Plastic molding??? Motorcycle tanks

[Caleb]

So I've been thinking about experimenting with doing some plastic molding. I don't know if injection molding or vacuum molding would be more suitable. I'm thinking about trying to build a gas tank for my motorcycle. The current one is far too small and I can't find any aftermarket options (other than carrying auxiliary tanks, which isn't my first choice). So, does anyone here have any kind of experience with this? Would a Styrofoam mold work? I don't plan to reproduce these, this would be a one off thing. Tell me if I'm crazy

 

[Greg]

How about pouring boiling water into the tank, then pressurizing it with compressed air? Not the most scientific thing and it's not going to gain you 2+ gallons, but it's a start!

How many miles do you get out of a tank?

 

[I Lean]

English wheel and steel. :greg:

 

[Caleb]

How about pouring boiling water into the tank, then pressurizing it with compressed air? Not the most scientific thing and it's not going to gain you 2+ gallons, but it's a start!

How many miles do you get out of a tank?

I need to do something. I'm only getting about 1.2 usable gallons, so I get ~45 miles or so...tops! My tank is supposed to be 2.4 gallons but I'm surely not seeing that. I need to pull my tank off and see if there is something blocking/plugged/etc. When I ran out of fuel on my ride and switched to my reserve, I only got about another 5 miles or so. Luckily I was carrying a 1 gal jug on the back of my bike, but that still won't work for most rides I plan to do.

English wheel and steel. :greg:

I'm seriously contemplating it. I've never done any kind of real metal sculpting work, so it'd be interesting.

 

[Corban_White]

Pull the petcock out and clean it. That should get you a bit more on reserve. The way tanks, jugs, soda bottles, etc. are made is pretty interesting. First they make a 2-piece mold of the outside-usually out of steel or Al. They get a plastic blank, likely in the shape of a cylinder. Then they heat it and clamp each end in the mold and then force compressed air into it. This gives the shape and the plastic flows to an almost uniform thickness. Pretty cool. I'll see if I can find a video.

And unless you want to do it that way or make it in 2 halves and bolt/plastic weld together (vacuum forming would work quite well for this), I think Carl's suggestion is the best option. Another option would be the number plate tanks.


EDIT: here is a decent video. There are others out there, just search for blow molding:

http://www.devicelink.com/mddi/blow_molding/

 

[ricsrx]

I did a motor swap on my quad, the new motor interfered with tank. so i cut out one side, bent the other side over and used a HF plastic welder w/ plastic from the left over tanks parts. I should have never psi tested it, it blew out and i could never get it to seal, maybe if would have used some other filler rod material it would have bonded better. tank sealer does not work on plastic.
I ended up making a new tank out of aluminum.

 

[Greg]

Hey Caleb!! 5 gallon tank for your bike.

http://www.justgastanks.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_5_132&products_id=304

:greg:

 

[Caleb]

Hey Caleb!! 5 gallon tank for your bike.

http://www.justgastanks.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_5_132&products_id=304

:greg:

That's for an 06-07.

I tore into my tank the other day and solved part of my problem. The reserve line was clogged, so I was essentially missing half of my tank capacity. I now have a full 2.4 gallons of usable fuel. I also purchased a 1 gal RotoPax (www.rotopax.com) and I'm probably going to be buying 2 2 gal fuel jugs and a 2 gal water jug. I took my bike for a ride yesterday (~100 miles) and made it the whole way on a single tank. This is a lot better. I'd still love it if I could find an aftermarket 4-5 gallon tank but I don't think it'll happen. The newer Huskies (that are far more common in the US, and overall) only have limited options, I doubt my bike (that only has ~40 in the US) will ever see much in direct aftermarket support.

 

[Chevycrew]

Can you find a tank from an overseas manufacturer/supplier?

 

[Greg]

That's for an 06-07.

I tore into my tank the other day and solved part of my problem. The reserve line was clogged, so I was essentially missing half of my tank capacity. I now have a full 2.4 gallons of usable fuel. I also purchased a 1 gal RotoPax (www.rotopax.com) and I'm probably going to be buying 2 2 gal fuel jugs and a 2 gal water jug. I took my bike for a ride yesterday (~100 miles) and made it the whole way on a single tank. This is a lot better. I'd still love it if I could find an aftermarket 4-5 gallon tank but I don't think it'll happen. The newer Huskies (that are far more common in the US, and overall) only have limited options, I doubt my bike (that only has ~40 in the US) will ever see much in direct aftermarket support.

