Left tank, part 1 (Sealing ribs and skin)
TLDR
- Sealed left tank front channel and ribs to skin
- Cleaned sealant off tank skin
Details
This weekend I starting the sealing work on the left tank.
I decided to do things a little differently this time. On the last tank, I did the entire sealing job in one go. I did not test leak on the front channel before riveting the back channel. On the second tank, I decided to pause and do the water test on the front channel before fully closing the tank.
So this week I sealed the ribs, the front channel, and the skin together. I intentionally did not rivet the back baffle.
Riveting
I mixed the 3 oz proseal in a tube, and smeared it across all connection points on the front channel, then riveted all ribs onto the channel.
Then I did the same to the skin. I used a total of 2 tubes of 3oz proseal to finish all sealing/riveting.
The work time for the proseal is 2 hours. Last time, I rushed the 2 hour time and I think I got it done just over 2 hours.
This time, I did not feel rushed. I used probably 3.5 hours or so to finish riveting everything. The proseal was still very much soft and workable by the time I finished. So there is really no need to rush.
More prosealing and some small parts
As I finished the rivets, I mixed some more proseal (50 grams or so), and smeared them along all channels and rivets. My goal is to fully immerse everything into proseal. This part took 2 hours or so.
And while I had extra proseal, I installed some small parts: fuel cap, fuel drain, fuel overflow fitting, inlet fitting.
Cleaning up
Today morning (roughly 12 hours since sealing), I used acetone to clean the excessive sealant spilled on the tank skin.
It’s a tedious work. Just had to take it slow, one rivet at a time. Eventually I got it done.
Next step
Now I just need to wait for a week or so, then put some water in the tank to check for leaks on the front channel and side skin. If they are good, I will put the back baffle on next.