External fuel tanks

snoopy · July 02, 2012, 08:51:28 PM

After I upgrade my Magna's stock seat I *know* that I will want to take some long trips. I've done that in the past but stopping every 75-100 miles got to be a pain. At MM10 I saw somebody's 3rd generation Magna that had an external fuel tank mounted on the luggage rack. Does anybody know if there are any out-of-the box solutions for mounting a fuel tank onto a luggage rack, or would any application be a custom project?

Who out there has an external fuel tank on their 3rd generation Magna?

hootmon · July 02, 2012, 09:03:22 PM

I know someone (i think Jim) bought a bike with one... You will get a response..

Jamtndll · July 02, 2012, 09:15:50 PM

Mine was on it when I bought it so I can not tell you about the mount. The one I had looked like a little beer keg and it ran to a switch under the tank. I could run off the front tank or external, one at a time. I will look to see if I can find my information. I sold it awhile back.

roboto65 · July 02, 2012, 10:38:39 PM

Pretty sure that was Brad that had the external tank not sure of the company that makes them but they are still out there I think.

snoopy · July 02, 2012, 11:36:33 PM

Quote from: roboto65 on July 02, 2012, 10:38:39 PM
Pretty sure that was Brad that had the external tank not sure of the company that makes them but they are still out there I think.

I've found a company which makes the tank (http://tourtank.com/). I was wondering if there is an easy way to get the tank mounted to the luggage rack, or if that is a custom mount.

Jamtndll · July 03, 2012, 05:29:47 AM

mine was mounted with 4 bolts and a stabalizer. They drilled the holes through the bars on the luggage rack then attached a stabalizer pin to the back rest. It did not look like it was anything special.

hop along · July 03, 2012, 09:05:21 AM

It was indeed Brad that had the TOURTANK mounted on his luggage rack, I'd also asked him about it at one point.
If memory serves me correct, he just did hte install maybe a month ago, so hopefully he can help a bit

It was a very nice, clean setup, looked great!

Your other option is a larger tank-the 'Valkna' tank-which is what I have. But I goofed doing a repair and sealed the vent chamber

Look at 'tips and tricks' on this site to get an idea, but I think there is a more successful method possible than what is posted.

Which seat did you upgrade to?
Hop Along

snoopy · July 03, 2012, 09:23:56 AM

Quote from: hop along on July 03, 2012, 09:05:21 AM
It was indeed Brad that had the TOURTANK mounted on his luggage rack, I'd also asked him about it at one point.
If memory serves me correct, he just did hte install maybe a month ago, so hopefully he can help a bit
It was a very nice, clean setup, looked great!

I was checking it out too. I was hoping to get Brad's attention with this post so I can pick his brain about his install.

Quote from: hop along on July 03, 2012, 09:05:21 AM
Your other option is a larger tank-the 'Valkna' tank-which is what I have. But I goofed doing a repair and sealed the vent chamber
Look at 'tips and tricks' on this site to get an idea, but I think there is a more successful method possible than what is posted.

That was my original idea before I saw Brad's setup at MM10. The "Valkna" tank *would* provide more fuel carrying ability, but an external tank would provide much more, and I suspect that constructing the Frankentank would cost more anyways (as I have no welding abilities).

Quote from: hop along on July 03, 2012, 09:05:21 AM
Which seat did you upgrade to?

I have not upgraded the seat yet. I try to ride the Magna every day to work so I was thinking about sending a spare seat I have to Mean City Cycles for them to upgrade. That way I won't have any riding down-time.

hootmon · July 03, 2012, 01:24:50 PM

You might also check out Russell day long seats...

Brad Badgett · July 03, 2012, 03:24:39 PM

Hey, Brandon. I already had the Cycl-istic rack( which will hold up to thirty lbs). Bought the 3 gal., 8 in. by 16 in tank from TourTanks.com. Also got their 8x8 alum. plate to mount on the rack. Drilled 6 holes in the plate and the rack cross supports, attached with small bolts. The tank has supports welded on it, drill holes in the plate to match the tank supports, bolt tank to plate. I opted for the center fuel line opening, so I drill a hole near the center of the plate for the fuel line from the tank. I have a quik-disconnect ~8 in. from the tank. I ran the fuel line on the left side of the Magna. Near the main tank(between seat and main tank, left side) is the valve for the aux tank, within 4 in. of the main petcock. Easy when aux runs dry, reach with left hand to turn petcock on, then turn aux valve off in one motion.
It is easy enough to do, I did it! (I'm not a mechanic, more architect) Just need a plan drawn out(sketch). At Tour Tank there are several types of tanks, fuel line kits,etc. If any other Questions feel fre to ask.
btw, I can go ~240 mis. before reserve now.

