Author Topic: Auxilliary Tanks  (Read 1664 times)

Andy M

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Auxilliary Tanks
« on: January 03, 2009, 05:00:29 PM »
Not so much a project report as a final write up, but here goes.

The Llanthoney trip finally convinced me the Bonnevilles range was too useless to live with. Coming home I set off with half a tank, so had to stop and empty the Jerry can into the bike while still in Wales. I made it as far as the M-42, but calculated I couldn't reach Donnington so stopped again. Having stopped short I then needed a third stop to reach Leeds without running on vapour. So, three stops in 220 miles, or half an hour wasted and a lot of pointless stressing and mental arithmatic  >:(

Solutions available were:

1. Norman Hyde 4 gallon tank at £800  :o
2. Jerry can and pump set up like Julians.
3. Gravity fed auxilliary tank.
4. Cut and welded main tank.

The £800 thing is an insane amount to give a 50 mile increase in range.

I didn't like the idea of cutting my one and only tank, having a section welded in and resealed with Petseal.

The Jerry can and pump idea is the most promissing for most bikes and the cheapest. Fuel pumps can be aquired for under £75 and the can, wiring and welding would bring the whole project in at under £130. However, knowing the Bonneville carbs of old I know that any restriction in the fuel line has the ability to stop the engine. An experiment with a spigot brazed into a 10 litre can and pressurised with a fish tank syphon (the fish lived BTW  :o) proved this. The only solution then would be to weld a second feed into the main tank to even the pumps flow, giving the same issue as the cut and shut tank. Second hand tanks on E-bay go for over £100  :(

Gravity feeding is much gentler, the carbs can take what they like via a simple T. Playing with the 10 litre can I found I could gravity feed to my hearts content. The problem with this is the shape of the tank. A jerry can needs a breather which with a vertical tank puts the weight too high and with a flat one would take up a lot of space and have a huge dead volume (or would spill on each corner). What I needed was a custom made tank. The first quote was £400  :o :(. Alifab however came back with a sensible £70  :).

I had a standard seat base (use a K and Q seat otherwise the intercom makes a noise that goes "bum hurts, bum hurts, bum hurts...." whenever Karen rides on the bike) going spare. Removing the foam I decided to fit the tank to the base with it's own tap and an Enfield solo seat for me. The question is how big a tank?

Aircraft people and race teams know there is only one right amount of fuel. Too much and you carry weight when you don't need it (think of all those BMW's with £500 41 litre Acerbis tanks that only ever go 100 miles a day  ???). Too little and you stop too often and waste time. I therefore decided to base the auxilliary around a pair of ten litre jerry cans which gives me three set ups:

1. K&Q seat, standard tank only: 140 miles range, fine for family outings.
2. Solo seat & Aux tank: 240 miles range, for long distance motorway trips etc
3. As above but add 2 10-litre cans: 420 miles range for the desert/Norway with a single stop to empty each can into a tank.

The Auxilliary tank therefore needed to be 10 litres plus it's dead volume. Alifab did the job in just under a week. The results can be see here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31662519@N03/

Andy

guest7

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #1 on: January 03, 2009, 11:47:28 PM »
The results can be seen here:


I also noticed the other photo:


Wasn't that the outfit you took to the '04 Elefant? That was a bloody great trip and, it has to be said, you and Tim were great company... especially so after pushing my dead outfit around that trading estate for half an hour  ::)

GC

Andy M

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #2 on: January 04, 2009, 11:57:20 AM »
That is indeed the 2004 outfit.

Thought we did Ok bumping yours, especially after we found a surface the back wheel would actually grip on  ;D

Andy

steveD

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #3 on: January 04, 2009, 12:45:13 PM »
Now that looks damn smart, will be good to see it in the 'Flesh'. What is the full name of this company and address? Cheers SteveD
If I'm not working I'll be away on my bike camping!

Andy M

  • Posts: 1709
Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #4 on: January 05, 2009, 12:26:43 PM »
Contact Pete via lorrainedimmock(at)btinternet.com or take a look at alifab uk via google. They sell on e-bay in various sizes and will quote to your exact spec.

Andy

themoudie

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #5 on: January 05, 2009, 08:57:22 PM »
Aye Andy,

A healthy 2009 to you and yours. Worth putting in the 'Recommended services' forum? ;)

My regards, Bill.

guest7

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #6 on: January 05, 2009, 09:05:21 PM »
That tank looks just the thing for Boyd to store his chilli vodka in  ;)

GC

robG

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #7 on: January 06, 2009, 06:37:00 PM »
Very nice job and ,rare these days , a nice price .

Rob.

guest18

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #8 on: January 25, 2009, 06:24:09 PM »
Looks nice, as an aside for those thinking of mounting extra tanks lower, you could also use a manually controlled electric pump to fill your "normal" petrol tank from a reserve tank...

johnr

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Re: Auxilliary Tanks
« Reply #9 on: March 02, 2009, 10:31:50 AM »
you used to be able to buy a sidecar mudguard that also contained an auxiliary mudguard in its read end. it held a couple of gallons. personally i favour a pumped tank either under the sidecar floor or between the chair and the bike.