Distance riding?

["Captain D"]

I ain`t gonna try to talk you outta it, You GO BOY!!!
See ya at ThunderBeach???
Ride Safe ~ Ride FAR with aux fuel,
"D"

[kacealraid]

Well, you seem set on doing this crazy task. I respect that. Do what you find fun and exciting.

[ralphlong]

Sometimes projects like these, as crazy as they seem to others, are therapeutic. They allow you to think creatively and try out new things. If they work out, you can be proud of your accomplishment. If not, you will have learned something.

As a previous poster said: "you go boy!" and let us know how things worked out.

[superdiver]

I like the idea of adding fuel storage, not a fan of the idea you are going with, but that in no way makes it "wrong". I like the link to the tourtanks that was posted, some very nice products and ideas there

and 400 miles IS distance if you are a short daily commuter!

And here in Alaska and in BC you better be able to go at least 100 miles without fueling! ask me how i KNOW !!!!

[ptgb]

Let me get this straight... You come on the board here and give an idea, soliciting opinions about it. When the opinions given are mostly contrary to what you want to hear, you give different reasons for doing it? I don't get it.

If you want to do it... do it. It's un-necessary and serves no purpose for the riding scenarios given, but have at it. Since when is riding about getting there as quick as you can without getting off the bike? If that's how you want to ride, you might as well get a Civic, turn on the air conditioner and CD player and go to Michigan that way... cause your way sure ain't riding.

IMO:

I have been through Wisconsin, Chicago, and mid-Michigan, MANY times. you can't spit without hitting a gas station/Kwicky Mart.

I have been to few places in the United States/Canada where gas is more than 50 miles away (and part of the route we are taking). And, these areas include north and east shores of Lake Superior, western Nebraska/east Colorado front range, Wyoming (the whole darn State), etc. Some of the Valks I ride with only get 120 miles out of a tank... and it has NEVER been a problem.

New gas cans spouts all leak? Not if you put them on correctly. Spend 8 bucks and buy a two gallon can and strap it to your rear seat for all this distance/duration riding you are doing through one of the most populated areas in the midwest.

[sanoke]

Let me just throw in my 2 cents worth. I have a tour tank that holds 2.25 gal and it's really nice to have that extra 100 miles or so range. However, with the setup you are talking about, I would worry about it not feeding the fuel pump correctly. I did an experiment once thinking that I might be able to eliminate the fuel pump. Since my aux tank is mounted fairly high in the back, I thought I would be able to feed the carb without the fuel pump. What I discovered was that it works fine in cold weather but once the weather warmed up, I ended up with vapor lock and it wouldn't feed the carb. I think the reason Honda put the fuel pump so low on the bike was to get enough pressure on the inlet to the pump to keep the fuel from vaporizing. If you don't have that height, on a hot day, the fuel may vaporize on the inlet to the pump and it will just suck fumes, not gas.

You won't know until you try and if you run from the aux tank first, you can always switch back to the main but I'd hate to see you on your way to Alaska thinking you've got more gas that you can acutally get to.

sanoke

[CBH]

Originally Posted by maxtrax

I am looking at making a saddle bag auxiliary gas tank for my bike that will be t'd into the main line just before my fuel pump. It will be made from an old 20mm ammo can with a stainless steel slip in tank (so it matches the other side saddle bag). From my calculations it should hold an extra 3-4 gallons. People have told me that if I can ride 150 miles I will be doing really good if I don't need to stop.

The reason I want to make an aux tank is I will be using the bike on a 400 mile trip to/from visiting family a couple times during the summer. There aren't alot of gas stations around and I would prefer to be able to stop where/when I want and not be dependent on always finding a gas station.

I have ridden 4 wheelers alot in the past and can ride for hours on end without stopping. With a motorcycle does your butt really get that much more sore riding?

I would think that something like this would be easy enough to incorporate inside a saddle bag.
Acerbis Front Auxiliary Fuel Tank 1.3 Gallon - White | MotoSport

[gat803]

Originally Posted by ptgb

Let me get this straight... You come on the board here and give an idea, soliciting opinions about it. When the opinions given are mostly contrary to what you want to hear, you give different reasons for doing it? I don't get it.

If you want to do it... do it. It's un-necessary and serves no purpose for the riding scenarios given, but have at it. Since when is riding about getting there as quick as you can without getting off the bike? If that's how you want to ride, you might as well get a Civic, turn on the air conditioner and CD player and go to Michigan that way... cause your way sure ain't riding.

Exactly right...

[still.southern]

If you set on going for a project then do it...lots of good inventions are made that way. Besides, I just built a VT500 into a two up long distance bike so I can't criticize doing something that's out of the ordinary. My question is do you need to really make it so you can just switch to it? Why not just pour it in when you hit reserve? You could just pull off, stretch, add gas, and keep going...no gas station required. One premade solution is Kolpin. I made a luggage rack that can hold two regular gas cans well secured. Check out: http://www.kolpinpowersports.com/fue...-brackets.html

[ShadowChromeMan]

A couple enduro companies make extended range tanks that you could put back there. MSR makes an air tight gas can for their cooking stoves (used for hiking and camping... I may have a few). But as they are airtight you can pack them away without risk or smell of gas on other items in your pack.

I used them to cook with (my stove can run on regular unleaded) so I use the can as a backup when I am riding.