Gas tank sensor '79 gs1000l

[zman888]

Hi everyone, I've been reading articles on here for a while but finally decided to join today to get some info on fixing up my 79 gs1000l . I picked this up late last fall and am just now getting some time to work on it. So I pulled off the gas tank that was full of pinholes, my plan is to braze the holes and then fill it with vinegar and then line the inside of it. Anyways, pulling off the fuel sending unit I found that there was nothing attached to the inside of it. There weren't any parts in the tank either so a PO must have already taken the pieces out of it. I didn't have much luck searching for a replacement sender but what I noticed is that the sending units for a suzuki sidekick have the same flange on them, just a different angled float for top mount installation. Does anyone know if I can modify one of those units to turn the float the right way and use it on my bike?

[simesman]

I can tell you that a GSX1100ET float fits. Little bit of tweaking to set the height for whichever tank you bung it in.

[simesman]

Ah, just seen you have the L. I am only familiar with the GS1000E tank.

[Swiss Toni]

I’m sure you’ll be able to ‘modify’ the Sidekick sender for your tank. Once it’s in your hands, you’ll figure it out. And, welcome to OSS. 

[zman888]

10 hours ago, simesman said:

Ah, just seen you have the L. I am only familiar with the GS1000E tank.

I know the E tank is larger capacity but the general shape in the valley of the tank should be identical since it's the same frame, no? I could look for one of those too I guess, although the price of a brand new sidekick sender ($25) vs $100 on Eblag for a prerusted sender has me seriously considering alternative options. 

Edited February 15 by zman888

[zman888]

9 hours ago, Swiss Toni said:

I’m sure you’ll be able to ‘modify’ the Sidekick sender for your tank. Once it’s in your hands, you’ll figure it out. And, welcome to OSS. 

Thanks! I know at a minimum I'll have to remove and reweld the contact box in the correct orientation but it'll be good practice for my new tig skills. I'm just not that familiar with fuel senders, all my previous bikes have had the "look through the filler hole" type of fuel Gauge, so I was unsure if different types of senders use different resistance scales or if it would generally be the same type of signal sent to the Gauge.