petcocks reserve position doesn't work

[donkey doctor]

Hello; I pushed my 77 R100/7 8 kilometers the other week because my taps don't work on the reserve position. The engine would nearly run on one cylinder but not enough to propel me up the smallest hill. Luckily it dies at the top of a long hill and I was able to coast nearly 6 kms. Then I was able to get it running just enough to get up a little rise then coast another kilometer, which only left a one K push to the gas station. When I finally made it there, I was surprised to see lots of gas in the tank.

Oh yes, I should say that 14 Harleys went by me as I was pushing and not one of them stopped to help, or even waved.

I guess I'll have to rip the taps out of there and unplug the reserve screens, I sure don't want this to happen to me every time I go to reserve.

Any Ideas to solve this little problem?

[donkey doctor]

Hello myself' I took it all aopart and cleaned out what looked like flaky paint and cleaned out the fuel filters with a toothbrush and some mild handsoap. AI guess I won't know if it works until the next time I run out of gas, I know that when I blow through it it is open in both "on and reserve" and the filter is clear. Now if I could just get my lawn mower working.

[Wes]

If you didn't already, might consider draining your tank and shining a flash light down there and taking a peak. The flaky paint you mention is the factory red tank coating coming off- if it's flaking you might be looking at the beginning of the onset of rust. Easier to deal with now with a tank sealant like POR-15 than a bigger problem later.

Hopefully you solved your immediate problem. Good luck.