Manky's Pop.

[Manky Monkey]

...while the backs are vertical to sit close to the back of the pick-up bed.

[Olds]

Coming on and looking good.
If you insist on fixing the mounts to the tank, it might be better to get them brazed on. Less likely to cause problems and it would be easier to remove them if necessary.

[Manky Monkey]

The only person I know who could braze them would be you Dave! 
Just guessing at their position on the tank here. The mounting studs under the cradles need to sit in their holes in the bed to make sure everything fits.
Not very pleased with the pro welding job on the original filler & fuel gauge sender unit holes -just patches welded on the outside of the tank. Not pretty, but they probably didn't think they'd be on show. Hopefully they're fuel tight though & I can bury them in some creative filler work.

[kapri]

That's the trouble with farming work out without specific instructions or doing all the  job bar for the important one. To them it would have just been a tank that needed holes blanking NOT that it had to look as if the holes were never there . A tickle with the grinder to create a hole where the edges could have been joggled to get a flush fit plate ...it's not too late yet.

[kapri]

What about some decorative metal covering over that area as well ie brass patches , makers plate or similar etc gripfilled / 2k epoxy resin to disguise that area.

[Manky Monkey]

Yeah, I wondered if it could be disguised with some pinstriping, but don't really want striping -love it, but it's a bit cliche. I could have a black vinyl panel made to wrap around the centre section but that might just look odd. The patch on the back's offset & is partly under the cradle, so that'll probably just have to be filled but won't notice so much.

[Mendalot]

If you were intending to use the two leather straps as before (even though tank being brazed) a bit of leather to match around the center section may look good Obviously its personal preference

[Manky Monkey]

Still considering options. Ideally it'd just be painted -it's a truck. I don't want it too showy. Painting will mean filling though. Not a problem as long as it doesn't have to be so thick that it ends up flush with the swage lines around the tank.
I tack welded the cradles to the tank today, then texted my brother, Mr Brock, to ask if he could TIG weld them for me. Haven't had a reply!

[Olds]

Haven't had a reply!

TIG welding 6mm to 22 swg. I wouldn't reply either.  
If anyone can do it (and keep it fuel tight), it's Brock.

[minimutly]

Agree with Olds, you could end up with a leak hidden under the weld/strap, difficult to detect unless you fill with fuel, or water?

[Manky Monkey]

Steve, (Brock), builds drag cars for a living, including fuel tanks. I trust his skills. Dropping it off at his workshop in Wiltshire in the next few days.

[lunatic]

and to be fair, it worked on the last tank, only difference was i mig welded it and the tank was 60years old.

[Manky Monkey]

Dropped it off at Mr Brock's Wiltshire workshop after work this afternoon. Should be done in a couple of days.

[Manky Monkey]

Tank should be ready this weekend, (Mr Brock's been busy).
Had a distinct lack of Building Mojo recently -seems to have been raining here for weeks so no point even taking the tarpaulin off the Pop. I've been working on my motorcycle instead, but now that's nearing completion, I really need to get back to the Pop.
Loony's moving workshops soon & although I should be able to fit the Pop in the same lock-up garage the bike's in, there's no power supply. So at the very least, I need to get all the welding, grinding & wire wheeling of the surface rust done & hopefully a good thick coat of filler/primer on it too. I really want to be driving this again in the Spring.
It was -3 here this morning but had turned into a nice sunny day by lunchtime. So when I finished work I headed to the workshop to see how bad the Pop looked after weeks of sitting under a tarp' in the rain. Not actually as rusty as I'd expected, but not pretty. I wire wheeled the rust off around the swageline on the drivers side, which I welded a couple of weeks ago, then added a skim of filler with extra hardener in it. Also measured & cut a fill-in panel to go under the door sill. By then it was already too cold & damp to do any more outside but tomorrow's forcast to be the same as today, so I'm hoping to get back to weld that panel in.

[Manky Monkey]

The rear mudguard from my bike, back at Loony's for a respray, (it's got a run & a couple of scuffs in it). It's done in 2 Pack gloss black over black powder-coat. The Pop mudguards were hand made by the same guy but are just powder-coated at the moment. They definitely need to be sprayed to match at some point.