Thanks to everyone for the ongoing dialog about fuel tanks. I shared the comments I received through yesterday AM with my mechanic - he too found it helpful. His conclusion, upon careful inspection of my wing tanks, was they had both been sloshed at one time. There was a reddish coating all over, but not very thick. His specialty is aircraft paints and chemicals, and he was concerned that another coating of slosh on top of the existing one might not adhere well and create a bigger problem. There was no evidence of corrosion either inside or outside. There was evidence that one of the tanks had been soldered. Does this mean I have steel tanks rather than aluminum?
The seepage seems to be coming from the two seams facing the rear where the tanks are "hung" from the forward wing roots, and therefore, signs of stress. We are going to try to find an old style radiator repairman to solder the length of both seams (after thoroughly cleaning out any residual gas) and then pressure test for remaining leaks. I'll let the blog know how this works. Bill
