litteacher Posted September 26, 2015 #1 Posted September 26, 2015 Okay... so my new handlebar pipe arrived in the mail yesterday so I popped the controls off and unbolted the old bent pipe and slid in my "new" one.... How in the world do I take off the foam grips that are on a plastic tub with a chrome end cap and flange at the top? My gut is telling me that it is glued on somehow and I just need to pound it off... before I work myself in a lather though, I'll ask the members of this forum. Thanks in advance. (I'll attach pics)
litteacher Posted September 26, 2015 Author #3 Posted September 26, 2015 Awesome!! I'm glad I'm not a total idiot. I have both of those items!
litteacher Posted September 26, 2015 Author #4 Posted September 26, 2015 I take back what I said about my patience.... half an hour later and the thing hasn't budged... I have it in a pot of hot water right now....
litteacher Posted September 26, 2015 Author #5 Posted September 26, 2015 WOW.... I dipped it into my ex-wife's spaghetti pot full of boiling water for about ten seconds and I pulled it right off with my hands... Time for my first real ride on the :83 Venture.... She isn't the prettiest thing right now, but in my eyes she's a diamond in the rough...
eagleeye Posted September 26, 2015 #6 Posted September 26, 2015 So how is the spaghetti? And does she know? and your exwife is making you spaghetti? Yeah I know, lots of questions.
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #7 Posted September 27, 2015 The spaghetti was lovely! It had a nice aroma of 30-year-old handgrips mixed in with garlic and olive oil... They days of having my ex cooking for me are LONG GONE Eagleeye... The little spin I took on the Venture was interesting. I don't know if mine is cold-blooded or if my carbs are messed up, but I spitted and sputtered around town for a few minutes before I called it a day... I think I need to get it out on a lonely , straight road and just let it purr and come to life again and blow some old stuff out....
Flyinfool Posted September 27, 2015 #9 Posted September 27, 2015 How bad were you lugging the engine? This engine likes to cruise at around 4,000 rpm. This means that around town I rarely get past 2nd gear. Don't be afraid to play with the red line, just hang on tight as you get there. And start with a half can of Seafoam in a full tank of gas. Take it for a ride like ya stole it for 20 to 30 miles, then let it sit over night, do this a few days in a row until you use up the whole tank of gas, clears up most restrictions in the carbs that are not a full blockage. Only disassemble and mechanical cleaning will clear a fully blocked carb passage. If it got better but is not quite there, repeat above procedure with a full can of Seafoam. I use just a splash (about and ounce or so) of Seafoam in every tank just to help things out with the newer crap gas we have to use.
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #10 Posted September 27, 2015 Okay Jeff and Bubber... I'm heading out in about an hour and hopefully my local VIP will have some Seafoam and I will add it to the gas. I was just lugging around in second gear Jeff when I had it out yesterday ... and to be honest, I don't think I had it above three grand on the tach. I shouldn't admit this, but the brakes are toast on this bike... almost non-existent. I think I'll take it out on the Interstate today and come onto it a bit (hopefully, with some Seafoam in the tank). This bike throws me off to be honest. My KLR650 is so nimble when I drive it. My Hayabusa can be steered with me just looking in the direction I want to go... now this beast... ummmmm... It just kind of feels like I'm wrestling a couch around a corner ! Okay.. heading out to get my tire pressure up to specs and then some foam in the gas tank. I just put on the straight handlebar yesterday and replaced the vice-grips with an actual clutch lever this morning. I'm slowly starting to have a bit of faith in the road-worthiness of this bike. P.S. (I drove over to a friend's house yesterday afternoon on the Venture to help him wire up a home theater system... on the way out the door, my girlfriend casuallly remarked ,"Do you want me to follow you to pick up the parts that fall off? ... ouch! )
Huggy Posted September 27, 2015 #11 Posted September 27, 2015 Tell your girlfriend that you only have to follow Harley's to pick up parts that fall off!!!
Great White Posted September 27, 2015 #12 Posted September 27, 2015 ...This bike throws me off to be honest. My KLR650 is so nimble when I drive it. My Hayabusa can be steered with me just looking in the direction I want to go... now this beast... ummmmm... It just kind of feels like I'm wrestling a couch around a corner ! I'd say you are probably having some setup or maintenance issues. Suspension settings, age, old tires, tire pressure, dry bearings/linkage, etc. I can toss my 83 around almost as agressively as my FJ1200. In some cases, it's easier to "flick" side to side than the FJ....mostly at low speed and probably due to the increased leverage the wider bars have on the venture.
