Newish idea to mount stock gas tank

[SavageBlunts904]

Ive already burned up two stock tanks with vibrations/car hitting me lol.

The second i put on my bike i took extreme precaution when i mounted it.

The problem is i have a large curve in my top tube.

So i took my grider tool and made a bracket that im going to mount directly to the bike and have it solid and square with the 4 studs in my tank.

Looks something like this


My plan is to either weld it to the top tube orrr which is what im debating. to drill into the top tube in two spots to secure it in a removable way. Either way it will be solid.

Once i mount the bracket i plan on putting some real heavy duty rubber washers on each stud in between the tank and bracket..

I would love some feed back. Thanks

P.s. First time welding since highschool welding class 1 lol been a while, plus the stick welder i used was not set properly orrrr in good condition. kinda just sits under an old chicken house

 

[racie35]

isn't the problem with those the studs leak at the tank becase of spotty welds? If thats so it may not matter how well you mount it?

 

[SavageBlunts904]

Well i had my buddy refurbish the tank. he removed the old studs and added 4 bolts which he welded in place. and i lined the tank. But studs leak because of too much pressure when mounted. once that pressure is added to massive vibrations of heavy riding the are set up for failure. in my case the tank would never ever stay in place so i tightened them a little too much and went for a 50 mile or so trip and when i got to where i was going the stud was leaking. but if the tank just sits on the bracket with some good washers keeping the vibes off the welds i think it will work. this was a spur of the moment idea when i saw the iron sittin in the junk pile. im looking for a permanent fix for this bike. ill eventually get that build in tank frame. but hey whos got money to throw away these days lol maybe next month

 

[UVsaturated]

I hope I never have problems with the studs breaking due to vibration. One tip that I used on my installation is placing small square rubber pads between the tank and the tube. I actually just cut up the original handle grips which already have a curvature to them. So far, no problems.

 

[SavageBlunts904]

I am almost positive i am NOT alone in this issue, Just throwin out my idea that i came up with to fix the problem

 

[lambofgod121980]

You are deffinately NOT alone. I have tried several things to mount, and fix these super awsome (sarcasim) penut tank studs. I had at one point thought about welding brackets onto the top tube so that it would be imposible to bend the studs by tightening the nuts. I have abandoned the idea due to the fact that I really want the keg style behind the seat and don't want to ruin my top tube when I make the swap.

As far as vibration goes, I don't think rubber helps. I have used a cut piece of tire, the square pads that came with the kit originally, and innertube (the length of the tank folded ove 3 times so it was thick and soft). My bike isn't a vibration monster, in fact its pretty smooth till it hits about 30mph. Still trashed 3 seperate tanks and every time I patched the leaks, about a day or so later of riding the patches fail.

 

[SavageBlunts904]

ya man i feel ya. i read your thread. Its the combination of an odd pivot in the tank. once i mount it up ill throughly test it with a long ride. As for the rubber goes im using 1/2 inch sidewall off a tire which is wayyyy more cushion than the little rubber pads/tube. but if this works. hey someone might adopt the idea and run a design off it in a cnc machine or w/e its called. i do know i will never buy another bike with a curved top tube!!!

 

[moonerdizzle]

want to know the secrete to keep your tanks from springing leaks from the mounting studs? take two chunks of heater hose, cut slits in them and put them on your top tube, and mount your tank onto that. it isolates the vibrations. never had a tank crack or start leaking with that.

 

[SavageBlunts904]

So i finaly got the bracket welded to my bike and it looks a lil something like this. only thing left to do is find some new nylon nuts.

works perfect.

let me add it looks horrible because its a temporary frame and i just sprayed it with some rust-ex paint to keep the grind marks from rusting

 

[SavageBlunts904]

works 100% so for anyone who is caught with a curved top tube. its a solution you can try. easily made much cleaner but hey i overcame that problem.

 

[CTripps]

That's a good way to work around it.. Nice work.

Form follows function. You can always make it pretty after testing.

 

[Greg58]

Necessity is the father of invention!

 

[Avalanche]

http://motorbicycling.com/showpost.php?p=487811&postcount=3

that is what I did for that problem

 

[maniac57]

One easy and secure mount is to use two muffler clamps welded to the stock tank studs. I used this method on a ONEX 29'er and it worked great. I got a weld on each stud at least 1/2 inch long so it was nice and secure.

 

[lenny9651]

i've had leaks in 2 tank from vibration the tanks got leaks around the studs, i've even brokes the tank mounts, this is my solution. get some flat steel cut it to size and bend into an L-bracket, make 2 for the front of the tank and 2 for the back, drill a hole in the end of all the brackets then cut a piece of steel to run from the front bracket to the rear bracket, drill a hole in each end and pop rivit them together, drill 2 holes in the vertical side of the L-bracket and pop rivit them to the top bar of the bike, use sticky backed velcro cut to length then stick the 2 halves of the velcro together( the velco sides not the sticky sides)peel off the backing from one side of the velcro and stick it to the bracket, clean the bottom of your gas tank then peel off the backing from the top side of the velcro, line your tank up exactly where you want it ( you only get one shot at this so take your time) then press the tank in place pushing down firmly to assure that the velcro is stuck firmly to the tank and bracket. now you have a removable tank that won't slip( i'm using a 1 gallon tank that is very heavy when full) or leak. as you can see from the photos this is an older build with many miles, you can see just how many times i failed before i came up with this solution. hasn't leaked since.