86 Venture Remove fuel tank

I am a new member and a new Venture owner,I would really like to thank everyone for all the great information provided. I have a 86 Venture,the fuel tank has rust in it and I need to remove it. What is the easiest way to remove the fuel tank?

That is one thing that is in the Manual pretty good. Chapter 5 pg 55 You must remove rear frame first but it is not a big deal.

It's not as tough as it may seem when you look at it. I pulled my tank this spring and treated it for rust.

Take a good look at the bike with all the plastic off and you will see the attach points for the rear subframe. Don't worry about all the little stuff on the rear of the bike. Just unplug the wires and disconnect the airlines for the C.L.A.S.S. system. The whole assembly can be lifted off in one piece with about everything attached. Saves a lot of time. I'd say take a lot of pics of the wiring routes and mounting points to refresh your memory when you are putting it back together.

Removing and replacing the rear subframe can be done single handed but an extra pair of hands is great to have.

I used this product to treat mine. I have to say, in my opinion, it far surpasses the other products out there for bonding and ease of use.

http://www.caswellplating.com/aids/epoxygas.htm

Feel free to shoot me a PM if you have any questions on doing the tank. It's just time consuming but not all that hard to do.

I have some block off plates I made to seal the petcock and sending unit ports. If it comes down to that I'd be happy to loan them to you if you decide to seal the tank.

Later

Mike