Brad Badgett

snoopy · July 03, 2012, 04:03:17 PM

Quote from: Brad Badgett on July 03, 2012, 03:24:39 PM
Hey, Brandon. I already had the Cycl-istic rack( which will hold up to thirty lbs). Bought the 3 gal., 8 in. by 16 in tank from TourTanks.com. Also got their 8x8 alum. plate to mount on the rack. Drilled 6 holes in the plate and the rack cross supports, attached with small bolts. The tank has supports welded on it, drill holes in the plate to match the tank supports, bolt tank to plate. I opted for the center fuel line opening, so I drill a hole near the center of the plate for the fuel line from the tank. I have a quik-disconnect ~8 in. from the tank. I ran the fuel line on the left side of the Magna. Near the main tank(between seat and main tank, left side) is the valve for the aux tank, within 4 in. of the main petcock. Easy when aux runs dry, reach with left hand to turn petcock on, then turn aux valve off in one motion.
It is easy enough to do, I did it! (I'm not a mechanic, more architect) Just need a plan drawn out(sketch). At Tour Tank there are several types of tanks, fuel line kits,etc. If any other Questions feel fre to ask.
btw, I can go ~240 mis. before reserve now.

Brad Badgett

I was planning on getting a tank from http://www.coyote-gear.com, the parent company for http://tourtank.com and hooking it up to my Magna just like yours. I am emailing Dobie at CyclistiC to see just how much weight, and ultimately what size fuel tank, I'll be able to put on my bike.

Do you have your system setup so that you are able to remove your external tank at will?

snoopy · July 04, 2012, 12:20:44 PM

Quote from: Brad Badgett on July 03, 2012, 03:24:39 PM
... Bought the 3 gal., 8 in. by 16 in tank from TourTanks.com. ...

I took some measurements of my luggage rack and sissy bar last night. Based on those I figured out the angle between them (about 70 degrees for me) and proceeded to figure out the maximum diameter tank I could use with the following constraints ...

1) The tank would be mounted on a 1/4 " aluminum plate/sheet
2) The tank would be at least 1/4 " away from the sissy bar
3) The tank would not extend further aft than the edge of the luggage rack

... and I came up with a diameter of about 6.67 inches.

So unless my calculations are off, then I don't see how you could get an 8 " diameter tank to fit given those constraints. Brad, does your tank extend further aft than the edge of your luggage rack? Do you know the angle made by your luggage rack and sissy bar?

snoopy · July 04, 2012, 12:30:03 PM

Quote from: hootmon on July 03, 2012, 01:24:50 PM
You might also check out Russell day long seats...

Those look better, but they are more expensive. Does anybody out there have one of these seats? Has anybody tried both the day-long and the mean city cycles seats?

hootmon · July 04, 2012, 01:13:11 PM

I have the Russell that I got from Jim..
They are custom made for the individual rider (which mine was obviously not)...
I can say that on a Mustang, my max was 500 in a day and that was a stretch... I made it over 600 on the Russell on the way out and back from MM9...
I was not blessed with much "natural" padding.. so it was an improvement over the Mustang.. I like the Russell because it is wide and some of the weight goes to your thighs...
Just thought I'd throw it out there...
For me... After about 90-100 miles, i'm ready to get off anyway, especially after several lengths in a row at that distance..

Do you have a forwarding kit on your bike? That was a huge improvement for me at over 6 feet tall...

snoopy · July 04, 2012, 03:35:20 PM

Quote from: hootmon on July 04, 2012, 01:13:11 PM
Do you have a forwarding kit on your bike? That was a huge improvement for me at over 6 feet tall...

I purchased a forward control kit, but it was setup such that my legs were resting directly on the transmission when I was using it, so I took it off. I don't know if that's just normal, but I didn't like the burn. I'm thinking of just keeping the controls stock and getting highway pegs for cruising.