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #13 Posted September 27, 2015 First of all, I owe the community a big , "I'm sorry!" I won't tell you how much air I put in the front and back tires, but let's just say it felt like a new bike after I set up the pressure correctly... Now... if my girlfriend were riding behind me today, she would have seen my saddlebag pop off and tumble about six feet into the air before landing in a freshly dug potato field. Let me back up a bit. When I put the luggage onto the bike I was kind of blown away by how they just hang there. I thought to myself , "Wow, anyone could just walk by and take the luggage..." Well, after I turned around and grab my luggage, I noticed the little key and lock and the mount on the motorcycle that locks it into place.... I can't believe I was that stupid.... Okay Jeff, I drove it for twenty miles like I stole it and flirted with the red line for most of the time.... after pumping the brakes a few times and getting the tires where they needed to be and letting the Sea Foam hopefully doing its magic... well, I started to get a crush on the old Bike.... it was flicking through the corners quite nicely. I love the support on the lower back provided by the seat. I'm also intrigued by the top gear of the machine. Very tall gearing in my opinion. I'm guessing a person could be in top gear doing 100 or so and maybe be turning four to fourn and a half grand on the tach? I am going to have SO many questions for you guys once I really start focusing on this bike... I love it!
Yammer Dan Posted September 27, 2015 #14 Posted September 27, 2015 (edited) Redline in 3rd gear will give you a chance to 100...... Don't be shy with the Sea-Foam. "I" (some don't agree with me. I just do what works.) Dump a full can into 1/4 tank or less when I have one acting up. But as costly as Sea-Foam is getting I use BerryMans Chem Tech. Find it at Wally World close to the Sea-Foam in a blue re and white can. Its about 1/2 the price of Sea-Foam or less. I just wouldn't use it all the time as it is a litte harsher than Sea-Foam. Dump whole can (again) in about 1/4 tank or little more and drive it like you stole it til you have to fill up. If you don't see a difference I'll buy the Ice Cream 1st time we meet. Edited September 27, 2015 by Yammer Dan
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #15 Posted September 27, 2015 Redline in 3rd gear will give you a chance to 100...... Exactly!!! That is why when I jumped up into the top gear and I was only going 70 or so... well... the rpm's just dropped down soooooo low and the tall gearing became so apparent.... I am already planning some long-distance trips for next year!
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #16 Posted September 27, 2015 Redline in 3rd gear will give you a chance to 100...... Don't be shy with the Sea-Foam. "I" (some don't agree with me. I just do what works.) Dump a full can into 1/4 tank or less when I have one acting up. But as costly as Sea-Foam is getting I use BerryMans Chem Tech. Find it at Wally World close to the Sea-Foam in a blue re and white can. Its about 1/2 the price of Sea-Foam or less. I just wouldn't use it all the time as it is a litte harsher than Sea-Foam. Dump whole can (again) in about 1/4 and drive it like you stole it til you have to fill up. If you don't see a difference I'll buy the Ice Cream 1st time we meet. Okay! I dumped half a can in and then filled up.... I plan on going for another ride later this afternoon , after my Patriots win again! I'll dump the rest in when I go out later.
Yammer Dan Posted September 27, 2015 #17 Posted September 27, 2015 Go get the BerryMans. And dump it in there. Run it and see how much that helps. Next we can pull the caps off the carbs and see what diaphragms look like. You seem to be familiar with the basics so when you have the side covers off you will see the carbs with 4 screws holding the cap on. Do these have a funny looking screw in one corner?If not somebody has been in there. Small vice grips can get the strange one out. Carefull pulling the caps so you don't loose anything and can put it back right. You will find the diaphragms and slides. Make sure slides are working right. In and out with NO rough spots. Hold the diaphragms up to a light in dark room and see how many holes you can see. Now I'm tired. That was a lot of work. Let me know after nap[ time is over.......
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #18 Posted September 27, 2015 That is great advice Dan.... I bookmarked your advice to me and I think that is something I will tackle this winter when the snow is on the ground. I just took the Venture for its second cruise of the day and I was riding it hard to really work the Sea Foam through the carbs.... when I came to a stop sign, I pulled in the clutch and the bike stopped almost immediately. Ughhhh.... rear brakes were stuck on. Luckily I had some tools with me and some bungees so I popped off the rear caliper and rode it home. I will say, with the rear brakes not dragging and my tires at the right pressure and the carbs coming to life... I had the biggest grin on my face riding home... the thing just purred!!!!!! Time to figure out how to get the rear brakes working correctly. I see this baby as a labor of love.....
Yammer Dan Posted September 27, 2015 #19 Posted September 27, 2015 Rear master is probally overfull. You can't fill them to the top. Could have opened bleeder and let out a little. I always make sure I have a 8mm wrench with me when working on them . You know to watch the brake fluid?? It will melt paint very quickly. Lower that rear master to about 1/2 inch from top. When the brake fluid gets warm it expands and locks up brakes.
litteacher Posted September 27, 2015 Author #20 Posted September 27, 2015 I'll check that Dan..... the sun was setting so I didn't spend a lot of time troubleshooting... I just wanted to be able to ride home. I did look at the piston in the rear caliper and it looked a little rusty on the outside (or perhaps dirt or something). Yes.... I'll be careful when I mess with the fluid.. it does love to eat paint. In a strange way, I love these little problems popping up. Every bike has a history and I think this poor Venture was very neglected during its life.
Yammer Dan Posted September 28, 2015 #21 Posted September 28, 2015 Those calipers are pretty tough. I've torn several apart without new seals. Just clean carefully and try again. New kits can still be had for them.
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