Fulling the bike

[Big Al 82]

Is it just me?  I know I have only fueled the bike twice, but is their a knack to getting fuel into the tank?  Both times I have tried the petrol spit / sloshed back out of the tank. I have tried to point the nozzle down inside the tank, I have also tried  going square on to the tank while trying to be gentile with the trigger but I still ended up with some splashing back and then going down the drain tube, leaving a small amount under the bike. Also when I am filling it I find hard to see the fill level. The bike is on the main stand.

[suffolk58 2,286]

It gets better with practice Alan!

I'm too lazy to put the bike on the centre stand when fuelling, but my method, is to push the nozzle all the way in and fill until the auto stop on the pump operates (usually at around £5). Then I pull the nozzle almost out, and gently fill to the bar. It helps to park where it's well lit. I guess putting my head near to the open tank to see, means I breathe in some petrol fumes...not good!

[steelhorseuk 1,695]

No it is not just you, when I first got my NC in 2012 it took me a couple of fills to get it right.

Same as Martin above, I now just push the nozzle all the way down and squeeze the trigger all the way until it self cancels.

Then I just top it up with nozzle half way out just keeping my eye on it. 

-Mark-

[Guest Mac750]

 I think it must have something to do with other markets the bike is sold in. My wife's car is American, built in Mexico with a Japanese engine and the money was stumped up by Daimler Benz to build it. 

The up shot of all that is I can never fill it up in one hit without resorting to Anglo Saxon expletives which makes my wife grin in a smug way as she can fill it in one go with no hassle as she has the knack. 

 

The American fuel nozzles and presumably most other countries  must be different to European EN 1234567 so that's possibly why the NC also needs the knack to fill it up. 

I also find the NC a bit a faff to refill, but I have had worse and with only 14 ltrs to throw in it I have finished whilst my mates are still filling up watching the cost add up.

 

[Rocker66 34,488]

It is not only the NC as my CB500X also needs a knack when filling up and that has a conventional tank

[MikeBike 5,006]

Just like suffolk58 here. Sidestand, fill to autostop with nozzle in on full blast, withdraw nozzle still pointing down hole in baffle plate and fill gently until I see the petrol level over the baffle level on the downhill side and not reaching the uphill side.

 

Dont think Sidestand or main makes much of a difference - less on one side, more on other, and it's easier to see level when it's creeping up on the downhill side.

[Guest bonekicker]

Just take it slowly--put your glasses on and with practice you will get most of the expensive fuel in the tank

[PoppetM 16,874]

All in. Then after auto stop, I hold the nozzle outside the tank and go gently till I reach the plate. A knack developed on the Vespa when auto stop was after £2.50.

 

Only time I spilt it, I was the first customer on the pump (they are termpermental at my local supermarket first thing in the morning, an am told they don't like the cold!) drip drip drip, then without warning there was a surge. Coated me and the bike. 

They offered to jet wash me, ta love!

I now make sure I only fill up in the evenings!

 

[Guest sykospain]

Thinking back to last summer ( '15 ) when I first got the NC, and tried the first fill-up, it took me a while to realise that there is another hole for the filler-nozzle to poke through, that's hidden below the hole where the filler-cap fits.

Nobody ever tells you that, do they ?

So the first time you squirt fuel in by just poking the nozzle through the first hole, fuel goes all over the place, bouncing back up from the hidden plate that has the inside hole.....

Ain't life a bitch ?

 

 

Royal Automobile Club of Queensland

Edited December 26, 2016 by sykospain

[Guest Southerner]

Moderate your pressure on the pump trigger. I never use 'full throttle' on a pump for filling a bike.

[Mikdent 4,070]

Just take it slowly, have a fag while your waiting.

[Guest Jules]

On 21/12/2016 at 10:58, Big Al said:

Is it just me?  I know I have only fueled the bike twice, but is their a knack to getting fuel into the tank?  Both times I have tried the petrol spit / sloshed back out of the tank. I have tried to point the nozzle down inside the tank, I have also tried  going square on to the tank while trying to be gentile with the trigger but I still ended up with some splashing back and then going down the drain tube, leaving a small amount under the bike. Also when I am filling it I find hard to see the fill level. The bike is on the main stand.

Just fuelled my bike for the first time, didn't realise this was an art!!!! Petrol all over the place!! It took me about 5mins to add 10 litres. Not what's I expected, no mention of this in the brochure!!! Allow plenty of time whenever you're refuelling! Jules,,,,,,,,surprised new owner !!!!!

[Mike5100 2,061]

58 minutes ago, Jules said:

Just fuelled my bike for the first time, didn't realise this was an art!!!! Petrol all over the place!! It took me about 5mins to add 10 litres. Not what's I expected, no mention of this in the brochure!!! Allow plenty of time whenever you're refuelling! Jules,,,,,,,,surprised new owner !!!!!

It shouldn't take you any longer to fill the NC than any other bike Julian, so you just need to work out what you are doing wrong.

If mine is nearly empty I put the nozzle down into the 'second' hole - it's in a shiny stainless steel plate.  Pull the trigger on full until petrol cuts off - maybe a minute.  Withdraw the nozzle and look inside.   Hold the end of the nozzle just above that hole and half depress the trigger until the level of the fuel is at the level of that hole.  maybe another 30 seconds to a minute.

Doesn't matter whether it's on centre stand or sidestand - if on the sidestand it's much easier to do everything from the nearside of the bike.

Mike

Edited January 27, 2017 by Mike5100

[Guest d_lyrium]

On 26/12/2016 at 16:20, sykospain said:

Thinking back to last summer ( '15 ) when I first got the NC, and tried the first fill-up, it took me a while to realise that there is another hole for the filler-nozzle to poke through, that's hidden below the hole where the filler-cap fits.

Nobody ever tells you that, do they ?

So the first time you squirt fuel in by just poking the nozzle through the first hole, fuel goes all over the place, bouncing back up from the hidden plate that has the inside hole.....

Ain't life a bitch ?

 

This! A thousand times this.

 

My NC750S is my first 'big boy' motorcycle (my first little boy motorcycle was the Honda S-Wing 125 that I bought in May 2016. Didn't take too long to convert me from "commuter" to full on biker!). My first attempt to fill her up, under the "supervision" of my instructor resulted in him nearly wetting himself, me looking as if I had, and the bike still mostly empty. 

 

Eventually I worked out "the knack", the same knack that most people here seem to have worked out. For the longest time, I was left thinking "man, I can't even put fuel in the damn thing properly, what chance have I got?!".

 

It was a rough first date with the NC750, she kept playing with her food and embarrassing me. But now we're married so it worked out ok in the end.

Edited January 29, 2017 by d_lyrium

[Guest sykospain]

Jason - love your turn of phrase....