Rare 1960's MetalFrame Slate Bottom Tank

[Redearsunfish]

I love the look of metal frame tanks.

 

[mudbuttjones]

These antique tanks are awesome but I havent given them much thought until now.

My dad is 64 years old and has been keeping and breeding fish since he was barely old enough to read.

These are really interesting I think ive found the perfect birthday present for the old man.

Time to hunt Craigslist


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[rodger]

Around here they usually sell for same price as modern tanks. People that don't know aquariums try to sell as antiques. They sit on CL a long time when they are antiques.

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[Pharaoh]

Metaframes are price based on the local demand. It will vary by region. Though, most of the demand is for the larger and more oddball sizes.

 

[Trouser Cough]

The original material is a tar like substance. You can pour very hot water into the tanks and it will sometimes reseal them. There are recipes to make the substance if you really want to go old school. The real value lies in the hoods/lights more then the tanks because they are often lost or broken - unless they are large tanks. Silicone as a direct replacement won't work so good because it won't form a good seal to the slate bottom. Most people get thick or tempered glass and make a new bottom and let the slate sit on that.

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That "tar like substance" had a very high lead content. If you get the idea you'd like to melt that stuff w/ a torch it's best done outside. The old school method when you ran into a slow leak was to mix a couple handfuls of dirt in the tank and swirl it around hoping the dirt would seal the leak. It almost never did.

Better yet, replace the bottom slate and silicone the whole shooting match. If you decide to go that route I recommend not getting too OCD about it. The material that's been in there for 50 years is now very hard and if you start removing it you'll be at it for a long time. I'd just cut the sealant from the inside, replace the bottom pane and silicone the interior. Once that's done a dremel tool or a battery powered drill and some abrasive polish will get that stainless back up and looking good again. They sell a kit of three different cutting polishes at Home Depot.

 

[twentyleagues]

That "tar like substance" had a very high lead content. If you get the idea you'd like to melt that stuff w/ a torch it's best done outside. The old school method when you ran into a slow leak was to mix a couple handfuls of dirt in the tank and swirl it around hoping the dirt would seal the leak. It almost never did.

Better yet, replace the bottom slate and silicone the whole shooting match. If you decide to go that route I recommend not getting too OCD about it. The material that's been in there for 50 years is now very hard and if you start removing it you'll be at it for a long time. I'd just cut the sealant from the inside, replace the bottom pane and silicone the interior. Once that's done a dremel tool or a battery powered drill and some abrasive polish will get that stainless back up and looking good again. They sell a kit of three different cutting polishes at Home Depot.

Hey just point out this thread is over 8 years old. Not bad advise though.

 

[aussieman57]

I had a bunch of 2 gallon one's back in the 90's & used them for killifish. I resealed them with silicone.

 

[Trouser Cough]

Hey just point out this thread is over 8 years old. Not bad advise though.

Yes Sir. In my case it's ok for two reasons though...

- I'm old enough to have had a tank when those stainless tanks were new and

- I have the maturity level of an eight year old

Anybody looking to sort out one of the old school tanks is probably going to use the search feature. This site has a lot of chit chat on it but it's also a huge repository for useful detail that predecessors have already sorted out. In 15 years some old boot will be looking to rehab an old bomber tank that's been in his garage since the prior home owner and when he hits that search feature BOOM... there my eight year old self will be!