68 gas tank removal/lowering

Now that my 68 GS is sitting without a rear bumper for awhile, I got to thinking it might be a good time to check on top of the gas tank for a build sheet. I'm thinking I should be able to get away with just lowering it a little on a floor jack, instead of total removal. I haven't really looked into starting the process, but I'm wondering if there would be any complications regarding the fuel lines if I just lower the tank a few inches without disconnecting anything?

 

Gas Tank

David -

Make sure the tank is pretty much empty. They are hard to handle when full. Heavy, and the gas sloshes around making things real tricky.

If you're going to the trouble to remove the hanger bolts and lower the tank you might as well take it all the way out and replace the lines. They have squeeze clamps and it takes minimal effort to do - they may be really dry rotted anyway. You don't have to drop the tank to replace the lines, but then you'll be able to pull the sender and remove the filter sock from the pickup (it's almost certainly degraded and falling apart).

The sender and ground wires have to be dealt with. If you take out the screw for the ground, the sender wire is long enough to let you lower the ttank and unhook it from the top of the sender unit.

Biggest problem I had with my tank was seriously rusted captive nuts on the tank hanger straps. Busted the cages off the nuts and ended up with vise grips clamped on the nuts to get them off.

 

Thanks for the tips John. I'm not expecting to need to replace anything though. My car had a major resto around 1996, and things look pretty clean under the car. No signs of anything rusting. I'm hoping to just lower the tank maybe 3-4" just to get a good view in case some documents may have been left there. I would be surprised, but you never know. I need to attack the rear seat removal again too, to check for docs there. I've removed a 68 rear seat before, a LONG time ago, but man this one is in there tight. The bottom, I mean. Last summer I tried to get it unlatched, but couldn't push the seat frame back enough to release it. :spank: And I'm just a 6'4" 240# weakling... I'll have at it again though. It WILL release!

 

Any tips for the actual lowering of the tank? I keep imagining the thing coming down on my face

 

Put a piece of plywood on top of your jack between the tanks straps.
Will protect the tank and spread the weight out.
Have an extra set of hands - 1 to run the jack & 1 to steady the tank on the jack.

Good Luck.

Final thought - If it had a resto in the past and you don’t need to replace the hoses, etc on the top of the tank then why would they have left a build sheet up there? Same goes for under the back seat?

Dukec

 

I used a cheapie hand pump.
Takes about 3 minutes to fill a 5 gallon gas can.

Did that 3 times, then I can drop the tank without a jack after I disco all lines, ground strap and sender wire, remove the straps and then slide it off onto a "moving blanket" (or a large piece of carboard, plywood etc.)

I tried the whole "jack" thing long ago and realized it is easier to drain it and handle it by hand than perform the "dances with a watermelon on a skateboard" routine.

YMMV.