wasted money
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Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,504
Likes: 150
From: ct
wasted money
Some of you may remember a while back in a thread I could not find, about fuel petcock. Well the no-name brand I thought would be sufficient is junk. The on position still sucked all the fuel out and left no reserve fuel. Now it's leaking from the valve.
Took it apart and the gasket used is a friggin joke, no wonder they have gaskets available in the catalog with it for a dollar. Buy cheap get cheap...
Unfortunately I can't afford the $120. Pingle but I did order a Sifton today for half the cost and I DO expect this will be quality and NOT a waste of money. I rely on the reserve.
The moco says that the cheap one they carry is identical to the one I have and is probably drag specialties or something like that.
The point is with the money now spent, there could be a pingle on it.
Took it apart and the gasket used is a friggin joke, no wonder they have gaskets available in the catalog with it for a dollar. Buy cheap get cheap...
Unfortunately I can't afford the $120. Pingle but I did order a Sifton today for half the cost and I DO expect this will be quality and NOT a waste of money. I rely on the reserve.
The moco says that the cheap one they carry is identical to the one I have and is probably drag specialties or something like that.
The point is with the money now spent, there could be a pingle on it.
Road Warrior
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 1,334
Likes: 17
From: Rosamond, Cali
Sifton was sold a while ago and is produced in Taiwan now I believe. I wouldn't have any issues buying the brand. I had a Sifton oil pressure gauge (purchased in the last couple of years) and it was very good quality. Still working on the bike when I sold it.
As for pouring good money down the drain, who hasn't? It's a crap shoot sometimes.
Alan
As for pouring good money down the drain, who hasn't? It's a crap shoot sometimes.
Alan
Club Member
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 22,857
Likes: 17,908
From: Lafayette, Louisiana
I replaced mine with an OEM one two or three years ago. I bought it at the dealer and it was an HD item, not drag specialties or other aftermarket. It is better than my original because it makes a click sound that can be felt when you reach each of the three positions. I forgot what I paid, but it was nowhere near the cost of a pingle. It has never leaked and the reserve functions as it should.
What I have noticed over the years is that some brands are hard to tell which direction is On and which direction is Off. I made that mistake before and ended up walking kind of far to a convenience store, buying a small gas can and gas, and walking back to my bike. I was much younger and healthier then. What I do now is when I replace a petcock on a bike, I carry a small gas can in a saddlebag until I run through one or two tanks of gas just in case I get screwed up or the new one functions different than the old one. I know that sounds paranoid, but I think I have ran out of gas and had to walk more times than anyone else on this forum. I also know that sounds stupid, but there were peculiar circumstances each time it has happened to me. I would even sometimes try leaning the bike over while stopped on the side of the road, trying to get more fuel to make it from one side of the tank to the petcock so I could maybe ride a little bit closer to the direction of a gas station. That actually works by the way.
What I have noticed over the years is that some brands are hard to tell which direction is On and which direction is Off. I made that mistake before and ended up walking kind of far to a convenience store, buying a small gas can and gas, and walking back to my bike. I was much younger and healthier then. What I do now is when I replace a petcock on a bike, I carry a small gas can in a saddlebag until I run through one or two tanks of gas just in case I get screwed up or the new one functions different than the old one. I know that sounds paranoid, but I think I have ran out of gas and had to walk more times than anyone else on this forum. I also know that sounds stupid, but there were peculiar circumstances each time it has happened to me. I would even sometimes try leaning the bike over while stopped on the side of the road, trying to get more fuel to make it from one side of the tank to the petcock so I could maybe ride a little bit closer to the direction of a gas station. That actually works by the way.
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,898
From: Bedford UK
I have to say I did begrudge paying out for a Pingle, however it was a one stop shop for converting an EFI tank over, so I am reconciled, at least in part! Unfortunately in my experience it is far more expensive things that can catch us out and have to be redone - I can cope with the cheaper traps in life.
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 8,852
Likes: 2,493
From: Decatur, Alabama
I bought a cheapie petcock once and found out that it wasn't even made correctly. As best as I could tell, it appeared to be machined backwards. It never worked right from the start. I got a refund and bought a Pingle. No troubles since. I even stopped to help a guy on the side of the road who had a problem with a defective petcock he put on his bike.
carl
carl
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 9,562
Likes: 7,916
From: Long Island, New York
I run stock on my bikes never had an issue.
My brother runs a Pingle on his Shovel for over twenty years. First went bad and he bought a new one. A couple of years later he found out Pingle will fix it under warranty for free, so he sent the first one to them, the fixed it and sent it back, FREE. Now he has two since the second one never failed the original one is waiting in the tool box. Just sayin'.
My brother runs a Pingle on his Shovel for over twenty years. First went bad and he bought a new one. A couple of years later he found out Pingle will fix it under warranty for free, so he sent the first one to them, the fixed it and sent it back, FREE. Now he has two since the second one never failed the original one is waiting in the tool box. Just sayin'.
"Buy the best and you only cry once", and all that.
Pingels sure are nice.
Still, it amazes me that people seem to have trouble making something as simple as a low-pressure valve that is reliable at a decent price. Alas.
I've got my Pingle, so I figure I'm set for life.
Pingels sure are nice.
Still, it amazes me that people seem to have trouble making something as simple as a low-pressure valve that is reliable at a decent price. Alas.
I've got my Pingle, so I figure I'm set for life.