Refurbishing Old Gas Cans

[WCO]

Following this closely, I've got 3 that need to be cleaned up, WWII era. Please post some pics as the cans sit. Can't wait to see how they clean up!

 

[TheJosh]

I need to do the same thing with 6 cans I have. Please keep us up to speed on the progress!

will do!

You might want to check ebay. I just bought 5 new ones real cheap. Looking at your picture you can see that you have two types. The big cap ones are old US military ones (might be as old as WW II) and require a large flexible US spout. The small odd cap ones are NATO and require a NATO spout. When you go hunting for these spouts look for military spouts only. The commercial ones are cheap knock offs that will break in two when using and cause a huge fire hazard. The military ones cost more but won't break 100 miles from the nearest store or burn your rig down.

Any place that steam cleans engines can steam both inside and outside of your cans.

im not sure i completely follow what your saying. all the jerry cans besides the nato are able to use a CARB style plastic spout that screws right in (i just tried it)
what commercial ones are you referring to? metal commercial? how does it cause a fire hazard, and how will it burn my rig down?


i plan on sealing the insides after i pressure wash them

 

[TheJosh]

here is just a little update after 18 hours


the vinegar is changing color to green and there are little bubbles bubbling forth from the bottom

here is how i seal the tub with a locking lid

 

[crossbowme]

Sorry for the delay getting back to you. The problem with leaking is with the metal "flexible" spouts (never tried plastic). They flex once or twice and then leak and snap. I had one snap and the end fall into my sailboat tank and had to take half the boat apart to get it out. I do a lot of atving and my colleaques have constant problems with the flexible metal ones.

The spout that the military issues is a short fixed steel spout you could run over and not harm it. It snaps onto the can just like the lid does and makes a very tight seal. I have seen people abuse the hell out of these things with no problems. That is the good news; the bad news is they are hard to find on line. I now have two and would buy third if I ould find one.

Conversely, the old WW II type had a long flexible metal hose. Eventually, they too would leak but there used to be a lot of good civilian substitutes.

 

[SLO_F-250]

Alright, this is cool! I never new vinegar would do that! Once again, this forum is awesome. I have some old cans that I was wondering how in the heck I can clean and reuse. Ill be following the progress! Thanks!

 

[TheJosh]

I'll try to do a update this weekend, I've been working alot and totally forgot to check on the cans!

 

[Every Miles A Memory]

I saw this company reviewed in Entrepreneur Magazine and thought these would be really cool in a garage or shop! LINK

 

[Revco]

Any updates?

 

[Desert Dan]

Looks good
The old WWII cans might be worth keeping as wall hangers.

Watch out for pin hole leaks from rust. It would be bad to have a fire due to a leaking gas can.

An new 5-gallon Blitz can costs about $50.00 and you can still use the old style the old threaded cap and washer from your old cans.

 

[BIGVAN]

Any updates? Hope you didn't give up! I want to see if that works. I don't want to turn my old cans into rolling luggage!

:smiley_drive:

 

[TheJosh]

Update!!!

Finally removed the cans from the vinegar bath

Hosed them off and here they are

Dried them off with a heat gun and primered both cans

I'll paint these two tomorrow and I threw two more cans in the bath

 

[Mark Harley]

Stripped them clean, how long were they in the bath?

 

[lowenbrau]

Looks good. I have 50 leaky NATO cans that I should just take to the scrapyard but I'm tempted to clean up and repair the good ones and turn the rest into recovery gear holders (similar to those ones modified for luggage) I rarely need two cans of fuel on my carrier but it would be great to have a home for a muddy tow strap/shackles/pully block etc. I might have to invest in a pail of vinegar.

 

[Revco]

Awesome, glad it worked out for you.