Norton Tank / Paint Quality

TonyA said:
Be happy that your Gas Tank hasn't bubbled yet .
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Tony I've had enough issues already.
I had my tank replaced in 2014 because of 3 blisters on the bottom of the tank.
Hopefully fate will give me a pass on tank bubbles.
But if I notice bubbles....

I'll mortgage my house, and buy one of the Donington alloy tanks.
 
Although I can't believe the paint bubbled due to ethanol, that new tank looks fantastic. How does ethanol seep threw a solid plastic tank? Now warpage I can believe.
Which is why I'm pissed at my dealership for trashing my tank that had a ding the size of a pinhead. I wanted to have it customized. Glad you're on the road.
 
Fumes and vapor pressure makes it way through eventually. Dirt bikes plastic tanks loose the tank stickers because of this . Not just ethanol . Lets not blame everything on the ethanol alone . A Normal Dirt Bike Plastic tank would never have tolerated a paint Job like the Norton 961 Tanks have . Kinda like egg shells , they may seem soild but at the molecular level not so much.
 
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SgtUSAF80 said:
Norton Tank / Paint Quality

Back on the road again......there will be no more tank bubbling!
Thanks to Rob Jameson and the painter extraordinaire Brent Budgor of Vintage-Vendor Painting in Vermont for making this all happen.
How does the Monza Cap look gentlemen?
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This is the first painted alloy tank I’ve seen to ,on my wish list ,lush looking even though u can’t see the sparkling alloy
 
IMHO it will not remove the ethanol that creates the issues. all it will do is help negate the phase separation issues.you cannot remove the ethanol without causing other issues with the biggest one being a huge drop in octane making the fuel unusable.

TonyA said:
Be happy that your Gas Tank hasn't bubbled yet . It may only be a matter of time for us . In NY you are stuck with ethanol blends only which is even worse. That's why I mentioned the Marinas and the Biobor .
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What about the Marina suggestion for ethanol free gas ? Just trying to help . I can get it here where I am. Some people won't go 1 mile out of their way for gas .
 
Britfan60 said:
Although I can't believe the paint bubbled due to ethanol, that new tank looks fantastic. How does ethanol seep threw a solid plastic tank? Now warpage I can believe.
Which is why I'm pissed at my dealership for trashing my tank that had a ding the size of a pinhead. I wanted to have it customized. Glad you're on the road.
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I actually sent the "bubbled" plastic tank to the painter so that he would have a template to work from as far as matching the color and the positioning of the "Norton" and the pin striping on the new alloy tank. When he got the plastic tank and looked it over he was 100% sure that the bubbling was a fuel related issue.
 
BLIGHTYBRIT/SF said:
This is the first painted alloy tank I’ve seen to ,on my wish list ,lush looking even though u can’t see the sparkling alloy
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As beautiful as the alloy tank is brushed or polished and unpainted..... the SE had to stay looking like an SE. Brent Budgor, the painter, did a wonderful job! The black paint is so deep it looks like you could dive right in.
 
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TonyA said:
View attachment 6730

This is what I found had the best results for ethanol in gas. Look it up guys especially if in the USA . Use NO Ethanol Gas if you can find it . Go to the Marina's if near the Ocean or Great Lakes . They usually have No ethanol Gas at the Marina . Metal Gas Tanks is the best solution , works every time . Or go to a Off Road style gas tank with No paint and let the vapors escape .
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Believe it or not I run that in my diesel tractor.
 
SgtUSAF80 said:
As beautiful as the alloy tank is..... the SE had to stay looking like an SE. Brent Budgor, the painter, did a wonderful job! The black paint is so deep it looks like you could dive right in.
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Agreed I just don't want to spend 3K on a fix that should never have happened
 
It’s not limited to Nortons guys, forums are full of this chat. I had a Ducati a while back and the Ducati world was full of this talk too.

Surely the best solution is some kind of tank sealer?
 
Best solution, unless for racing, stop using them. Duc claims they've corrected the problem. I wonder how true that is.
 
BLIGHTYBRIT/SF said:
This is the first painted alloy tank I’ve seen to ,on my wish list ,lush looking even though u can’t see the sparkling alloy
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Glad you're happy with it. Frustrating for you to go through, but in the end, I think we nailed it. Enjoy. I'll probably strip your old on and repaint for display. Thanks!
Brent
The Vintage Vendor
www.vintage-vendor.com
 
TonyA said:
Can you verify for us the fill up capacity of your aluminum gas tank ? Thanks.
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TonyA..I would really like to help you out, but that would require my tank be empty, which meant I ran out of gas, which would mean I was stranded, which would require a call to AAA and that would really ruin a good ride. Heck, I don't think I've ever run out of gas before, even back when I had my mini-bike in the 60's.
 
Ok Fair enough . If you ever go on a really long ride and you go more than 150 miles since filling up , then see if you ever put in more than 3.5 US gallons in the tank. If so report back. The Plastic tank will down to 3.5 G without running out . I am hoping that Raphi is right and you can get 2 or 3 more liters in there ! It Makes a BIG difference when you are travelling.
 
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