No gas money+ 1mile away= :(

GoldenMotor.com

clashed13

Member
Aug 30, 2011
126
0
16
Michigan
So I got bad choices I knew that I had barely any gas in the tank, But I just got my motor bike working yesterday So I have that urge still to ride it! So I take it out knowing not even half full tank, I see a huge walmart parking lotvery few cars I couldnt help it I was riding back and forth about 15mph not sure though, Then I forgot all about my gas problem while riding so I go even further to mcdonalds just seeing who was up there because thats where some people hang out at, yeah a mcdonalds. I see a huge group of guys and two girls on the side of em I pass them up and turn into popeyes chicken to turn around, I try going about 20mph past them and not even 20 feet from them, you guessed it I ran out of gas :( so i look like a retard when I came to a complete stop lmfao! Had to walk my bike about a mile home long hard walk ill tell you. As I was walking it home I reflected on my actions, ALWAYS MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A FULL TANK OF GAS WHEN GOING FAR DISTANCES!!! Yeah and with this story I have some questions, I think my motor is just swallowing the gas because I only road it about max of two hours when I had full tank and it went out? Does the idling have to do anything about how much gas the motor consumes? How can I get better gas millage? Oh yeah and i just finished one tank I put 16:1 still breaking it in. should I higher the ratio?
 

decoherence

New Member
Aug 23, 2010
476
2
0
sebring,fl
i use to run out of gas all the time before i got a petcock that has a reserve setting.
why didn't you pedal?
make sure you have no gas leaks. they are not always easy to see unless it has been sitting.
 

WildAlaskan

New Member
Sep 30, 2010
578
0
0
alaska
I have run out of gas many times that is by far more embarrassing than anything I dealt with but one time on skinny 27s I bent the rim so bad it kept poppin my spares only problem was almost 5 miles from home

Just think how much more tiring that was cause eventually the tire came completely off the rim it made the walk last forever

As far as runnin out of gas I learned to carry a little extra in a soda bottle I found that gatorade bottles are the best cause there seals are glued to the lid
 

Mozenrath

New Member
Jan 13, 2011
340
0
0
California
Just the other day I ran out of gas, and my house is up top a big hill! Fortunately I peddled a little over to a gas station where I could fill up and they fortunately had one small bottle of 2-stroke oil for a few bucks!
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
6,537
264
63
living the dream in southern california
if you run out of gas on your two stroke, bribe some gardeners. they're everywhere in california, and always have a bunch of pre-mixed gas cans on their trucks. a coupla bucks, and they'll probably fill up your tank.
 

Nashville Kat

Well-Known Member
Apr 20, 2009
1,501
55
48
Jacksonville, Florida
If you're not already stretching the lean end- the motor will probably run fine at least a mile on unmixed gas- especially if it already has a lot of miles.

I never usually go more than a couple of miles away- and my build is really more like a decent bicycle with afterburners. I have the seat at near mormal height, but have thought about getting a quick release seat bolt to be able to adjust it.

But here in Jacksonville, they really have an excellent bus system- if I ever decide to ride to say, the beach- 22 miles away- and the bike breaks down, I'll lock it up, take the bus home, and go back to pick the bike up in my car.

Beach Baby Beach Baby, give me a hand...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XG8MQ8f4nF4
 
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clashed13

Member
Aug 30, 2011
126
0
16
Michigan
question? Uhh I got a stock gas tank that came with the kit how many ounces is it? Because at the gas station across the street they sell 8 oz 2 stroke oil and was wondering how much gas I should put in the tank for lets say 20:1 how much oil should I put in when I fell the tank?
 

richirich

New Member
Aug 16, 2011
297
0
0
Port Angeles, Washington
if you bing or google 'oil to gas ratio" sites will come up that will give you all the conversions you need. usally all you have to do is put in what ratio you want and to how many gallons. and walla it gives you the exact amount of oil you need.
 

timboellner

Member
Apr 1, 2009
435
0
16
Towson Maryland
Chances are you will always check the tank from now on. Once you run out of gas.....and we all have at least once, you'll be a little more self-conscious
(paranoid) about doing it again.

