MX Tank Restoration

[Doug Bridges]

Here are some photos of  my recent restoration of a very rough Mint 400 MX tank that is now a Jackpiner Tank.












Doug Bridges
73 Jackpiner
74 Jackpiner/FrankenPenton
project
82 XR200R

[brian kirby]

Very nice, what color blue did you use? Did you paint the tank or did you use gelcoat? I would really like to find a source for the correct colors of gelcoat since it is smoother and much more durable than paint. I've done lots of glass and gelcoat work with jetski hulls, but they are all either white or black.

Brian

[Doug Bridges]

Brian, I painted it with 2 part acrylic enamel. It is Delstar 17040 Cool Blue. It may be just a tad darker than original, but is very close. The gel coat on this tank had a lot of stress cracks in it, so after patching the hole I built up three coats of RAKA 350 epoxy and then sanded it smooth by hand before it was completely cured. One coat of primer and 4 coats of paint. The paint was too glossy for my likeing so I wet sanded it with 1200 grit and then with 2000 grit and then hand rubbed it out with fine rubbing compound and now it looks very much like original gel coat finish. Very smooth and still has a little gloss to it, but it should not show every little scratch that will come from use. The paint is thick enough that I should be able to rub some scratches out when it does happen.

Doug Bridges
73 Jackpiner
74 Jackpiner/FrankenPenton
project
82 XR200R

[john durrill]

Brian,
We had good luck using the small gel coat repair kits sold in most Marine / boat shops.
 Using the colors given in the kits we could mix up a very close match on the original Blue.
 We patched a Green Six Days Tank and you could not tell the mixed up color from the original gel coat.
 I bet you can do it better than we did. Try it in a small batch and see.
 We just brushed it on  in several coats then sanded and rubbed it out.
I'm with you its much better than paint  for long term wear.
john d.

[joe novak]

John,  Apparently, you used a fiberglass patch which was attached to the inside of the hole, then filled with some kind of filler.  How did you release the metal hook from the patch?   Did the metal hook- have an "L" shape which simply unhooked from a small hole?   Absolutely beautiful tank, and bike to match.  joe

[Doug Bridges]

The metal hook on the patch is just a bronze nail. The patch was made of 20 oz triaxle epoxy fiberglass. I used the tank for a mold using cellophane packing tape, as the epoxy won't stick to the tape once it is cured. I then cut out the patch and glued it to the inside of the tank with epoxy mixed with micro fibers. the nail was cut in half and then pushed through the hole after the patch was cured. then it was filled with epoxy mixed with micro fibers and sanded after curing. another piece of 10 oz epoxy fiberglass over the top of that feathered in after cure. 3 coats of epoxy over entire tank applied with a small roller and then it is ready for paint. Always wait a couple weeks before painting over epoxy, as it takes a while for it to completely cure and bad things will happen to your paint if you apply it before epoxy is cured. I would rather have a gel coat finish, but I have no experience with it. If someone finds the right color I would love to play around with it. I do have another tank that needs refinishing.

Doug Bridges
73 Jackpiner
74 Jackpiner/FrankenPenton
project
82 XR200R

[Lew Mayer]

Great looking job:D

Lew Mayer

[SouthRider]

Beautiful work - and it led to a great thread on tank restoration.

Thanx guys - another one to search for if I ever need this info in the future.