Hows the surface of the tank lip the gasket ( supposedly) seats on?
When you put the key in to remove the cap, can you just turn the key or do you have to press down on the cap to relieve the pressure on the cogs that hold the cap in the tank?

you guys are missing the point.....

wheelchairstuntn wrote on 07/24/12 at 22:37:30:


I believe the problem is one of expansion.....and having a fuel cap located off center....and having a small tank that we always try to overfill.  When I put fuel in my tank the bike is leaning over on the kickstand and the fill point is at the highest.  I always try to squeeze in as much fuel as possible......most of us do so we can get 100 miles before we fill again and the fuel is right up to the bottom of the little pipe that is supposed to keep us from overfilling.  When we go to ride and bring the bike upright - the fuel level then comes up against the cap.....and as the 60 degree fuel from the underground tank expands to match the 90-100 degree air we have had this summer.....the fuel drips out of the cap or vent as it expands and sloshes around.  I have far less of a problem with this when the weather is cool.

OK- to re-cap (pun intended):
What I did was first make sure the seat on the tank itself is smooth.
Then I packed the stock gasket out with the Honda gasket after cutting the center out a bit on the Honda gasket so it would seat flat in the cap. I also cut a notch out of the Honda gasket so it wouldn't interfere with the venting.
If it still leaks after that (mine doesn't) you can cut spacers the same as the Honda gasket out of paper gasket material and shim it out until it doesn't leak.
I think the biggest omission when tackling this problem is most people don't smooth out the tank seat.

wheelchairstuntn wrote on 07/24/12 at 22:37:30:


Rip I agree. Working for an outdoor power equipment dealership carrying a dozen lines of equipment I see the frustration daily when a customer comes in for a part,only to be told that part is not sold by itself,only in a kit or as part of an assembly. Trouble is, many times the manufacturer does not provide the part by itself due to liability concerns(leaking fuel cap starting a fire maybe?) and only sells the complete unit to avoid possible problems. Sometimes it may boil down to profits. And sometimes it's done to meet government regs(you can't buy replacement carbs for most equipment now that have adjustment beyond idle speed).

But getting past all that.....Why pay the dealer an outragous pile of cash when the fix is sooooo much cheaper as proven by our crafty brethren here in the group!