Hey guys sorry to bring up the age old question but I'm having trouble deciding on a tank lift. I just did the 3.3 swap and I wanna do the coil and key relocate for sure. My question is:

Do I need the tank lift to do the wire tuck? I'm sure most of you know the 3.3 tank doesn't sit as low as the stock 48 tank. Does this mean there's more room under the tank between the frame to tuck wires without doing a lift? I really don't wanna do a lift if its not required.

Let me know what you think and if you have pics with a 3.3 swap with a tank lift feel free to share so I can see what the bike could look like.

Thanks guys

 

Question:

Why would you do a tank swap to gain more fuel capacity only then to consider raising the tank and lowering your fuel capacity? Make'sada no sens'a to me'a gringo!!

But I'm an outcast, who's not a fan of tank lifts, wire tucks, or coil/ignition relocations, because I feel that the more they become mainstream, the less they become "custom." And the few stories I've heard of headaches after the wire tucks have been undertaken ["Anyone have a wiring diagram for a '07 Sportster 1200?" "Since the wire tuck my lights don't work now!" "I'm blowin' fuses!" "I must have a dead short somewhere!" "I squashed my wires mounting the tank back on, rrrrrrrrrrr!!!" , etc.] are enough of a reason to make it seem like a risky endeavour just to put a space/hole between your engine and fuel tank? There are reports of broken keys being a problem due to excessive vibration in the "new" [engine mounted] ignition location. Some didn't mark the wires on their coils before they disconnected them for the coil relocation and were scratching their head and posting questions here wondering why their bikes weren't running worth a $hit [reason: they crossed the wires]...yep, what fine mods they are!

I guess these feelings make me a hater for liking my tank where it sits, along with my wires, ignition, and coil, LOL. HaterHaterHater!!! 'Must be sumpthin' wrong with me I suppose...maybe I'm too old and crusty, or? I guess I should just go hang my head in shame and throw in the towel so all you punk bitches can run *amok without me interfering with your silly bike mods and trinkets...heehee...



*a·mok

/əˈmʌk, əˈmɒk/ Show Spelled [uh-muhk, uh-mok] Show IPA
noun 1. (among members of certain Southeast Asian cultures) a psychic disturbance characterized by depression followed by a manic urge to murder.


adjective 2. amuck.


Idioms 3. run / go amok. amuck ( def 3 ) .


Also, amuck.

Origin:
1865–70; < Malay amuk

[sorry, 'in a playfull mood today!]

=8^)

 

I actually don't wanna do a lift. I'm actually wondering is there room under the tank to tuck most of the wires. The 3.3 doesn't sit nearly as low as my stock tank

 

Just did a lift and wire/coil relo on my 2012 nightster. Im not familiar with the 48 but if its anything similar to the nightster, which im sure it is, then youre going to need AT LEAST a 1.5 inch lift. I just did a 2 inch lift and boy am I glad I didnt choose 1.5 because even at 2 inches I had to fixate them for a while to get it right. I just posted my pictures earlier this morning im sure you can go check it out.

By the way I too didnt want to raise my tank for fear of the way I thought it may look and I actually think the 2" looks better now that its done.

 

You are more than likely just going to need to play with it and see if you can get the wires under the tank without lifting the tank. Keep in mind what DrewBone said because you don't want to have problems down the road cramming everything in there. To be safe, I would do a 1.5 tank lift. You really won't even notice the difference and if the nightster tank has more room than the stock 48 tank that will be plenty. I did a 1.5 tank lift with my 48, I am running the stock tank and everything fit fine. Also, with a 1.5 tank lift, you shouldn't lose hardly any mileage.

 

There is more room under a 2.1 gallon tank to do a wire tuck than a 3.3 gallon tank. The channel is larger on the 2.1.

Here is a link with pics on how to do a wire tuck on a 3.3 gallon tank with no tank lift.

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/sport...k-no-lift.html

There are no wires to cut, splice or get confused on when doing a wire tuck or a coil relo (on an 04-UP Sporty). All wires stay in their connectors, and each connector is different. So no worries on getting wires crossed or connecting them up wrong.

 

Ah thank you Kevin. I was waiting for you to chime in at some point. Now I'm torn between the lift or no lift...damn. Thanks for the link too, I guess I have some thinking to do.

 

A Tank Lift has got to be the most pointless and ugly thing people do. I know we have been over this before, but there aint no real gain from doing it and it throws out any flowing lines a Sporty has..Its a Harley, not some crazy sportsbike that may benefit from such madness. Every pic I see on here of a tank lift hurts my eyes....But hey, that's just my opinion.....

 

I appreciate all opinions, everyone has their right to have their own. I actually don't prefer to have one but I really hate that plastic crap under the tank too...

 

I think it would look good without a lift but also with one. I've got a 3" on my 2.1 tank and I think it looks great. But to each his own.
Anyway, the 3.3 tank already sits higher as you say, therefore just to be able to accommodate the wires and connectors you could go for the 1,5" lift which really won't make much of a difference to the look. I think you'll be surprised and just might like it and also its really not a big investment money wise.