Hi new to the site ......have lots of questions

[84VentureMatt]

 

Greetings I'm Matt live on the east coast work the entire lower 48 found a bike i couldnt pass on due to condition an mileage hopefully i can pick some of your brains for knowledge on thes giant Yamamonsters 

just picked up a 84 venture royale only 9,000 miles the bike is a 8.5 out of 10 garage queen just a blemish here or there ....so i ride it home today and stop look down an there is fluid on the bottom of the left front fork its not  the fork  seals it looks like the anti dive system ? 

being an 84 i am sure there is lots of things waiting to give me a fit ...I will apologize ahead of time for my tons of questions as i am sure there will be many . I also i am notorious for run on sentences sorry .  ..... 

things I am curious about 

1 swapping the forks out for an updated version and also replacing the rear shock possibly dropping the air ride system 

2 what kinds of exhaust will fit the Venture 

3 solutions for the heat on your legs ( holy moly i got cooked ) 

4 adding lights fog , marker , swapping radio , losing the air ride 

5 curios about the single carb swap maybe try a webber 40mm 

and I am sure tons more ...pic is of my bike today when i bought it 

[RDawson]

I’ll start with #3&5. If your cooling system is working correctly check the vents in the lower fairings, they control airflow into the cockpit area. I never had leg heat issues on my 1st gen. 
I haven’t seen much luck with a single carb swap in the posts I’ve read, get the carbs right and keep em clean and that thing is a rocket. 
I’m sure some of the 1st gen gurus will be around soon to give better info, I’ve moved to a 2nd gen as I like feet forward bikes. 
Welcome to the site, you won’t find better info anywhere to keep her going, best $12 investment you’ll spend on the bike. 
I suggest you ask over in the Watering Hole or 1st gen sections to get better response. 

Edited September 25, 2021 by RDawson

[Woody]

Welcome to Venture riders, Great looking bike

RDawson has already started the good advice and this forum is a treasure trove of information on the first gen, so get ready. 

[saddlebum]

1. Unless the forks are damaged there is no need to replace them. Replace the stock springs with progressive springs and @skydoc_17here on the site sells a kit which eliminates the anti-dive valves. Once properly installed using the spacers cut to the proper length to accommodate your ride and handling preference you can eliminate the air suspension from the front forks or cut the spacers a little shorter and keep the air ride  to fine tune your ride preference.
2. Check the tech sections for first gens here on the website you will find many tried and true suggestions for the exhaust system.
3. Generally the only reason you would feel heat on your legs is the vents in the side fairings are open or have been removed. I have removed mine so it is quite normal for me to feel heat heat on my legs but not to the point of being unbearable and almost never on the highway. I mostly notice it riding around town and in shorts it does get hot but this is all normal. Keep in mind air passing through the rad eliminates heat from the coolant by absorbing that heat. That now heated air passes by your legs. Opening the long narrow vents in front of your shins will help some as the cooler air from the vents will blend with the warmer air from the rad reducing the heat factor slightly and I do mean slightly as not a lot of air comes through most of these vents. If its a cool morning open the vents in in the side fairings if they are still there to keep your legs a bit warmer.
4. First step would be to eliminate the factory fuse box and its glass fusses you can by aftermarket replacements that use the ATO or similar push in fuses. get one with extra fuse locations to wire additional acc. to, this way you can reduce the amount of wiring eliminating having a birds nest everywhere. Here is an example https://www.amazon.com/6-Way-Mini-Blade-Block-Negative/dp/B0837NHY2W
5. My advice forget it! As stated earlier I have not heard of any one having any success with the single carbs. The OEM carb is for the most part a very reliable and optimum functioning carb. True they are a PITA to work on if they do need a major overhaul which is rare for the most part. If properly maintained the most you generally need to do is a carb sync which in most cases a nearby member in possession of a sync tool is usually more than happy to help out (that is the way of this group) Maybe occasionally a diaphragm may need to be replaced which is a 10 minute job. Last time I replaced mine and rebuilt my carb 70,000 miles ago and it is still going strong.

Edited September 27, 2021 by saddlebum

[84VentureMatt]

Ladies & Gentlemen of the Venture world I am more than blown away already from this group . The first 2 responses to my barrage ( I truly am sorry about the question bomb ) have given me more information than i have ever received as a newbie on a site this seems like a good community to be part of for sure . I am all ears ( well eyes online ) an eager to learn the ways of this Majestic V4 steed ........ I still am in shock it is an 1984 model and only as of my purchase had 9,657 miles original so with proper maintenance I would think it will last a very long while . 

I am about to head out on the road I do lower 48 state pet transport so my online time will be sporadic but I will be reading an trying to learn as much as I can from everyone ....Thank you for the very warm welcome I am truly looking forward to owning this bike 

Matt  

[saddlebum]

8 hours ago, 84VentureMatt said:

Ladies & Gentlemen of the Venture world I am more than blown away already from this group . The first 2 responses to my barrage ( I truly am sorry about the question bomb ) have given me more information than i have ever received as a newbie on a site this seems like a good community to be part of for sure . I am all ears ( well eyes online ) an eager to learn the ways of this Majestic V4 steed ........ I still am in shock it is an 1984 model and only as of my purchase had 9,657 miles original so with proper maintenance I would think it will last a very long while . 

