Gas mileage and when to fill up

[DC]

here is what I thought was the best site and easiest to understand......

http://tourtank.com/

pretty decent prices and all....

Looks interesting.  So do the fuel tubes.  For the tanks, where do you think you would locate the on/off valve?

[chief]

On our western USA tour a few years ago, I learned quickly to fill up whenever I got the chance. Even on the interstates there are long stretches without fuel available. My GPS really helped in that respect... it allowed me to find those sometimes hidden fuel stops.

[CDNRatMan]

 Just a word of waring for tourists coming north, some back roads and secondary highways have no fuel for about 200kms.......on those trips I am going to get a couple of small bottles for fuel just in case....not all of them are signed either.

[45 Bravo]

Yea, in places in the sw USA you see signs saying
Last gas for 157 miles.. Or some other number that a Harley rider with a Peanut tank really don't want to see...

45 Bravo

[Drift1]

Oh,I see PC....I've never been out west so had no idea.Makes since when you mentioned the desert,though.I'm thinking about just carrying a half gallon for those oh s!!? moments  Ther's been a number of times that I was riding and just enjoying life with not even thinking about my fuel consumption.Before I knew it I was reaching down for the reserve switch.

[pcarrell]

That's more of a concern out west.  There's places in the deserts out west where there isn't anything for many miles.

[Drift1]

  are those in the store and do we make money off them?

That's a good question,Ratman.I've never thought about having a fuel issue before being there's gas stations everywhere,here in NY.Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to carry extra fuel for those long trips out of state just in case,though.

[jmbo]

I'm with Chief. I get numb butt about the 120 mark. So it's either stop for gas or stop for a beer. Buying gas is safer.

[John Hopkins]

I'm doing a 600 mile round trip this month, so I'll fill up, set the odometer to zero, run the bike 100 miles and see how much I've used, as I have a 16 litre tank and the fuel is sold in litres I plan to leave a 4 litre reserve in the tank at fill up, allowing for erratic riding it will sometimes drop to about 3 litres but at least I won't run out.

All I have to work out is how many kilometers I get to 12 litres.

What a strange country I live in..fuel sold in litres, roads measured in miles, speeding tickets in MPH, speedometer in MPH and odometer in Kilometres.

One of the problems of opening our borders to Europeans..

John.

[chief]

Yeah, stopping for fuel gives me a chance to stretch and helps keep me alert. Too long in the saddle and I tend to get... numb.

[chief]

We have a bunch in the Amazon store... search ACCESSORIES for fuel bottle and you get some things like this... expensive but cool. I also have added a section... FUEL BOTTLES... for the Optimus Bottles...  Unfortunately the search on there will not search the Every category.

[Troll]

See, this is why I have been working on getting improved fuel mileage from my 1500. I can now ride, non stop 190 miles, and still only put in 4 gals. to fill up. The last trip I made on my FLT (it was to go see the Drifter in the barn), I rode 234 miles on the 5 gal. tank, and went on reserve about a mile from my house....I love traveling on a motorcycle, but not spending time in gas stations.......

[CDNRatMan]

  are those in the store and do we make money off them?

I forgot about them.......was also thinking if I get 180 kms to a tank and then add a second tank of the same size (4 gal, or 15 liters) that would give me about 360 kms to the 2 tanks, once I stopped for gas it would be really ugly, as I tried to pry my stiff and sore body from the seat, my arthritis would have me glued to the seat......lol......

[chief]

Assuming you have bags of some nature. the cheapest, easiest and likely safest way to have extra fuel is to carry 3-4 fuel bottles. These are specifically intended for this purpose.

http://www.bing.com/shopping/search?q=fuel+bottles&qpvt=fuel+bottles&FORM=HURE#x0y0

http://www.uscav.com/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=22240&utm_medium=shoppingengine&utm_source=bingshopping&cm_mmc=BingShopping-_-Products-_-SF-_-V1

[jmbo]

Harley sells a 1 gal. gas can designed to wedge into the back corner of their hard bags.  Sells for $30 bucks.  The biggest thing is the can is sealed so no vapors get out.

Beyond that I've heard of guys fabbing fuel cells to  fit in either their saddle bags or top box and then plumb the gas into the main tank with a small electric pump. The top box designs I've seen have either baffles or of filled with cell foam to keep the gas from sloshing back and forth as you ride.

[CDNRatMan]

  here is what I thought was the best site and easiest to understand......

http://tourtank.com/

pretty decent prices and all....

[DC]

That should be interesting where and how to place a fuel cell.  What would it be, a half gallon?

[chief]

Being an old harley guy, it was hard to NOT get on the drifter and check the switch... it was second nature. I remember someone doing the fuel cell thing a few years ago. I will see if I can find any info on that.

[CDNRatMan]

  choke needed every time I fire the machine up first time of the day or after it has sat for awhile......coldest bike I have ever owned. Don't want to swap out tanks because I want to keep it original, however if the trip I am planning for this summer or next summer I will be thinking of an add on fuel cell, because in the Canadian north there are a few long stretches of highway and out in the Praries with little fuel stops.

And really how many people have forgotten to switch the lever back to on after hitting the reserve......I did it once, and now it is a natural reaction to reach down and just touch the lever to make sure it is in the down or on position every time I leave a gas station.

this spring I will be doing a ride with a backup of fuel to see how far I can go on a tank.

[45 Bravo]

You 800 riders have that all important RESERVE SWITCH.
Which is great IF you remembered to turn it back to ON when you filled up...

Our 1500's don't take kindly to running dry...

And I don't relish the prospect of pushing a 700 pound hippo down the road...

The good thing about fuel injected?
EVERYTHING, until you run it dry...

I can say, with my drifter, I don't even know if my choke works, I have never had to use it from 105deg heat to 12deg cold. It just fires right up...

45 Bravo

[CDNRatMan]

  yup that thing we 800 riders do not need because we ride within limits...or something like that .......or carry a 2 liter pop bottle full of gas just in case.....

[Troll]

You're talking about the push me soon light?

[mmedur]

I was going to say the same thing Gerhardberger, you beat me to it.

[Gerhardberger]

I just wait until the bingo fuel light comes on.....

Lucky you...We `800 Riders, don't have that important feature...

[greenbarn]

Yea, we're probabaly only about 25% of HD, right??   However,  this being my first bike, I honestly didn't realize the magnitude of the accessories budget....   (good thing my wife didn't set an actual budjet - I would have blown it already....) 8