I'm very close to buying a CR21A Spectra fuel tank

I don't know what this means: "Ni-terne plated steel gas tank"

I'm concerned about the bare/bright finish of these things. has anyone used one of these tanks for several years? do they rust quick? is it worth scuffing and painting? Sure would be nice to have something bolt right in for $300.

I didn't know that, thanks.

hmmm, methinks a liberal spray of undercoating

"Spectra Premium" is AFAIK the name of the company.
http://www.spectrapremium.com/home.html

I've never had a gas tank rust out from the outside.

R.

Not sure about the coating your asking about but we prefer and have used a lot of their tanks with ZERO issues

Thanks!

Be aware also that a lot of people sell these on ebay and prices can be quite reasonable. Also if you're ordering from a parts store check out all the major parts vendors. On their radiators I have found a big difference between say Autozone and OReilly's, and also Rockauto.

They have a nice electronic catalog that you can access from their home page that I posted above.

R.

Thank you. Cheapest I've found so far is on ebay for 279 + 30 shipping. For some reason this is probably the most expensive tank they make. Rockauto is $300 clean, and I love dealing with them. I wish they still did the 10% discounts.

My father just picked up one of those stainless 62 B body tanks on Ebay, which I showed him half an hour ago after I learned about them on this forum

Don't sand the tank unless you want to remove the anti rust coating. I haven't used a couple of their tanks with zero issues.

Thanks! That is great info. I now remember reading something similar somewhere else about that fragile aspect of it. Still, I'd rather not go with a fuel cell. thanks again

Oh that reminds me, if anyone cares, these fit all the way up to 1978 B body. I had one from a 74 satellite in my 78 with dual exhaust, fits fine, hump and all. I think the difference in application is something to do with the vapor and emissions system, but it worked fine that way as well.

If anyone cares, Ni-terne is a combination of Nickle and Terne plate finish. Terne is a combination of Lead and Tin but with the environmental issues related to lead, Terne II is now the norm which is a combination of Zinc and Tin.


...no, don't sand it and it will last a loooooooong time without any additional coating.

Dave


Dave

Thanks, Dave.

I just ordered one. I really would like to undercoat it, though. Any tips on that? Wipe with cleaner and go?

You'll need to wipe it down with a good solvent or wash with degreaser to remove the oil from the manufacturing process.

Dave

If a car has been parked for a few years, that's likely the reason the old gas tank rusted out.

As stated above, metal gas tanks fail by rusting from the inside due to trapped moisture, not from the outside. Moisture accumulates inside typically because the car has been permanently parked or seldom driven. Driving the car should consume moisture along with the gasoline and help prevent failure of the inside coating. With or without undercoating a new terne tank should last as long as the car is driven regularly.

Terne sheet is steel sheet that has been hot dipped in solder at the steel mill. And that's what the original assembly line tanks were made of. And the factory tanks were almost never undercoated, because there was no need.

Same here I've used several spectra (Canadian?) tanks & no problems. I dont remember if it had that ni-tern coating or not. I did undercoat em. Eastwood & others I'm sure offer coatings for the inside but I'd be leery of that, if a person did that, then the prep (just like any type of painting) would have to be spot on so it would never come off. Keeping the tank filled is always a good plan

No, I won't use the internal coatings anymore. We did that on my old tank for the same car, and on another car. They both failed after a number of years. Peeled and cracked like a parched desert floor, got particles up into the fuel system and the carb as well we think. Nice idea, but hydrocarbons are a tough thing to resist.

I'm really talking about the outside. I've seen factory undercoated tanks from the early 60s and they're still "mint" to steal a David Freiburgerism.

I like Rustoleum and they have a roller-on rubberized undercoat I'm considering

Really? I didn't know that. I had a good 3/8 pickup for my tank and fuel varnish ruined it. Been on the lookout for one with the return nipple as well but that's been more of a backburner item.

Please don't ruin a perfectly new tank with undercoat or anything else for that matter.
Is this a hobby car or a daily driver?
Ron