Eliminating cb350 gas tank crossover line

B

boomshakalaka

Over 1,000 Posts
I have an extra tank which is in shitty condition and I wouldnt mind cutting up, so I was thinking of cutting out the threaded pipe and welding it into my tank on the other side of my tank, then grinding off the crossover lines and welding the holes shut, so then each carb will have its own petcock. I could be wrong, but this seems like a fine solution to eliminate this annoying feature. Anyone see a flaw in this plan?
 
well the frame splits the tank, so the gasoline in hte side of the tank opposite of the petcock will never get used and the petcock will run dry before the tank is actually out of gas. So the crossover line joins the two sides so the fuel level is equal across the tank. However this runs under the frame and therefore when you try to uninstall the tank you have to deal with a mess of gasoline. It seems like a pretty easy operation, so I cant really see why not.
 
Hmm true. I think having two petcocks (lolz) to stop the flow of gas will prevent more of a mess when removing your gas tank, but it's still going to drip, even with fully draining the tank.

I think you should still go with what you propose though, I've never seen it before. One of the crossover tubes is clogged with tank sealer on my tank, soo I'm kind of stuck with what I should do. I can probably cut out the old tube and weld in a fresh one, or go with two petcocks like you :).
 
there are quick connect shut off valves that connect between the crossovers that should make removal of the tank much easier.

http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/Product.jsp?skuId=180691&store=&catId=&productId=p180691&leafCatId=&mmyId=
 
goodfornothing said:
Hmm true. I think having two petcocks (lolz) to stop the flow of gas will prevent more of a mess when removing your gas tank, but it's still going to drip, even with fully draining the tank.

I think you should still go with what you propose though, I've never seen it before. One of the crossover tubes is clogged with tank sealer on my tank, soo I'm kind of stuck with what I should do. I can probably cut out the old tube and weld in a fresh one, or go with two petcocks like you :).
Click to expand...

that sucks that your cross over got clogged.. the shitty thing is that even if you weld in a new one or an extra petcock youll have to reseal your tank. What did you use? por15 or kreme or something else?
 
I used POR-15. I don't think I'll have to reseal the tank if I just confine the work area to that one spot. I figured if I can't clean it out with a wire, I'm just going to have to cut if off, drill a hole, and jb weld another fitting onto there.
 
guess you'd just have to remember to turn both petcocks on each time you ride...i like that quick connect valve!

I actually just had the same issue with clogged cross over tubes, easy fix though; heat the tubes at thier bend till they're red hot then slowly bend them perfectly straight up. Use a small drill bit to get through the sealer, heat them again and bend back to their original angle. if you're quick you won't need to re-heat them after drilling.
 
ya, the quick disconnect valve does look like the best solution. Oh well, I guess Ill use my access to the mig for other projects :)
 
Herm21 said:
guess you'd just have to remember to turn both petcocks on each time you ride...i like that quick connect valve!

I actually just had the same issue with clogged cross over tubes, easy fix though; heat the tubes at thier bend till they're red hot then slowly bend them perfectly straight up. Use a small drill bit to get through the sealer, heat them again and bend back to their original angle. if you're quick you won't need to re-heat them after drilling.
Click to expand...

HERM YOU ARE A FREAKIN' GENIUS! I'm going to do this after I wetsand my tank. What'd you use to bend the tube? Would a big wrench do?
 
Genius? HA! don't know about all that bro!

If you get the tube red hot it'll bend like a stick of lead. i just used needle nose pliers to bend it once it was cherry red!
 
It's taking forever for the tube to get red hot. How long did it take for you to heat it up?

And damn it, I should have fixed this before I painted my damn tank, now the paint is oozing off one a 3in by 3 in spot. ARGG! I'M STUPID!
 
a few minutes. what kind of heat are you using? I have a small bottle of MAP gas from home depot, it heats real fast!
 
All I have is a small micro butane torch LOL! So that explains it...

I went with my original route, I cut off the old tube and am going to replace with with a straight barbed nipple fitting. The damage I did to the paint is whatever. I actually kind of like it lol.
 
