Topic: Is a locking fuel cap necissary??

[manjisann]

Hey guys, I'm getting ready to start fabricating a fuel tank and one of the things that has been causing me some brain blockage as what fuel cap to use. I'm making a cafe racer, so I would like it to be low profile. I've found many kinds, most of which do not have locks on them so thy just twist or pop off. I know that a lot of race tracks require that the caps be locked in place somehow, but aside from that, is there another reason to have them? Has anyone ever had their fuel siphoned or crud put in their tank on purpose and think that a locking cap would have helped prevent the issue? Or should I take the route of, if they want the gas so bad, they can have it, just don't poke a hole in my tank?

Anyhow, thoughts/opinions/experiences would be greatly appreciated. I'm kinda on the fence on this one.

Thanks,

Brandon

[Gordon]

Even the "locking" gas caps on most of the sohc4's aren't actually locks.  They're just latches that can be opened with anything that will fit in the slot.  Earlier models just had a thumb latch. 

[manjisann]

Insert Quote
Even the "locking" gas caps on most of the sohc4's aren't actually locks.  They're just latches that can be opened with anything that will fit in the slot.  Earlier models just had a thumb latch.

Very true, my 500 had one of these, which was only one step above the old push latch.

The locking ones I'm thinking of are the ones like on the 650's where it is an actual lock and the correct key has to be used.

Brandon

[greasy j]

when I first moved to Oakland from Seattle I had a house in west Oakland. BAD hood. I had no garage and had to park the bike in front of the house.

while doing an oil change one day I found a cigarette butt and paper trapped in my oil filter. I have the 750 with the separate oil tank. someone must have unscrewed the cap and put out their smoke out in my oil tank. maybe hoping it would catch fire. bastards!

I ended up getting a gorilla alarm. it would go off all the time and I would see people scurrying away as I ran out with the bat. side covers were stolen 2 days after I bought them. fixed the problem by moving to a place with a garage.

locking caps won't stop someone who's determined anyways. the alarm is nice because it's very small and you can buy an optional pager that will let you know what's going on with your bike from a long ways away. like in a restaurant or at a movie. it has sensors for the tilt so that if someone takes it off the sidestand it will go off, as well as the normal sensors. and you can set the sensitivity so it won't go off when a truck goes by.

not sure if I answered your ? but hopefully this helps a little.

[TomL]

Locking cap may keep people from putting things in your tank, but if you're doing it so people don't steal your gas, all they need to do is pull the fuel line of the petcock. 

[Damfino]

Those locking caps on our bikes that aren't really locking and can be opened with any key, screwdriver, etc. were actually a safety recall by Honda in the mid seventies. I still have the warranty recall notification that was sent to the original owner of my bike. (1976 CB750)
They weren't designed to prevent the theft of fuel, they were designed to prevent the rider - in the event of an accident - from coming into contact with the old style thumb latch, inadvertantly popping open the cap, and having a few gallons of flammable fuel added to the already bad mix of the accident itself.

I know, not really an answer for you maybe, but a little trivia anyway...

[manjisann]

Schmthaus, actually that is a great bit of information.

TomL, that is a very good point I hadn't really thought of, definately something to think about in the grand scheme of things.

Greasy J, actually your post is along the lines of what I was looking for, thanks for sharing it! Fortunately I live in and ride in fairly good areas, but crap still happens.

In all honesty from what everyone has written so far, the locking caps, no matter what style, are more of a safety thing and casual deterrant than anything. My dad once told me that if you ever buy a jeep with soft top don't lock your doors. It would cost more to have the plastic windows fixed than it would to just replace the radio. Along the same lines, it would be cheaper to put a few gallons of gas in the tank than to have someone poke a hole in it, or destroy it just to get the gas.

Plus, a locking gas cap means one more key to carry around.

Thanks again everyone, seriously!

Brandon

[Raul CB750K1]

I have a modern Suzuki GZ250 with locking cap.

If somebody want to steal 13 euro -best-case scenario- worth of gas, they would have to break the cap, suck from the tube, make sure the tube is low in the tank, and wait for their canister to fill

Or they would just have to leave the canister on the floor and connect the tube to the petcock, leave it emptying and get back after some time to harvest their gas.

Of my six bikes, only one have locking gas cap. Never had gas stolen, even parked in the streets.

[HondaMan]

One thing I appreciated about the locks, when Honda recalled my bike, was that it prevented the tank bag from opening the gas cap while riding on winding roads.    I would usually crank the bag down pretty tight on a long tour, like through the Black Hills, when it came time to warm up the tire's sidewalls (and I often applied english to the bag by either leaning over on it too hard or twisting it with my knees in the curves). One several occasions (with the original, lipped thumblatch) the gas cap popped the latch, letting gas get on the bottom of my tank bag and then soak into my clothes. 

[sangyo soichiro]

Plus, a locking gas cap means one more key to carry around.

I hear you.  I wish I had only one key that fit all my locks.  I'm always fumbling around in the dark with my hands full of other things trying to find the right key.  And I can't stand cars that have separate keys for the door and the ignition.   

[manjisann]

One several occasions (with the original, lipped thumblatch) the gas cap popped the latch, letting gas get on the bottom of my tank bag and then soak into my clothes.

I believe that was Honda's anti-smoking campaign 

I hear you.  I wish I had only one key that fit all my locks.  I'm always fumbling around in the dark with my hands full of other things trying to find the right key.  And I can't stand cars that have separate keys for the door and the ignition

My biggest issue with this is I don't like the other keys flopping around and wearing on the paint. But yeah, fumbling with keys isn't fun. The only advantage I've found to having a huge key ring, is if I ever get into a fist fight, it's an instant weapon. 

Brandon

[bert96]

If you want a locking cap, buy a locking cap for the oil tank.That's what i did.


Bert