Do you use the octy or not?

[trbig]

You can't just run one loop, each petcock has 2 outlets on the special.

Mine has two also. If you do away with the octo, you don't need prime. You run the single lines off the rear petcocks and cap the front "Prime" ones. You're still making it too hard.

There are two things that keep your gas in your tank, the float needles, which will leak on you sooner or later' and your vacuum shut off valves.

And the petcocks. That makes three. Nothing added, nothing paid for and not understanding the argument. As stated, if you want to keep the octo.. fine, but you keep arguing trying to make a point and leaving facts out to try to do so. So you don't shut off your petcocks.. great. Fantastic. Keep it the way you want. My, and several others' opinions are that the octo is a PITA and looks like crap. Just opinions and we don't have to agree.

As stated.. the petcocks AND the float valves will have to fail for there to be a problem on mine. Plus, the octo has a tendency to fail. You have no way of knowing if it's even working. You may have only float valves stopping yours right now. Only way you'll know it's not is if you get a leaky float valve and you have the same problem.. gas in the oil. If you don't shut off your petcocks and simply rely on the octo.. then you're down to just two safety checks also. I have two.. you have two..


Tod

[Poprock]

Y'all don't have near enough to do! If it's broke, fix it. If it isn't broke, ride.

[oseaghdha]

These are the pictures he was talking about

-Rick

Dang,
That's just as bad, if not worse, than the octo.

On my Special, I capped the prime outlets, and ran lines (Tigon) between the 1/2 and 3/4 to filters and then to the carb tees. Simple, no? I may have 16" total fuel line. That drawing shows about 5 feet!

I did find some fine wound spring material to put over the lines between the filter and carb tees to prevent the lines from flattening out. Added bonus as a bit of a heat shield. I kept them minimally long to prevent kinks and messy loops. I use extensions for synching and tuning.

I hate the thought of depending upon some unseen vacuum valve keeping my oil gasoline free. I want failsafe wherever I can have it.

Stupid Virago I had did me wrong a couple of times so I started clamping the line.

I was studying the standard petcocks to see how I could modify them for on/off operation. I see it's been done. Bravo. That will be implemented when I install my standard tank.

[markb80]

Comments:

The Ys get rotated a bit to fit in the gap between boots. Drawing not to scale at all. Lines from petcocks to closest Y's are very short (1-2 inches and length is critical), as the petcocks sit right above airbox boots 1 and 4. Mikesxs.com sells rubber fuel line in 1 foot lengths. You will need at least 4, better get 6 or more incase you mess one up. I think they are 1 dollar, maybe 2. Z1enterprises has the Y's.

If you try re-using the T's and run lines from petcocks to the T's, which are sitting in middle of airbox boots (between 2 and 3), this will work for a while with rubber and get you by, but if length isn't perfect they kink. They will kink anyway as the rubber ages, but maybe not close completely.

There could be a better way and probably is. But this way is working swell. It is a pretzel of fuel line, but it stays put pretty well when you remove carbs as long as you disconnect fuel line at the carb (after removing airbox lower tray) and reaching up with pliers to get the clip.

[markb80]

No its better than the octo as you need 6 lines and 12 clips rather than 8 lines and 16 clips. It is also better than the octo because you don't get that pesky kinking line on the left side. It is also better than the octo because the fuel lines don't get raked out by the carbs when you remove them. Also better than the octo if you don't trust the octo. I think it uses about 25 percent less line than the octo. This way has no sharp bends, lines not close to kinking at all.

Capping the prime outlets is a good approach too, but my goal was to keep all functionality. But yes you don't need a prime if you go manual, so that way works too. I couldn't remember if prime was one outlet and on/reserve was the other, or if it is "on" for one and reserve/prime for the other. If its the latter you lose the reserve feature. But not if its the first case.

Another option that would be good would be to take some brake or fuel line and make 30-45 degree bent metal lines about 2 inches long. Four of them, connected to petcock outlets by a short piece of hose would allow you to just hang the stock T's in the middle. But I didn't pursue that as I wasn't sure how well my brake line flaring tool would do at making a barb on a fuel line.

[rpgoerlich]

I did away with the Octy as it makes it easier to sync and adjust carbs with the tank on. Plugged the front taps(PRI) and ran a single hose over to the opposite bank of carbs with an inline filter from the rear taps(ON/OFF/RESERVE). About as simple as it gets.
I just shut it off when not in use.

[markb80]

Good point...It's almost like you get a free diaphram with special rebuild kit!

