zinc coating a gas tank? 1957

[57CaddyBiarritz]

So my authenticity book tells me that the gas tank on my 57 should be zinc coated.  However, all the vendors that I find only sell new steel tanks that are painted silver.  Anyone have an opinion on having that new tank zinc coated?  What about powder coating?  Certainly, I'm looking for originality, but it seems like its overboard to zinc coat a brand new tank.

thanks!

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

The thing with petrol tanks is that it is the inside that is most important.

All Petrol Tanks have a "tinned" inner coating and this could just as well carry over to the outside as they are being built.   Tinning is the cheapest method of protecting the metal of a petrol tank from rusting, as any condensation inside a petrol tank will cause it o rust, and this is not good for performance, or longevity.

Diesel fuel tanks are not tinned, as the Diesel is its' own rust-proofer.

You can put Diesel into a Petrol Tank, but not the other way.

Bruce.

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

I forgot to mention that any process to the outside that creates a lot of heat, could ruin the inside of the tank, as Solder melts at a low temperature.

Bruce.