Well, I was sick and tired of having to drain the fuel tank any time I wanted to remove it from the bike. There may be easier ways to plug a fuel line (return and supply are the two that you worry about), but I wanted to be sure there would be no leakage. I asked about on this thread and Jiffy-Tite was recommended by eliXXir.

I'll start by saying that these things rock, but getting them is an utter pain in the ass. Eventually, I got these from C&R Racing in Indianapolis (Tom Keene, 317-293-4100). It seems nobody puts much useful info online to let you choose what you need, and after some frustration, I contacted Jiffy-Tite directly and they told me where to call and who to ask for. That vendor did a great job getting me what I needed, and if a part didn't work for what I needed, I could send it back for something else. Parts were drop-shipped from Jiffy-Tite. For the basic connector set (1 male/1 female straight connection) ran $36.53 for the matched set. If you need a 45 or 90-degree bend on any part rather than straight, it will cost a little bit more.

For my job, I used the 2000 series...which is the lowest level of product, but since the level is based on maximum flow rate, the 2000 series does more than a FI system will ever need. The inside diameter of the return line is 6 mm. For the supply line it is 7 mm. The same part will work for both sizes, but it was easier to get on a 7 mm line and a witch to get onto a 6 mm line. Spraying some silicone lube onto the part before working the hose on helps a lot. I used clamps on all lines although they were entirely unnecessary on the return line because they were so darn hard to get on in the first place. All Jiffy-Tite fittings are certified to 200 psi...more than enough. So long as they don't go on easily (must be a snug fit), you should need little more than a hose clamp to be assured there will be no leaks.





For this project, presuming nobody has substitutions to suggest, you will need two #22504P (male side connector), one #21504P (female side connector) and one #21504PE (female side connector w/90 degree angle).

The return line was easy, peasy lemon squeezy. I simply cut the line about 2 inches from the nipple and just put the parts on. The hardest part was getting the line onto the smaller diameter hose.





The supply line was a witch. The BIGGEST problem is that Honda gives you X inches of line and much of it bends into an S shape when the tank is down. I wound up cutting about 3 1/2 inches off the supply line so that when the tank was lowered into position, there was no undue stress on the line or any couplings. This means you have to tighten the supply line onto the rail at the last possible moment before lowering it that last inch or so onto the frame.

As you can see, I cut close to the banjo bolt...which was a mistake because it mandates a straight line from the hard bits. I made it work, but anything you do will try to put stress on this line and cutting it too close means there is no length of hose from the end of the Jiffy-Tite insert to the hard bit on the banjo bolt. If there is pressure making this bend...it's undue stress on the fuel line. I initially tried to use straight connectors, which is shorter in length, but there is no way to make it work when the tank is down without kinking the supply line. A 90-degree bend helps a lot here, and as I said, I cut about 3 1/2 inches of line off so that when it was lowered in place, there was no stress on any part of the fuel line.







The first thing you loosen and the last thing you tighten when removing/installing the tank is the nut on the supply side of the fuel rail. It needs to have play so you can get things together easily. Lift the tank up an inch or so and block up with something, use a 17 mm wrench to loosen (just enough so the banjo bolt will pivot freely), and you can then move the fuel line in a position where you can easily disconnect/connect. Just reverse when putting the tank back on.

Based on mikesail's suggestion, I replaced the worm gear clamps with fuel injection hose clamps on the high pressure line. Any auto parts store should have them, but they are SAE sized, not metric, to internal diamater. I got two different sizes and used the set sized for 5/16" I.D. hose. These worked fine. While I did screw them down all the way, I had to work at it, so I know they are good and tight. I'd recommend you go a size smaller (for 1/4" I.D. hose) so there's not all that screw shaft protruding out the other side. These defintely let you get a tighter clamp than just the worm gear style.



I wonder if a 45-degree male side connector on the fuel rail banjo bolt would have worked better here, but at most it would have made the connector easier to reach without loosening the nut on the fuel rail and perhaps cutting less excess off the fuel line.

Good work and research. I'll let this post sit for a while for feedback and concerns before I cross-post it to the the Important Threads area. There's been steady interest in this mod for quite some time. Knowledge is power. Thanks for sharing your research and work.

When faced with fitting gaskets, or fuel lines I use Vaseline, which works like a champ. Just used it the other night to fit grommets into a shock.

I asked about the other clamping options, which are more secure, but again, the higher levels of features are intended for harsher applications and GPM flow rates. The guy I spoke to assured me that the basic barbed fitting would be leakproof from my application.

