Just got a 1970 914-4 that has been off the road for 19 years. Naturally the fuel tank was stored with gas in it. When it arrived in VA from CA, the tank was disconnected. After a new battery, an oil change, new plugs and a shot of fogging oil, the engine will start briefly on starting fluid.

As a first step to getting it back on the road, I spent about a week cleaning the tank (Evaporust, several rounds of vinegar and salt, flushed with water and baking soda, flushed with water and Dawn, pressure washed, flushed with MEK until completely clean, and coated with Damon's Red Kote to prevent further rust).

Afterwards, when I tried to remove the pick up and return lines to clean them out, I found the lines soldered to the tank. Is this common? I was expecting to remove both lines, clean the tubes, replace the fuel strainer and seals, and then reassemble. Should I care? I guess it does prevent leaks. With this set up it appears the fuel filter is the only defense for the fuel pump. Of course removing the tank to change the fuel strainer again down the road is a pain in the ass.

Any input is appreciated. Thanks.

A newly/refurbished tank is easily sourced. That said, no, the tank pick-ups should not be soldered. Gas delivery is very important in your build. And;

PO must have had a leak he was unable to seal. Those nuts are Aluminum and should come off easily enough. There is no way those nuts could be soldered to the steel tank. Only to the lines. You could fill the tank with any inert gas and heat up those soldered joints. as the solder melts blow off the rest with compressed air. Or skip all that and just saw the lines below the nuts and replace the nuts and lines. Given that there were soldered in the first place you may have an uneven sealing area on one of those threaded pieces in which case you could file it even OR use 2 AN fittings and run AN hose. But that gets expensive.