leaking petcocks

[XS11NEWROSS]

It's amazing that after almost 16 years this post has been so helpful to me, thank you so much guys...I hope everything is good on your end..

[Ccitis]

It's amazing that after almost 16 years this post has been so helpful to me, thank you so much guys...I hope everything is good on your end..

Whats amazing to me is that 09 is that long ago!

[Larrym]

It's amazing that after almost 16 years this post has been so helpful to me, thank you so much guys...I hope everything is good on your end..

At the 15 year mark THIS happened to the aftermarket petcocks/adapter plates. (⊙︿⊙)



The adapter plates corroded away. A goopy mess oozed past them to drip/flow all over, down the bike, and make a puddle underneath similar to roofing Tar or the asphalt stuff people use to seal their driveway. (ノ_<。)

All better now as I located, ordered, rebuilt, and installed a set of the OEM petcocks. (人´∀`)

[cajun31]

At the 15 year mark THIS happened to the aftermarket petcocks/adapter plates. (⊙︿⊙)



The adapter plates corroded away. A goopy mess oozed past them to drip/flow all over, down the bike, and make a puddle underneath similar to roofing Tar or the asphalt stuff people use to seal their driveway. (ノ_<。)

All better now as I located, ordered, rebuilt, and installed a set of the OEM petcocks. (人´∀`)

I suspect ethanol had something to do with that damage.

[Larrym]

Imma guessing Galvanic Corrosion, Pitting Corrosion, AND Crevice Corrosion with the ethanol fuel/water as the electolyte instead of seawater. (ﾟ ヘﾟ)



Steel tank and the aluminum adapter plate(s) were s'posed to be electrically isolated from each other so's the corrosion process couldn't take place. Y'know....rubber gaskets and fiber washers? (º～º)

I mebbe sorta coulda checked between the tank and the plates with a meter and iffin I got continuity that might have given me a warning that something wasn't right. Metal touching metal somewheres I couldn't see. ( •́ ⍨ •̀)

Mebbe useful fOaR someone out there with these same style adapter plates to pull/inspect what they gots to get ahead of these type of failures. ヽ(゜～゜o)ノ

FoAr the record- with the OEM petcocks now installed? (　`_ゝ´)

NO electrical continuity between the tank and the petcocks so no corrosion possible. (´∀｀)

Those Yammy Engineers, Yay! ヽ(•‿•)ノ

[DEEBS11]

That is amazing.

[Larrym]

BTW....Conspicuously missing in the photos? (゜-゜)

The brass pipes extending up from the petcock inlet holes. ( ´･_･`)

Y'know, so's there's a different fuel intake fOaR normal "On" and the "Reserve" positions? (○´ ― `)ゞ

They were there when I put'em in in 2009. Found'em rolling round the inside of the tank. （ ；¬＿¬)

Mebbe or mebbe Not related to the whole "Ethanol Blended Fuel Conducts Electricity" snafu shown in the photos. ( 　ﾟ ,_ゝﾟ)

Still....I'd advise our mOaR concerned/diligent members to check'n see iffin' there's continuity between their petcocks/adapter plates and the steel tank. ( ⚆ _ ⚆ )

Disclaimer- Oem petcocks installed correctly don't got this problem. ヾ(＾∇＾)

[Hawkinspickle]

Ahhh...Now I see the reason for the confusion. Like Ken stated, special petcocks DO have a true off position. Which is why alot of the special owners nix the octy and just turn the petcocks off.

That's what I did on my Special after the petcock rebuild and it's been the best. No leaks for years. I also took the advice from another member (forget who, but thanks) to pull the fuel lines from the tank, plug them and hang'm during winterization. Didn't want a leak to find its way into the engine case.
Cheers,
Dan