What year is this tank?

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If you have a Commando frame, then the tanks will interchange. So that tank would fit a '72 just fine. But before you leap, be aware that it appears to be fiberglass. Read up on problems with fiberglass tanks and modern fuels. The tank you are looking at is also from a Hi-Rider, so it has it's own particular look and sadly is very small in capacity. Even smaller than a Roadster tank. I think they come in at just around two gallons, which offers a very limited range.

Russ
 
rvich said:
If you have a Commando frame, then the tanks will interchange. So that tank would fit a '72 just fine. But before you leap, be aware that it appears to be fiberglass. Read up on problems with fiberglass tanks and modern fuels. The tank you are looking at is also from a Hi-Rider, so it has it's own particular look and sadly is very small in capacity. Even smaller than a Roadster tank. I think they come in at just around two gallons, which offers a very limited range.

Russ
Click to expand...

+1 to the above statements from Russ. You will be looking for a gas station every hour if you are running a 19 tooth final.
Keep looking for a steel tank. Roadsters look nicer and look real sharp when matched with a Corbin seat.
Cheers,
Thomas
CNN
 
It's metal and at $195 not a bad price. If you can live with the small gas capacity, go for it. Several on this site really like that small tank look. Not my cup of tea, though. A steel roadster tank in similar condition would go for double this.
 
Ask the seller to check the tank with a magnet. The front hinge tank is a giveaway that it is a fiberglass tank. Run away. If you really want to mess with a small capacity tank that will leak with today's gas or messing around with cleaning and sealing (a 50/50 chance it will hold up) I would not even spend $50 on it.

As a comparison, a buddy picked up a nice steel Hi-Rider tank in original orange and it took until Sunday at Mid-Ohio last year to bring $180. (and he made an $80 profit)
 
About five years ago I sold a fiberglass Roadster tank on eBay for $225. I'll bet that guy is still cussing me, even though I warned him of the issues with fiberglass and ethanol. I think even $50 for a fiberglass tank is $49 too much, unless you are using it for a planter.
 
Ron L said:
Ask the seller to check the tank with a magnet. The front hinge tank is a giveaway that it is a fiberglass tank. Run away. If you really want to mess with a small capacity tank that will leak with today's gas or messing around with cleaning and sealing (a 50/50 chance it will hold up) I would not even spend $50 on it.
Click to expand...

Its fiberglass. Good call Ron L.
CNN
 
Commando ' SS ' tank . :D

What year is this tank?



Theyre quite comfortable , & other than letting more of the top end noise escape upward , arnt a bad idea . For around town , anyway .
looks STEEL to me . At $ 200 you cant loose . Still anoyed I walked past a steel one in 1981 ! :lol: :wink: . AND its BLACK . How Cool . :?

Actually let you clamber round a bit with the knee still on the tank , if you mistake the local roads for the I.o.M. :mrgreen:
 
Thats Right Matt,
That’s a pretty Red steel one for yah.... Which way is the latch on the filler cap facing????
To the front.... yes??? Now look at the first post of the thread with the craiglist link. Which way is it facing???
Re-read Ron L's post to this thread. That one in the ad there is F/g.
CNN
 
If the seller said it is steel and he thinks you are local which most cl deals are, it could very well be steel. Hard to tell in the photos. Fiberglass tanks of that style have the 2 buttons on the rear so you can hold the rear down with a rubber gromet. There is no sign of them at all. I have one of each at home, I'll try to check the differences in the am when I'm home and it's light out. I paid $75 for my steel one a year ago. $200 is tops for that even though it has the taps and cap IMHO.
 
RennieK said:
If the seller said it is steel and he thinks you are local which most cl deals are, it could very well be steel. Hard to tell in the photos. Fiberglass tanks of that style have the 2 buttons on the rear so you can hold the rear down with a rubber gromet. There is no sign of them at all. I have one of each at home, I'll try to check the differences in the am when I'm home and it's light out. I paid $75 for my steel one a year ago. $200 is tops for that even though it has the taps and cap IMHO.
Click to expand...

Rennie,
I also have a roadster tank in fiberglass....and no buttons...the give away is the filler cap. Which way is the latch facing? There are many parts that are steel on a F/G tank but the tank body is F/G. A "Magnet"... is what Ron L requests.... It tells no lies. "Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free".
Thomas
CNN
 
Norton mixed and matched right around 72 the most. Steel was brought in as a regulation then. If you are unlucky enough to have acquired a FB tank then make sure it is not one that the gas tap lifts up towards you. Accident = flames ,popped cap ,lifeage over...
 
For sure looks like HyRyder tank but factory one's I tapped were all fiberglass gel coated. I've also never seen HyRyder in a tradition color of black and gold through I've only seen a couple dozen beside my buddy Wes's. Maybe India knock off if in steel?
Holds about 2 hr or 100 miles worth. Wes always carries a sack on the tank with a canteen of gas and often enough has used it on our local outtings as the loner ones have frequenter stations for his stops about once an hour just in case. Wes is as funny about his Commando image as any of us, especially the cafe'rs, which carry a back pack instead of a lug rack, Wes loves the sleek look so much will not think of fitting a bigger tank so straps on a ruck sack gas tank as magnetic don't stick. Its a ok price for a useable tank that needs care but i warn you gasoline left will be a constant on your mind like a low flying pilot picking out emergency landing sites as much as the scenery.
 
OK, here's my 2 hirider tanks side by side:


What year is this tank?


What year is this tank?


What year is this tank?


The orange streel tank has a rear mount system tapped into the bottom (I had mistaken that with the roadster rear mnts on the fbgls tanks) The OP link does seem to show these mount locations in a few photos. (Maybe my fiber tank has had these patched over at some time) The bottom of my fiber tank is pretty well flush from the edges right across the floor whereas the steel tank has the sides dropping down past the floor of the tank 3/8". The OP's link tank resembles my steel tank this way but otherwise it has the fiberglass traits. Also as has been pointed out the filler cap is mounted at the front of the tank (as is my fiber tank).

The tank in the link is a 3rd style so yeah, take your magnet. Keep us informed if you look into this closer.
 
Drat.

a good rap on the knuckles , or rap with the knukles , the sounds are distinct .

What year is this tank?


Definately apears to be the fibre floor , maybe later they tried to fit more fuel in , lowering it .

F'Glass has to be worth a good $ 10 . for the Filler Cap . maybe .
 
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