I'm moving my speedo up the handlebars and I'm looking for a longer cable. I did a search here, for "speedometer cable" but could only find a reference to a tach cable of an older Suzuki GT 750 triple. Any one have any idea what year I should look at? Or other solutions? Thanks!

I moved mine up to the handle bars last year. I changed to a Harley tank but wanted to keep the old speedo as I knew how much it was off and wanted to keep track of the real miles on the bike. I'm not sure of the model number but I picked up the tach cable from a Suzuki 3-cyl at a bike pre-owned-laying-on-the-ground parts emporium for somewhere around $10.00. The local dealer who couldn't tell a bass from his (well, you know) was less than no help, but the yard dog at this bike salvage place just had me hop on the golf cart and took me right to what I needed. If you have any doubts about it take your old cable to make sure the ends are a match. Just make sure to pull the cable out, wipe it down good, do the slush-pump thing with oil on a rag to clean out the cable housing and lube with whatever motor oil you use in the bike. I do the synth oil thing so I'm sure there'll never be a problem. I re-new the cable oiling every year or so.

As a side note, if you want to save some bucks, instead of spending $30-$50 for a housing from an auto parts store you can do what I did. I took a PVC pipe coupling fitting and rough sanded it so the plastic type paint would stick to it nicely. The tach from our bikes fits in it almost perfectly. perfectly when you add a few layers of duct tape around it. There's a few more steps involved in the process and it's all written up here somewhere on this site from when I did the job. there's hints on what I did to keep the original lights, making a back protective cap and mounting it to the bars.

jazzcarter's 2000 Suzuki Savage



Jack

What Harley tank did you get to work?

Man, that's a cool tank setup (I know, I read about it before)...

But did you find the cheese?

why? - because of the placement ?

Seems difficult to be cordial, so be it.

We sure are pleased someone finally came to tell us the errors of our ways no idea how we managed to survive this long in our state of ignorance.

KwakNut wrote on 02/06/08 at 09:40:55:


No offence, but it looks to be better attached than the couple of bolts that hold the stock tank in place!  Besides, I think he's put enough miles on to have one or two police notice it.  We're not as stringent as you...we are just "sue happy" is all.

Oh my, what have I done here? I guess a  little anecdotal info might help calm the waters here.

The rear tank is sold in this country by a company that sells a lot of them. Their mounting straps are 1/4" steel held onto the bike by four bolts, usually to a luggage rack. In my case those four bolts go through a sheet of 1/4" steel that's bolted very securely through my stock solid steel sissy bar. I don't want to test it, but the site of the company that makes and sells these tanks has comments from folks who have flipped their bikes with these tanks on them and they've stayed attached and spill-proof. Got to be better than those PVC tanks those lads use just sitting on their four wheel off road toys.

I can attest to the fact that when my bike was lying on it's right side after a semi blew it over on the gravel shoulder of a country road the stock tank leaked a lot more gas from around it's cap than the tank on the back did. The aux tank can be had with an internal splash baffle and an over-flow catch tank so as to be legal in CA.

As for a  rear end ramming caused explosions, I guess if I'm hit that hard, I doubt I'll be the one worrying about a fire. But as stated above, I don't think the tank is going anywhere without the bike still attached. and it's way sturdier than the thin sheet metal of the stock tank on this bike. The Harley tank on front is stronger than stock on this bike as well.

Now, as to the state by state legal issues, I've not gone around and asked the various local constabularies as to their local ordinances. I have ridden in and through around 2/3 of the eastern half of the country with nary a second glance from the police, even when I was passing them on the big slabs. I think if anyone would be interested in pulling me over Georgia, Alabama or Florida would have been all over me like stink on doo-doo. If I get it together enough for the trip I want to do next summer I'll let you know about California.

Bottom line for me is that I've never given any thought to the idea that that back tank would come off, rupture or be anymore dangerous than carrying a quart of gas in an aluminum container in a saddle bag. I put it on to stay and trust me it's not going anywhere easily. The tank sits high enough that it'll go on top of pretty much any hood should I get hit. And if somebody doesn't see that big honkin' red oval light on the tank then I'll have the painful pleasure of knowing they were in the wrong.

A little facetious on the light thing, but if we want to ride we take some chances. We prepare the best we can and (at least most of us) obey the laws. And at least here in MN my buddy the police chief hasn't told me I should take it off. Of course he's a Gold Winger and only knows comfort anyway.

Straddle the saddle and keep on pedaling,

Jack