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Need a fuel tank for Big Ugly - 86 K30 - plastic, recondition, Blazer tank, what?

AJMBLAZER

AJMBLAZER

Better to be lucky than good.
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Over in the diesel forum I had a question about Big Ugly ('86 K30 M1008 CUCV PICKUP) leaking diesel over the winter apparently. Now that we've figured out it's definitely the tank leaking I have some questions.

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=269770

My buddy has my truck up in Michigan and the plan was to get some body work done by another friend and then bring it down here. Well, I've had a monkey wrench thrown in those plans so now the fuel tank is getting fixed as well.
I found out why the truck is leaking. The tank straps protective rubber strap is all wadded up at the botom of the tank, and the metal strap is rubbing metal on metal at the middle and top of the tank.
Also, there is three rubber fuel lines that were dry rotted, those were only 6" long, and they were replaced.
To fix it the the bed needs to come off, and the tank needs replaced along with the tank straps and new rubbers, the sending unit is rusty so now would be a good time for that too if you want.
I havent tried to find any parts yet, I worked on it this afternoon.
Click to expand...
So sounds like a tank, straps, the strap rubber thingies, and probably at least a sender and the hoses. Sometimes I hate that truck.

1 - Anyone recommend places to find this stuff? I'd rather go new with quality parts than deal with the mysteries of old stuff. I favor NAPA locally and Rock-Auto for ordering stuff. Big Ugly is currently a bit south of Grand Rapids, MI.
2 - Is there a way to get a bigger tank? 20 gallons doesn't go far at 13mpg.
3 - Blazer tanks under the rear...is that possible with a pickup that you intend to still use as a pickup?
4 - Who's used those plastic tanks MTS makes and JCWhitney sells? Wouldn't mind not having to deal with rust and corrosion.
5 - I think it was 76zimmer who had a link to some place that restored tanks and coated them. Worth the investment over time?
 
AJ, all I did was have my tank acid stripped....came out clean as new, but it was in good shape to begin with, just some surface type rust inside and out, nothing serious.
 
zim, didn't you recommend some service that coated the tanks and such to prevent them from rusting from the outside and corroding from the inside? I swear it was you but maybe not. Perhaps I should do a search.

90, what do you think of the tank? I've heard stories of some of these things being "close but not quite" matches and having to cobble them in place. Also that their coatings aren't super great and they rust in the salty winter environment.
 
AJ, I used a yellow zinc primer on my outside of the tank. I do know of some that have used a product called Kreem....it is a 3 part process to clean, prep and seal the tank. This has worked well for them in MI exposure cars...you know what I mean!
 
Ahhhhh, duh, it wasn't you, it was 73k5:
http://coloradok5.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2562450&postcount=3
That would make it run a bit more than a direct replacement tank but I kind of like the whole "encapsulation" thing. This is something I would gladly pay a bit more for in order to just replace once and never worry about again until the sender dies or lines rot in 30 years.
 
cool, glad you figured that mystery out:haha:

going to the junkyard tomorrow, looking for your intake support piece on the rad. support....anything else?
 
Nah, going all new for this. Thanks though.
 
My buddy just pointed out that one of our friends up there has a wife that works at the big NAPA warehouse. DISCOUNT! What do you guys think of NAPA parts as far as the sender, straps, isolators etc go?
 
AJMBLAZER said:
90, what do you think of the tank? I've heard stories of some of these things being "close but not quite" matches and having to cobble them in place. Also that their coatings aren't super great and they rust in the salty winter environment.
Click to expand...

I wasn't to concerned about the fit since I was doing a custom job anyway. No matter what tank you get I would coat it with a good 3M undercoating.
 
I've considered plastic but the issue I still have is I haven't found anyone who used the 20 gallon truck tank they make. From reading the reviews it seems like some tanks they make are "A+ spot on bolts up in place" and others are "sorta looks like the correct tank". Before I spend the money I want to know it will work.

I found a place about an hour from my buddy that will do the Gas Tank Renu system for about $150. Guy had complete confidence in it and nothing I asked him about or said phased him. Works for me. I'll pay a little extra for a tank that I KNOW will fit and pretty much won't rust ever again.

Straps and sender and such...not sure. My NAPA connection is letting me down so I need to figure out if the bit of a discount I get there is worth it. Might just order from Rock Auto. LMC is the only place I can find the rubber isolators for the straps though.
 
I used the plastic tank in the M1008 CUCV. It fit well but the sending unit mount is a little different and did not seal real well. The bed had to come off again and we used some gas tank sealer/glue. Then it worked great. I made a thread about it but it was a couple of years ago. I went with the plastic/poly tank because it was the only one I could find made in the USA. That and I wanted something that would resist corrosion.
 
Nah, after reading your experience and m-1028's I'm just going to have mine reconditioned. No cheese whiz with it. It WILL fit.

What have you guys used to isolate/protect the tank from the straps? LMC sells the isolators but oy, they're expensive and I'm not finding them anywhere else.
 
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I had a poly something replacement tank in the Blazer for a few years... Worked great... Same shape as OE tank...

It was built by a company that made fuel cells for the Army... Can't remember the name... :doah:

A buddy ended up with it after I went to propane... He's putting it in a 2wd 70 pick up... I also gave him the rear cross member that I cut out when I bobbed the K5... Not sure if he's got it installed yet, but I don't see any issues that he'll run into...

If I figure out the name of the company I'll post it up...
 
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