Today I bent my first tank skin and did preliminary assembly to see how it will all go together. I was very careful to measure and calculate the bends so that I'd have a tight-fitting skin in relation to the ends. All my work paid off. The skin fits the ends very tightly - so tightly in fact that it's a bit of a bear to assemble. I wrestled with the center baffle for quite a while to get it to sit squarely inside. Since riveted tanks are a departure from the plans, I'm following what I've seen others do, and making up the rest as I go along. By this point I pretty much know what I should about edge distances, pitch, etc. I'm satisfied with the results. When I'm done, I'll have two 15-gallon long-range tanks that I can be proud of. Next step is to start locating fittings including the gauge sender, tank vent, fuel cap, fuel drain, and fuel output to the engine.
