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Rebuild or Replace Fuel Petcock

  • Thread starter Thread starter Tamara
  • Start date Start date
T

Tamara

Guest
Now that I'm derusting the inside of my gas tank, I have to decide whether to rebuild the existing petcock or replace it. It doesn't leak but the lever does not turn very easily.
 
I always replace, never had any luck with rebuilding them. They still usually leak after rebuild.
 
just try stripping it down, give it a good clean up, check for worn seals or diaphragms before replacing as you may not need them.
rebuild it and smear the moving parts with silicon based grease. it will be nice and smooth and operate freely afterwards
 
I have got 2 kits from Z1 and neither fixed my leaking petcock on the 78 1000E.. New oring in the lever, new opring in the diaphram..nothing ever worked..that being siad, if they are still available I would get 2 NEW ones and throw one on the shelf for future use.

Thats just my opinion of course.
 
I'm leaning towards a new one based on everyone's input. Since there's nothing to be lost by disassembling this one to see if the problem is obvious, I'm going to do that too.
 
My GS petcock was hard to turn. I disassembled it and found it was the o-ring. Replaced it with a viton from mcmasterscarr, turned fine.
 
To EVERYONE:::: From time to time, put a drop or two of 3 IN 1 oil at the top of the lever and let it seep in and down around the lever hub..then rotate it back and forth to work the oil in..youll be amazed at how smooth and easy they really do turn!!! Yet again this is another NEVER THOUGHT OF maintenance area.
 
If it's not leaking don't even think of replacing it. Spray the lever with some WD-40 and gently put it on reserve. There is no need to keep playing with the selector, just put it on reserve and forget about it.

The only reason I would ever use the selector is to put it on prime after the bike was sitting for a long time. Your car doesn't have a "reserve", so why should your bike.

Cheers,

Chris
 
shirazdrum said:
Your car doesn't have a "reserve", so why should your bike.
Click to expand...
I believe that would be because virtually every car available has a gas gauge.

Fortunately, most of the GS line also has a gauge, but that feature was the exception, rather than the rule back in the day.

.
 
Steve said:
I believe that would be because virtually every car available has a gas gauge.

Fortunately, most of the GS line also has a gauge, but that feature was the exception, rather than the rule back in the day.

.
Click to expand...
LOL. Thanks, Steve. I got two laughs out of this; the first was the "leave it on RES" post, the second was your response. I love a good chuckle first thing in the morning.
Back when I was riding two strokes, I had to use the odometer to gauge when I was getting close, but I did not always guess correctly, and RES would get me to the station.
 
I replaced mine, was less than $80 from Boulevard Suzuki.

Mine was always a little stiff to turn, so I dismantled it during the rebuild and discovered the metal disc in there was smashed to pieces... I don't believe that part comes in the rebuild kits either.
 
Overhauled the one on my new to me tank after de-rusting it, with new innards and with a little anti-seize on the moving parts it's good to go..
 
koolaid_kid said:
LOL. Thanks, Steve. I got two laughs out of this; the first was the "leave it on RES" post, the second was your response. I love a good chuckle first thing in the morning.
Back when I was riding two strokes, I had to use the odometer to gauge when I was getting close, but I did not always guess correctly, and RES would get me to the station.
Click to expand...

I was referring to the bike she's riding and her bike does have a fuel gauge. we're not talking about two strokes. My point was that motorcycles with fuel gauge don't need reserve function as it doesn't serve any purpose other than wearing down the petcock.
 
shirazdrum said:
I was referring to the bike she's riding and her bike does have a fuel gauge. we're not talking about two strokes. My point was that motorcycles with fuel gauge don't need reserve function as it doesn't serve any purpose other than wearing down the petcock.
Click to expand...

