When I bought my bike the tank leaked in all four spots:'( After building my other bikes tank in steel I really didn't want to repair this one too. Getting a good seal out of a steel weld is tough. So I think I'll make a new one in fiberglass. I'm just looking for some feedback on a modified shape. I don't want to make a totally new shape, just add to whats already there. I made a few quick photoshop ideas, and would like some feedback. I hope members don't mind my use of there beautiful Visions. I'd use mine but its really ugly right now.
Taller
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/taller.jpg)
Wider
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/wider.jpg)
Wilder
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/wild.jpg)
I kinda like taller & wilder combined.
I actually made the top half of a Vision tank out of fiberglass... But living in a condo, I got into a little trouble with the neighbors because of the smell of the resin that was used. When the weather warms up, I plan on finishing the bottom half at a friend's house.
A couple of issues to resolve with this is how to mount the petcock and the gas cap. I have not given this much thought yet... Right now, I am away from home on vacation.. when I get home, I'll post some pics of what I have done so far...
~John
just keep in mind , as you tinker with the tank size, shape ,width,, you are also tinkering with your center of gravity. a bigger tank means more fuel to flop around, and that means additional disruption of the bike's mojo. if you just have to make it bigger, then take the time to add baffles inside you tank, or fid it redicing your ability to carve the turns at speed .
I'd like a taller, wider would hit the fairing.
:) I gotta say, I like the original style/shape/size 8)
I like the wilder but...
Looks like its reaching out to grab a fistful of precious cargo to be honest :O
I got some good resin that is almost odorless from DMC. So far so good on the bottom half. I'll be casting a plate with nuts welded to it for the petcock. The filler cap problem can be solver with a bolt on aircraft style cap. A little spendy but I don't see any easy alternative. Oh yeah I'm also eliminating the seams.
I don't think making the tank bigger will effect the center of gravity. It will effect weight transfer when cornering though. Although you don't have to fill it up all the way no matter how big it is. The extra capacity would never be a bad thing. As for baffles, because the tank is practically split in half on the underside, I don't think they will be necessary.
I think I'll go with a little wider. It'll have the added benefit of a little move wind protection. Taller might make the already large tank look enormous.
I would like to have a taller tank..... one that you can rest your chest on for those longer rides....That was the one thing I liked about my friends bikes.... they had the early superbikes....I will have to settle for a tank bag someday to do the job.
a fully loaded tankbag works great for that GT
Here is the progress so far. Ive finished the mold for the bottom half, and I'm part way through building the buck for the top mold half. I hot glued floral foam onto the tank for the reshaping, and then fiberglassed over it. Next step is body filler and sanding.
I got bored waiting for the resin to dry so I thought id take off the exhaust and check things over. I can't believe how much this sucker weighs. So I decided to build a new exhaust from scraps. I'll post pics on the progress.
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1722.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1727.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1730.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1731.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1733.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1739.jpg)
yeh...the stocker exhaust weighs a whopping 28 pounds
Good work so far keep it up
The finished buck. This is what the tank will look like finished. Only with more paint and less ugly.
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1786.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1784.jpg)
oops, I was thinking the reshaped tank was going to hold more gaz.... guess not?
I may be wrong, but I think that what we see is the mould, that he will make the reverse mould from .If so, it looks like he will pick up at least 1/2 gallon and maybe a bit more.
Yeah the "buck" is just the mock up of the finished product. I will use this buck to make the reverse mold, and the reverse mold to make the final fiberglass tank. I plan on leaving an unpainted strip down the side so you can see the gas level. A poor mans fuel gauge.
By the way I'm also posting the exhaust progress in a new Thread.
Say, chimera, if you were to make another tank for commercial purposes, how much would you charge for the finished product?
It's hard to say at this point. I'll have to see how much work and material it takes to build the actual tank. Although I'm thinking that it will be cost prohibitive. I should have a lot more progress by the end of the weekend.
Progress has slowed a little. I've been working on my other bike. I did manage to finish the top half of the mold. I had to split it in two though. After a little repair work it should be ready to go. I also received the new locking aircraft style gas cap. It just bolts on.