CAVEAT: If you want to do this on a bike being used other for just riding around (using specialty fuel), be sure to say this as the fittings might need different types of seals.

I might have done things a bit different. Here are my thoughts.

The return line is at zero pressure, since it returns gas to the vented tank. This is why the fitting on the FPR does not even have a hose barb, just a slip fit. With the stock Honda clamp, it is not at all difficult to just slide the hose off the FPR. With the quick connect, I would be worried about the hose splitting since it is being forced over the larger -4 barb. So for this return line I would not have changed anything.

On the supply side, pressure is of course fairly high. Possibly a much cleaner option would have been to source a banjo fitting with a male AN on the side. Don't know if they make this in metric, but likely you could make an SAE size fit as well.
With an AN fitting banjo adaptor, you could use a quick connect with AN instead of hose barb that mates directly to the banjo adaptor and then have only one section of hose with screw hose clamps from other stock barbed banjo. So one banjo fitting stays stock, the other becomes the location of the break connection.

For the most secure setup, it would be nice to convert both banjos to the AN adaptors, then use a braided line with crimped fittings. Now you only have braided line and aircraft fittings, good as you can get for safety. Since the AN fittings are very easy to unscrew, you would have as close to a quick connect as possible, with the caveat that you still need a wrench, and the fitting would not shut off upon breaking the line.

Finally do note that fuel injection hoses in OEM systems always use the smooth band clamps, not the worm gear style. Since the clamp needs to be fairly tight with the 50 psi or so in the system, a worm gear clamp will severely cut into the hose over time. You might look for a better clamp to help the line last longer, it would be a shame if the lime failed because of the screw clamp.

Good point, but IIRC, there are no clamps on the high-pressure lines...it's banjo bolts. Band clamps only offer existing spring tension and work well on low-pressure lines. Supposedly I should not have needed clamps at all, so this was just a preventative measure. There are more secure fitting styles from Jiffy-Tite, but they cost more too. For the GPM flow rate of a FI system, these barbs should be more than sufficient.

I only know of the worm gear hose clamp for high-pressure applications. This is one of those projects where you have to commit to replacing your fuel line IF you mess up, so once you cut the line, there is no going back. Worst case scenario, I need 2 better-suited Jiffy-Tite fittings and a new fuel line. I certainly will watch for leaks or other problems.

Please watch carefully.

I will call the vendor and verify the PSI load these fittings will handle. I'm pretty certain they exceed what the fuel pump pressurizes the system to (43 psi @ idle).

UPDATE

Jiffy-Tite says ALL fittings are certified to 200 psi and likely could go much higher but they have no issue saying that if you use any fitting and it goes in snug, with nothing more than a hose clamp it will easily handle up to 200 psi without leaking. If it leaks, and nothing is wrong with the part, odds are you have a fitting too small for the hose you used it on.

The fitting pressure rating is not an issue here, Nor is the flow rate, since your fittings are the same ID, more or less.

It would be a VERY bad idea to use barbed fittings without some clamp, and there is a better clamp for your setup than the worm gear style.

The only thing that you are doing "wrong", and I mean that in a very general way, is the clamp.

Here is a comparison photo.

Click to view attachment

Ah. I see.

What is that type of clamp specifically called and where would I likely find them? If I can get hold of them, I agree they look better for the job.

I think any auto parts store should have them. They are listed as fuel injection clamps by the Ideal co.

http://www.idealclamps.com/catalog/clamps/...p;SECTION_ID=17

See this web page for sizing, it has the following chart, my copy below lost formatting. These clamps have a very limited clamping size range.

Sizing / Clamping range Chart
SAE Sizes Part No. Min. Dia. (in.) Max. Dia. (in.) Min. Dia. (mm) Max. Dia. (mm) Fits Hose I.D.
4 52F13 7/16 1/2 11 13 1/4"
6 52F15 1/2 9/16 13 15 5/16"
8 52F16 9/16 5/8 14 16 3/8"

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20% off for 3 more days

I agree with the above. The question about plastic is when will it break, not if it will. Having high pressure fuel spraying out isn't too cool in my book. Don't recall ever seeing a fuel injection fitting that was plastic, but I haven't looked at a Fiat yet.

No need to search out a Fiat. Late model R6/R1 Yamaha have plastic disconnects, and I know some of the Kawi's do as well, but I don't know the models.

My wife had a 93 Escort GT back in the day that had the fuel filter mounted on the firewall. The fittings were plastic with just a small plastic C clip holding it together. She had the car a long time and never a leak there.

Ever since I saw "The Graduate" I have disliked plastics.