The bearing bushing for the gear change shaft that sits above the gas taken
has come apart on my 81 Westy.  It now clunks during a gear change and
occasionally hits a resonant spot while in 3rd gear.  Not too bad of an
issue but one I'd like to solve.

Looking at the job it seems that I must remove the gas tank to get access
to replace the bushing.  While reviewing Samba etc on how to remove/replace
the gas tank it seems there is a wide range of opinions on how much of a
job that is.  I've never done it myself.

Currently, the gas tank and its expansion tanks and tubes do not leak
 and perform their job admirably.  I don't know when the seals/tubes etc
were last replaced.  I've owned the Westy for four years.

So my quandary is should I put up with the noisy gear shift until I have
to remove the gas tank for other reasons or is the effort worth the time to
replace the gear shift bearing bushing just to silence the clunk?

I realise the answer to this question is a matter of opinion but if anyone
that has experience in removing and replacing the gas tank has the time to
opine I would be most grateful.

I have learny a lot from this list. Thanks in advance.