V Max / Venture final drive swap

[uncledj]

I've a chance to pick up a final drive from an 85 V Max, and was thinking about doing the swap on my 87 Venture.

The guy wants $85 for it.

Will it do the trick on my 87 and is the $85 smackers a good price....???

[Venturous Randy]

Not sure what trick you are looking for, but it will be noticeably quicker out of the hole. But, if you want to run highway speeds, it gets tiring. You will be wanting one more gear.

There might be a different plastic dust cover needed. When I changed my 83 to a V-Max rear, a new dust cover came with it and I put it on. I don't remember if there was a difference. You should be able to use your MKII driveshaft.

If you really want to make a great gear setup, put a 2nd gen trans in your 87. You will be about 10% lower in 1st, 5% lower in 2nd. 3rd and 4th the same and about 5% higher in 5th. This makes highway cruising so much more comfortable without that feeling you need one more gear.

I have a complete spare 2nd gen trans if you know anyone that wants one.

Randy

[bongobobny]

Yup, what Randy said. The VMax rear end ratio would be the same as putting a higher ratio set of gears in your car or truck. Being a higher ratio than the Venture, you will have more spunk out of the hole but your top speed in each gear will be lower. So, as Randy pointed out, where you used to be turning over a certain RPM for a set speed, your RPM's will be higher, which results in your MPG's going down. Not a drastic drop, but it will go down!

 

As far as the price goes, that is a reasonable price but I have seen them a little lower. The problem being because it is VMax, the parts command a little more money. Yes, with the exception of that grey plastic piece, it should be a straightforward swap...

[Venturous Randy]

Bob, I think a big part of the lower gas mileage is the increased acceleration is so addictive. First gens can be pretty quick, but a well tuned first gen with a V-Max final drive can be almost scary. Just be ready to shift quick in first or you will be deep in 8,000 RPM territory before you know it.

There was one place near here where if I nailed it coming out of a green light, I would be doing 55 mph as I passed a speed limit sign with the stock gear. When I put the V.Max gear in, I would be doing over 60 mph. I was gaining about 10% in speed in that short distance. You also had to be careful as the front wheel came up much easier. I tried this the other day in my Miata and when I passed the sigh, I was doing about 35 mph.

Randy

[bongobobny]

Yup, Randy, I'm sure that is another contributing factor in the MPG, but even with conservative driving, higher RPM's means more fuel consumption at speed...

 

Hey, even without the conversion, a stock Venture can certainly pull a wheelie especially in second gear, or at least the MK1 could...

[Chaharly]

Not sure what trick you are looking for, but it will be noticeably quicker out of the hole. But, if you want to run highway speeds, it gets tiring. You will be wanting one more gear.

There might be a different plastic dust cover needed. When I changed my 83 to a V-Max rear, a new dust cover came with it and I put it on. I don't remember if there was a difference. You should be able to use your MKII driveshaft.

If you really want to make a great gear setup, put a 2nd gen trans in your 87. You will be about 10% lower in 1st, 5% lower in 2nd. 3rd and 4th the same and about 5% higher in 5th. This makes highway cruising so much more comfortable without that feeling you need one more gear.

I have a complete spare 2nd gen trans if you know anyone that wants one.

Randy

 

Hate the idea of the lower 1st though! If my tranny ever craps out I'll probably do the 2nd gen swap, but I remember hitting the rev limiter a couple times on my 99

[Chaharly]

Yup, Randy, I'm sure that is another contributing factor in the MPG, but even with conservative driving, higher RPM's means more fuel consumption at speed...

 

Hey, even without the conversion, a stock Venture can certainly pull a wheelie especially in second gear, or at least the MK1 could...

 

[brown06]

How do i buy a final drive already to install on my 06 royal star midnight venture

[CaseyJ955]

How do i buy a final drive already to install on my 06 royal star midnight venture

 

They bolt right onto the gen1, I'm not sure if they fit a gen2 but here is a good thread that may shed some light on what you want to do.

