With the recent string about patching gas tanks, I
have to relate an experience that happened to me many
years ago with my first LBC, a Nash Metropolitan.
I was piloting the "batmobile", (as it was
affectionately known) thru the Appalachicola National
Forest on a squirrel hunting expedition, when I decided
to stop at what looked to be a good spot. The minute I
stepped out of the Nash I smelled gasoline. Fearing the
worst I peered under the back & saw that the entire
bottom of the tank was wet. Very far from the nearest
gas station and not knowing how much gas I had left in
the tiny tank, I radioed for help. Pretty soon someone
came by in truck to assist. Upon looking at the tank,
we found that there wasn't a big hole (as I'd
expected), but rather a few small pinholes that had
gradually sprung forth. The guy in the truck looked at
it for a minute, and then said he had a sure fix and
ran back to his truck, and emerged with ......
a bar of soap.
Plain ole, whatever was on sale at Winn Dixie, riding
around in the back of my 4by, soap. We wiped off the
bottom of the tank, & scraped that bar of soap over the
pinholes, & sure enough, the dripping stopped, just
long enough for me to get it home, take it off &
fiberglass the whole bottom.
Maybe I should pen a Foxfire book for backwoods auto
repair ...
cheers-
dstone@sc9.intel.com
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