Any idea if the newer tank will come close to fitting on your bike? I bet the guys on ADVrider could tell ya. I didn't realize your bike was so rare, that bites for aftermarket support.

Glad you got full capacity out of the bike, 100 miles is much better.

 

[Caleb]

I tried. There's even a mfg down in Australia (where these bikes have been very popular for a long time) and they don't offer anything. I've asked on all the forums I can find and the only solution people have is to use aux tanks. I thought about making a custom aux tank that will mount in the rear wheel well, but I can only get it to fit .5 gallon. I may still do it in the future, but for now the rotopax tanks should work.

 

[Caleb]

Any idea if the newer tank will come close to fitting on your bike? I bet the guys on ADVrider could tell ya. I didn't realize your bike was so rare, that bites for aftermarket support.

Glad you got full capacity out of the bike, 100 miles is much better.

Yeah, I already tried asking on ADV Rider and didn't get much. thread

I doubt a newer tank will fit, the 2001-2004 are the same tanks, 05 has it's own tank, and 06-07 has it's own tank. So that would be two revisions.

I knew this bike was semi-rare in the US, but didn't think it'd be as rare as it is worldwide. I still love this bike though. Although, the lack of fuel options has got me seriously thinking about an F850GS as a second bike. :greg:

 

[Greg]

Yeah, I already tried asking on ADV Rider and didn't get much. thread

I doubt a newer tank will fit, the 2001-2004 are the same tanks, 05 has it's own tank, and 06-07 has it's own tank. So that would be two revisions.

I knew this bike was semi-rare in the US, but didn't think it'd be as rare as it is worldwide. I still love this bike though. Although, the lack of fuel options has got me seriously thinking about an F850GS as a second bike. :greg:

I bumped your thread to see if we could dig up more info.

I know many other people have retro-fitted tanks from different models and bikes to gain more capacity. I really wonder how big the difference is between your bike and the newer bike and that 5 gallon tank. I don't know how the TE is put together far as the tank, but I wonder if you ought to consider looking at a newer bike and seeing how close it is. Perhaps even buy that 5 gallon tank and try to make it work for you.

5 gallons is a perfect capacity for a dual-sport, getting 200/250 miles out of a tank is how it should be, IMO.

Those F850GS's are badass... :greg: I bet they're heavy though.

 

[Caleb]

I bumped your thread to see if we could dig up more info.

I know many other people have retro-fitted tanks from different models and bikes to gain more capacity. I really wonder how big the difference is between your bike and the newer bike and that 5 gallon tank. I don't know how the TE is put together far as the tank, but I wonder if you ought to consider looking at a newer bike and seeing how close it is. Perhaps even buy that 5 gallon tank and try to make it work for you.

I thought about doing that. Looking at the parts manuals, it looks like the back of the tank mounts completely different though. If I can return that tank if it doesn't work (i.e. it's not considered a special order item) then I may give it a try.

5 gallons is a perfect capacity for a dual-sport, getting 200/250 miles out of a tank is how it should be, IMO.

I'd LOVE to get 200+ out of my tank. I agree, that would be about perfect.

Those F850GS's are badass... :greg: I bet they're heavy though.

Yeah, dry they weigh just under 400 lbs, road ready they are around 450 lbs. They can carry over 500 lbs of gear

 

[Caleb]

Hmmm, the 00-04 TE/TC looks like it mounts exactly like mine does. That means I could get a 3.7 gal tank. I would also have to buy the side plastics but they only run $32 each, so no big deal. I may give this a shot.

 

[Greg]

Hmmm, the 00-04 TE/TC looks like it mounts exactly like mine does. That means I could get a 3.7 gal tank. I would also have to buy the side plastics but they only run $32 each, so no big deal. I may give this a shot.

 

[Caleb]

So, I was looking through my owners manual tonight and noticed the Australia version of my bike has a larger tank...a 4.5 gallon version Now I need to find out how to get a hold of one of these tanks I'm excited now!

 

[Greg]

Lots of Aussies on ADV Rider, I would imagine there's even an AU-based sub-forum. Post up in there and make a friend.

 

[Caleb]

OK, so I found a 5.5 gal tank for my bike...I'm super excited, only problem is the guy wants $950 I'd pay around $600-$650 right now for a tank that size, just don't know if I can justify nearly $1000.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

That is insane!