cowpuc

If you see a pic, nope,, if you dont see a pic, yep.. This is test of the emergency VR broadcast system, please do not change channels.. Any strange pictures you see are not the fault of your receiver.

Hey Sys, in sharing my opinion here, please keep in mind that I am farrrrr from any form of an expert on any of this stuff and that, including my articulation of thought, this opinion just comes from a number of years from playing with both dirt and street bikes (only dirt bikes cause I may use some words that I used in setting up my MX bikes in years past).. Its quite possible that your bike is setting higher/leaning left more because of fork stiction.. Simply the inability of the fork upper tube to travel thru the bushings in the lower legs because of being bent or twisted. You could straddle the bike, make sure there is no air in the forks, push the front wheel against a wall and press up and down on the bars and feel how easily the forks slide. If you feel a stickyness in the movement - good chance the tubes are having a hard time passing thru the bushings. Forks tubes can also move in the triple tree, even to the point the the tree itself can get out of alignment - usually you can see this if ride the bike and look carefully at see if the handlebars are perpendicular with the front wheel when going straight down the road. If their not, it doesnt mean the forks are bent, it could just be a matter of loosening the tree clamps, putting pressure on the front wheel (cant tell you how many times I have loosened clamps and torqued a front end against a tree until the bars were straight) and retighten.. Unfortunately, because of the weight involved with these streetbikes, it really doesnt take much of a hit to tweek a neck and ruin a frame. Again, remember - this is OPINION, I think the insurance industry standards have gotten to the point where even a mark on the frame of bike after an accident is enough to consider the bike a total. I only say that because I have seen MANY really really nice BIG DOLLAR Harley's being sold at auction with "salvage" titles and nothing more than a small indentation in the frame where the crash bar was once connected.. Most frame damage is detected in this way, by visual exam (looking for stress cracks in paint at weld joints and the like). Personally, if I am looking at a questionable bike, I like to have a buddy ride the bike, I lay down on a nice flat paved area (school parking lots work great for this) and have my buddy ride toward me on the scoot in question. Look down the axis of the wheels coming at me and see how the bike is tracking.. It is amazing how easy it is to see a tweeked neck in wheel alignment! Believe it or not, I have seen these big heavy bikes that have - under 20 miles an hour - been lost in a corner, wadded up in a field (didnt hit a car), twisted the front end in a high side event with enough force that the tweeked neck moved the alignment out over an INCH!! I have a hunch that it all depends on the dynamics of the crash but, yea,, it dont take much to tweek a neck, IMHO.. Now the next question that for some reason I sense someone out there squinting their eyes and wanting to ask.. So Puc,, if you KNEW the neck was tweeked,, would you ride it anyway? If I KNEW the neck was tweeked, I would look closely at the frame and make sure that I was satisfied that the front end wasnt going to fall off LOL, no "kinks" in frame tubes or welds that needed rewelding.. If it was just a tweek - you betcha!! A dog tracking bike would go well with the weeds that normally hang under my scoots, the pieced together exhaust collector and the mud covered stickers,, BUT THATS JUST ME!!

Oh, by the way Sys,, I am very sorry to read about this whole incident - while it is common thought that any accident that we are able to walk away from is a good one - I personally cant think of any accident that I call exactly good!! I am glad to hear that you and the boy are both ok though and wish you nothing but the best in getting the whole thing resolved!!

Gonna sound crazy,, but in all honesty BlueSky - never... I just buy old unloved and unwanted 700 dollar Ventures who are laying around suffering in someones garage and wanting nothing more than to finish its life out with me just chasing the wind and together - we go for it.. My first one, a Blonde 84 Royale that I rescued out of an Estate Sale with a bad stator, ran out to well over 200k before she lost a crankshaft - no idea where the valves ended in her but she was still running on all 4 even though the crank bearings sounded like they were gonna come right out the side of the case - she still held matching compression on all jugs when I retired her too!! Amazing motors these V-4 watercooled Yam engines are.. Yea,, I know,, I am holy terror when it comes to my love for these lowely old bikes!! I am the same way in the area with the whole 2nd gear issue ,, 4 of the 5 I have ridden out now (Tweeks included) have lost 2nd gear fairly early in life and I just short shift em to give em a chance at enjoying what time they have left and accumulate some fun miles before the next one begins its journey.. Tweeks tranny departed ways with its 2nd gear back around 40k, that spot is nothing but a false neutral now that she has over 200k on the short shift.. She just takes a licken and keeps on ticken... Wanna hear something really crazy? When I was out in Oregon last year at The Dalles Rally, one of the guru gear heads that I had the honor of meeting out there was standing there listening to Tweeks run, with a smile on his face he asked me what I was going to do with Tweeks when she finally decided she had seen her fair share of miles.. I laughed because someone else had recently mentioned that she should be stuck in a museum somewhere and I told him that. He said he would LOVE to have me get her drive train to him so he could dismantle her and see what things looked like internally. Knowing this person like I do, I am SURE he was very serious and would be found measuring and recording wear specs on everything from valve shims to cam chain slop on a 1983 Yamaha V-4 with 300k miles that had never been opened up - a shear miracle after being in a relationship with the likes of me!!!!!! HEY MOTIV - YOUR RIGHT THERE - CHECK THOSE VALVE SHIM CLEARENCES!!! MURPHYS LAW DEMANDS IT!!!