Top half
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1817.jpg)
(http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x33/chimera88/Vision/IMG_1818.jpg)
I'm all about that lock
rock on mutha
Hey chimera, how's the progress coming along for this tank mold? Will we be seeing a new tank soon? If you can can you let us know how much a glassed tank will cost ROV members? I'm sure there are other members ::) who would like to have a maintenance free tank.
I most likely would like to be #1 but waiting in line is fine. Looks like chimera is going to be quite the busy Visionary. ;D
I know two here who might be pending cost. ;)
sign me up for one if they become available
Here's an update for ya. Setting up all the layers of glass takes a lot of time. Especially when you don't have a vacuum bag system or an autoclave. I didn't want to go cheap on strength, so I used some pretty heavy cloth, and I added a lot layers. I'm guessing it weighs about the same as a stocker. I had to reshape the area around the fuel cap to make it level. I just layed some cloth over one of my mixing bowls. It was almost a perfect fit for the gas cap. The tank spent a lot of time in paint prison, but turned out just fine. It's not show quality, but good enough for a vision. The fuel sight lines actually work too. Now I have a fuel gauge, and it's accurate!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2072.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2071.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2074.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2118.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2117.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2120.jpg)
Looks great! 8) You do nice glass work.
H2O
WOW
thats pretty sweet. dont know about the fuel line but i guess it works.
EXCELLENT !!!
You are hereby awarded the highly prized and most prestigious QBS:
"Vnary among Vnaries Lifetime Ownership Achievement Award"
WELL DONE
"Holy Visionmeister Batman!"
That is one awesome looking tank. What we all want to know now is how much for a primer ready tank along with the same fuel cap you are using. I think we will all agree that it would be best if you would also supply the fuel cap and made sure that it fit the tank before it was to be shipped out. But I'm getting to far ahead, so just a cost for the tank and fuel cap would be great.
Forgive my redundant rambling, but I think I need to go have a smoke and a coffee now. ;D
ding ding ding...we have a winner
better get a price list and ordering system ready. I'm sure you'll have some eager customers.
I just took a peek at your photobucket page and looked at your "other bike". Holy Crap! :o :o :o :o :o
You are a fantastic fabrictor. Maybe you should open a shop of your own and give OCC a run for their money by also having a show about customizing Jap bikes. ;D
Quote from: ps2 on August 07, 2008, 02:04:40 PM
WOW
thats pretty sweet. dont know about the fuel line but i guess it works.
I'll second, third and fourth that!
David
Well thank you very much. Yeah the fuel line is kinda ugly. I'm gonna use some vinyl window blackout to make a tank pad/coverup, that will cover the sides and hopefully the fuel line. So I can uncover it to peak at the fuel when needed.
Now for the bad. I don't have any real intentions to build more of these. I'm not a professional, so I'm not a very efficient glasser. If I were making tanks for newer more high end bikes, the cost would be justifiable. If I were to sell these It would be for more money than I payed for the whole bike. That being said, I don't need the molds anymore. If someone else wanted to give it a go...
I'll be posting some pics of the finished bike pretty soon. I have to rebuild the carbs, and replace a few exhaust gaskets first. I had a lot of spare time, so it doesn't look much like a vision anymore.
:) yeah my other bike. Thanks, it took a lot of work. I really wish I could do this for a living.
Really cool!! Is all fiberglass impervious to gas? Like chopped glass, the fiberglass they use in the RV industry, I know a place called Fibertron in Elkhart, IN on bus. US 20 that does this kind of work I seen corvette ground fx thay were making there..They make the fronts and rears for class A and Class B RVs and much more..I wonder if they could do something like this tank...Another ? how'd you join the top to the bottom? wow if you can do glass work like that...I mean I seen your photo bucket pics...and you do some awesome creative work!!
really nice , makes me wish I had the bucks to try it. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
I believe all fiberglass resin is impervious to gas. I know the vinyl resin I used is. I joined the top and bottom halves by glassing them over. The correct way to do it is to bond them together. If you want to know what it takes to do the job right, and why it's so expensive, check out this link: http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=145975 (http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=145975).
Composite construction isn't too difficult, as long as your careful. The problem is that most people don't want to use the proper materials. The epoxy used is not the 5-minute epoxy, you have to get enough epoxy on the and in the fiberglass cloth to saturate it but not over-saturate it.
