cb550f petrol tank

[mat4]

Hello, I have just bought a 1979 cb550f in need of a full restoration. I am doing a bit at a time and at the moment I am concentrating on the petrol tank which looks not to bad from outside but inside it is brown with rust, so much so the carbs are also full of powdered rust that has got past the fuel filter, so the carbs will need to be re built later. I would like to buy a brand new tank but I am told they are discontinued, I wondered if there are any companies out there that make reproduction tanks or if all else fails I could use one of the many tank repair products out there, which product is best?

[saxby]

any problem can be fixed . depending on how much money you want to throw at it .`
 your tank can be repaired .. i forget the name but there is a chemical kit you can buy its about 80 quid that works a treat [haven't used it but hared some good reports].
you can mess around using a battery charger and soda Cristal's to reverse the process.  i did this  and it didnt get bad results [i still use a fuel filter thow]  let me know and i will add links to this method as thats all on a different pc when i learnt to do it
or you could seel it using Kreem

if your looking to bring it back to life 100% as it was, then i would advise spending a bit of time over the next few weeks on ebay  . i know its a case of looking at 2nd hand bits that might be worse off then yours .. but  if you check out ebay in usa  there is a lot more choice and also bear in mind that the climate can be a lot more kinder to bikes. postage is high but you get a good exchange rate at the moment .

i have some near mint extended forks coming over for 70 quid inc p+p its worth a look

i would fit it up and live wit it .  no one looks in the tank so as long as you cleen it up or seel it up  well you know it should be ok.  to be double shoure put a inline fuel filter in so you have pice of mind +you can see if there is any rust or cr*p ending up in the fuel before it goes in the carbs
you will be fine

but if you want an original  replacement + paint job to boot
it will set you back a bit of time and money

[mat4]

Thanks saxby for the good advice, I have found a chemical kit like the one you describe in frost restorations magazine that I will give a try and I will also fit an in line throw away filter. hopefully this will do the job with no more rust, cheers.

[Bryanj]

Check the year as they stopped making 550's in 78

[mat4]

No worries, bike registered june 1979, dont know when it was manufactured, cheers.

[SteveD CB500K0]

Post the frame and engine numbers here and we'll have a go at dating it.

[mat4]

Cool, the frame number is CB550F-2110221 and the engine number is cb550e-1149106.
It would be interesting to find out the D.O.M.   
I paid