[Digby]

I have a quarter-sized dent just above the tank badge. It looks like a concave bubble and isn't "sharp" at all. I've heard different takes on fixing this including using a suction cup, or filling the tank with water and freezing it to let the expansion pop it out.
Are these plausible ideas? Does anyone have any experience with this?

Distressed....

 

[Hilts]

I just had a dent in my TM400 tank repaired by suction cup. It got the big dent out, but still left a little ding within the larger dent that the guy said was unfixable. The water idea sounds interesting, but I can think of two problems. First, if the gas cap is left on, the ice could pop it off, causing major damage. Second, if the cap is off, won't the ice just expand upwards out of the gas hole instead of expanding the tank?

 

[Baltobonneville]

There's no way I would fill my tank with water and freeze it! That's a really crazy idea! Aside from rust issues, there's no predicting how it's going to expand or what it's going to do. It might split the seam at the bottom, who knows?

Marty
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
2005 Bonneville Blue

 

[MES]

I've heard different takes on fixing this including using a suction cup,

This method ONLY works if the metal is NOT CREASED. But it does work and will not mar the finish. The bigger around the dent the better they work because the pressure on the metal is over a larger area.

filling the tank with water and freezing it to let the expansion pop it out.

don't be an idiot. :razz:
You WILL ruin your tank. Guaranteed.
and don't spray ether in the tank and light it either.

dent poppers are sold at many auto parts stores.

 

[ohiorider]

I've had Dent Whiz (they're all over the country) pull dents out of lease cars before I returned them. They may be able to do a reasonable job for you. I saw them repair a Honda CRV (SUV) that had been outside in a hail storm, and the results were good. The dent cannot be creased, nor can the paint be cracked for their type repair to work.

Bob

[ This message was edited by: ohiorider on 2006-10-26 22:43 ]

 

[LandRover]

I've been in the Collision business for over 20 years,and just when I thought I'd heard every stupid idea......someone spits out another one. Your best bet is to have someone like Dent Doctor take a look at it,they have all sorts of neat ways to pop that puppy out.The only way a suction cup might work is if the dent is larger than the cup itself,and even then its a longshot.Remember,Motorcycle gas tank steel is about twice the thickness of regular automotive steel and is pretty tough stuff to work with.Do yourself a favor and bring it to a pro.As for the freezing water idea? don't even think about it! Lets just play this out in our minds shall we. You fill your tank full of water and stick it in your deepfreezer for say two days. ok,now the water inside the tank is frozen and has expanded.How did you regulate it? how does it know when to stop expanding? I promise you that if this stupid idea was ever executed you would either split and tear open every seam in that tank or the tank would be so distorted that it would be totally trashed.I would walk up to the person who let you in on this close guarded secret of metal working and say: "Here's your sign!" Trust me Brother,Dent Doctor or a similar company is the way to go on this one.Good luck.

 

[Digby]

Thanks for all the info. Just to clarify, I didn't think freezing water in the tank was a good idea either. I saw it somewhere else in this forum and no one there rebuked it very strongly (maybe they assumed it was a joke).

 

[Ruxton]

As an old panel beater I've always been amused by the old "Fill 'er with water and freeze her" method.

I'd like to know just how the swelling ice magically knows to concentrate it's energy on your pesky little dent and then miraculously stop swelling once that's as good as new.

What a load of shite!

Cheers,

Russ

 

[JTKMX]

Even if the frozen water expanded 2mm outward at the dent, it would also expand the same amount in the areas around the dent as well. So, there would be no net gain even if it worked. The dent would remain, but the entire tank would be larger than it was originally, or it would burst.

 

[caspianthruxton]

i have an old tank in my garage for some random Kawisaki and this winter i will freeze it and see what it does. Sounds kinda fun.

 

[LandRover]

Keep your mop handy!!! LOL :razz: :razz:

 

[johnsime]

Hello from England

I had a dent in another bike once - a Royal Enfield ,a franchise called Dent Devils called and he somehow did his thing and the dent vanished - magic. I then got a paint job from another franchise over here Chips Away and it eas like new.

The freezer thing sounds horrific

 

[Guest]

I dont know about freezing....I have never tried the following method on a Triumph tank....it has risks bordering on dangerous...and should not be attempted by idiots. I have fixed a kawasaki, a Yamaha and Ducati tank without damaging the paint. It failed to work on a Sportster tank...it blew the seams out. Drain the fuel from the tank. Remove the tank from the bike. Place a leather belt around the tank and tighten. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!!Failure to this could result in having the tank BOW. Make sure the gas cap is on tight and all vent lines are plugged. Through the petcock fill the tank with compressed air until dent pops out OR THE BELT IS TENSIONED. IF YOU EXCEED TENSIONING THE BELT YOU RISK BODILY HARM. This has worked for me. This procedure is done at your own risk. It was taught to me by a Kawasaki dealer years ago. If the tank is creased...throw it away.

 

[tcb]

In 1973, me and a couple of dead-brained cohorts got a big dent out of an aluminum Elsinore tank by the compressed air method, but it expanded the inside area around the frame as well making it impossible to get it off the frame. Picked up a half gallon fuel capacity however! Don't do it unless you have a death wish!