Welcome to the oops I ran out of gas club.
TiM
 

Allen_Wrench

Resident Mad Scientist
Feb 6, 2010
2,784
26
36
Indianapolis
Goodness knows I learned from my own incident, when I ran out of gas a couple years back. First thing I did was measure and notch a chopstick so I could "stick the tank" once in a while and get an idea how much fuel I had. Also, the new bike I've built has a smaller 36T pedal sprocket installed. While I can't go quite as fast when pedaling as I could with the old bike, it's WAY easier. If I had to pedal 10 miles to get home, I could. It would just be rather late when I get there.
 

Drewd

New Member
Jul 25, 2008
425
0
0
Colorado
Before I got two tanks on my bikes (one up front and a rack mounted one), I always carried a 30 oz MSR bottle mixed at 20:1 ratio and also always have a couple of bucks on me. the 20:1 will get me to a gas station and allow me to top off without adding any extra oil.

You can also go to your local pharmacy and get a 2 oz medicine bottle for oil and carry that with you and some gas money. Add the full 2 oz of oil to the 1/2 gallon fuel tank and you should be good to go. Add the fuel first and slowly add the oil.
 
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Goat Herder

Gutter Rider
Apr 28, 2008
6,237
20
38
N.M.
Before I got two tanks on my bikes (one up front and a rack mounted one), I always carried a 30 oz MSR bottle mixed at 20:1 ratio and also always have a couple of bucks on me. the 20:1 will get me to a gas station and allow me to top off without adding any extra oil.

You can also go to your local pharmacy and get a 2 oz medicine bottle and carry that with you and some gas money. Add the full 2 oz to the 1/2 gallon fuel tank and you should be good to go. Add the fuel first and slowly ass the oil.
You doing something funky with the oil lol?laff
 

dmb

Active Member
Dec 4, 2010
1,354
3
36
lakewood ca
if i forget to open the petcock she'll go about 1/8 mile. if ya run out tilt the bike to the right side and your get 2 or 3 float bowl fill ups= 1/4 mile hopefully
 

Mozenrath

New Member
Jan 13, 2011
340
0
0
California
if i forget to open the petcock she'll go about 1/8 mile. if ya run out tilt the bike to the right side and your get 2 or 3 float bowl fill ups= 1/4 mile hopefully
Never thought of that. Now I want to run out of gas on purpose just to see if that works! xD


Also, my take on the gas is that if you can't tell with your own eyes how much gas you have left(assuming you have good or corrected vision), that means it's time to fill up again. Although at some point it would be nice to get a fuel tank that has a clear strip on the side, just for the convenience of not having to take off the cap.
 

Drewd

New Member
Jul 25, 2008
425
0
0
Colorado
Funky with the oil? Nope, 100% pure degummed, first press castor oil is superior to any 2 stroke oil (conventional or synthetic) with respect to lubricity, sheer strength, film strength, activity under extreme pressure, better than anything at high temps, and when it does flash at extremely high temps, it forms a dry lubricant that still lubes the engine. The only drawback is that it does build up a little more varnish on engine internals and plug than conventional and/or synthetic oil but that is a small price to pay for superior engine protection. With that said, I have yet to "devarnish" an engine or a plug because a quality castor oil (degummed, first press) doesn't do this as much. The issue with the oil not mixing with gasoline is nothing I've observed. I mix my fuel in small batches of a gallon or less at a time and shake the mix real well. Using 100% castor oil is really not needed. If you add 4 oz of oil per gallon, 1 to 2 oz of that being castor will HELP a lot! I ride my bikes a lot off road at full throttle in a very low gear 34tooth mega gear, and non-stock gearing on my jackshaft kit so that my bikes can climb any hill that Colorado has to offer. High engine loads at high rpms with slow forward movement (less cooling over engine head) has caused my exhaust pipes to turn cherry red at the header while riding in 85deg + weather with no engine seizure or premature engine wear/failure.


Here is a discussion (rebuttal) by someone who who runs castor and disagrees about what another author about 2 stroke oils said about castor:

One of the best “general” information articles about current two stroke oils is at the link below. While this article was originally authored with a specific view towards two-stroke personal watercraft oils, we consider the info to be very current and well written … it is “highly recommended reading” for any vintage two-stroke owner.

http://www.sea-doo.net/techarticles/oil/oil.htm
For those not wanting to muddle through the entire text, we consider the two excerpts below to be far and away the most important with respect to vintage two strokes.

