Fuel tank dent - Repairable?

[terry_b]

What do you gents think? Is this fixable?

I've seen basketballs inflated inside pop dents out or even the ice trick on a hot day... but I fear this may be too far gone... It's about a year old if that matters.

I have hope for this one though... the cheapo suction cup might even work on this since there are no creases at all.

 

[caelanseth]

Good question, I am wondering the same thing as my tank slid off my bike recently, scratched it up good and put a small dent in it. I was thinking about taking it to a body shop to see what they would charge to buff out/repair the scratches and fix the dent.

 

[Usdent]

Looks repairable to me. It will depend on access to the back side of the dent, and it might require shipping the tank out for repairs. Check usdentrepair.com/cycle

 

[terry_b]

Looking at my options, it would seem that's the best option... $200 is quite a price though, and then extra for shipping. For not much more I can get a non-dented used one.

Thank you though, I appreciate the link. I may end up going that route eventually anyway - I just wish there was a place nearby I could take it to.

 

[Zealot]

Just put an identical dent on the opposite side and claim it's part of the design for... aerodynamics or such!

 

[terry_b]

I wish I could! It's so minor, no paint is damaged... but it's such an eyesore to me! I'm so close to dropping the $350 on an ebay tank, but I just can't justify that much coin for a cosmetic flaw

 

[motojoe122]

Search for sale section of the forum, I could swear someone has a tank for sale.

 

[MattR302]

Modern day tanks are double-wall, so you can't push it back out from the inside. I have a similar dent in mine, and I tried the hairdryer/dustercan trick, and it didn't do anything. You could bondo and repaint it, I know a guy in Manchester area who paints, if you wanna go that route.

 

[dbldutch02]

You can't just fill it, the corners will be proud. So that means taking a hammer to it and/ or pulling it. I'm guessing that if you had the tools/experience to do that you would have already tried. Then you've still got filling /priming/painting /lacquering to do and new decals to find.
If it was mine (I hate bodywork) I'd try to ignore it while quietly keeping an eye out for a bike being broken in the right colour (fastest blue, excellent choice )

 

[fazil]

What about drilling a hole in the middle of the dent and pulling it from inside with a hook shaped tool.
But perhaps that hole will be a trouble lately, leaking fuel etc.

 

[terry_b]

The tank is double walled? I was really hoping to find a body shop that does paintless dent repair nearby and just get rid of the worst of it but if it's not possible...

And I really don't want to mess with any filling and/or painting, definitely wouldn't go the drill route because of the complications later on with that...

I'll just quietly suffer and continue checking ebay - there's at least one good tank and another that is ok. I saw the silver bike being parted out on here - If I could snag at least 1 or 2 silver body pieces to match I would probably go that route and have a sweet hybrid blue/silver setup

 

[Dry Martini]

Last time I checked, ron ayers Yamaha listed a primered new tank at $350. That is not a terrible price.


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[FinalImpact]

Autobody folks can fix that. You use Spitznhagle gun and basically spot weld a series of long studs to the bare metal.
Then gently and accurately work the dent out using slide hammer that grips the studs moving from stud to stud as needed. Once the dent is out, grind off studs, metal finish and skim coat of filler. Prime and paint.
If you know someone with the gun, you could do most of it yourself depending on your skill set.

It takes just 3 seconds to weld a stud on and a bit longer to grind it off.