Hi Pete-
There is a lot of history in the site and the bulletins on the fuel tank problem. Since you have to move the engine to get the tank out, many opt for a new tank. We repaired ours with several layers of fiberglass and West epoxy. This is ABYC legal if you have an aluminum tank, but not for a steel tank. There should be no fittings on the tank bottom.
The theory is that staples under the tanks eat holes in them. Our tank clearly failed from the inside, where water and/or debris settled. All but the bottom was intact. I suppost that if you could find someone willing to weld on a used fuel tank, it would be repairable. I couldn’t find anyone, even after I power washed it.
Quent
Clairebuoyant