Indian Interstate Tank Problems

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I ordered an Interstate tank from a seller on Ebay and I would like to share my experience so far.

The tank arrived promptly and undamaged. On unpacking, I was surprised that it was so shiny until I found the residue of polishing soap on the flanges at the bottom of the tank. The supplier had taken the trouble to polish all the upper surfaces. This means that the tank will need to be cleaned and abraded to provide a key for the paint finish. Time wasted by the supplier which should have been spent elsewhere in the manufacture. (more anon.........)

I test-fitted the new Ceeandess filler cap that I had bought for the tank. The hole drilled in the filler neck of the tank to accept the cap's hinge pin is much too large and the cap flops about from side to side and will not latch correctly. I resolved that by finding a roll pin which fits the hole in the tank and drilled-out the hole in my new filler cap to suit.

Clearly, this should not have been necessary, but IF that was the extent of the problems, it was a simple fix.

Then I tried to fit the tank on my bike. I have a Roadster but wanted more fuel range and that's why I bought the Interstate tank. As everyone familiar with Commandos knows (except, that is, the supplier/maker of this tank,) transforming a Roadster into an Interstate is simply a matter of swapping the petrol tank, seat and side panels. Therefore, after removing my Roadster tank and seat, my newly-purchased Interstate tank should fit, shouldn't it?

Well, it didn't!

With the tank pushed so far forwards that the recess at the front was touching the top yoke, the mounting holes in the base of the tank were still approx 2 cm behind the mounting brackets on the frame. Basically, the recess for the steering head was manufactured insufficiently deep to provide clearance and enable the mounting holes to line up with the frame mountings.

I had not used any rubber washers on the front brackets. If I raised the front of the tank to allow for them, then the tank has to move even further backwards to clear the top yoke. The recess at the front of the tank should extend rearwards by a further 3 cm or so for the tank to fit.

I requested a return to the supplier via the Ebay return procedures and he refused. He says that it is my fault for ordering an Interstate tank because it will not fit a Roadster! He even sent me a picture of the jigs he uses to set the spacing of the four mounting holes on the bottom of the tank (Roadster and Interstate.)

The messages have been going back and forth between us but whether there is a language barrier problem or some other reason, he refuses to acknowledge that the problem with the tank is poor manufacture on the top, not the bottom.

It is interesting that the pictures he supplied to me also show the base of what I presume to be an original Interstate tank. Even from that angle, it can be seen that the steering head recess is much deeper on his tank than on the tank he supplied to me.

I pointed this out to the seller, and he did not respond.

I even offered to find a local welder to rectify the problem, if the supplier covered the cost. (A bit of a pain for me, but probably quicker than the time it would take to send the tank back to India and wait for a replacement to arrive. Also, it would probably be a cheaper solution for the supplier.) This was refused by the supplier, on the grounds that I had ordered the wrong tank......

Another interesting point is that, since I raised the case via Ebay, the seller withdrew other listings for Norton tanks. Coincidence, perhaps???

The picture used in the Ebay listing is also used by at least one other Ebay seller in India, so beware if considering a purchase. (There are also other Interstate tanks on Ebay, from various sellers, where the steering head recess appears to be the correct depth. I opted for this particular seller because I saw a review some months ago on Access Norton which stated that an Interstate tank supplied by them was good!)

Maybe I'm just unlucky, although I know mistakes can be made. It is very disappointing that this particular seller is totally unwilling to fix the problem.

So, as ever, caveat emptor...........I'll be taking the tank to a local welder to fix the manufacturing defect.

Here is the picture from the Ebay listing:

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/DiEAAOSwr81UN5qW/s-l500.jpg

Hi, Unfortunately your exp…

Hi,

Unfortunately your experience seems to be pretty much 'par for the course' when it comes to these Indian made tanks for classic bikes. It seems such a shame that the fabricators seem to go to so much trouble and then fall at the last hurdle.

I have had similar experiences with tanks supplied for Ariels - beautiful tank, just the mounting are in the wrong place. I don't know how they get it so wrong when it is so nearly right!

Keith

Hi Keith, I agree, it is a…

Hi Keith,

I agree, it is a pity that they can only get things 'mostly' right.

There is also the issue of inconsistency. This particular seller on Ebay had sold one of his Interstate tanks to an American chap who posted his findings on the Access Norton forum. He was very happy with the tank and as a result I bought one, only to find it is unuseable.

It has taught me that it is pointless relying on recommendations for Indian suppliers because the principle of quality control is unknown to them.

Allan.

Allan: Can you find someon…

Allan: Can you find someone who has a factory standard Interstate Model and see if your new tank fits his bike?

If it does, I am sure that you will be able to flog it on for someone who needs a tank for their Interstate.

Mike

There is no difference bet…

There is no difference between the Interstate frame or the roadster frame, you can make any Commando into any other Commando by changing tanks, side covers with exceptions like the Fastback where you have to check the rear hoop shape plus playing around with exhausts etc, but other than the Fastback hoop the frame is not an issue. So if the Interstate tank does not fit Allan's Roadster frame then it's not going to fit an Interstate frame.

The Fastback rear loop is…

The Fastback rear loop is the same as any other frame of the same period. The issue is that the Mk3 Commando has a wider frame hence a fastback tail cone won't fit without surgery.

