I'm wondering if any owners of the T120, T100, Speed Twin, Street Twin, Bobber etc have experienced rust on the inside of the fuel tank. These tanks are steel, not aluminium, and therefore have the potential to rust. I have a spare Street Twin tank which I'm considering having custom painted. I'm wondering whether it's worth lining the tank before the paint job, as doing this at a later stage risks damage to the paint. I know this through my experience with a 26 year old tank from my Honda RVF400 NC35. I had it painted, and afterwards discovered rust inside. I had it professionally lined but despite their best efforts there was minor damage to the paint. Having it lined was expensive but at least it was done properly, rather than those home-brew kits which seem to be a bit hit and miss. So, any rust?
Never thought of looking TBH. Might stick the endoscope in there and have a look although the bike is barely 8 months old. I've never had this problem on other bikes with steel tanks. My Z is 10 years old now and no issues. This move to higher ethanol content fuels won't help things though.
Higher Ethanol certainly won't help things with it being hygroscopic so effectively attracting water from the atmosphere. Quite a turn around of OLD ideas in that previously I would have brimmed it prior to a winter lay up in order to avoid or minimise an accumulation of condensation yet tonight I have done exactly the opposite. Earlier today my 765 was drained of all fuel to the point of not running then one litre was added to allow start up if neccessary or desired Ethanol, nasty horrible shite Many years ago when carrying out some fuel research experiments anything to do with Ethanol was problematic. If you think good fuel with glue or honey added you will get the picture!
Another tip I've seen (and used) years ago was to add some 2 smoke oil to a pint or so of petrol in the tank and swill it round to coat the inside. Not sure how modern bikes running EFI and loaded with emmisions crap would cope with that. The CAT would probably shit itself.
When I had the boat and layed it up for Winter I'd run the outboard out of fuel, then spin it over while spraying misting oil into the carb venturi to coat the bores. The tank was plastic so no problem with rust but required draining due to vapour migration. The Husaberg also has a plastic tank but doesn't get layed up for long periods.
Dunno if you've heard of Aspen 4? The HRC-trained chap that works on my two 30 yr old Hondas recommends leaving it in the tank and carbs during a prolonged lay-up. It's totally ethanol free but unfortunately costs a ridiculous £6 or £7 per litre (buy on-line). I don't think he meant you had to fill the tank, just a few litres will keep carbs clean, without damaging seals or allowing them to dry out. It lasts for years and doesn't 'go off' like petrol pump fuel can. It is also perfectly safe to run the engine on it and mixes with ordinary E5 (or E10 if you're that way inclined) when you fill the tank after the lay-up.
