As some of you may or may not know, my other hobby besides cars is old tractors. I love them just like Mopars and have from a very young age. I unfortunately don't have any Mopars....yet, besides my daily driver but I do have a tractor I'm currently restoring.

The tractors gas tank has 2 small holes in it, one is like a tip on a fork if that makes sense and the other is a little smaller than that. I am on multiple tractor forums and one member on one of the forums says to use JB Weld to fix the holes, and another member on another one of the forums says to use a glaze and spot putty from AutoZone.

My stepdad says JB Weld is not really that good for the gas tank because it could crack over time then the gas tank will be leaking gas all over my new paint job when the tractor is all done and painted, so he technically says don't use JB Weld and that I want something that will last forever so bring it to our local radiator repair shop who also repairs gas tanks

In my opinion though, if I could use something like to JB or the putty stuff to fix it myself to save a little money on this project I would like to do it.

My questions are 1) is JB Weld OR the glaze and putty from AutoZone any good for my gas tank holes?, 2) should I use one or the other?, OR 3) should I listen to my stepdad and bring it to the radiator shop?

Thank you to everyone for their help in advance!

Is JB Weld OR A Glaze & Putty Good? single choice
	Yes
	No
Votes accepted starting: 02/10/22 12:52 AM
View Results

Soft solder works OK. But if tank galvanized, must be taken down to bare metal.
Silver solder even better (strength), if you have the torch to melt it.
JB is a good epoxy for sure, but against gas in a tank, I doubt it.
Do bother with any auto body fillers either.

Are the tanks removed? If so what guys with steel motorcycle tanks would do is fill them with water just below the hole area and braze the holes closed, then file or grind/sand smooth. Silver solder will also work too. Would you seal your airplane's fuel tanks with putty or J-B Weld.......I don't think so. Do it right and sleep better.

Here a link to a guy that I have to say took precautions welding or rather brazing an old rust pitted truck gas tank. Backyard job but he didn't blow himself up.

If the inside looks as good as the outside, then any of the above.

If it dont and is full of rust like my cars tank was, then a full scorched earth approach followed by something like this.
https://por15.com/products/fuel-tank-sealer I got a full kit here in oz, https://www.kbs-coatings.com.au/product/auto-fuel-tank-sealer-kit/ about the only thing I dont like about it ts the weight added lols

It can be used for patching with just some cloth re-enforcement.

Traditional 2 part JB weld is NOT suitable for fuel. It turns to mush fast. If your gonna use an adhesive curing type product use one that specifies its compatibility with gasoline. This is just 1 example I thought of for a product that claims to be specifically for sealing leaks in fuel tanks.

https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p...eBoP_ZSS8QaAgKoEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

I have used the por 15 stuff before on my car gas tank. prep is the pain part, so it sticks.
but I also used it on a sending unit, where the weld was porous and leaked gas. It has held for 10 years or more with no issues.
I recall that the kit came with something to hold it in place for pin holes as well, but yours look much bigger.
If I were trying to do it, I agree with the others in using silver solder. you might check around for someone that can do it for you. might be cheaper than you think.

for instance when I was trying to weld the brackets on my aluminum radiator, I found a duct work shop that did it for like 40 bucks. vs the welding shops that wanted 100 just to spark and arc for it.

i noticed a while back, when i was at my ACE hardware, JB had a gas tank sealer as well as other formulas for specific instances where the regular JB wasn't appropriate.
however, if it were me, i would take the tank off, hose it out good with hot soapy water, then fill it with water to almost the hole location and silver solder it.
take the right precautions, and you won't go BOOM !

That tank looks pretty clean, how long has it been since gas has been in it? If its been over 6 months, there is not enough gas vapor left to cause a problem.

I'd braze the holes closed, then clean it up and paint it.

Any epoxy is a temporary fix, at some point it will let go. Take the time to weld/braze a patch or close the holes and move on from the more permeant repair.

I like this suggestion.

The bottom or side hole is the issue IMO. What would concern me the most is the surrounding metal being thin. I'm all for saving money but not at the cost of possibly ruining fresh paint. If a replacement is not available, either a good metal fabricator or the radiator shop would be my choice. I'm also not a fan of lining the insides as i've encounter many failures over the years

Years ago a radiator shop was the go to place to repair tanks. They were experts with silver solder and could pressure test the tanks to be sure there wasn't any other leaks you might have missed. These days, finding a radiator shop that actually does something is getting pretty hard. There are none within 40 miles of my house. If you have one nearby, get a quote on patching your tank and go from there.

I'm also not a big fan of gas tank coatings (inside or outside), I've seen and heard way too many horror stories.

We have also fabbed several unobtainable replacements from aluminum. Might also see if there are any generic tanks that might fit in the area or possibly even inside the existing tank. Don't know if there is such a thing as a fuel bladder ? might try Tanks Inc. as well

I used JB weld on lawn mower float bowl(aluminum) lasted for the season but next year the leak was back. If you can have it brazed go that route.