Lockable Fuel tank!

[neil2007]

Hello all! (Glad to be able to actually post this today... I was getting a little worried as to whether or not I'd actually be able to leave the shop in one piece last night! , Have you ever welded on a gas tank!?!?! )

I just thought you all might like to see what I had come up with to lock my fuel tank to keep the unfriendly's out.

I've also started a thread covereing the restoration efforts of my 530b under the members rides section...

Anyway, heres the candy everyones waiting on....


Neil

 

[maddawg308]

If I were you, I'd weld that nut onto the bolt. There looks like there is enough play in the hasp that if someone had a couple wrenches or Visegrips, they could unbolt that hinge, and work the gas cap open enough to siphon some fuel. Just my two cents....

 

[neil2007]

Re: RE: Lockable Fuel tank!

If I were you, I'd weld that nut onto the bolt. There looks like there is enough play in the hasp that if someone had a couple wrenches or Visegrips, they could unbolt that hinge, and work the gas cap open enough to siphon some fuel. Just my two cents....

The picture that you'll looking at is with the latch "Mocked up". I still have a little left to weld. Tonight, I'm planning on welding the nut and bolt to the 3/16 plate that was welded to the tank. Then I plan on welding a cover over where the pad lock goes to keep someone from being able to gain acces to the pad lock with bolt cutters or some other style cutter. Then the final bit of triangulation/reinforcing to the bolt/nut that is welded to the plate as well...

Other than that, I plan on champfering (sp?) the ends of the latch itself to 45 degrees per corner to keep it from catching people as they walk past the tank.

I think that should be adequate. After all, if someone REALLY want's in there, they'll find a way in, even if they have to cut a hole in the tank to do it!

Now I just need to make sure I do not loose the key!

I'll post final pictures tomorrow after I get all the welding done and the new paint on the tank tonight.

Thanks for the $.02!!!

Later!


Neil

 

[Rattlehead]

Might want to weld in the drain plug, too. That would be the easiest way to steal fuel.

I just did a mod similar to one that someone posted here awhile back, where a lever that pivots on the tank strap bolt falls down over the top of the cap, and then I put the padlock through the lever and a matching hole in one of the cap's ears. Mostly to keep kids from dropping junk in it, drunks from peeing in it, or tree huggers from putting worse in there to cause damage.

 

[Sarge]

RE: Re: RE: Lockable Fuel tank!

That is a really nice set-up. With the price of fuel today, it's surprising that more fuel is not stolen. I know that in this country the second amendment makes fuel thieves nervous, but they still exist. I grew up in a country where teenagers either stole fuel or they had to stay at home. Locking gas caps were a necessity. Does anybody have a method of locking the military fuel caps without removing the tank and welding it?
A very good friend of mine had the fuel stolen out of his 5-ton recently. He was surprised that they only stole half a tank. Just goes to show that civilian fuel thieves don't know about the removable filter. On the other hand, military fuel thieves.....
One of the most annoying things about deploying was the military fuel thieves. They were just too damn lazy to take their tent heater 5 gallon cans to the fuel truck. So they would steal them from other trucks, or the really rude ones would steal them from your tent stash. When it's minus 25 outside and your tent heater runs out of fuel, stolen cans can lead to upset popsicles in sleeping bags. Very upset.

 

[emmado22]

An even better military fuel thiefs story... I had a bunch of M969A2 tankers.. The stupid soldiers would take a 5 gallon can and open up the drain plug on the filter seperator.. Usually getting a bunch of watery fuel... We could usually figure out who it was a little while later when their truck/heater/generator would stop running from the bad fuel...

 

[Stretch44875]

I find it fun to have an unlocked tank. Somebody stole some fuel out of it, but whatever they put it in won't run! At that time I had 30% gasoline, 10% diesel, and 60% used motor oil.

Dennis

 

[SasquatchSanta]

Here is what I did:

It is by no means as secure as previously pictured but it was quick.

Basically it is a deterrent that requires a thief to have to have tools and be willing to take the time to use them.

I personally feel that when someone is cruising for an opportunity to steel fuel and sees a padlock they are likely to move on to an easier target.

 

[kcimb]

I used to drive one of two diesel vehicles on campus. We had problems with people stealing gas out of cans and cars...one day I left my 5 gallon can next to the benz and it was marked in black marker "GASOLINE"....it was gone the next day.

Noticed some people pushing a car the next day

 

[wreckerman893]

I find it fun to have an unlocked tank. Somebody stole some fuel out of it, but whatever they put it in won't run! At that time I had 30% gasoline, 10% diesel, and 60% used motor oil.

I filled my duece up right before the GA MPVA rally. The day I left the gauge was on 3/4 of a tank. I was running a simular mixture but with more gasoline. If they put in in a diesel it was running real good, if they put it in a gasser it was running real bad.
If the idiots had looked there was about 20 gallons of gas in an unlocked (then) shed about 20 feet from the duece.
First time that has ever happened to me and I been here 15 years.

I put a lock on it when I got back.

I'll post pic.

 

[Jones]

Thieves are creatures of opportunity and all you can do is make things look like your rig is just too much trouble; and hope they'll move on. However, a really determined one will just punch a hole in the bottom of your tank, take what they want and let the rest drain out onto the ground.
I sure miss the days when you could unleash a 12ga. load of rock salt in their direction... Seems nobody stocks Tar & Feathers kits anymore either.

 

[superburban]

I had a car stolen from me a couple of years ago. At first I was insane with anger, but after a while, I realized it was probably just Karma coming back around to me. I was a rotten thief when I was in high school. I have had gasoline in my mouth more than once, if you know what I mean.
Since I grew up, I have tried to make things right, though, and I was a little startled when "My Name is Earl" came on, because I thought some writer had been following me around taking notes!

 

[superburban]

WAIT! There was a moral to that story...

...what was it?


Oh yeah: I like stories.



No, wait. I think it was supposed to be: Rotten thieves are indeed opportunists. You dont need your fuel tank to be impregnable, just slightly more secure than the next possible target.

 

[neil2007]

Finished product....

Heres a pic of the finished locking latch. It's obviously still needs painted, but that will happen just before I'm ready to install the tank. I've still got some other fab work to do on the tank ...Thanks to some good rust ol' pitting....

Anyway, I know it's not gonna stop anyone who really want's the fuel, but at least it gave me something to do for the last few days!

Later!


Neil

 

[Armada]

RE: Finished product....

Nice work. Good idea on the notches for the tabs on the cap. My thought was it wouldn't take much to tap them over and untwist the cap. Of course, now that I think about it, even if it was loose, it still wouldn't be able to be removed.

 

[neil2007]

Re: RE: Finished product....

Nice work.

Thank you...

Good idea on the notches for the tabs on the cap. My thought was it wouldn't take much to tap them over and untwist the cap.

I thought of that too... In all honosty the notches really do not do what they are intended to do because the flat stock I used is only about 1/8" wider than the distance between the tabs. I thought about welding a some more flat stock on each side to definitely lock it in place, but I opted out due to if someone really wants in there they'd find a way to spin the cap off even if they had to break off the tabs....

BUT.... you also hit the nail on the head when you said that even if they did get the cap loose, they wouldn't be able to remove it... The latch has some play, but not near enough for someone to even force the cap up enough to get a hose down in there or anythying... I feell it's a success if it can keep the lid in there to keep people from dumping sand and crap in the tank... because after all, if they want the fuel, all they have to do is poke a hole in the side of the tank and drain it into a can....

Unless.... I put some steel plating around there tooo......Hmm..... Now I've done it... I've started that thinking wheel again....

Of course, now that I think about it, even if it was loose, it still wouldn't be able to be removed.

Later!


Neil

 

[Mike_Pop]

RE: Re: RE: Finished product....

Very nice work!

I need to do something about my vehicles since I am away from home so much. But in the four years of living in a small town, I have not had a single problem with thieves. I get people wandering onto my property to check out the mv's but that's about it. I did get annoyed when I came out of my house and found a gawker sitting in my Unimog! What can I say, he was from California.

I do have a locking gas cap on my car which is parked in a storage lot. Last thing I want to do is fly home, hop in the car and be out of gas. It's a 120 mile drive to my house.

 

[neil2007]

Re: RE: Re: RE: Finished product....

Very nice work!

Thank you.

I need to do something about my vehicles since I am away from home so much. But in the four years of living in a small town, I have not had a single problem with thieves.

I live in the middle of no-where between a good size town and a major city but I'm only about 300 yards back off of a major road. Private, but yet not... I'd give anyone a gallon or two of gas if they asked, but for some reason I object to them just taking it themselves.....

I get people wandering onto my property to check out the mv's but that's about it. I did get annoyed when I came out of my house and found a gawker sitting in my Unimog! What can I say, he was from California.

I do have a locking gas cap on my car which is parked in a storage lot. Last thing I want to do is fly home, hop in the car and be out of gas. It's a 120 mile drive to my house.

Now that would suck! Lets hope that never happens to... ANYONE!

Neil

 

[kcimb]

RE: Re: RE: Re: RE: Finished product....

Drilling would probably be easier than getting the cap open.

Of course, sparks....toasted crook...

 

[GoHot229]

Here is what I did:

It is by no means as secure as previously pictured but it was quick.

Basically it is a deterrent that requires a thief to have to have tools and be willing to take the time to use them.

I personally feel that when someone is cruising for an opportunity to steel fuel and sees a padlock they are likely to move on to an easier target.

I like this method best, and yea it could be overcome easily enough, where I live, my horse would signal the intruder to me starting a ruckus. But the whole point is to make it not a quick easy to do fuel swipe. Sure you could weld a nub where the threads and nut come togather so as to make it so you couldnt undo the nut and foil the whole idea, but for the situations i would be likely to entertain, it would work fine. A note for you boys welding fuel tanks...... it os a 50/50 chance of getting blown to the netherworld doing it. The way i have always done it is to fill the tank with water and run exhaust from a motor of some kind into the filler to purge any oxygen that sould cause combustion inside the tank once the ares momentarily becomes red hot from the weld. Co2 would work as well and is the prefered way to do it. But really unless you live in a high crime area needing fool-proof measures, Sasquach's method would be fine, and not risk tank explosion. The emptier the tank the more oppurtunity for explosion, likewise the fuller with water the less chance of combustion, the remaining volume should purge all fumes of combustables by replacing them with an inert substance not containing an accelerant ie. gas or diesel. instead Co2 will not burn and replaces the area volume with a non-cumbustable gas. Never the less it is DANGEROUS, but I'v found this the best way, and learned from the Old timers. Picture robbed from SasquatchSanta