Not a great idea. For a couple hundred bucks vs. a potential catastrophic tank failure - just replace the tank.
I've been around hot rods/bikes/trucks my whole life and know of at least a half dozen guys that lost their vehicle to leaking or jury rigged fuel systems. I knew one guy that almost lost his house when the car caught fire in the garage and I even got to watch a F150 burn completely to the ground once because of a fuel leak. I was following a burning trail of gas down the street for a couple miles before i caught up to it on the side of the road with the bed engulfed in flames. This was before cell phones so all he could do is watch it burn. I went to the nearest house and had them call 911, then went back, but by the time the fire department got there it was almost burned out.
Tanks are so cheap and easy to change it's not worth patching unless its a temporary repair just to get you home. For like $150, maybe a little more, you should be able to get a tank, sender, straps, a new fuel filter and some primer and chip guard so it doesn't rust out again. Another $50 should get you a new pump and lines front to back.
When i worked in a body shop, we patched rare or unobtainable tanks with riveted and epoxied patches covered in fiberglass, but it's a last resort option. It's a perfectly fine, lasting repair if it's done correctly, but it is a kind of long and tedious process.
I bought a metal bucket with a lid to hold quench water for my forge. I didn't read the fine print that said the bucket was for dry ingredients only. It leaked, but it took like three days for it to leak all the way down. For a bucket not meant for liquids, it did a pretty good job.
I figured that was the perfect application for Flex Seal. After all, that guy paddled around in a boat with a screen door for a bottom, right?
It sealed really well for about three months, and then it started leaking again. Flex Seal is worthless TV marketing crap, and nothing more.
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