Reserve Tank
#12
The metric bikes I've owned have the long part of the lever pointing to the gas position. I had to do a double take on my Sportster when I first bought it to make sure of the petcock position. It is opposite of the Honda's and Suzuki's I've owned. I know I've got it right because I've gone to reserver twice since I bought it. I set the trip odometer at every re-fuel and when I see about 80 miles I start looking for a station.
#13
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#18
I was forced to fondle my petcock this past weekend as well.
After riding to a breakfast meeting, and returning to the bike afterwards, I start it up, pull out of the parking garage onto the street and... sputter/die. Good cranking, but no start. (For the record, I always turn the petcock closed when I shut down the bike, as I've been told that the gravity-fed fuel line will leak/flood the carb.) I was pretty sure I had fuel in the tank so I thought I had some kind of no-spark electrical problem. On a desperate whim, I turned the petcock to "Reserve" (pointing down) and the bike started right up and ran fine. I headed straight across the street to a station and filled no more than a gallon to top off the tank. Started it up (still in reserve-mode) and then turned the petcock to main while it was running. The bike ran just like it was supposed to from then on. I'm positive that I didn't have the arrow pointing in the wrong direction at any time.
Since I'm not sure how a stock tank/petcock/reserve works, it seemed to me that I had a clogged main petcock line. However...
I have an aftermarket stretched 4-gallon tank (didn't buy the tank - it was already on the bike). As I said, I'm not sure how the whole reserve thing works, but I doubt my aftermarket tank has a reserve sectioned off inside. But maybe it does.
Keeping the after-market tank in mind, does the petcock itself have separate screens/filters for both the main and reserve functions? I've had petcocks out and I know what the in-tank screen looks like, but from where does that reserve fuel come, and how does it get to the petcock?
After riding to a breakfast meeting, and returning to the bike afterwards, I start it up, pull out of the parking garage onto the street and... sputter/die. Good cranking, but no start. (For the record, I always turn the petcock closed when I shut down the bike, as I've been told that the gravity-fed fuel line will leak/flood the carb.) I was pretty sure I had fuel in the tank so I thought I had some kind of no-spark electrical problem. On a desperate whim, I turned the petcock to "Reserve" (pointing down) and the bike started right up and ran fine. I headed straight across the street to a station and filled no more than a gallon to top off the tank. Started it up (still in reserve-mode) and then turned the petcock to main while it was running. The bike ran just like it was supposed to from then on. I'm positive that I didn't have the arrow pointing in the wrong direction at any time.
Since I'm not sure how a stock tank/petcock/reserve works, it seemed to me that I had a clogged main petcock line. However...
I have an aftermarket stretched 4-gallon tank (didn't buy the tank - it was already on the bike). As I said, I'm not sure how the whole reserve thing works, but I doubt my aftermarket tank has a reserve sectioned off inside. But maybe it does.
Keeping the after-market tank in mind, does the petcock itself have separate screens/filters for both the main and reserve functions? I've had petcocks out and I know what the in-tank screen looks like, but from where does that reserve fuel come, and how does it get to the petcock?
#19
#20
Ah, Houston, we've found the problem. The narrow pointed end should be down, until you run otta gas. That's when ya do the little petcock flip, I mentioned. Turn it 180 degrees and then you'll be on reserve. You've been running with the petcock already set to reserve. So, when you run outta gas...it's time to PUSH.