Poly Fuel Tank Repair Question

[jpswift1]

Well I found a hairline crack towards the top of my plastic poly fuel tank in my Attex racer. I'm guessing its from sitting out in the cold and the water in the tank over the 30+ years that it has been from sitting freezing and unthawing so many times. Does anyone have any tips or ideas as to how to repair this crack? Its about 6 inches long and it isnt like a big huge gash or anything major. Thanks.

[Mike]

J.B. Weld maybe?

I used something called liquid steel (I think) to fix a 1/4" x 3" strip missing on the back part of my upper body and it did good for a few months but now you can see where it's coming loose some around the edges. So whatever you do, don't use that. It came in a small tube at the local auto parts house. It was a pliable two part epoxy substance that you mix together by hand. Just mash it together.

[Beeman]

I've tried a lot of stuff.. fiberglass resin, epoxy, hot glue, rubber cement.... pl500, 400..I've sanded the plastic so the glues have something to grab on to.. nothing seemed to work (that lasted any reasonable length of time).

Although I haven't tried it yet, you may want to look into plastic welding.

[Beeman]

[Don]

Hey, Jeff;

I busted the tank in the liquid-cooled machine (don't store sharp stuff in the driver's compartment when you travel) and fixed it the same way I do the bodies. I use a soldering gun and make welding "rods" out of an old poly body. Do a small section at a time and use the back side of a large kitchen spoon to cool and shape the plastic. I did the tank at least a year ago and it's still holding.

Good luck with it.

[jpswift1]

Thanks for the help guys! Luckily the crack is just a hairline one and not a big gash, so hopefully these tips will help make the tank hold fuel just as it were when it was new.