Why is this welded on to the fender support?

[Mike Kast]

Why is there an eye bolt welded to this fender support bar?
I got into a cleaning frenzy around the oil tank. There must have been a pound of spooge on it. Not including the 1/2 inch of hard mud caked on the top of it. I wish I put it on a scale to see how much lighter she is now
does it come from the factory exposed like this?

[Joeaksa]

Mike,

Is it a metric eye bolt?

Joe

[Mike Kast]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
Mike,

Is it a metric eye bolt?

Joe

Your not serious Joe? This is a very important technical question!I'm not going to be sent to the off topic limbo am I?
At first I thought it was because the bar got damaged, I cleaned that bar down to bare metal and it looks as strong and straight as the day it was born... I guess I have to clear coat it.

[cary]

Best guess ...............it's kind of like a truss support. With that eye bolt welded there it will take a LOT more to bend the support.

My .02c at 4am.

[Joeaksa]

Mike,

No, was not serious but then my tequila level was higher last night as well! Now its morning again and after looking in the mirror and scaring myelf I feel better.

There is no way that that it stock IMHO and someone welded it there for some reason. Have you checked the other fenders to see if there is one on the others? Wonder if someone put it there as a hook for a car cover or the like?

Joe

PS Had to look on your website to see what kind of car you drive (might add it to your profile) and love your favourite saying: Divorce has been very good to me! Been there, done that and she has got most of the t-ee shirt but I am free at last.

[Kurt B]

Someone might have put that there to support an exhaust system. It's really tough to get any other kind of muffler to fit in using the stock setup. Hard to tell. Maybe they were dragging cowbells or something after a marriage.

[Mike Kast]

So.... the damn eye bolt is a mystery. I'll except that. And no, it is not on the left side. There is only one that I know of.
Can anyone tell me if the oil tank came from the factory exposed the way mine is now? I like it this way but wonder if its destined to be machine gunned with rocks from the rear tire and damaged.
Not that anyone will ever look at it.
Actually, I started with the idea that a cleaner tank and oil lines would help with cooling. I figured the caked on mess was an insulator to a degree. Am I completely out of my 911 obsessed little mind?

[Joeaksa]

Mike,

I work with airplanes and we need everything to look like this so we can be sure its in good condition. Nothing like a cracked oil tank to spoil a flight...

Keep it like this and you will be able to inspect it anytime and make sure its ok as well as it should stay cooler. As for the "eye bolt" it can probably stay there but God only knows what its purpose was in the beginning.

Joe

[Mike Kast]

Thanks Joe,
My goal is to get the whole car cleaned up. Little by little...

[notmytarga]

I've been messing/cleaning around in the same area of my 1975 with only 46K miles - yours looks alot cleaner. I took the tank out and cleaned it - it has semi gloss black paint covering a copper color. Thought about painting the areas that were bare, but didn't. Yours looks like bare metal.

What did you use/do to clean the area??

You don't have a stone guard screen that I have seen on mine/others. The bolt wouldn't substitute but perhaps it is related to an attempt to protect the tank from tire thrown stones??

[Wayne 962]

The tanks typically came painted black from the factory. I believe that the early ones were steel, copper plated, and painted black. At least I know that the 914-6 tanks were all that way...

-Wayne

[Mike Kast]

I will bet my life that my tank is aluminum. There wasn't any rust or paint on it. I have been thinking of a way to make a simple stone guard. a flat sheet of aluminum clamped to the seam on the oil tank. I'd have to fix some very small clamps in the center line of the flat piece of aluminum sheeting. Maybe something 3/16ths thick. The clamps would allow me to remove it easily.

The thing is, there has been nothing protecting the tank that I can tell and there is no damage on the tank. I might do nothing... unless I am missing a part?

It seems hard to believe someone would take the time to put that eye bolt there without having some proven plan in mind. It just seems like too much work to do on a whim. Then again??????

What did you use/do to clean the area??

a soft puddy knife,water and paper towels to get off the bulk. Mineral spirits and a toothbrush to get off the rest. Then I washed it over and over with soap and water.
I'm going to use clear enamel on all the bare metal(not the aluminum). I like the metal look on the oil lines. I'll even clean up that stupid eye bolt for posterity...

I'm going to remove the oil lines to finish them properly. I don't think I could paint behind them while there attatched without getting the enamel on everything. On the oil lines, after I cleaned them like I said above, I used strips of cloth backed belt sander paper and steel wool. They did have quite a bit of surface rust.
If your using the mineral spirits and a brush, Wear some latex gloves and a nice respirator. The brush gets a fine mist in the air. The first night I didn't and I paid for it the next day. More in my lungs than in my hands. But my hands didn't feel great either.

[Mike Kast]

Thank you Wayne for posting. I think you can have my life. Should I just email it with my credit card #?
I just looked at that tank in the sunlight and can see some signs of black paint in the places I couldn't get too very easily... I guess I will have to pull down the tank someday soon

[69 911s]

You can easily protect the tank like the factory did with a fine mesh expanded metal screen and still retain some cooling air flow. That eye bolt might come in handy for wire ties to secure such a protective system.

[Mike Kast]

something like this?

[RoninLB]

Originally posted by Wayne at Pelican Parts
The tanks typically came painted black from the factory. I believe that the early ones were steel, copper plated, and painted black.
-Wayne

that describes my original tank.........Ron