Castor Based Oils

Mr. Robert Verret wrote in http://www.sea-doo.net/techarticles/oil/oil.htm: I mentioned a third category of base oils earlier, vegetable or Castor (not Castrol, that’s a manufacturer) bean oil. This oil is derived from pressing oil out of castor beans and distilling it. ‘Bean Oil’ as it is often referred to, has some very unique characteristics; some very good, others not so good. The good is that it is an excellent lubricant. It seeks out hot spots in the engine and clings to those hot surfaces much better than petroleum type oils. The bad is that it does not mix with gasoline easily and it burns ‘dirty’ (excessive carbon/varnish deposits). In the early 70s, before power valves were used, castor bean oil was very popular in racing 2-strokes. Now that power valves are common and we have improved petroleum and synthetic oils, castor bean oil is seldom used anymore. Several companies still market it in the form of a degummed castor oil for racing applications only. It should be avoided for recreational use unless you enjoy tearing your engine down for a top end cleanup fairly often. Several manufacturers formulate their oil with castor bean oil as an additive (antiwear agent) rather than base oil. They blend it with their petroleum and synthetic base oils. When castor bean oil burns, it has an unmistakable ‘sweet’ smell. (end of excerpt)

Like the author of the above text (Mr. Robert Verret) we too have been involved with two-strokes for 30+ years, and we have also spoken with many well educated and well informed folks in the lubrication business. All the experienced and reputable folks we have ever spoken to agreed on the basic qualities of Castor oils. That is, castor bean based oils are not particularly clean burning, do not mix homogonously with virtually any fuel, and are very expensive to manufacture …. But they offer a film strength and lubrication quality that is not matched by any other oil…. Period.

Like Mr. Verret, we also understand that many folks get very emotional about the particular oil brand they use. For us, choosing a 2-stroke oil is all about the science and results … emotion doesn’t matter. For air cooled two-strokes being run at high rpms and high loads, there is no better choice than a castor based oil. During our stint of running the DG Performance race team from 1975-1979, we ran ONLY 20:1 Castrol “R” in every Team DG machine raced out of our shop. The sheer film strength of the bean oil allowed us to run tighter than normal piston clearances, and thereby netting better performance and long term piston life (as a result of less piston "rattling” in the bore).

Castrol “R” was certainly a bit dirty, but it was the best stuff of the day. Of the castor bean oils currently available, we prefer Maxima 927. While it is not “perfectly clean” we have found it to run cleaner than any other bean oil we have used (and we have used plenty). In addition, the film strength of “927” is every bit as good as the Castrol “R” of the 1970’s, with a lot less mess.

In 2010, we built and road raced two 1970 Kawasaki 350 Bighorn Production Class enduros in the western AHRMA road race events. We ran these machines on a 20:1 mix of “927” and 105 octane race gas. While stock Bighorns redline at 6000rpm, ours turned 8500rpm and ran a bit over 100mph. At the Willow Springs track in Southern California, we lapped at 1:52 (an average speed of 80mph). At Willow, our Bighorns were constantly at peak rpm in 4th & 5th gear for every moment of each 15 minute practice session and race. Our race weekend entailed 4 outings for each of 2 days … a total of 120 operating minutes at peak rpm in high gear (per machine) … with not one mechanical issue at all. We respectfully submit that there isn’t any way to subject a vintage two stroke to any more intense abuse than this, and we feel that the lubrication abilities of the Maxima “927” were a fundamental contributor to our weekends of trouble free racing.

After our race season was done, we fitted our Bighorns with street-lighting, and ran the exact same machines on the 100 mile Hansen Dam classic motorcycle ride north of Los Angeles. At this event, we ran the Bighorns on a 40:1 mix of “927” and 91 octane pump gas (most of the ride was done at 3000-5000rpm). The bikes never put out any visible smoke (except at long stop lights) and never came close to fouling a spark plug.

Despite all this very positive experience with a Castor based oil, we openly acknowledge that Castor oils “ARE NOT” necessarily the best choice for all vintage two-stroke applications. Robert Verret’s excerpt below explains that.
 
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