Scooter renovation

[Scottowner]

Don't all laugh ! I am renovating a motor scooter and need a new oil/petrol tank. The tank is a 5"tube of approx 2.5mm thickness. Now then,this tube is available from a multitude of central heating/woodburners/stove manufacturers, but only in stove enamelled,vitreous coated,stainless,variations. None can supply the plain basic steel variety. So,who makes the tube in the first instance,it must start off as steel tube before it is vitrified or whatever ?
The motor scooter is a 1920 Stafford Mobile Pup.

[Bentley eight]

Hi Scott,
Now before the trail go's cold,  BUM BUM

 try getting intouch with the OLD BIKE MART, you can www them and ask for your request to go out in their next edition,
This classics paper gets to a lot of people and i would'nt be surprised if someone has or know a place to get one.

[murdo]

Maybe try someone who makes truck exhausts.

[chaterlea25]

Hi
Here ya go 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-125mm-T304-Stainless-Steel-Exhaust-Tube-Pipe-0-5m-/250879771960?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3a69998538

HTH
John

[Scottowner]

Unfortunately they only have stainless.Because of the amount of welding involved,it must be mild steel.

[33d6]

Hi Scottowner,
For what it's worth I'd consider just having what you want rolled up by either a local small sheetmetal shop or talk to your local model engineering club. Rolling up a tube to your specs is basic sheetmetal work or in the case of the model engineers, basic model boiler making.
I occasionally pick the brains of my model engineering club and compare notes on where we can get various materials and various small jobs done. Everything from jobs like yours to useful local foundries have come up in the past.    Model engineers are a vintage motorcyclist' best friends.
Give'em a try.
Cheers,

[wink]

33d6 is right. If the tank is not structural it could be thinner and easily rolled from plate.

[33d6]

Don't worry Wink, any thickness of plate can be rolled and the 2.5mm S wants is a standard thickness. It roughly equates to the old 13SWG which is probably what the original was made from. Anyone who rolls plate wouldn't regard it as a great drama. There is no benefit in making a thinner tank.

Of course there will be much sucking of teeth, low mutterings and gloomy looks from whomever does the work  but that is just preparation for the second part of the job which is the extraction of the customers wallet from the pocket. Everyone knows motorcyclists have their wallets superglued into place so you have to do a workup to get it out. The final extraction often involves seeing a grown man cry as he hands over good beer money.

I don't know whether Scottowner falls into this category but in a lifetime of motorcycling I've met few bike owners who didn't cry poor and even fewer owners who wouldn't pass over vast sums for pointless bike bits if they were shiny enough. Goes with the territory I think.

All joking aside the major trick to keeping the costs down in a job like this is to provide your own material so the firm involved doesn't have to spend their time getting it in. Organizing material for work in hand is costly. Actually doing the job is the easy bit.
Cheers,