Auxillary touring tanks.

caseyjones955 · Mar 15, 2016

I ordered the backrest, rack and brackets from Dobie for the purpose of mounting an aux tank (and increase comfort for wifey). So now I'm looking at tanks and the question comes up, baffles or not.

I know if it were the primary fuel tank it would be a no-brainer that baffles would be needed when used partially full on two wheels to avoid the sloshing and wt transfer issues. For my application It will either be bone dry or plum full while the bike is in motion. Is there any reason I should drop the extra $75 to get baffles since I will not be riding with it partially full?

Something like this is what I'm looking at, I figure 3 gallons would empty easily into the service tank without leaving a remainder in the touring tank. I would actually like to get one with an end fill instead of center,and position the filler neck to the right.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-Gallon-10...ash=item25b323e039:g:OXsAAOSwqu9VLrqs&vxp=mtr

Fire-medic · Mar 15, 2016

So 3 gallons = ~90 miles, the tank will be partially full while you draw-down the main tank if you run the valve open from the aux. tank to the main tank, unless you just run down the main tank and then dump to aux. tank into the nearly-empty main tank. In the latter method, I guess you wouldn't need the baffles.

On fire-rescue, we had a truck accident because someone had jury-rigged a big tank on their truck, using a roto-molded polyethelyne tank w/no baffles, and in a panic maneuver it made the truck unstable enough to cause him to lose control.

If you put it behind the sissy bar, I guess it won't be any worse than a tail trunk, as gas =~6 lb/gal. Don't rely on the stock VMax sissy bar carrier to carry that weight!

schudaddie · Mar 15, 2016

there was a good posting about this topic last august. you might want to check it out.
http://vmaxforum.net/showthread.php?t=38212&highlight=tank
and the link for the tank company doesn't seem to work but this one does.
http://www.coyotetanks.com/4-gallon-8-inch-diameter-end-fill-fuel-tank.html
davesax36 must have had them make him a narrow version to fit his rack or not. 20 inches wide might be what he has. maybe he will respond on this topic.
later, bill

davesax36 · Mar 15, 2016

Here's what I have. It's an 8x12 tourtank from coyote tanks. The company used to be called tour tank. It was the cheapest tank available. I had no issues with sloshing, but did have expansion issues because I was putting the cap on wrong for a while. I'm happy to answer any questions about my setup. I've only seen two others (I think) with an actual tourtank, but there are a few, I'm sure, who rebuilt the rear seat. Miles did his like that, but if/when you see his bike you'll realize that it's like a V-max in an exoskeleton. Way different than what you're setting up. I think the 10X12 gives 3 gallons. I never messed with the offset filler because it's not an option at this size.
Link to album below.

https://goo.gl/photos/8utGieHf1swL3RQq8

I ordered the 5/16" fittings and T'd into the U-turn fuel hose on top of the tank. I used a quick-disconnect coupling as well as a 90 degree turn ball valve for access.

I never really put more than 2.25 gallons in my 2.5 gallong tank.

caseyjones955 · Mar 15, 2016

Thank you gents! This is what I needed to see, I was wondering about a 12v valve but a manually operated valve is fine to. This will give me what I need to go forward and it answered a few questions I didn't even have yet.

davesax36 · Mar 15, 2016

So I re-read your post.

Don't get baffles. There's no reason to. You won't notice that kind of weight transfer anyway. If you get it, mount it as close to you as you can.

I wouldn't use it as a backrest, though.

2.25 gallons took a couple minutes to drain. I would flip the valve and keep riding, then when it started to cough, I'd close the valve.

How big is your bladder? stock tank plus 2ish gallons gave me about 200 miles of effective range. I never saw the reserve light come on during my Newfoundland trip. I would drain the aux tank at 110 miles, then fill up at 200. A six gallon non-stop trip on a v-max would require you to have a new seat... It wouldn't matter who you got it from, but you could go 240 miles before reserve on the highway. That's goldwing territory.

caseyjones955 · Mar 15, 2016

I'm good with the no baffle part, When I placed my order with Dobie I got the rack, backrest and brackets and had planned on mounting the tank on the rack as you did and as close to the backrest as possible without actual contact. I figure I might need to wrap it with one of my surplus ALICE bags to mask it from smokey questioning it's legality.

My need for fuel range is not only how long to be in the saddle but also I seem to end up places fuel availability may be less than ideal, I stay off the interstate as much as possible and sometimes end up in the rural unknown, sometimes I even leave the pavement behind. 200+ miles is a bare minimum.

I have a mighty 3L bladdar so I can go for the long haul! :th_stophierPeeingIn

davesax36 · Mar 15, 2016

I never had any questions about legality. Not a bad idea to put it in a bag, though. I mounted mine with some of those metal strips with two holes in them I got at the hardware store. I had to lengthen one of the holes, but it worked fine. That range should do fine for you, then. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help with setup.

caseyjones955 · Apr 16, 2016

I found one on Ebay, 8x16, but I felt 16 was a touch wide so I had the seller whip me up an 8x14, placed the order yesterday and it shipped today, mighty fast and $120 shipped. I'll get pics of it installed.

davesax36 · Apr 16, 2016

That's a good size. What's the capacity?

caseyjones955 · Apr 22, 2016

It arrived pretty quickly, he stated it as 3 gal, and the 8x16 was 3.25 as I recall, so it's in the neighborhood of what I need. It only took 4-5 days to get here after emailing him the specs I was after. I'm pretty impressed. I'll get it installed and get a few pics up this coming week.

Redbone · Apr 22, 2016

I would be interested in pictures too, I'm planning on using 2 - 1L MSR fuel bottles as a backup. I have a 5 gal tank so I should good for almost 200 mi per tank if not in Hooligan mode, the MSR will be for emergency use only and probably will be carried in 2 tool tubes; mounting location to be determined. Possibly on the bottom of the Cyclistic luggage rack.

caseyjones955 · Apr 22, 2016

Here is the original listing, this pic is of the 8x16, the actual one I got was shortened by 2". In the pic the finish looks blotchy but in person it's very nice. Basic but nice. Now I'm going back through this thread to find the sweetest way to plumb it in with a petcock and a T.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/272212332757?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

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