I am about to head out on the road I do lower 48 state pet transport so my online time will be sporadic but I will be reading an trying to learn as much as I can from everyone ....Thank you for the very warm welcome I am truly looking forward to owning this bike 

Matt  

There is no such thing as asking too many questions because we all love to help were we can. Nor need you feel too dumb about these bikes since you can only get smarter and more knowledgeable about these bikes, through the more than willing help and advice of the membership. The main reason this site was formed was to share knowledge that is unavailable through other means, even bike shops do not have the knowledge this site has.

There is a side effect however which I am sure was unforeseen by the founder of this site. You run the risk of forming strong off line friendships.  You will find the members here are not just on line friends as many of us have formed strong in person friendships through rally's, meet and eats and meet and greets. Some of have formed friendships as far back as 15 years or more through this site and some of those friendships are still going strong to this day. Many members that live close enough together, help each other and that often includes newbies.

The monitors here do a fantastic job in keeping this site in a PG state, clean and free of foul language and hurtful  comments and any subject that gets too controversial to were it starts to turn ugly is shut down.

All in all this site sets a high standard not seen in many other forums.

[Marcarl]

On 9/27/2021 at 9:24 AM, saddlebum said:

There is no such thing as asking too many questions because we all love to help were we can. Nor need you feel too dumb about these bikes since you can only get smarter and more knowledgeable about these bikes, through the more than willing help and advice of the membership. The main reason this site was formed was to share knowledge that is unavailable through other means, even bike shops do not have the knowledge this site has.

There is a side effect however which I am sure was unforeseen by the founder of this site. You run the risk of forming strong off line friendships.  You will find the members here are not just on line friends as many of us have formed strong in person friendships through rally's, meet and eats and meet and greets. Some of have formed friendships as far back as 15 years or more through this site and some of those friendships are still going strong to this day. Many members that live close enough together, help each other and that often includes newbies.

The monitors here do a fantastic job in keeping this site in a PG state, clean and free of foul language and hurtful  comments and any subject that gets too controversial to were it starts to turn ugly is shut down.

All in all this site sets a high standard not seen in many other forums.

Couldn't have said any better,,,,, maybe shorter with less words,,, but that's just me!!!

Thanks Bum.

[RDawson]

10 hours ago, Marcarl said:

Couldn't have said any better,,,,, maybe shorter with less words,,, but that's just me!!!

Thanks Bum.

Carl=Less words???? Should we move this thread to the joke & humor page?

[Marcarl]

12 hours ago, RDawson said:

Carl=Less words???? Should we move this thread to the joke & humor page?

You have tooo much time on your hands!!

[84VentureMatt]

@skydoc_17 it seems you will be the man to speak to on the forks . I want to eliminate the anti dive and thanks to advice from @saddlebum ( seriously lots of intel I am thankful ) @Marcarl @RDawson @Woody very nice to meet you all 

So after doing some site surfing ( holy moly there is a ton of information here ) I think I am going to eliminate the air system an go with the a Progressive 465 series rear shock and the Progressive fork springs ....So does Skydoc still make the anti dive eliminate plates and how much do they cost ? How does this approach sound ? I bumped into a gentlemen at Myrtle Beach biketoberfest on a Venture who has the 465 shock and praised it highly ...... I didnt get his name If your on here thank you  .... He had a Beautiful Venture all the shiny and lights and stuff 1st gen bike WV plates ....anyways a short talk filled with some pointers an suggestions wish i had talked more but we kinda crossed paths at one of the events ....so thats where i am at so far ... I will post on this thread but am also trying to ask questions throughout on threads in the site or asking in tech talk areas ...oh an I am sorry for my typing I know it is terrible.......matt

[Woody]

Hey Matt, off subject just a little bit I would like to invite you to become a full member of this great and very informative site, it will be the best 12 bucks you will ever spend on your bike. 

I would also like to invite you to come by the KOA in Swannanoa in August 2022 to meet some of the members of our venture rider family. 🍺

[saddlebum]

1 hour ago, Woody said:

Hey Matt, off subject just a little bit I would like to invite you to become a full member of this great and very informative site, it will be the best 12 bucks you will ever spend on your bike. 

I would also like to invite you to come by the KOA in Swannanoa in August 2022 to meet some of the members of our venture rider family. 🍺

Totally second the suggestion. For what boils down to $1.00 a month for what this site has to offer in so many  ways is priceless.

[84VentureMatt]

@Woody I used to live in Asheville from 84 to 2010 coming to a gathering sounds like a plan and i fully intend on joining the site you and @saddlebum are right the amount of info within the group $12 bucks for a year very worth it 

 

[etcswjoe]

I am only 90 mins south of you. 

[Squidley]

29 minutes ago, etcswjoe said:

I am only 90 mins south of you. 

Watch out for this guy Matt. He's a retired Navy Chief and knows more ways to get in trouble than you can imagine!

[84VentureMatt]

2 hours ago, etcswjoe said:

I am only 90 mins south of you. 

hopefully i get my 84 worked out soon an I'll take a ride down your way