I agree. The issue for me is not the decimal point mileage, it's all of the stopping, and planning a longer jaunt around the availability of off ramps.

(BTW, I ride what I own. I know, I know, the 48 was designed to be a tavern-to-tavern bike for kids. But to me, this 48 is the best Sportster ever built! No leaks, a 1200cc engine, shock absorbers that kind of work and an electric starter. In the late 1960s that would have made the 48 akin to a Gold Wing! I ride up on the slab because me and my three other Sportsters always did.)

The first year I considered a Nightster tank as a solution, that is, until I priced the total cost of the tank, a paint job and labor. And I know the guys down at the shop well enough to know that labor is a gimmee.

But after living with the little beast for a season, I'm seriously wondering if that investment might be more realistic.

However, this past Friday afternoon our washing machine motor fragged beyond repair. In an odd coincidence, the replacement machine was within a few dollars of the cost of an installed, painted Nightster tank!

Betty will be here in a week. I think the better plan would be to use Spinner if I'm going 100 miles, and Betty for trips greater than that. It's a hobby, not an investment, and perhaps we're all going to have to swallow ridiculous premium fuel costs. However, if a guys shows up with no fear of death and 30K, Betty will go, and I'll buy that 1200 Custom and the problem is over.

I decided to take lenny82's advice and get an accurate base-line on my real-time, real-mileage fuel consumption. Or so I thought...

I decided to a take a spin today and collect some data. I know that my shop tops off the tanks when they deliver a bike, and mine "sounded" pretty full. I decided to check the trip odometer, and found out that they had not re-set it when I turned it in last autumn. It was a compilation of my last ride, the ride my mechanic did after the mods, and a shake down run right before he returned it to me.

But I was out of the house, Spinner runs incredible, and I figured I'd need a tank of gas soon anyway.

As of right now, I filled the tank, drove straight home at about 25 MPH by a frontage road, and I show 1.2 miles on the trip odometer. Sorry, lenny82, I'm trying.

Hey Tourist,
Your do'in a good job at least you will know where you stand when the light comes on. My sporty when the light came on I only had 15 miles left on the slab and I only know this by running it til it was dry. Lucky for me it sputtered out at an exit ramp and I knew the gas was right there. Now if it hits the light I make it a point to get it filled. Always good to know what your limits are. I know that you like the bike and will ride it a lot. If I were going to get a new one I would get that 48 too.

The dealer by me has a used '10 with a lot of upgrades and only 6oo miles on it, the guy bought it for his wife and she decided she doesn't like to ride. I ran the other way didn't even find out how much they wanted.

Thanks, lenny82. Do you have an e-mail address that allows you to get full-size pictures? I'm even going to attempt to post a jpg address here, but I'm not always successfull. I took some thumbnails of the modifications for another biker, but they are too big for this forum.

I don't know if this will work:

https://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb23 ... /007-2.jpg

I'd also like to point out an additional theme that applies to my situation only.

I think bikes are fun, and should be approached in that fashion. Sadly, when I was a kid we customized bikes out of the fads and whims of "Big Bike" magazine. What truly enhanced my life was a "San Francisco" custom for longer trips on the slab, and I never forgot that lesson. The last thing a Madisonian citizen needs is a California Dreamin' chopper with a fork and spool hub design so long it stops by itself, hopefully.

Betty could go to Sturgis and back without any more mods, perhaps a windshield. I've seen bikes strippped down even more. However, as you know I put more bucks into her suspension than her motor, and there's no question that an inverted fork and progressive shocks give me a cushy yet secure ride.

To that point, I'm not sure I'm going to ride like you guys much more. At 61 it's not my body that stands in my way, I hit the gym everyday and easily perform better than kids in their 20s. For me it's simply a mindset. I don't want to go to Sturgis anymore, sleep on the ground at Buffalo Chip, suffer through beef jerky, eight-dollar taps and oogle naked chicks young enough to be my granddaughter.

I want to ride! And despite the dozens of bikes I've owned and loved, I'm a "Sportster guy." I've owned more Super Glides than Sporties (I think)--this 48 is my only my fourth Sportster. I just like the look, the feel, the handling and the giddy glee I get from a sprint on a Sportster. If this little bike had a tank under the seat like a V-Rod or I if could buy an ancillary tank that did not cost the sum equal to 100 gallons of premium fuel we wouldn't be in this debate.

That 1200 Custom is still a possibility, because that is the biker I have become.

Have you tried to upload your photos to the photo gallery? You should be able to post any photo there. Nice bike ride it and enjoy it, use it for what it was built for. Light and fast at least for a harley. I think that if you find something that you like to do, do it!

Thanks, lenny82. I had a great time on the little thing last season, and the extra "go fast" I have now is a real kick, literally. There are times when you just want to hit a stretch of road and let your mind wander. If it's one thing Black Betty is good for, that's it. Like it or not, we all are going to have to factor fuel costs into our riding. Even a singular bike trip vacation is going to cost an arm. I'm going to park the F-150 as often as I can and get there on the Sportster.

But stop and think of this. That little 1200 Custom will cost 16 dollars to fill. On a Sportster. Of course, if you want to make it home you have to pay 16 dollars more...

Screw it!! Tie a 2 gallon gas can to the back seat and call it done!!

LOL, "Shut up and ride!"

Not a bad thought--that is if the Wisconsin off ramps are 8 to 10 miles apart. And don't think I haven't considered it.

The trouble is that I like to wander around some of Wisconsin's back roads, hence the yen for the 1200 Custom. A highway like our local 78 had part of the road I know washed away several years back. None of the shops or gas stations (and four big dollar homes) exist anymore.

I might get in, I might even re-fuel, but I'll never get out. That's the one reason I put the big expensive headlamp on Spinner and not Betty. In a pinch at least Betty can get out before nightfall. Spinner might get trapped in Podunk looking for fuel. I've been on fumes once too many times.

I'd be careful up there in them hills! And by the way that engine will run on some crazy stuff. I ran out of gas with my car and I was dam mad about it, about 10 miles out of town in podunk (Ya there is one here too). Took about 2 minutes before I decided to pour a gallon of turpentine into the tank. Poured it in and the car started right up! Didn't even sputter, ran great. Only thing was the gallon of turpentine at the time cost $10. It wasn't the cheap stuff. Got my arse to the gas station tho and Freddie Kruger didn't get me. Don't know how good it was for the engine, never had a problem with the engine either.