What to do with tank

The tank is in overall ok shape ( no dents/dings) minus the obvious. The skull stickers courtesy of the previous owner will have to go, but What do y'all think about the area that's chipped off? It's like a big divot. Would bondo work?
I am thinking 2 options for the end result. Either find a way to patch the divot, prime and paint Or sand the whole thing down and leave it bare metal with maybe a clear coat.

I was able to patch a small dent & a ding using Liquid Metal from the auto parts store: it comes in a tube. Sand the tank down to bare metal, then apply it. I used a flexible plastic painter's paint-can clip to smooth it out. Apply, let dry, sand... etc as necessary.

The green tank was dinged by the triple tree.

i see bondo popping up behind the damaged area,id strip it with paint stripper to see what else is under there.

I'm assuming that a previous owner removed the kawasaki logo and bondo'd over it and then painted. I'm on the fence of going either way. If i use liquid metal will the rest of the bondo'd area crack. Or if i sand it down to bare metal how will i hide the logo area. Looks like there's a couple small screws there too. Thoughts?

You might be able to get something in there to pop out some of the dent. Then I would cut off the seam that runs around the outside of the tank and weld in a later model gas cap or maybe a flush mount gas filler.

The LiquidMetal was applied to bare metal... I have no idea how it would work w the bondo.

just remember that rust you see is probably spread under other areas where you cant see it.

Kind of what I was thinking too. Probably rust all underneath. I'm thinking i'll most likely sand it all down and clearcoat it. What do y'all think about that liquid metal over the screw area. Is it malleable to a point before it hardens to maybe put a design in it before it dries?

Nothing the matter with "bondo" as long as it's applied right. If you can't pop it out any, just apply the bondo in a couple or 3 applications if it is pretty thick. I've seen some brand new panels bondo'd and cut backe down real thin for a showcar smooth paint job. Sand the whole tank clean, apply a little ospho acid or the like, over the rusted area. Can even put a bare metal treat on the whole tank and primer and paint.

S.P.75 wrote:

Kind of what I was thinking too. Probably rust all underneath. I'm thinking i'll most likely sand it all down and clearcoat it. What do y'all think about that liquid metal over the screw area. Is it malleable to a point before it hardens to maybe put a design in it before it dries?

Start fresh!

Use "Circa 1850 Gelled Paint Stripper", and all the paint and primer and everything will melt away in about 10 mins.

Wash it good, then just a light sand and tack, then your ready to bondo.

After you've smoothly sanded and tack clothed your new creation, spray on a few primer coats, then a few color coats.
Finally, use a good automotive 2 part clear, and spray as many times as you want.

Lots of wet sanding and appropriate prep/setup time between coats of course.

GL

forget bondo,perfect time for you to learn lead work!

From what I recall there isn't much working time w the LiquidMetal (Permatex). It was used on a small dent & a ding - not sure how it'll perform on larger areas. I've never heard of anyone else using it on a tank. Just throwing the idea out there.