painting a fuel tank

I am going to need to paint my gas tank, the first of many(all of them) parts that I will be painting. I will be starting with bare metal.
I have a series of questions
1. what color should I be looking for? 1952 REO M45 green, but not carc
2. what primer should I use?
3. How much paint should I buy? It will be a while (at least a year) before I paint much more of the truck, will the paint keep, or should I buy the just enough paint for the tank.
4. where can I get the paint?
5. anything else I should be thinknig about?

I feel the need to act as the master of ceremonies and say...

Now introducing that man from Georgia, the Personage of Paint himself, R. Dixie Miller!

Let's give him a big hand, folks!

da#! R. Dixie where are you????

BTW what do I need to do to clean off any residue from it being dipped/boiled out?

Here's a page from George Baxter's Army Jeep Parts website. It has a little chart for the era of some colors. Now to decide what era you want it to represent.
http://www.armyjeepparts.com/order_page/paint_1.htm

Maybe I can help out, I own a custom car paint and sign shop.
As for correct color, I am in the dark. I am not an authority on correct paint colors.
I purchased my paint from Antelope Valley Truck Parts in Lancaster Ca.
http://www.avettruck.com/
There are other suppliers listed on the forum if you do a search as I know this topic have been covered before.

The unused paint will last as long as you seal the can tight. If you open the lid and pour out the paint then the paint gets into the rim and does not allow the lid to completely seal it. This allows air into the can and the driers in the paint cause the carrier (urethane, varnish, resin, etc.) to harden (the skin you see in unused paint). There may be paint under the skin that is still viscous but this is more pigments than carrier. When this paint is used it will not last as long as the carrier is what holds the pigments together and be durable.
Since you probably do not have access to paint shop stir/pour tops, one trick I use is, after pulling off the paint shaker, punch a hole in the lid with a phillips screwdriver and screw in a lag bolt. I use about a 3/8"-1/2" X 2" one. After pouring out what you need just screw the bolt back in and it will seal the can.
As for the bare metal, use a metal prep solution or just grab some pool acid (muriatic - watch your sinuses!!!) to remove any surface rust and oil.
Rinse with clean water and dry thoroughly and prime with a good 2 part urethane primer - available at any good auto paint supply store. This will seal out any moisture and when you are ready to paint just sand with some 320 grit and you are ready spray your chosen color.

Hope that helps

I just re-read your post and the residue you refer to (I assume it is old paint) can be removed with a right angle die grinder and some 3M felt type grinding disks. They look like the scouring pads you get for the kitchen only rougher. I you want I can get a part number and/or pictures.

I am going to remove some minor rust and repaint my hardtop soon. I will do a play by play with photos and material list in hopes that it may help some members out.

I was planning on taking the tank to a radiator shop to have it cleaned out. (some rust inside from sitting). Can I make up some muratric acid to clean it out myself? The rust doesn't appear that bad, I just want to start this project with a clean fuel system.

I've had good results treating rust on bare metal prior to painting, with a product called Rust-Mort. As Polverone said, apply, let dry, rinse, let dry, then prime.
Just remove the loose rust before applying. After all that paint work, the last thing you want is for the rust to bleed back through.

rdixie ?

Yes, you could pour the acid in the tank and then agitate (sloshing) it back and forth somehow. Be careful of the fumes, they will torque your sinuses and burn your eyes. Wear a good resperator and do it outside in the fresh air.

That should work. Use water to rinse and then follow up with a couple or more rinsings of denatured alcohol to help remove the water.

Sorry guys, I haven't been checking out the paint section.
I would use a caustic cleanser (rad. shop) to clean out the tank. Muriatic inside a tank can work on the seams. If the tank is really rusty, there is a tank sealer you can get at motorcycle shops for the old metal tanks. I have also used leftover Imron paint. Put some in the tank, roll it around the yard to coat everything, turn it up and drain it out. I did a couple of Jeep and a Ford 9N tractor tank this way.
As for painting the outside, de-rust, metal prep, 2K primer, good topcoat. Use a 2K topcoat or the fuel sloshes from the cap can wrinkle it up.
I use Ospho (sp?) for bare metal. There are products as good or better, just get the phosphatizing compounds. What they do is convert the surface to an Iron phosphate. Resists rust and gives the paint better adhesion.