Problem removing fuel tank

[Chinookflyer]

I am trying to remove the fuel tanks from a s2a ex military. The tank on the drivers side came out with no problems. It only had one bold at the back of the tank. This was quite easy to get to. There are no other holes for extra bolts on the tank or chassis - so i guess it was made that way. There are three bolts on the front of the tank.

The tank on the passenger side looks to be impossible. The front bolts came out fine as did the middle bolt on the rear of the tank. But on this tank there are two extra bolts. I just cant get a spanner past the chassis to hold the bold heads while i undo the nuts from underneath.

Any ideas anyone?

Thanks

Scott

[debruiser]

maybe a picture would help?

[Brisruss]

There must be a way of getting a spanner in. Have you tried taking the centre cover off under the middle seat to see if you can reach it?
a log bar on a socket is probably best.
Things like these are usually a challenge but there is always a way.
Russ

[Chinookflyer]

Yep there must be a way. usual routine is to leave for a day or two and when i come back it seems obvious. not so in this case. Here are a couple of pictures - not sure they help

Many thanks

Scott

[debruiser]

I'd say a socket..... maybe an extension bar....

[Lionelgee]

Hello Chinook Flyer,

I am not sure in the photo where the bolt is - the second photo when I click on it actually logs me out of AULRO :confused:

Anyway, if it is a similar bolt to the one I had trying to get a passenger side fuel tank out of a Series III I actually had to sacrifice one of my cheaper spanners to do the job. I held the spanner in a vice and bent it with a couple of blows from a hammer. The spanner had to dogleg because there was no room for a socket, let alone a normal spanner.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[Chinookflyer]

Sorry about the impact of the photo Lionel. :wasntme: That may be the answer I will take another look tomorrow. I suspect that the second fuel tank was a military modification - so goodness knows what they used. All good fun I guess. Thanks to all Scott

[Lionelgee]

G'day Scott,

I took a photograph of the bent spanner. At the time of bending the spanner I had ran out of gas to heat it up, so it was bent cold. :(

It is not pretty - however it did work. It was either 14 mm or 17 mm not sure which end it was?

Kind Regards
Lionel

[450Dan]

When I removed the tank on mine I had similar issues, went with a bent spanner too, worked a treat.

[crackers]

I had an uncle who was service manager for a distillery in the Riverland. In those days, they ran a lot of BMC vehicles (Morris 1100s, etc) and his tool box boasted a number of spanners that had been bent specifically for a particular job. Actually, now I think of it, I've been down a similar route with a spanner that's been thinned down to get between two fittings on a push bike. It's a trick we tend to forget, which is silly if you're as old as I am and have collected as big a collection of mongrel spanners as I have - I've my good set and a tin of others.

[crackers]

Sorry about the impact of the photo Lionel. :wasntme: That may be the answer I will take another look tomorrow. I suspect that the second fuel tank was a military modification - so goodness knows what they used. All good fun I guess. Thanks to all Scott

Being a British vehicle, there's a good chance they installed the tank, then built the vehicle around it :twisted:

There's an old story of a British engineer who was sacked for designing a car with two nuts that used the same spanner :eek:
[/cynic]

[debruiser]

If a "bent spanner" is what you need then the army probably used these to install:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-8-Inch-Drive-Crows-Foot-Flare-Spanner-Wrench-Set-Rail-10-22mm-Open-end-Socket-/301244711860

I've actually seen a set in the flesh, but never actually used them.....

[67hardtop]

Hi, you could always tighten them up till they snap, then put new bolts in. That's what I have had to do with many bolts on my 2a.

Cheers Rod:wasntme: