Hey fellas, my name is Mace.
I like to work on motorcycles. Today it is a 2012 Harley softtail. I was hoping to get some advice along the way....I must bring this bike back from the dead after sitting for a few years.
I have removed the fuel pump and have left my first pic here....the tank is the worst I have ever seen and so is the chrome. I plan to get it running good and blacking it out.
all of this for my defense attorney.
Please follow me as I try to hear it run for the first time in years, and make it look like it wants to be on the road.
pic 1
fuel pump removed.
My first question if you guys could so graciously answer is, is there supposed to be a sock filter on the end of this pump?
and also, the line pictured was connected to the fuel pressure regulator assembly but the other end was just hanging down into the murky red ol gas. I assume it was supposed to be connected to the check valve? It doesnt seem long enough.
Tomorrow, I will remove the tank and fill it with muratic acid to remove the rust and begin to get the fuel system dialed before i do a brake overhaul/spark and oil change/full sanddown and flat black paint.
Thanks for checking it out.
Mace

 

Good news today.
I removed the tank and sprayed it out with water to get the sludge some of the bulk rust out. There is a factory coating inside which looks like paint...I think I can reach inside and sand it all off with 80 grit before adding muratic acid or rocks and sand to get the fuel system back to normal operating condition. The fuel line did indeed go to the check valve, however the line had broken off inside the tank and i found it, along with the remains of the fuel filter screen which had rotted away to nothing.
I removed the exhaust covers and sanded down the exhaust a little to get an idea whether it will look best flat black or brushed metal with a blued hue.
I am preparing the tank for some backyard paint and bodywork to get it back looking like it belongs on the bike. At this point, I will polish all the chrome that can be polished, paint the air cleaner cover gloss black, the forkes and headlight gloss black, and the body will be flat black.
what do you guys think? leave the exhaust brushed kind of like the pic, or paint it flat black to go along with the body?
checklist;
fuel pump removed, parts ordered; fuel screen/fuel lines, check valve/fuel filter.
Tank removed, flushed out with water, awaiting muratic acid treatment and bodywork/paint.

Plugs removed and marvel mystery oil dripped into the bores to lubricate rings for the first fire in a few years.
air cleaner removed..k/n..cleaned and re-oiled for first fire..
Exhaust brushed to remove surface rust and for determination of final look.
Moving along well so far!
handfuls of black sludge in bottom of tank/broken fuel line/lost fuel screen remains

fuel cell removed and flushed/prepared for muratic acid/bodywork
exhaust covers removed

Hereis where im at, I have a long way to go, moving well though so far!

removed rear fender assembly, begin to polish and prepare for paint.

 

 

Way to make it happen, @MACE_ !

What I wanna know: how in the world did a 2012 come to be in that condition?! Superb progress so far mate. It wont be much longer and you'll be on the road.

 

Thanks fellas!
well sometimes the busiest of us get caught up and cant find time to do things.
Thats when they hire me to do it.
The motorcycle is my attorney's....I cant afford one like this but I am having fun working on it, and im sure Ill crack a huge grin at first test run!
If it were mine, Id put a solo tail and fender on it and some 18" apes before it becomes to late, then I would add some flush mount turn signals and.....well....its not mine so I digress.

 

Was able to salvage and polish back alot more chrome than I thought, leading me to only black out areas that could not be salvaged like the rear swingarm frame areas that attach to the rear axle as shown in pic
Keyfob battery replaced
Exhaust covers polished and re attached.
Shouts out to Alligator Alley Harley Davidson for coming through finding my fuel strainer
Tank bodywork started/no more big dent/ still need to sand and finish
pics

before

after


fuel strainer

before

not close yet, but no dent!

 

Here is a before and after shot of taking a tank back to acceptable fuel delivery. Sanding off all of the factory coating may reveal a shot out weld and lead to an eventual leak. Removing as much loose coating and most of the rust is crucial to having a decent clean supply of fuel.
At least this is what I have researched during this build.
When the tank is suitable, you can coat it with 2 stroke oil/gas mixture to prevent re rust before placing it back on the beast to see if it will fire up!
Waiting on parts. I hate waiting on parts.
pic! vroom!

Here I bench test the flow rate of the fuel pump and clean out all the sediment by running the pump off of 12 volts in a jar mixed with fresh 93 until the fuel pump spits out all the grit and seems to flow at acceptable levels.

 

Tank done and wait for cure and wet sand /tried to save pinstripe. Ready for installation.
waiting on fuel system parts.
see you then

 

 

Nah. Those liners are known for coming off and re ruining the fuel system all over again.
There are numerous accounts of those sealers coming off in sheets and going deep into the fuel system/injectors/engine.
Not worth the risk IMO.
But that is my opinion. running a bare tank is a better option than using a snake oil liner.
Some people like to use seafoam as well, but if you research, there a a hundred threads where seafoam may have been responsible for blowing the entire engine. To each his own I guess.
Thanks for checkin it out!