If anyone is interested in take a 2-day course in composite construction (airplanes, but it is applicable to other stuff as well), I recommend the Sport-Air workshops hosted by the Experimental Aircraft Assoc. http://www.eaa.org/sportair/ (unfortunately, the sportair.com site is having problems...)
They cost around 250.00 or so, cheaper if you belong to the EAA. I took the composite construction one and got some really good information out of it. Fiberglass, Epoxy and foam construction can be really strong and light weight. I have one 12x12 piece (3/8 inch think foam) that will support my weight without flexing...
Brian
I've done some fiberglass work - just wrapping plywood in a couple layers to seal it for use as flooring and frame platforms for whitewater raft use. That was easy & didn't have to look perfect like it would for painting or airflow uses. We also used some grit in the top resin coat to give some traction on the surfaces - after all, you're often getting in & out of the boat when everything is wet. ;D I was amazed how the fiberglass cloth entirely disappeared when soaked in the resin. Glad we stained the plywood prior to wrapping.
H2O
tank looks realy good,nice one!! do like the fuel strip in particular. as far as i know grp fuel tanks are not road legal in the uk for obvious saftey reasons which is a shame
Quote from: elemonator on August 09, 2008, 12:25:49 AM
Really cool!! Is all fiberglass impervious to gas? Like chopped glass, the fiberglass they use in the RV industry, I know a place called Fibertron in Elkhart, IN on bus. US 20 that does this kind of work I seen corvette ground fx thay were making there..They make the fronts and rears for class A and Class B RVs and much more..I wonder if they could do something like this tank...Another ? how'd you join the top to the bottom? wow if you can do glass work like that...I mean I seen your photo bucket pics...and you do some awesome creative work!!
elemonator, i live in elkhart. where exactly is this place and i could ride over there and check it out. couldnt hurt to ask.
Quote from: arfa vmax on August 09, 2008, 04:12:29 PM
...as far as i know grp fuel tanks are not road legal in the UK
:) Arfa, this is dependant on the year of the bike in the UK. I can't remember the cut-off year but a "Google" on your computer should dig up the correct info... ;)
8).......TIGER....... 8)
It is on old US 33 by the NS rail yard. Past Elk Ct. On the North side of the road. I'd say @ 1- 2 miles from 19 the addy is: 29877 Hwy 33 Elkhart, IN Not sure who to ask for anymore I used to work at a RV company in Elkhart who dealt w/them.
i know the area your talkin about. its about 5min from my house. ill have to tak a ride over there one ove these days and check it out.
Cool...With the recent slump in the RV industry it might be a good time too, they might be wanting/needing the business.
how would one go about making a tank? i need to make a tank for my yz490. its got cracks all over and i cant get them sealed. its $200 for a new one.
Unfortunately the cost in time a materials to build a new one will definitely be a lot more than $200. If you really want to, the link I posted earlier shows most of the work involved.
Here's the finished product.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v210/meatpopsicle/vision/IMG_2155.jpg)
Again, a Vnary among Vnarys. Beautiful, will done!
I just sold the bike. I still have the tank mold. I'm most likely moving to Seattle soon, and I don't want to take the mold with me. Anybody want to put up the shipping cost?
Just remembered, all the spare bike parts will go with the mold. Original stator, side plastics, headlight housing, tail light, rad shroud, turn signals, and a bunch more crap. Probably the newly reupholstered seat too.
I'm sure I'm way too far away , but where are you?
I'm in Salt Lake City, Utah. I'm far away from everything. Including civilization.
I'm wondering if the Colorado guys could get the moulds? Maybe we can take up a collection to cover the shipping costs , or they might sell off some of the parts to cover the shipping costs. I really hate to see the moulds get away from us , I think they will prove useful as time goes on. I'd like to get use of them for a while! laying up a tank won't be cheap , but considering the problem encountered in sealing them, it seems like a good idea. If we can get a collection to get them shipped and maybe we can get H20 to host them??
Give me a little time to get things straightened out at home & I could probably host the stuff for a while at least. I need to get into the garage and do a major Mr. Clean operation. Am also going to paint the floor - so for a while, anyway, I would like to keep the volume of stuff down as much as possible.
H2O