-Rick

Almost, problem is that the octopus takes a different diaphragm than everything else. The post is not the same length as the standard.

I hate the octo becaue it makes getting the carbs a pain to get in and out. Fuel lines raked all over the place. Also when it comes to replacing fuel lines it takes alot of time to get the lengths right, and even then I seem to get a kinky line on the left side. Eight lines...16 clips...2 fuel T's... and a vacuum line. It was over-engineered for sure. The only reason I can figure that Yamaha did that was because they wanted to clean up the looks of the special and the big standard petcocks were not sleek looking. So they tried running both petcocks off one vacuum diaphragm. Nice idea, sucked in practice because they got the angles of the petcock oulets wrong (one should have been straight, the other down). I know of a local shop that won't touch and xs11 special for carbs, because of the excessive time required to mess with the octopus. And that guy specializes in old bikes.

A bike of that era should be easy to work on. That's the benefit of a good running old bike. But I actually spent more time getting special carbs in and out with the special (including futzing with that kinky fuel line again), than my 2003 FZ1, and those are not fun to work on. That is till I got rid of it.

The octopus causes newbies to ride around leaking gas (dangerous) or sputtering due to starvation, because they haven't figured out how to fix that mess.

[markb80]

If the front outlets are prime only, I recommend plugging them and not using my drawing. But lines from rear petcock outlets should go down between the 1-2 and 3-4 intakes and criss cross underneath. A 90 degree fuel filter could be helpful in making the 90 degree turn to the carbs. But shouldn't kink even without.

When I did that I thought the prime and reserve were shared as they both take gas from the bottom of the fuel filter as opposed to the "on" which takes it from the other side of fuel filter which only takes gas over a certain level in the tank.

I'm leaving it for now though because it works.

[markb80]

OK, y'all convinced me mine is outa there. Seems like I'm running out of gas at top end sometimes anyway.

YUP! That is exactly what mine did when I had restriction due to kinking. If I wound out the bike to high RPM it would start to cut out as the fuel level was dropping in the bowls due to poor fuel flow. I don't have that now.

If someone spends the time to learn the art of plumbing the octopus, I am sure it can be made to work well. The newer non-hardening vinyl may make kinking a thing of the past... Dunno, haven't tried it. Some like it, some say it sucks and the lines fall off. Helix makes some, but it had a bad review by someone, but there is always the guy who thinks you don't need a fuel clip and complains when it falls off.

Personally simplest approach suggested so far is was to run a fuel line to connect the front outlets together. If you snake it through the boots it won't kink but who cares. Kinks may lead to earlier failure of the line (leaks, internal deterioration) or maybe not. Deteriorating fuel lines are bad news and have caused melted pistons pieces clogging main jets (going lean).

[Ivan]

All the work you guys go to... just to eliminate the vacuum valve. Sheesh... I put half that effort in to mine to get the valve working again, and never looked back.

I do have rubber lines though, and they get hard, but that isn't the valve's fault...

[trbig]

All the work you guys go to... just to eliminate the vacuum valve.

Ummm.. That would be just one guy.. lol.

I put half that effort in to mine to get the valve working again, and never looked back.

Start doing that. Never know when some dumb teen might try to run your azz over...


Tod

[rpgoerlich]

I still have the Octy laying on the shelf already rebuilt. Just pulled the carb again today to recheck float levels. Once I get everything tuned and syned I may take the time to replace all the hard rubber hoses and broken T's with some of the motion pro hose that doesn't kink along with new T's and re-install it. It will give you piece of mind if it's working properly.

[mro]

Hi Tod, but that be at least two...

Ummm.. That would be just one guy.. lol.

I still have the octopie's on my specials.
Never been a problem...yet.

Haven’t we have had this discussion before?


mro
Octopus friendly

[Clerek]

Yeah lots of times, but hearing it from a different group of people helped me with my decision!

Thanks all!
-Rick

[MindWebs]

Yes, i'm araid this discussion has gone roundy-roundy on a few threads...

but i can see why...

i ditched the octy, but now i had to buy a petcock rebuild kit for my special.

if it comes with the diaphram for the octy, then it's going back in!

i've been fighting too many silly problems on my xs11 that i've never had on any honda, suzuki or kawy with strait on, off, reserve, non-vac petcocks.

so it really boils down to.. Do you, want it on there or not?

it's a gamble either way, i've had 2 fail on me so far, 1 original, 1 used.
(i didn't know the diapham came in the petcock kit, at the time)