Herm said:
heat the tubes at thier bend till they're red hot then slowly bend them perfectly straight up. Use a small drill bit to get through the sealer, heat them again and bend back to their original angle. if you're quick you won't need to re-heat them after drilling.
Click to expand...
Sorry to resurrect a 3 year old thread. But this is f-ing brilliant! I clogged one of those tubes while doing a por-15 treatment to my tank yesterday. I was pretty pissed off about it, because I thought I was being very careful to keep this from happening. Then I walked away for a few minutes, and next thing I knew one of them was plugged.
I was thinking I'd have to cut it off and have someone weld it back on. Herm's technique worked like a charm! I didn't even need to drill. The tank coating, while dry on the surface, was not 100% cured yet. Once the tube was straightened out, I just tapped a long nail into the tube and opened up the hole. Then I bent it back good as new. The whole process was done in less than 4 minutes... Took me longer to locate my torch.
Using the DTT search function FTW!
~chris
 
Not to knock Herm, but there is a far better way to clear a clogged crossover. Simple cut off a few inches from the end of an old clutch or brake cable, secure the ball end into your drill bit, and insert the partially frayed end into the crossover. Turn the drill on, and push back and forth until you break through. The cable is stiff enough to do the work, but flexible enough to go around the bend. This way you don't need to use any heat anywhere near your paint job, and you don't have to risk snapping the tube off.

I forget where I got this trick from, wish I could give credit.
 
boomshakalaka said:
there is a far better way to clear a clogged crossover...
Click to expand...
Someone actually told me that wire/drill trick... No dice.
I messed with it for awhile (a long while)... Couldn't get it to work. I'm not sure what the hold up was. I tried several different kinds of cable I had laying around actually... That's when desperation started to set in, and I was thinking of cutting the damn thing off... Having a bare metal tank, the heat issue didn't even occur to me. I guess it is like unstucking a stubborn bolt or screw. There is never one tried and true method. Herm's method was so easy it was like magic, in this case.
~chris
 
Grahamworks said:
Someone actually told me that wire/drill trick... No dice.
I messed with it for awhile (a long while)... Couldn't get it to work. I'm not sure what the hold up was. I tried several different kinds of cable I had laying around actually... That's when desperation started to set in, and I was thinking of cutting the damn thing off... Having a bare metal tank, the heat issue didn't even occur to me. I guess it is like unstucking a stubborn bolt or screw. There is never one tried and true method. Herm's method was so easy it was like magic, in this case.
~chris
Click to expand...

Interesting. I honestly cannot remember that far back.. I'm not sure whether the por15 had time to fully cure or not-- but nonetheless I'd advise any hopeful cross-over-unclogger to at least attempt the wire trick first, as it is less destructive. It definitely worked for me, so it is at least worth a try before you start heating metal and, depending on the finish on your tank, risking the damage of some well laid paint.
 
boomshakalaka said:
Not to knock Herm, but there is a far better way to clear a clogged crossover. Simple cut off a few inches from the end of an old clutch or brake cable, secure the ball end into your drill bit, and insert the partially frayed end into the crossover. Turn the drill on, and push back and forth until you break through. The cable is stiff enough to do the work, but flexible enough to go around the bend. This way you don't need to use any heat anywhere near your paint job, and you don't have to risk snapping the tube off.

I forget where I got this trick from, wish I could give credit.
Click to expand...

I know I'm bumping an ancient thread, but I sealed my tank recently and had both crossover lines clogged, due to my inquisitive cat.

Cut apart my old clutch cable with a dremel and then chucked it in my drill and it worked amazingly! Great suggestion!!

I almost was going to get creative with the blow torch and thought it was worth reading till the end of the thread!
Thanks!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DTT Light or Dark

  • DTT Light
    • www.jadusmotorcycleparts.com
    www.lostapostle.ca/
    www.sparckmoto.com

    Spread the Love

    Back
    Top Bottom