Yep,, my thought exactly.. Well,, actually my thought was "kids today must be farrrr quicker and better mechanics than we ever were".. Anyway, I would go back to the shop and yak with the mechanic who did the work.. Just tell the service writer you wanted to ask the mechanic who worked on your bike a couple quick questions.. Ask him how the job went, had he ever done one before (for sure if he didnt, he didnt do it in a couple hours), what kind of specs he found.. At least get a feel for whether or not the person deserves to be trusted.. Another thing is did they give you your old gaskets? Sounds crazy but I always made sure we gave customers back old parts and pieces (including gaskets if there was anything left of em) just for transparency sake!! Would hurt to ask for em and see what kind of response you get..

Good advice so far IMHO. Also might take a peek at your air box and or air box feed for mouse nest build up and check your air cleaner make sure its clean (do these 2nd gens have two breather boxes? no idea - never worked on one, make sure and check both if they do).. Rodents love those places and any build up will provide a choking affect on the engine.. Can also check the pipes and see if they are cleared out also - will have the same affect..

Well,, having raised kids and knowing how things happen out on the roadways,, I think I am pretty safe in thinking what you just described was truly an accident (meaning the kid was not out to get you - he was probably just doing his job looking for the place to drop off a pizza - NO EXCUSE FOR DRIVING POORLY THOUGH!!). That said, I am one to keep the courts out of stuff if possible... Blue Book shows your scoot at 2800 in perfect shape, I would look the bike over - if you hit hard enough to bend forks and have glass damage, assume it totaled (if the frame is tweeked at the triple tree THAT alone will total it from an insurance standpoint). If it were me and I had a really really good idea that I was basically ok physically and that the boy was also ok, I would show the father the book value and tell him that it would take 2 grand to buy you out... You can always fix the scoot yourself or sell the it outright on here and make up the difference.. You might want to record the conversation with the father about it all, him offering to settle out of court is probably a pretty indication that he and his son know that it really was the boys fault and may be considered admission of quilt if it ever did end up in court.. About the injury,, I too have had some VERY nasty thumps with lumps and had em heal up just fine, I also have had MAJOR back injury stuff that I didnt even realize was there when it happened.. I did a few days later though.. Tuff call on that one!!

That may have been one of my post PB, I have used Plast-X from Walmart for many years and highly recommend it!! I usually just buy the cheapy little refill bottle (last time I bought it it was like 5 bucks) instead of the kit, use my elbow grease with a cloth - swirl it on, remove before it drys.. Tweeks still has the ORIGINAL shield on her and she is an 83!!! All because of PLast-X!!!!! STUFF IS AMAZING!!

Those two guru's took the words right out of my mouth!!!!

THAT is AWESOME you two!! Best wishes on a wonderful fulfilling life together!! Always remember that marriage is funner and usually more rewarding if you both keep working on always being BEST FRIENDS!!!

Awe,, you are more than welcome Fly!! Got that right on the GREAT deal of swapping parts for one of these amazing scoots!! These old Yams are tough as nails - not perfect, maybe not the prettiest things (I happen to love em but I guess I see beauty in a different way), BUT - THEY HAVE SOUL AND A HEART THE SIZE OF TEXAS!!! THANK YOU for the compliments!! Hope you have a GREAT summer chasing the wind on your 83!! Puc

We try and do better than McDonalds.. But when we cant we always try and pick the RIGHT McDonalds!! For showers and potties we do a lot of wilderness type stuff (bigger trees make better bathrooms), for doo dooing, just try to go at gas stations. Two people can get cleaned up pretty good under a half gallon of warm water (notice the jug on the side of the bike - gets PLENTY warm in the desert heat). LOVES truck stops have the best showers if really needed.. That wasnt Death Valley (below are pics of Death Valley).. The vid you are probably referring to was a few miles out on the Bonneville Salt Flats - AMAZING PLACE!! Took Tweeks to 125 in that vid fully loaded - Tippy was taking the vid.. Tweeks wanted more - I backed down.. We caught Death Valley on a full moon and rode at night (AWESOME) until gas was about gone. Found the only gas station within many miles, camped on their slab till morning. They opened at 6 am, it was 104 degrees all night and had climbed to 108 by 6, when pic at sign was takin it was just over 120!!

