I bought a Safari tank for my 610 about a year and a half ago. I've had a lot of problems with fuel leaking out around the fuel pump. I finally took it apart and inspected the tank carefully and noticed that if I hold a straight edge against pairs of brass bushings where the fuel pump mounts, the plastic is flat everywhere except between the frontmost outermost pair, where can see a large 1-2mm gap because the plastic curves inwards between the bushings. That is a big gap and too much for the o-ring to fill. Ive tried about 4 different gasket sealants and none of them hold up. I've run out of ideas. I'm on the road now touring, and grounded, trying to come up with a solution. Any suggestions?
before assembly I let the bead get tacky for 10 minutes then after assembly I eft it overnight before adding fuel. Is there a fuel resistant sealant that can hold such a large gap?
Sorry to hear it man- sounds as though you're in a real spot. I've got the exact same issue (the gap you describe), albeit with the stock tank. I requested opinions on sealants here- starting at post #49/page 3: http://www.cafehusky.com/threads/630-fuel-pump-leak.20408/page-3 I read and read on sealants- anything from Permatex #2, to Permatex Aviation and on to Permatex Perma-Shield. The Perma-Shield harped more on being fuel resistant and thickens up beefier (when laying a thick bead)- so I tried it. Still haven't tried it on the bike- hoping to do that w/in the next few days. I wish I'd have let it fully cure as DynoBob suggests- went with the package instructions and just waited 5-10 mins until acetone smell dissipated. At that time I laid a thick bead on something else to see at what rate it cures and, yeah, that later firmed up for me that I should have let it set up a long time. Hoping I get lucky. Anyway- you asked for suggestions. I've considered trying to lay a piece of thinner rubber (fuel resistant o-ring material- just a section, just a tad longer than the length of the gap and only the gap area...not all the way around) to close up some of the gap to rely less on sealant. We'll see- gonna first see how the application I've done holds up. Good luck to you.
thanks - ill see if I can get permashield here. One idea I had is to get a plastic gas tank repair kit and use the epoxy to build up the area between the two bushings, and the sand it flat. That might be more durable than trying to fill the gap with something that is designed to be non-setting?
I like that idea- wish that had dawned on me. May still try it if the course I'm on doesn't work out. Would that be able to flex ever so slightly with out cracking at the mating between plastic and epoxy? Reason I ask is because- at least on my tank- the warpage between the two lower most pump bolts causes those nutserts to be very slightly off of their perpendicular setting so- when I tighten the pump/mount plate in place- I'll imagine there's some slight (incredibly slight) "straightening" that occurs when the bolts fully tighten down (result of bolt heads seating flat against mounting plate.) Maybe I'm over-thinking it though. Good luck an keep us posted.
