Session 8: Oil Tank and Battery Cover

Tank before paint stripping

I started sanding the oil tank, but large sections of paint just flaked off, and there was rust underneath some with no visible sign on the surface. I took some advice, and used paint stripper to remove all the paint, to great effect.

The paint just bubbles off

The whole tank bubbling off

Paint stripper is very easy to use; brush on a thin coat, dab on a thicker coat, and scrape the paint off. This removed virtually all of the paint, exposing all the rust.



The front of the tank



The back of the tank



I then sanded off the rust using wet and dry paper, to leave a good finish for painting.

 There appears to have been a brazed repair on the back of the tank, to fix the bolt hole. Also, there is a small D stamped into the protruding bracket, andh a couple of dents to fill.

 

 I then hung it out and primer etched it, using less this time than the battery cover.

  

 I have also sprayed the battery cover with primer filler. I hung it in the same way, and gave the whole thing a thin coat. I then left it to dry, and repeated. It has got a little too cold to carry on now, so I will give it the final few coats tomorrow.