gas tank removal

I`m riding vintage Harleys now for quite a while and always created a mess when I tried to take off the gas tank. I have original setup (push-pull valve and original gas lines). Anyone out there who came up with a neat idea, how you would take off the gastank without spilling gas all over the place?

thanks
KLaus

that's impossible
( rigid gas-lines and crossover , gas shut-off always leaking .... )

if somebody has a solution : please : explain !

Remove the gas line from the fuel strainer. Slip a hose over the line. Turn on the fuel and drain it into a bucket. When the tanks are empty then remove them.

a bucket ???

45brit, fuel is so cheap in americay ,that buckets of 'gas' are often to be found cloging up workshops
regards jib

is that so? So, it's ok to set the workshop on fire for a 'couple of bucks' but us skinflint Brits can't afford to do it for £10?

[Pa]

Bend out a cheap sheet metal fuel swath funnel. Say out of old duct work. make it wide enough to cover the whole disassembly area. Funnel it into a spent gasoline container. Save the spent gasoline for a solvent.

i save the drained gas for the lawn mower, weed wacker etc. too tough on the hands to use for a solvent any more.

john

I put any old slop in my mower too. Smokes a bit but doesn't seem to mind, like my old dad really

[Pa]

The modern gasoline is hard on the skin for sure. Drys em up quick as crap. Burns too ! I've been using tongs lately.

i don't know if this will help klaus any. when i had modern tanks on my pan with a rubber cross over i used to use 2 hemostats to pinch the gas line off. then i cut the hose in between.

i drained the gas into a suitable container after the tanks were off the bike.

with steel lines i remove the strainer cap and drain the entire system.

john

if ya want a non-standard permanant fix there are various couplings on the market that when taken apart stop flowing fuel. goodidge is one example but expensive, check out various aftermarket catalogues, regards jib

on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/QUICK-RELEASE-NON ... _500wt_928

or

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/QUICK-RELEASE-NON ... _500wt_928

ist one is 6mm 2nd is 8 mm and i realise that shock and horror has probably made a lot of you callapse or start cursing etc.
regards jib

Ya drain the gas into a clean bucket and pour it back into the tank when you are through messin' with it.

Folks,

Since I charged by the minute, I routinely had to drain tanks fast, and safely.
So I drained the bulk of the contents in seconds with an 'Oklahoma credit card': a 4' length of 5/8" vinyl tubing siphons with enough pull to remove crud from the bottom.
Then I swabbed out the rest with old rags hooked to a piece of copper tubing.

cswab.jpg

Safety first.

....Cotten