I haven't seen a thread specifically on this so I'll post how I did it. I'm a true novice but here goes :)

Materials:
Harbor Freight Hand Syphon.(It doesn't get the best reviews but mine worked fine)
Extra length of vinyl hose (hardware store, Home Depot, etc)
Hose couplers ( I used Harbor Freight air compressor couplers)
Wire coat hanger ( Any stiff wire should work)
6 to 8 hose clamps (parts store)
Total cost was under $20 I beleive.

Problem: The hose would bend and curl too much to stay in the bottom of the tank.

I just modified the hand syphon. I straightened the coat hanger and ran it the length of the hose (outside of the hose) that would be going into the tank. Fastened it to the hose every 6 inches or so with the hose clamps. Extended the hose going into the gas can with an extra length of vinyl hose using the couplers and hose clamps. Be sure to leave extra wire extending past the end of the hose going into the tank. You need to bend this extra length up and over the bottom hose clamp to prevent it from possibly slipping off and going into the tank.

This set up barely fits through the fill opening in the top of the tank. Be careful when removing the hose from the tank. The edge of the filler hole will shave the hose a bit. I noticed some areas on the hose that looked shaved after I pulled the hose out.

It worked! I got 5 gallons of gas out of the tank. No leaks or spills. I idled the bike twice up to operating temperature, shutting her down when the fan kicked on. On the 2nd round she ran empty. You need to work the hand pump pretty hard to get it going. I had to use two hands at one point but once it started it ran straight to the end.

Hope my novice how-to helps someone. Feel free to review/change etc.

* Last updated by: jmartin724 on 3/25/2018 @ 10:32 AM *

Good idea to use a coat hanger to help keep the tube straight!

I've used a vacuum pump that would you use to bleed brakes to get the siphon going, was really easy and quick, with a long enough tube you can see the fuel starting to move then just unhook the pump and shove the line into a jerry can sitting on the ground.

Problem: The hose would bend and curl too much to stay in the bottom of the tank.

This happens to me too. The hose wants to coil back up the way it was stored.

The edge of the filler hole will shave the hose a bit. I noticed some areas on the hose that looked shaved after I pulled the hose out.

I see the same thing. I sometimes put a rag between the edge of the splash guard and the syphon hose. I usually end up pulling the hose out a few times to straighten it.

I've used a vacuum pump that would you use to bleed brakes to get the siphon going

That's what that Mity-vac will be good for! It doesn't work for brake bleeding at all (although everyone else's seems to work just fine).

The coat hanger sounds like a great idea. Thanks.

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Good idea on the vacuum pump. Rook, my Mighty-Vac works fine for bleeding brakes. You have to hold it on the bleeder sometimes. I'll wrap good bit of some white pipe tape around the bleeder to get a tighter seal.

* Last updated by: jmartin724 on 3/31/2018 @ 6:14 PM *

Mine just won't suck hard enough. I've tried and tried. Maybe it's defective. Could be the reservoir in the mightyvac line. That cap won't hold vacuum. ..but I've seen it work in videos. Mine doesn't.

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I wanted to add that hardly any gas came out of the fuel line or the tank when I removed it. Maybe a teaspoon came out of the fuel line. I'm not sure if running the bike to empty hurts it or not. Hopefully I won't have to remove it very often.

About a teaspoon when you disconnect the hose is what I get. I don't think running the tank dry can hurt but letting it sit a long time with the fuel pump not immersed in gasoline might. I've had my fuel tank empty or almost empty for a few months a couple times and had no issues. I find draining it to nothing is really unnecessary. A quart or two of gas doesn't make the tank a lot harder to lift out and it will not leak except maybe a few drops from the fuel pump tube right after the tank is removed.

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