 

https://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?42504-v-max-final-drive

 

I sold my extra Vmax final drive to a member here recently. I may have another one coming up as I want to put a Venture final drive on my 99 Vmax. Cost of a VMX pumpkin tend to run on either side of $100 depending on when you look. You should be able to get a decent one in the 75-100 range. They are heavy and shipping might be killer but when I shipped mine it did fit into a USPS flat rate box, barely. If the seller is willing to use a flat rate and not charge you up the caboose for shipping then you should be set for a reasonable price.

 

You can also swap just the gears and keep the housing (assuming compatibility with gen2 which is unknown to me). You would have to rent a puller for that though, Morley has one if you go that route. I live where the roads are wide ass open so the Venture gear is a good thing when riding between SD, NE and CO. The Vmax has lousy highway gears, not kidding, but the Venture transmission has a taller 5th gear to offset that, at least true with the Gen1. If I were a city guy I would drop the Vmax final in my Venture without thinking twice about it. The only advantage I can see about Venturedom within city limits is more cargo space than a Squareback. If your leaving stop lights all day then that VMX gear might feel pretty darn nice!

[Condor]

The big difference between the 1st and 2nd Gen final is the speedo pickup. You will need to have the V-Max rear end machined to take the 2ndGen speedo pickup. Some folks have swapped out the gears, but that's the hard way to go...dealing with gear lash and all...

 

On the mpg issue, we have discussed this in the past and 5th gear at highway speeds causes the engine to lug due to wind resistance and the throttle to be twisted more to maintain the higher speed. Ergo use more.. not less fuel. This holds true on both the 1st and the 2nd.... These engines love high RPM's and that's why mpg's will actually be better in the mountains and twisty's running 2-3-4th with less headwind, and never making it into 5th. My 83 VR would get around 37 mpg in the city and highway, but take it up into the Sierras and it would get 50 mpg, and this wasn't a one time happening, but every time. Same held true with the 99RSV. Pulling the trailer to Cody WY on the highway and I got around 27-28 mpg. Left the trailer at the motel and road to Shell Falls, twisty's all the way there and back, and she got 40 mpg. So, saying a V-Max final will cause the mpg's to drop ain't necessarily so... IMNSHO... :-)

[Venturous Randy]

I agree with Condor. The RPM's in relating to gas mileage is not as important as the position of the throttle. An easy example of this is if you are running on a slight upgrade at 60mph in 5th gear and without changing the throttle position, shift down to 4th and the bike speeds up and you have to decrease the throttle some to maintain 60mph, you will be running a higher RPM, but using less gas. There were times that I would intently avoid even the slightest hint of lugging and I have had MPG's close to 50 with the stock 1st gen gearing. I also agree that if you go to a VMax final drive, your biggest drop in fuel mileage will be due to the adrenaline rush of the acceleration, more than some RPM increase.

I will again say that the best combination for a 1st gen is to replace the trans with a 2nd gen trans and install a VMax final drive. You get the VMax rush in 1st and 2nd gear and the lower RPM's in 5th gear on the highway. I do have a complete 2nd gen trans with forks and everything if anyone is interested. Another advantage, is on the MKI, this does away with the need for greasing of the drive shaft where it goes into the final drive as it is internally lubed. You will also eliminate the problems with loosing pins in the shift tumbler as it is a solid unit. It is just better all the way around.

Randy

[M61A1MECH]

How do i buy a final drive already to install on my 06 royal star midnight venture

 

The company that was doing this mod and exchange was Blue Ridge Mountain Sport Max, it was owned and operated by John Furbur.

I am not sure if John is still in the business of modifying and exchanging Royal Star final drives or not his website appears to be gone, but , but he does have a Facebook presence and I understand you can email him directly at john@rmsportmax, he may still be doing the mods and swaps.

 

Hope this helps,

Good luck.

[videoarizona]

The company that was doing this mod and exchange was Blue Ridge Mountain Sport Max, it was owned and operated by John Furbur.

I am not sure if John is still in the business of modifying and exchanging Royal Star final drives or not his website appears to be gone, but , but he does have a Facebook presence and I understand you can email him directly at john@rmsportmax, he may still be doing the mods and swaps.

 

Hope this helps,

Good luck.

 

 

Yes, John is still around and on FB. A few months ago he quoted me for a VMax rear for my 2nd gen. I'm re-thinking about really doing that swap. I think the 2nd gen trannie is just not right!