Uh Chair Beez, If You Pleaze

The brand Acerbis is pronounced Uh Chair Beez.  There, that’s done.  Moving on.

To get from one side of the States to the other as off the grid as reasonably possible, which requires enough gas to get lost and back safely.  As I found out, in the US that seems to be well under 300 miles.  Seems there’s basically a gas station or a McMansion wherever you go.  However, 300 miles was my goal and the peanut tank on the DR just wouldn’t do.  Plus, it’s metal which just doesn’t suit the type of travel I was expecting to do.

Stock versus aftermarket

As I started my research I realized there were essentially a combination of two options:  Bigger tank and auxiliary tanks.  I thought about supplementing with a Rotopax but the cost of that plus a larger tank was prohibitive.  I also thought about using my larger stove’s unleaded fuel canister as a spare or two but they’re just too small to be for anything but the most dire of emergencies.  Thus, I needed a bigger tank.

I looked at the IMS 4.9 gallon tank but I’d read mixed reviews about them and frankly at only one gallon more than stock it seemed a waste of money.  Not a bad tank and I believe it’s the brand my brother chose so no harm no foul, just too small for my needs.

Next up was the Safari tank.  Now this thing is cool.  30L of fuel (~8 gallons for us ignorants) and an optional fairing which mounts directly to the tank.  But at $625 for just the tank, you’re hitting well over $1K and haven’t even kitted the rest of the bike out.  You can’t find any good pictures at their US website, but if you look around you can find some pretty cool shots.

Photo Credit: ADVMoto

Lastly I looked at the Acerbis (pronounced Uh Chair Beez) in 5.3 gallon and 6.6 gallon capacities.  I went back and forth quite a bit but in the end decided to go with the larger of the two for the instant extra range.  Further, I decided to go in the natural color so I could see the fuel inside – something which came in very handy multiple times on the trip.  As a quick side note, what I did was empty the tank entirely, fill up a 1 gallon container, pour that into the tank, sit on the bike with the suspension reasonably compressed and then marked the tank with a sharpie on all sides.  Repeat through all 6 gallons.  Once you have a feel for your mileage – I got 45ish on the freeway and 55+ off road – you can quickly glance down and calculate how far ‘til you’re empty.

Overall the tank worked perfectly but were I to do it over again I might do it differently and go one step down with the Rotopax as a spare.  I wasn’t expecting the tank sides to extend quite as far forward as they do, which both interfered with my aux LED light placement and means the sides of the tank are the first thing to hit the ground in a fall.  I’m sure they can take multiple falls but they do collect their scratches and gouges.

I’m distinctly not a fan of the fuel cap with the tall breather hose but have lived with it because I haven’t found another option.  Speaking of fuel, while the tank is well designed to slosh fuel between the lobes, not everything will slosh to the other side and I’m a little nervous about running the tank that low anyway due to the dirt inside.  Definitely carry a spare filter with you on longer trips.

To really get the last drip of fuel out I’d probably need to route another fuel petcock on the right side but I never quite got that low.

A note on sloshing:  My brother installed anti-slosh foam in his tank because he was concerned about sudden shifting of fuel from one side to the other creating balance issues.  I never felt any issues with my tank sloshing but I’m 100# heavier than my bro, so perhaps that’s something.

One thing I need to make is a brace for the tank where it mounts to the frame.  It has too much play for my comfort, although I should say nothing bad happened because of it so it may just be me.

One word of warning, at least if you live in California:  These are technically off road only tanks because you have to remove some of the smog tubing and the gas cap isn’t the CA friendly style.  And according to one of the many motorcycle officers to pull me over, because the plastic tank wasn’t metal lined.  No clue what that was about, I’m just happy I was mad-dog speeding on my DR650 in traffic on D606 tires…  I’m not bitter.

This is another difficult review because while there are some things I don’t like about it, they’re minor and indeed, it worked perfectly as requested.  No leaks, no breaks, no cracks, no problem.  Guess I’ll have to give it a 5.