C182 MADE A FORCED LNDG CAUSED BY FUEL STARVATION.

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FUEL STARVATION. THE ACFT IS EQUIPPED WITH BLADDER FUEL TANKS. I HAD USED A MEASURING DIPSTICK TO CHK FUEL. TANKS WERE FULL. TANKS HOLD 60 GALLONS TOTAL; AT LEAST 4 HRS OF FUEL. AFTER FLYING; AND IN THE DSCNT; THE ENG STOPPED. THIS WAS 2 HRS 55 MINS INTO THE FLT. I EXECUTED A FANTASTIC EMER LNDG INTO A GRAVEL PIT. VERY MINOR DAMAGE TO PROP AND SHIMMY DAMPER (AT NIGHT/DUSK). LUCKY! IT APPEARS THAT SOME OF THE SNAPS THAT HOLD THE BLADDER FOR THE TANKS HAD COME LOOSE. I HAD NO IDEA OF THE ACTUAL VOLUME OF FUEL IN THE TANKS. I THOUGHT I HAD 4 HRS; INSTEAD I HAD LESS THAN 3. MECHS FIXED TANK SNAPS AND IT APPEARS THAT THIS HAS BEEN CORRECTED. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATES THAT THE FAA HAS REVIEWED THE SIT AND CLASSIFIED IT AS AN INCIDENT AND NOT PLT ERROR ALTHOUGH THEY INDICATED THAT THE DIPSTICK IS NOT AN 'APPROVED' ITEM. RPTR HAS NOT HEARD OF SUCH A SIT BEFORE. WHEN THE MECHS CHKED THE WING THEY FOUND THE SNAPS OR CLIPS WHICH HOLD THE BLADDER TO THE TOP OF THE WING HAD COME LOOSE. THIS IS A SKYDIVING ACFT AND RPTR WONDERS IF THE RAPID DSCNTS AND STEEP TURNS USED IN THE OP MIGHT HAVE SOME RELEVANCE TO THIS PROB. IT IS A 1957 ACFT AND HE HAS NO KNOWLEDGE OF WHEN THE BLADDERS WERE INSTALLED.