Rusty Fuel Tank

[RalphG]

I guess considering the rest of the car it is no big surprise to find the fuel tank rusted out on my 52 Merc. Crawled underneath to find the drain plug and look into flushing and hooking up to use the tank. Well the bottom of that tank is just rust and holes. Not even good scrap iron. Guess I will be running with the auxiliary temporary plastic fuel tank for a while yet.

[Ralph Moore]

Have you checked on a new tank? I got one for my 61 comet surprisingly at a low cost.
I think it was around $165 plus shipping. Sure beat messing with the old one.

[V12Bill]

A good body man could fix that and you would never know it was rusted.

[AnthonyG]

Replace with tanksinc.com, steel, stainless, or poly. Good people, good product.

[wbedwards]

Your tank looks like mine did. I bought a tank and sending unit from these guys for my Edsel and they were very helpful. http://www.autocityclassic.com/gas-t...ts-strap-kits/

wbedwards

[RalphG]

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Tanksinc and autocity classic were like several other sites I searched. They were all around my car but no 52. Seems that the 53-54 series Mercs are not as popular when it comes to replacement fuel tanks. I guess a new tank is far down the list of priorities. Right now water pumps and brakes are bigger. Did I mention I twisted off the cap on the master cylinder yesterday? Days of penetrating oil and careful tapping with a hammer did not loosen it up and the wrench twisted the cap right off. The "stump" is still stuck in the cylinder.

[TJ]

Why would the Merc tank be any different than the 52-53 Ford tank?

[wbedwards]

Did you call and ask if they had an option? They don't make Edsel tanks either. My tank was for a '64 Galaxie, but with some modification, works well in my '59 Edsel.

wbedwards

[1937pickup]

You may want to give these guys a call-they don't list the tank but they may have a pattern to make one from. http://www.rockvalleyantiqueautoparts.com/catalog.htm

[RalphG]

Thanks for all the ideas and links. No doubt a tank could be modified or custom built to fit the 52. Our weak Canadian dollar right now makes shopping south of the border not so attractive.

[LazarusLong]

Originally Posted by RalphG

Thanks for all the ideas and links. No doubt a tank could be modified or custom built to fit the 52. Our weak Canadian dollar right now makes shopping south of the border not so attractive.

Maybe not,but I'm betting a Tanks Inc new gas tank is cheaper than the labor it would cost you to get your old tank fixed,plus you get a new powered coated tank that will never rust and you have no worries about a coating inside dissolving due to ethanol and clogging everything up.

I don't claim to be a expert on fixing old cars,but one thing I learned the hard way is that sometimes it is a lot cheaper in the long run to go ahead and spent the money to fix it right the first time so you can forget about it and move on to fixing other problems.

BTW,I paid 240 bucks delivered for new new direct replacement Tanks,inc gas tank for my 51 Ford,and consider it to be money well spent.

I even replaced the entire gas line with the new copper coated inside and out nickel 3/8th brake line so I would never have to worry about rust there,either.

All it takes is the money from 1 rollback ride home plus the labor bill for repairs and you have paid for a new gas tank and never have to worry about that part of it again.

[RalphG]

Originally Posted by LazarusLong

Maybe not,but I'm betting a Tanks Inc new gas tank is cheaper than the labor it would cost you to get your old tank fixed,

I don't claim to be a expert on fixing old cars,but one thing I learned the hard way is that sometimes it is a lot cheaper in the long run to go ahead and spent the money to fix it right the first time so you can forget about it and move on to fixing other problems.
there,either.
.

I agree with you although I have been a slow learner when it comes to spending the money for the best rather than cheaping out on some piece of junk that will not last for long.
As far as I am concerned this tank I have is beyond repair unless somebody could split it horizontally and weld a new bottom section on it. There is no solid metal left as I can push my fingers through most places on the bottom side. Must have had water in it when parked 30 some years ago.

[LazarusLong]

Originally Posted by RalphG

....

As far as I am concerned this tank I have is beyond repair unless somebody could split it horizontally and weld a new bottom section on it. There is no solid metal left as I can push my fingers through most places on the bottom side. Must have had water in it when parked 30 some years ago.

Just for giggles,take a saw and cut the tank in half after removing it,and then look at all the rust on the sides and the top. The bottoms are just the first place to go because they are the lowest. The top will be almost as bad as the bottom.

I once had a 39 Ford that I had been running around locally to get the bugs out of,and decided to visit a friend in a nearby state with it. Filled it up with gas and took off,and got about 15-20 from home before it died. The gas tank was so full of rust it clogged up the very small siphon hose that was all I had at the time to try and clean it out. It came home on a rollback. That was the first time I had ever actually filled the tank up,and the full tank sloshing around a little washed the loose scaly rust free,and caused it to clog up the gas line.

Give Tanks,Inc a call and ask them if the Merc and the Ford tanks are the same,and if not what are the differences. Even if they aren't identical I am betting a Ford tank would work with very minor modifications . If they say they don't know,get a Merc parts manual and compare the parts numbers to the Ford parts numbers.

[RalphG]

Originally Posted by LazarusLong

I once had a 39 Ford that I had been running around locally to get the bugs out of,and decided to visit a friend in a nearby state with it. Filled it up with gas and took off,and got about 15-20 from home before it died. The gas tank was so full of rust it clogged up the very small siphon hose that was all I had at the time to try and clean it out. It came home on a rollback. That was the first time I had ever actually filled the tank up,and the full tank sloshing around a little washed the loose scaly rust free,and caused it to clog up the gas line.

Give Tanks,Inc a call and ask them if the Merc and the Ford tanks are the same,and if not what are the differences. Even if they aren't identical I am betting a Ford tank would work with very minor modifications . If they say they don't know,get a Merc parts manual and compare the parts numbers to the Ford parts numbers.

Interesting, on a side note the fuel tank on my 39 is in far better condition than the 52 Merc. Indoor storage makes a difference. I drained the 39 this past winter and just a bit of stale , nearly 40 year old gas came out. Might give it a bit of a flush and hook up the fuel line to see how it works.

[1937pickup]

Originally Posted by RalphG

Thanks for all the ideas and links. No doubt a tank could be modified or custom built to fit the 52. Our weak Canadian dollar right now makes shopping south of the border not so attractive.

Why didn't you say you were in Canada? There is a guy named Red Green at Possum Lodge who is handy and can make most things. If he can't make a replacement he will fix it with duck tape. Remember if the women don't find you hansom they should find you handy!

[RalphG]

Originally Posted by 1937pickup

Why didn't you say you were in Canada? There is a guy named Red Green at Possum Lodge who is handy and can make most things. If he can't make a replacement he will fix it with duck tape. Remember if the women don't find you hansom they should find you handy!

I'm a firm believer in the power of duct tape and do carry a roll of it most of the time. But I also believe it has it's limits

[AnthonyG]

Call the tech guy at tanks.inc, tell him you problem as they don't have yours listed. I'd be willing to bet Ford / Merc. used the tank in yours in other years / models and he'll know. Worth a shot. They were very helpful with me when I was looking for a stock config. '35 Ford tank.

could split it horizontally and weld a new bottom section on it

I'd bet the top ain't much better as the moisture / condensation on non-full tanks takes it's toll on the top of the tank too. Would cost way too much anyway.