73 OE fuel tank questions

I recently cracked the breather outlet on the driver side. It was a result of storing too much in the spare tire well (too much weight, thin steel flexing from hitting a bump, hitting the outlet)

So my 2 remedy suggestions (aisde from not storing anything in the well ever again)

eliminating this outlet

Is it possbile to completely remove this vent outlet and seal the hole off leaving only the 2 vent outlets on the top most portion of the tank?

spacing the fuel tank

I was thinking of using ".250 harder durometer rubber and placing that between the top of the tank and the spare tire well to create more clearance if i choose to leave the outlet. (hopefully this would be thin enough where it wont affect the straps).

Any thoughts are appreciated

Thanks

Todd