Good2Go
Well-known member
I’ve been running a Joe2LMaker Tag Along tank since the first week in May. I wanted to get a few miles on it before posting my impressions.
I ordered 5/16” QD’s and a bulkhead from Sampson. For the vent I used 1/4" braided hose and fittings I had left over from another project. The TAT came with everything else needed to plumb it to the bike. I also added a small inline filter.
Fitting the bulkhead was the most time consuming :banghead: , due to trying to find the best location. I don’t have a pic, but it ended up in the area most others I’ve seen, just behind the fuel pump, with the hose coming out the right side along the same “channel” the factory fuel line uses.
The next issue I had to deal with was the seat latch. With the TAT installed it was impossible for me to operate the latch. Following dcarver’s lead <Link>, I drilled an access hole through the left seat support, then in fairing. Digging through my parts box I found a leftover cable thingamajig from my AVCC install, that happened to fit perfectly. I JB welded one end to the latch, and stuck the other end through the access holes :coolsmiley02: :
That’s about all there was to installing this thing. The TAT fit fine, I didn’t have the issues others reported. Lucky, I suppose.
So far I’ve ridden around 2300 miles with the TAT, an 1100 mile loop into CA, and a 1200 mile loop into UT. My primary concern was how well the tank would (or wouldn’t) flow. I’m happy to report that the TAT actually flows quite well. With between 4 and 6 bars showing on the gas gauge, when I flip the TAT valve the gas gauge stays where it’s at for a really long time, indicating the TAT is draining around the same rate the bike is using the fuel. If I flip the TAT valve with less than 4 bars showing, it’ll take 10-15 minutes to drain, then seems to level off at about 6 bars. I’m getting anywhere between 400 and 450 miles range with the TAT, depending on how aggressive I ride.
I even got to test the overflow last weekend…pulled into Hankville, UT, it was around 100 deg. Stopped for gas and the obligatory hollow mountain pic:
Then rode across the street for a burger and to cool off. When I came back outside there were a bunch of cruiser pilots standing around, one of them smoking :withstupidsmiley: , telling me there's gas coming out of that hose behind my bike. I guess that’s one way to thin the herd.
The only “drawback” to the TAT is those two tubes welded through the tank to access the mounting bolts…I’ve dropped sockets, earplugs, AA batteries in there with no way to get them out. They sell plugs at Lowe’s, just gotta find the right size (are you listening Joe?). For now I’m carrying those flexible “fingers”. I also added a socket extension to my toolkit in case I need to remove the TAT on the road.
Stuff that still has to be done:
My seamstress-cousin is sewing up a custom TAT cover, hope to have it by the end of the month. I also need to figure out a way to water protect the Starcom I have under the seat, as it’s now more exposed. Finally, I’ve put Joe2LMaker in touch with Steve Chalmers, so they can talk about capacities and such, hopefully there won’t be any questions when I show up for the UT1088 at the end of the month.
More TAT pix:
Monument Valley, UT:
Bryce Canyon, UT:
I ordered 5/16” QD’s and a bulkhead from Sampson. For the vent I used 1/4" braided hose and fittings I had left over from another project. The TAT came with everything else needed to plumb it to the bike. I also added a small inline filter.
Fitting the bulkhead was the most time consuming :banghead: , due to trying to find the best location. I don’t have a pic, but it ended up in the area most others I’ve seen, just behind the fuel pump, with the hose coming out the right side along the same “channel” the factory fuel line uses.
The next issue I had to deal with was the seat latch. With the TAT installed it was impossible for me to operate the latch. Following dcarver’s lead <Link>, I drilled an access hole through the left seat support, then in fairing. Digging through my parts box I found a leftover cable thingamajig from my AVCC install, that happened to fit perfectly. I JB welded one end to the latch, and stuck the other end through the access holes :coolsmiley02: :
That’s about all there was to installing this thing. The TAT fit fine, I didn’t have the issues others reported. Lucky, I suppose.
So far I’ve ridden around 2300 miles with the TAT, an 1100 mile loop into CA, and a 1200 mile loop into UT. My primary concern was how well the tank would (or wouldn’t) flow. I’m happy to report that the TAT actually flows quite well. With between 4 and 6 bars showing on the gas gauge, when I flip the TAT valve the gas gauge stays where it’s at for a really long time, indicating the TAT is draining around the same rate the bike is using the fuel. If I flip the TAT valve with less than 4 bars showing, it’ll take 10-15 minutes to drain, then seems to level off at about 6 bars. I’m getting anywhere between 400 and 450 miles range with the TAT, depending on how aggressive I ride.
I even got to test the overflow last weekend…pulled into Hankville, UT, it was around 100 deg. Stopped for gas and the obligatory hollow mountain pic:
Then rode across the street for a burger and to cool off. When I came back outside there were a bunch of cruiser pilots standing around, one of them smoking :withstupidsmiley: , telling me there's gas coming out of that hose behind my bike. I guess that’s one way to thin the herd.
The only “drawback” to the TAT is those two tubes welded through the tank to access the mounting bolts…I’ve dropped sockets, earplugs, AA batteries in there with no way to get them out. They sell plugs at Lowe’s, just gotta find the right size (are you listening Joe?). For now I’m carrying those flexible “fingers”. I also added a socket extension to my toolkit in case I need to remove the TAT on the road.
Stuff that still has to be done:
My seamstress-cousin is sewing up a custom TAT cover, hope to have it by the end of the month. I also need to figure out a way to water protect the Starcom I have under the seat, as it’s now more exposed. Finally, I’ve put Joe2LMaker in touch with Steve Chalmers, so they can talk about capacities and such, hopefully there won’t be any questions when I show up for the UT1088 at the end of the month.
More TAT pix:
Monument Valley, UT:
Bryce Canyon, UT:
