Just got an 1984 Venture Royale 1200 - She's in need of Carburator help and WAS starting on choke only before I cleaned it - old gas too.

[BlueSky]

The seafoam is beginning to work!  Sounds like it isn't firing on all cylinders.

[Pasta Burner]

Something isn’t right, but congrats on your progress so far!  Welcome to the madhouse too!   As mentioned earlier use a thermometer to measure and compare all four exhaust to determine if one isn’t firing.  Also sounds like you have a vacuum leak to me, make sure all of the manifold bolts are tight and the carb boots both above and below are fully seated.

[Solace]

Yeah will check again. I feel like I’m missing a cylinder, I’ll have to check the wiring next. I was riding and it felt like a cyl was in out in out. But I’ve checked spark everywhere. 
 

put half a tank of fresh gas in with another can of seafoam and it made an immediate impact. Shifting through gear 1 - 2 almost felt normal.

 

 

[Solace]

Hey all she’s running poopy again after I had her on the road. Hard to start. Cleaning again. This is what I was mentioning about a missing washer, thoughts?

[luvmy40]

It's hard  to tell from streaming vid/audio sometimes, but that last bit sounds like your only hitting on 2 cylinders. Even on 3 cylinders these old girls sound pretty smooth.

[saddlebum]

22 hours ago, BlueSky said:

One of those infrared thermometers would be useful in determining the temperature of the exhaust pipes and therefore which cylinders are not firing.

Four fingers work great too the one that doesn't form a blister is the one that indicates a misfiring cylinder 

[Solace]

I think I am down a cylinder after all, I did compare exhaust heat, one was only half as hot.

[Solace]

Ok - no spark on the front two cylinder! 

[Solace]

13 hours ago, luvmy40 said:

It's hard  to tell from streaming vid/audio sometimes, but that last bit sounds like your only hitting on 2 cylinders. Even on 3 cylinders these old girls sound pretty smooth.

You were correct

[cimmer]

Yes you should have the o-ring, item, #23, in there on the tube. Also check and see how tight the rubber plugs, 40 & 41 are in the bottom of the jet block. They should be a very snug fit. A source for parts is in Ontatio, Sirius Consolidate Inc., https://www.siriusconinc.com/search_result.php?make=2&model=Venture Royale&part=All&partno=&x=56&y=16&search=search&start=0

They have different parts for you Venture.

I would also check the carb diaphgrams for pin holes or tears. They do wear out over time. There really isnt a complete carb kit for these bikes and you need to source the parts from different places including Yamaha.

Also you might need to replace the spark plug wires and caps as there could be corrosion in ends of the wires and also the spark plug caps. Be aware there is a small o-ring on my coil end of the wire so when pulling it out of the coil be sure not to loose it.

Hope this helps you out.

Rick F.

[Marcarl]

It's only running on 2 cyl. Wake the others up and hang onto your pants!!

[Solace]

Hey all, so did some spark testing on the front two, and ordered 4 replacements. WAY better spark on the front left spark where there was none before. Front right has a tiny weak spark. I may just replace all the coils. 
 

there’s gota be a carb issue still, I can spray quick start in there and she fires. Not getting anything on choke.

so looks like more carbs needed. I’m gonna deep clean them this time, soak them, replace what I can etc.

will update when that’s done 

[Solace]

Might have hit a jackpot: https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Carburetor-Rebuild-Repair-Kit-Main-Jet-Sub-for-Yamaha-VMAX-V-Max-1200-VMX12-/374061683908?hash=item5717d054c4

[Marcarl]

2 hours ago, Solace said:

Might have hit a jackpot: https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Carburetor-Rebuild-Repair-Kit-Main-Jet-Sub-for-Yamaha-VMAX-V-Max-1200-VMX12-/374061683908?hash=item5717d054c4

Being that they are what they claim to be, be prepared to do it all over again not too long fro now.

[cimmer]

4 hours ago, Solace said:

Might have hit a jackpot: https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Carburetor-Rebuild-Repair-Kit-Main-Jet-Sub-for-Yamaha-VMAX-V-Max-1200-VMX12-/374061683908?hash=item5717d054c4

I should have worn you about the China products. There is no way the can make quality parts for that little of money in my opinion. Lets us know how they work out for you if you would please.

Rick F.

[Solace]

So looks like I am infact missing TWO "Washer, Main Jet" -- which explains why I'm only firing on 2 cylinders I think, because if this washer is missing the Main Nozzle will have 2mm of play and can wiggle, which changes the adjustment of the main needle by 2mm and does not properly stop fuel flow essentially flooding the entire carburator -- which also explains the back fire and woosh of smoke out of that side of the carburator!

I have started replacing the ignition coils already which probably doesn't even need to be done 😕 But hey, new ignition coils are new ignition coils. 

Just need to find a replacement for a few washers and I think I might have a shot at riding this weekend!

 

[cimmer]

Those are available from Yamaha and that might the only place to get new ones. Check with some of the guys up in Ontario and see if they have a place they prefer to order from.

Rick F.

[saddlebum]

On 5/9/2022 at 5:08 PM, Solace said:

Hey all, so did some spark testing on the front two, and ordered 4 replacements. WAY better spark on the front left spark where there was none before. Front right has a tiny weak spark. I may just replace all the coils. 
 

there’s gota be a carb issue still, I can spray quick start in there and she fires. Not getting anything on choke.

so looks like more carbs needed. I’m gonna deep clean them this time, soak them, replace what I can etc.

will update when that’s done 

I would not be too hasty about replacing the coils. As a rule they seldom fail. The OEM plug end unscrew from the cables and if you look inside the plug end you will see how you can remove the inside pieces  which basically consist of a tiny spring a tiny cylinder and a threaded piece that holds it in there. They can become corroded as well the spring can loose tension reducing our spark. Secondly Remove the connectors from the the CDI unit which is under and forward of the battery support and will have to be removed. The contacts on this are notorious for corrosion. clean them up well and finish off by spraying with ACF50 (you can get it on amazon) You might be pleasantly surprise. I had a dead #3 cylinder about 5 years ago and was about to replace the CDI when I noticed the corrosion which can range from a lot of green build up to what appears to be a very light green dust. Being familiar with this condition since I deal with it on trucks frequently I decided to clean up instead of replace the CDI and the bike has run like a million bucks ever since.

[Marcarl]

I may have some here if you can't find any else where. Need to know the size though to make sure.

[Solace]

Thanks all -- Yeah I'm looking at the CDI and Coils like, hey they don't often fail.. right? I will for sure clean the electrical connections wherever I see ability to clean it. I'm really hoping to get her working this weekend.

I'm very sure what happened is those washers being missing would create a LEAN condition, the air would just pass right through that part where the needle goes into the hole. I found some nearly the same size washers, I'll try them, failing that I'll use some larger ones and grind them down. 

Fun fun fun. 

I did get the side panels, newer more aggressive exhaust, new fuse box (old one falling apart) and I'm really looking forward to the bike running soon! 

[saddlebum]

I will try to remember to look through my junk and see if I have any of those washers left over from previous carb rebuilds I did.

Edited May 13, 2022 by saddlebum

[Solace]

VICTORY! Well sorta. 

Upon inspection it appears that only ONE of the MAIN NOZZLE had o-rings. So what I did was a hack, 2 smaller o-rings out of a generic kit to try to fill the gap. You can see in other photos I'm kinda learning what they do, I installed way too fat of a ring and it doesn't fit. So looks like the last guy working on these just didn't bother with them, perhaps. 

Next up is the coil pack was certainly defective, and I have now by passed it. Simply cut out the old one, steal the adapter and I'm going to home it under the radio, and I will probably just do ALL coil packs. 

She still only starts with quickstart. But I can get her a little more quiet. I need to adjust the air/mixture screws for sure, I have a feeling they're outa whack from the last guy. 

I put my hand behind the exhaust and both pipes were HOT, where as last time the left pipe was half as hot. So the ignition coil was for sure a problem - you think I should replace all coils? 

 

REALLY excited that I may have it figured out today.

[Solace]

Thinking I might have an air leak somewhere too, not drawing enough fuel at low speed. There is NO WAY the pilot circuit is dirty, 5th time deep cleaning the carb and I've checked them thoroughly! 

[Solace]

MORE PROGRESS! She wants to run so bad. Still only starting on starter fluid, was able to get her down to a nice idle, but she started surging rev up downnnnnnnnnnnnn upppppppppp downnnnnnnnnn.

Turns out one of the carbs is flooding over and spitting a lot of gas out. Just one carb. 

I also made sure to re-attach and double check the airbox fittings, some of that was sloppy, had to grease the inside of the boot and it sat down perfectly. Hooked up more various connections things are running better. I did not however hook up that big fat hose to the air box because how the hell do you do that lol, I'm gonna get a slightly longer hose and refit it. 

Here she is wanting to run! SO CLOSE I can taste it.

I believe the float may be stuck or installed incorrectly (lazy / tired?) so it's emptying out, then pumping too much fuel, emptying out, too much fuel, etc and I believe that's what is causing the surging. One more time I will have to take the carbs apart... maybe later tonight.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Solace

[Solace]

Yep on double checking, one of the carbs is like... maybe I forgot the needle entirely kinda sticking. Fix that, maybe fix bike...