I've actually never used the petcock beyond priming the carbs if it's sat for awhile. Since I have the tank off right now for derusting, I'm going to need to prime the carbs when it goes back on.
 
shirazdrum said:
I was referring to the bike she's riding and her bike does have a fuel gauge. we're not talking about two strokes. My point was that motorcycles with fuel gauge don't need reserve function as it doesn't serve any purpose other than wearing down the petcock.
Click to expand...
Well, giving that little piece a quarter-turn every month or so (depending on how often you let the tank get low) is certainly not going to "wear it down".

Relying on the accuracy of a motorcycle fuel gauge takes a lot of faith, too. I would be inclined to believe it if I had calibrated it (and most riders don't), but there is still the possiblity that a wire came out of a poorly crimped connector or some other remote possibility that would prevent proper operation of a fuel gauge. There is also the situation where you are just enjoying the road so much that you have not noticed the status of your fuel supply for a while.

There is quite a difference in your frame of mind when your options are "oops, I had better turn the petcock to REServe and find a gas station" or
"
cus.gif
now I have to walk to a station and hope that they have a can I can use."
icon_banghead.gif


Personally, I will chance "wearing down" the petcock.


Now, let me hit the ball squarely back into the other court:
What about all those guys that hate the vacuum petcock and insist on a manual one, like a Pingle? :-k

They will be "wearing down the petcock" several times a day, as they will be turning it ON and OFF every time they stop for gas or a meal. :-\\\

.
 
Steve said:
Well, giving that little piece a quarter-turn every month or so (depending on how often you let the tank get low) is certainly not going to "wear it down".

Relying on the accuracy of a motorcycle fuel gauge takes a lot of faith, too. I would be inclined to believe it if I had calibrated it (and most riders don't), but there is still the possiblity that a wire came out of a poorly crimped connector or some other remote possibility that would prevent proper operation of a fuel gauge. There is also the situation where you are just enjoying the road so much that you have not noticed the status of your fuel supply for a while.

There is quite a difference in your frame of mind when your options are "oops, I had better turn the petcock to REServe and find a gas station" or
"
cus.gif
now I have to walk to a station and hope that they have a can I can use."
icon_banghead.gif


Personally, I will chance "wearing down" the petcock.


Now, let me hit the ball squarely back into the other court:
What about all those guys that hate the vacuum petcock and insist on a manual one, like a Pingle? :-k

They will be "wearing down the petcock" several times a day, as they will be turning it ON and OFF every time they stop for gas or a meal. :-\\\

.
Click to expand...

Forgetting to check the gas gauge is not an excuse that sits well with me. Those who forget to glance at their gas gauge shouldn't probably ride a bike, as they probably won't look at their oil light, turn signal lights, speedometer and tachometer either.

Neither is the calibration of the float. If your gauge is not working, don't change the petcock, fix the gauge. And maybe i'm just in another frame of mind, but i always fill-up the tank when it gets down to red, even though I know that there is at least another 1.5 gallon left. When I'm on the road, I fill up at every gas station anyway because I never know whether the next station is too far, closed, or out of gas.

Don't even get me started on Pingle crowd :D, that's a can of worm that should never be opened. :D
 
I no more trusted the fuel gauge on my GS than the rabid dog that runs down the street. Totally undependable. I called it the fuel estimator. It was never calibrated, as Steve pointed out.
I owned a 67 Mustang once that ran out of fuel on the highway even though the fuel gauge showed half a tank.
My 97 TranAm fuel gauge is similarly tricky. Stays near full for about 8 gallons of its 16 gallon capacity, then drops precipitously down to empty in almost no time.
A reserve is there for a reason; a safety measure. Why bypass it?
 
shirazdrum said:
I was referring to the bike she's riding and her bike does have a fuel gauge. we're not talking about two strokes. My point was that motorcycles with fuel gauge don't need reserve function as it doesn't serve any purpose other than wearing down the petcock.
Click to expand...
We are talking motorcycles. Period. I have owned 17 motorcycles, only 3 had fuel gauges. And only 5 of them were two strokes. I don't trust them, and it is silly to do so.
Not ridiculing you, just getting a morning chuckle.
 
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