Hi Mike, As John says, Roa…

Hi Mike,

As John says, Roadster and Interstate frames are identical. If the Interstate tank I bought didn't fit my frame because my frame was somehow 'wrong,' then my Roadster tank would never have fitted, either.

I'm visiting a friend at the weekend who has an Interstate stripped for a rebuild. I'll take some side-by-side pictures of his tank and mine and post them here.

Hi, In as much as I know,…

Hi,

In as much as I know, there have been some changes to the interstate tank throughout the history of this Commando variant; minor changes in capacity / width, but they all fit in the same way and I think any tank should fit any bike if you have the right mounting kit - only that I can't say for sure concerning the mkIII, but it is probably the same.

All the books on the Commando make a point that the Commando wasperhapsthe first british bikes to support a basic 'core machine' that could be sold as different models through changes in the peripheral hardware i.e. changing seats, tanks, side panels handlebars, etc. i.e. it was 'modular'.

One thing is that the different tanks required different seats - The interstate tank is longer hence the seat is shorter and the riding position different.

Keith

Hi Keith, I have found no…

Hi Keith,

I have found no information anywhere that mentions any difference in the front tank mounting brackets across the range of Commando models, with the possible exception of the early, short production run 'widowmaker' frame. On the other hand, there is a huge amount of info. available regarding converting Roadsters into Interstates by simply swapping tanks and seats. Quite often the conversion has been done retaining the original Roadster triangular side panels rather than using the much larger Interstate version.

As you point out, the seat position is different. The Interstate seat is quite a bit wider (because the Roadster tank is narrower at the back than the Interstate tank) as well as being mounted further back.

All trial fitting of the Indian tank was carried out with the seat removed.

I have a Mk 3 that was ori…

I have a Mk 3 that was originally sold as a roadster, it is fitted with an interstate tank & still has the roadster side panels. All the interstate tanks (5.25, 5.5 & 5.8 imp. gal.) should be plug & play (the only change, as noted above, is the seat & the pad in the tank recess that goes over the frame spine).

Have you leak tested the t…

Have you leak tested the tank yet ? May be worth it before going to the welder. You may have some leaks for him to fix as well.

Good advice and make sure…

Good advice and make sure there is no crud left inside too.

I have tested it for leaks…

I have tested it for leaks and all seems fine.

There is some strange granular, oily brown 'goo' on the inside and I intend to clean this out.

I bought a roadster tank a…

I bought a roadster tank and surprisingly it fits perfectly. All threads are clean and good. However the filler cap will touch the paintwork when open as they haven't included the stops behind the pin. The whole for the pin seemed large but when i checked my original tanks they are the same diameter. I spent two hours making an offset spacer to go on the pin to prevent the cap going too far back. It seems a very great level of skill is needed to make a tank but they then let themselves down on details which make all the difference.

Indian Roadsters look a bi…

Indian Roadsters look a bit boxy to me in the pics, the Emgo one looks a better shape but photos can be deceiving. Who was the seller, its as important to know the good ones as it is to know the bad ones.

I have tried my Indian Int…

I have tried my Indian Interstate tank on another Commando and compared my tank with the 41 year-old original on the other bike.

As expected, the Indian tank would not fit. It was impossible to get the front mountings to line up because the recess at the front top of the tank was hard against the top yoke.

I've found a local welder/fabricator who is going to modify the front recess to allow adequate clearance. It needs to be 15 mm deeper than the Indian supplier managed to achieve.

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/DiEAAOSwr81UN5qW/s-l500.jpg

Previously john_holmes wro…

Previously john_holmes wrote:

Indian Roadsters look a bit boxy to me in the pics, the Emgo one looks a better shape but photos can be deceiving. Who was the seller, its as important to know the good ones as it is to know the bad ones.

I am not too sure about the shape myself. I've looked at so many lately i'm finding it difficult to know what the original looked like. Mine came from fair deals on ebay who are based in Walsall. It looks better with paint on but the edges did look a bit sharp. The other thing that puzzles me is that some originals have a flanged or recessed part where it is cut in a semi circle at the rear bottom.

Previously nigel_keating w…

Previously nigel_keating wrote:

Previously john_holmes wrote:
Indian Roadsters look a bit boxy to me in the pics, the Emgo one looks a better shape but photos can be deceiving. Who was the seller, its as important to know the good ones as it is to know the bad ones.
I am not too sure about the shape myself. I've looked at so many lately i'm finding it difficult to know what the original looked like. Mine came from fair deals on ebay who are based in Walsall. It looks better with paint on but the edges did look a bit sharp. The other thing that puzzles me is that some originals have a flanged or recessed part where it is cut in a semi circle at the rear bottom.

Attachments image1-jpeg

'Fair' Deals and 'Walsa…

'Fair' Deals and 'Walsall' sound a bit familiar to me?

No it's not who you might…

No it's not who you might think......

I believe they're the UK outlet for an Indian company. I bought some D shaped footrests for my ES2 from them and they're not brilliant quality but serviceable. I'm not sure I'd use them for critical parts.

Hello there not the only t…

Hello there not the only tanks that do not fit right Featherbed tanks are as bad Yours Anna J

Previously anna jeannette…

Previously anna jeannette Dixon wrote: