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Gas Tank Dent repair

E

earlguy

New member
Hello everyone, new member here.

I have a 1990 K75s with 26K on the odometer. I am wondering if it is possible to use a paintless dent repair shop to remove dents from our tanks. This dent will need paint anyway so perhaps a more traditional bondo based repair would be better.

This ride is my first motorbike at age 63! It seems to be in really good shape, but I sent it into Max BMW for a complete check up. I expect to send some significant cash to establish a maintenance base. I will do as much as possible myself. So far I have installed fresh injectors, fuel filter,
Gearbox oil, spark plug wires and spark plugs.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
 

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Welcome to the forum! I hear red K75s are the fastest!!

As large as the opening is for the gas cap, it almost seems like use of "spoons" at a body shop would work especially on the one in the flat area. The one dent in the corners where several surfaces comes together would be tougher.

There are "ice" or "cold" methods on youtube. Might be worth a search to see what's out there. Find some things that are not that aggressive and give them a try. I they don't work then up your game. Good luck!

There are also some dent threads in the Similar Threads pane at the bottom of the screen that you could review for other ideas.
 
I have the same bike, same color actually. But not long ago I had a black K75RT with a similar dent in the tank. I took it to a dent repair shop to see about having the dent popped out. I did tell them that the tank alone was probably worth about what the bike was worth. They said honestly that they didn't think it was workable to try and get the dent out with their methods. Not worth the risk to the tank. Better to leave it in. I thanked them for their honesty. Spoons and other body tools might get it close but it would still need a lot of careful hammering to work it. On aluminum, it's risky. If it cracks you might need it welded. Just worse than it was originally. Your idea of body filler may be the best idea. Unfortunate because the paint they will use to repaint the tank will not be as good as the stuff BMW used. And your paint looks to be in great shape. It's a beautiful bike at this point. Maybe try living with it for a while. You may get used to it and it won't bother you. I really didn't notice it that much given the overall looks of your machine. By the way, I sold the K75RT, and that person didn't seem to care about the dent.
 
Had tank dent repair where section was cut from bottom to access area needing repair. Then of course that bottom entry area needed to be welded closed. That lead to a tank repaint. $$$$! If it's overly bothersome, go tank bag with appropriate tether straps to cover dents. Or, much cheaper, go with a one quarter or so bikini cover, which would also act as a jacket zipper protector.
 
Welcome:wave, that one dent at the edge looks tough in my very unprofessional opinion, probably live with it for a while and if you really take to motorbikes, then keep a look out for a nice original tank in good shape to replace it with. You might give your general location as well, maybe some other moto-brickers close to you, that you can swap lies with.:) cheers, scott.
My '93K75_090.jpg
 
jconway607 said:
I have the same bike, same color actually. But not long ago I had a black K75RT with a similar dent in the tank. I took it to a dent repair shop to see about having the dent popped out. I did tell them that the tank alone was probably worth about what the bike was worth. They said honestly that they didn't think it was workable to try and get the dent out with their methods. Not worth the risk to the tank. Better to leave it in. I thanked them for their honesty. Spoons and other body tools might get it close but it would still need a lot of careful hammering to work it. On aluminum, it's risky. If it cracks you might need it welded. Just worse than it was originally. Your idea of body filler may be the best idea. Unfortunate because the paint they will use to repaint the tank will not be as good as the stuff BMW used. And your paint looks to be in great shape. It's a beautiful bike at this point. Maybe try living with it for a while. You may get used to it and it won't bother you. I really didn't notice it that much given the overall looks of your machine. By the way, I sold the K75RT, and that person didn't seem to care about the dent.
Click to expand...

Motodan said:
Had tank dent repair where section was cut from bottom to access area needing repair. Then of course that bottom entry area needed to be welded closed. That lead to a tank repaint. $$$$! If it's overly bothersome, go tank bag with appropriate tether straps to cover dents. Or, much cheaper, go with a one quarter or so bikini cover, which would also act as a jacket zipper protector.
Click to expand...

I'm with these two opinions.
On a dent like that, there will need to be body filler, paint, paint matching....etc. I can't tell if the scrape will degrade without paint, but with some paint (Duplicolor) you won't see it as much :)
Good luck.
Ride safe.
Gary
 
Thanks for all of the advice. Since I am a fairly new rider I think waiting to take care of cosmetic issues is a good idea. A year or so down the road should make me more confident while moving the bike around. I can see myself dropping the bike at some point so no hurry!
 
I think that leaving it makes you look cool

earlguy said:
Thanks for all of the advice. Since I am a fairly new rider I think waiting to take care of cosmetic issues is a good idea. A year or so down the road should make me more confident while moving the bike around. I can see myself dropping the bike at some point so no hurry!
Click to expand...

I think leaving it might make you look cooler than if you try to fix it. Sort of a patina... how you handle it is the key... It doesn't affect performance

p
 
Motodan said:
, go tank bag with appropriate tether straps to cover dents. Or, much cheaper, go with a one quarter or so bikini cover, which would also act as a jacket zipper protector.
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum earlguy.
On our K75Ss my wife modified a tank cover so the front part of the tank was visible.

June 97 .jpg
 
earlguy said:
Hello everyone, new member here.

I have a 1990 K75s with 26K on the odometer. I am wondering if it is possible to use a paintless dent repair shop to remove dents from our tanks. This dent will need paint anyway so perhaps a more traditional bondo based repair would be better.

This ride is my first motorbike at age 63! It seems to be in really good shape, but I sent it into Max BMW for a complete check up. I expect to send some significant cash to establish a maintenance base. I will do as much as possible myself. So far I have installed fresh injectors, fuel filter,
Gearbox oil, spark plug wires and spark plugs.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Click to expand...

Welcome to the Forum in general and "K" bikes in particular!

You have a beauty for the first time out.... K75's are sweet machines and yours appears to be in good condition. I wouldn't do anything about the gas tank ding for at least a year. During that time you'll either stop noticing it or come across the information you need for a solution that makes sense to you. Chances are good that someone else has already solved this problem; keep working the forum(s).

On a safety note- if your bike still has rubber brake lines replace them asap with metal braided lines which will eliminate any sponginess in your brakes due to the swelling under pressure that older rubber hoses are prone to. (I wouldn't be surprised if MAX BMW hasn't already suggested this)
 
I'd suggest you make up a good story about how the dents resulted from the extreme maneuvering you had to perform to avoid hitting the bus full of nuns and orphans that had careened into your path. And live with it for a while.
As a new rider, you'll have plenty of opportunity to add to the patina.
 
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