So I bought a tank from India

[Gerry]

Hi fellas, I've put my pennyworth on here before about the Indian tanks I have bought. The first was a four gallon one which fitted ok except for the filler cap which came with it and didn't seal, red and chrome and looked really good. The second one for a friend which came with a dent in the side and was replaced by the seller once I paid postage. How they fitted I have no idea but did manage to knock out the dent successfully. Chrome is the problem, very thin and I don't think there is any copper or nickel under the chrome. Bought a set of fork bellows and fitted them and they split before I had even taken the bike off the stand. Bought a valve lifter lever for my trials and the lever broke. One bloke in the BSA club here bought an Indian A10 rear sprocket which lasted less than 6 months. Another a side stand which broke in half. Managed to buy an original OEM tank new old stock for the A10 but cost me $1300. Cheers Gerry

[tlmark]

Using the "I have too many bikes to be able to afford good quality parts " gets the response "Sell one "

Are you mad “sell” 

I didn’t say it meant I couldn’t buy quality parts, just that it was a factor
I spent over £2500 rebuilding the engine last year. Justified.
But I thought at £300 it was worth a risk, and it was, after fettling also justified

[Duncan R]

I bought my bike in India when I was working there. It has a replica  tank fitted that is now over 20 years old. It has never leaked and there is no rust inside. I also had a replica silencer made for my BMW R80GS around the same time which is still in one piece. I had dealings with many local machinists, welders and mechanics who were highly skilled , you just had to find them. It is shame that a lot of Indian parts are poor quality as the skill and craftmanship is there they just need to sort out the quality control.

[BSA_54A10]

The problem is the retailers are not the makers.
If it was here we would know that Trevs Tanks were to notch and Tanks by Tom were a bit so so and avoid Tony's Tinwear cause his stuff is rubbish.
However what happens when buying from most of the ebay vendors in India is you pay the money then they find a tank from some one to fill your order.
So two people could order identical tanks from the same vendor at the same time and one will be perfect while the other will be total trash.
We have a super cheapskate member who buys just about everything from Royal Choppers and more than once he has ordered 2 or 3 of the same item and each one was different.
Prime example is 3 rigid frame stands.
On one the ends were filed from solid and threaded brass
Another was welded from little bits of scrap and threaded Gas
And the third was welded from 2 pieces of milled steel and threaded metric

[Rex]

That may be true, but someone somewhere is knocking out unuseable repro shite for old bikes and making a nice profit flogging it to the mugs enthusiasts in the West.
If the labour is so cheap and skilled in the far East then knock out good stuff and make a killing; that must be easier and more financially worthwhile than constant returns etc.

[AdrianJ]

I suspect that there is no malice involved. They probably haven't got proper patterns, or say, a couple of s/a A10 tanks to use as a basis for the entire A range.
I've just bought a plunger toolbox which I'm happy with, though it is twice the weight of the original. Welded together rather than pressed and the rounded corners ground in. It will look fine though and it won't rot through in a hurry. Can't complain for £27 and £28 postage.
Adrian.