hard to twist fuel petcock

[ReSanti]

I adopted my dad's '82 GS1100E and since the day I got it the petcock knob has been extremely hard to move from ON/PRI/RES. He says it's always been that way and told me just use a pair of pliers to help move it. I told him that wasn't right because one is supposed to be able to just reach down there while riding and flip the switch with one hand. His answer to that was, "don't worry about it, you have a fuel gauge."

My question is...Do any of you all know if all the 1982 GS 1100 fuel petcocks are hard to twist? I am close to buying a new OEM fuel petcock online, but I'm afraid the new one will be just as hard to move/twist as the original (which technically isn't broken).

Thanks,
ReSanti

[BassCliff]

Hi,

A petcock is fairly easy to twist, it should not require pliers. I can switch to reserve while riding with very little effort. It is possible that you can disassemble and clean your petcock, perhaps install a rebuild kit. But I think the best thing to do would be to install a new OEM part and forget about it for another 30 years.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[Agemax]

strip it, clean it lube all the o rings and rubber bits with a light coating of thin oil. rebuild it again and it will be smooth and free. obviously if there is any damaged internals they will need replacing

[Steve]

I have freed up more than one of those pesky little buggers. Remove the petcock (or simply drain the tank with it in place), remove the plate on the front of the petcock and remove the barrel. Clean it up either with some fine sandpaper or a Scotch-brite pad. Use a small wheel on a Dremel tool to clean the inside of the bore. Use some silicone grease, put it back in, button it all up, fill the tank, go for a ride.

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[sedelen]

My '82 GS1100E petcock has a petcock thats not as easy to turn as I'd like it to be, but I'm far from having to use pliers on it though. When it gets really hard to turn I shoot it with a little WD-40, loosens it up quite allot.

[Big T]

There may be a rectangular O ring in the bore - I'd also replace that. If it's really hard, no amount of grease will cure that

[Nessism]

Remove the petcock (or simply drain the tank with it in place), remove the plate on the front of the petcock and remove the barrel. Clean it up either with some fine sandpaper or a Scotch-brite pad. Use a small wheel on a Dremel tool to clean the inside of the bore. Use some silicone grease, put it back in, button it all up, fill the tank, go for a ride.

.

I agree with Steve. I did exactly the same thing on a petcock and the lever turned smoothly afterwards.