After market gas tanks

[EMM]

Does anyone know of any replacement aftermarket gas tanks that fit these bikes?
Maybe in a different style?

I’d like it to be large capacity like the OEM 5.3 gallon tanks that come with the bike.

 

[brettp]

Curious about this, too. I fine need a tank at the moment but if I want to change the look of have an issue with mine, it would be nice to know

 

[SenseAmidMadness]

Man, good luck. Finding a replacement fuel tank for any street motorcycle that isn't OEM is a rarity. The only ones I've ever seen in years of Internet searches have been aftermarket larger tanks for dirt bikes, dual-sports, custom bikes, and Harley-Davidsons.

I've seen plenty of generic off-the-shelf new ones you'd have to adapt, but more frequently on custom builds the builders go with a SOHC tank or a similar period tank from another Japanese motorcycle and do some fabrication to make it fit. Less frequently, a builder will custom-make an entire fuel tank.

I've seen a few forum threads here and there of adventurous garage guys making their own tanks and fairings out of fiberglass.

 

[EMM]

Man, good luck. Finding a replacement fuel tank for any street motorcycle that isn't OEM is a rarity. The only ones I've ever seen in years of Internet searches have been aftermarket larger tanks for dirt bikes, dual-sports, custom bikes, and Harley-Davidsons.

I've seen plenty of generic off-the-shelf new ones you'd have to adapt, but more frequently on custom builds the builders go with a SOHC tank or a similar period tank from another Japanese motorcycle and do some fabrication to make it fit. Less frequently, a builder will custom-make an entire fuel tank.

I've seen a few forum threads here and there of adventurous garage guys making their own tanks and fairings out of fiberglass.

I was wondering if this was the case. I’ve done extensive searching online and have only found reproduction OEM tanks that are SPENDY holy cow.

 

[brettp]

And Amazon tanks that claim to fit all Hondas, Suzukis, and Yamahas are full of crap.

 

[SenseAmidMadness]

I was wondering if this was the case. I’ve done extensive searching online and have only found reproduction OEM tanks that are SPENDY holy cow.

The forms, dies, and machines to make metal motorcycle tanks are ultra-expensive. If you want a big machine to stamp out the upper half of a tank fairly quickly using a press die: the stamping machine costs as much as a house, the press die will cost you thousands of dollars, you have to get a second press die for the lower half of the tank, you have to weld the two halves of the tank together all the way around, and also weld on any other parts needed like mounting grooves, and those parts also need their own stamping dies...
Clarke, a company that manufactures aftermarket plastic fuel tanks for dirt and dual-sport bikes, says that a new injection molding die for one fuel tank model costs them upwards of $7500. They sell their tanks for $250 each. Considering the titanic tooling investment, that's a pretty fair price.
Mass production is complicated, eh?

Conversely, if you're very patient and like learning, it's entirely possible to form sheet metal in a home garage, in a repeatable way, using typical woodworking tools, lumber, and hammers. There's a great video series on Youtube by Ron Covell, a master sheetmetal worker, where he painstakingly creates a metal dustpan from sheet aluminum to illustrate the techniques of the craft. He shows at the end how he's made custom things like aircraft seats and vintage car dashboards with the same methods. His instructions could totally be used to make a fuel tank...just not quickly! You'd have to also weld, of course, but that can often be outsourced to an expert.

If you don't spend money, you'll spend time. Given enough time and creativity, though, a home jobber can make almost anything at least once.