81 GS850G Tank swap

[Polishpower77]

Anyone have an idea as to what type of different, possibly smaller tank would work on my 850? I got a free tank from a buddy, smaller off of a 1972 Suzuki TM400 and lo and behold it does not fit...it is deep enough but too narrow to fit the center frame. Anyone make a tank swap on a 850??, just wanted to get a few ideas. Thanks.

[Flyboy]

You an try the little tank off the 850L, may need some mods done, but why?????
The nice thing about the G tanks is the range, with an L tank you goin to be stopping for gas twice as often.

[Polishpower77]

This tank is so large, was thinking of going smaller, but will run with the stock tank, it's a cool tank for what it is. Just was wondering if anyone had ever swapped the stock tank for something else, and if so, what kind.

[rthor]

I replaced the stock tank on my 81 GS850G with a smaller 79 GS750 tank. It fit without any problem - no modifications. The only thing I had to give up was the fuel gage as there is none on the 750 tank. However, for future long distance trips I would definitely switch back to the larger tank.

[Polishpower77]

Thanks appreciate the response, no fuel petcock?

[rthor]

It's been a while since I swaped over the tanks but I recall that the petcock mounts on both tanks are the same. You could probably get away with using your 850 petcock, but it has a longer filter screen and is designed for a deeper tank. If you run it in the 750 tank you will probably have to switch to reserve much earlier. If you find a suitable 750 tank, you should probably get the correct petcock to match.

[rthor]

You can have a look at my 850 (with the 750E tank) in the gallery. It is in the 1981 section. It has hard bags and a sport fairing. Look for listing by - rthor

[Tom R]

I might be willing to swap tanks with you depending on if they're apples to apples. It's a 3.5 gal tank I think and gives my 1100 about 120 miles before it reads empty. I plan to change the colors of my bike soon anyway, so if I paint this tank (small) or a bigger one makes little difference to me.