did i mention i ride around in reserve to get maximum gas mileage with equal speed.. you dont lose power ad you conserve gas..

 

LOL. But what fun is that?

 

What does reserve matter? Its just a lower pick up in the tank, doesn't restrict fuel flow or anything. The only difference is that when you finally run out of gas, you're screwed.

 

Agreed... reserve should not get you better mileage. the carbs receive fuel from the petcock through the same hose, fill the bowls the same way and then used by the same jets.

 

i usually just fill up around 100 miles :/ I could get more but i don't like pushing it since i live 9 miles away from a gas station lol

 

it prob shouldnt but by riding in reserve it doesnt die out sooner so i never have to witch. some people dont use there reserve and just feel that when they are out on regular they need to refil. so yea it does get me a little better.. plus it seems to go threw gas faster when not in reserve. idk thats just my bike not yours.

 

Were talking miles per gallon not miles per tank. Using reserve won't change the miles per gallon but it will allow you to get more miles per tank. But it would be the same if you rode on the on position and switched to reserve.

 

reserve is only like 4-tenths of a gallon anyway - I think we have a 4 gallon tank, and when I hit reserve, I always put ~3.6 gallons back in it.

 

With a full tank, I have gotten as many as 150 miles without going to Reserve. Refilling will then need between 3.2 and 3.5 gallons. I have been getting 45mpg on average.

 

Question related to this - I leave my petcock in the On position all the time, since the vacuum isn't there to open it when the engine isn't running. There are also the open overflow and vent lines coming out of the bottom.

It seems that at times when the bike sits for a week or so due to weather or me just not being there to ride it , the longer the bike sits, the less miles I get on that tank. Is a significant amount of gas evaporating out of those vents, or maybe trickling into the carbs to evap out of the carb vent lines? Or is it all in my head?