Here's a couple more you might enjoy,, cant wait to get back to chasing the front wheel!!

I have done exactly that same thing Fly,, its a horrible feeling when you realize that the kickstand dont respond to telepathic orders aint it? It is REALLY disconcerting when that great big ol beautiful Tweeks gets about 1/10th of a degree to far into her fall and I just have to step aside and watch her scratch her back and dust herself down to keep the bugs off:big-grin-emoticon: Probably one of this funniest times Tips, Tweeks and I had with this very scenario was real early in the morning at a Cemetery we had slept in out in a place called Burns Oregon.. We rolled into that particular "campground" at about 2 am, picked a spot away from the area "campers" (real quiet bunch) parked Tweeks, cut loose the bed roll and went fast asleep. I didnt realize it but I had put Tweeks kickstand down on a raised portion of ground that had a tree root real close to the surface. Next morning I reached down to open the "Health and Beauty Aids" saddlebag on her side, she spooked and over she went!! Tip was standing on the other side of the old girl - I yelped at her to not try and stop Tweeks sideways motion.. She bounced off that Oregon Cemetery sod like super ball off a concrete wall!! Here are a couple of vids of doing a little off roading.. A couple are just spots where we camped at after off roading our way in,, Lots of fun!!!

What Randy said and than I would look at exhaust connectors allowing for direct contact with frame and that kind of stuff - wrong washers in wrong places and the pipes are no longer isolated,, that kinda stuff.. Maybe a loose motor mounts.. Maybe something bent and resting against the engine.. I know what your talking about Fly,, those little "heyyyy,, that buzzzzz aint spose to be there" drive me crazy too.. I had one once that developed after I used Tweeks collector as a skid plate - dont forget to take a peek under your bike too!!

THANK YOU SIR DINGY:thumbsup:!! YOU DA MAN!! This place is like owning the manufacturing plant for Yamaha in Japan!! Only wayyyy better cause we have smarter engineers and an old dog like me have to try and learn to speak Japanese!!

I know I have read it many times but cant remember what has been stated.. Isnt there a punch mark or a stamp somewhere on the motor or frame of an 83/85 that declares it's tranny has the new parts in it? Anyone remember that? Thanks guys!! Puc

You wouldnt be the ONLY Red Neck if I owned one Jer!!! Mine would have mud built up between those gorgeous spokes and probably even already have a few "red neck" stickers on it already :rotf: THAT is SOOOOOOO fantastically wayyyyyy cool!! THANK YOU for the pics!! :cool10: Just looking at it from a "how could I make it even more useable" standpoint,, I wonder if anyone is designing a quick top convertible cover for it yet? I can just hear all the like minded gear headed varmints like myself all going "oh man - its gotta a Chevy motor - TURBO TIME and all that and not even thinking about extending the driveability.. I wonder if any one of those guys are sensible enough to design a quick cover so if it rains hard and you are touring cross country.... Sorry Jer, got side tracked,, WOW THAT IS PURDY!!!

A really really nice tank bag came with my very first 84 back in 87. I still have the trunk bag that matched it and it was definitely top quality stuff.. The tank bag had suction cups mounted into the bottom of the tank bag - one at each corner. After I ruined that bag while out east many years ago and finding the CD bag at Goodwill - I found out that the suction cups were actually attached into the bottom of the bag with screws that went thru the interior and into the cups. I unscrewed those screws and reinstalled the suction cups on that CD Bag.. This worked really really good for a long time BUT,, I always worried about some delingquent kid walking up to my bike and pulling the tank bag off and my kids and I being stuck loosing our camera (always carry a cheap camera in that bag for easy access) with ALL of our ride memorys gone for ever.. Sun Glasses, a few dollars in change, sunscreen, bags of peanuts, mp3 players (I even carry my wallet in the tank bag) and stickers that havent been place on the bike yet can be replaced but memory pictures cant!! Those suction cups are still available - probably find em at Ace Hardware or maybe even Harbor Freight but I got tired of being concerned about the easiness of removal of the tank bag and decided to take action.. I now attach em with tie wraps - I drill holes thru the battery cover and run the tie wraps thru the bag and thru the holes. Because of the strength of the tie wraps - I also now only attach the forward front part of the bag so the bag can easily swing out of my way. I run my bars low and back so when I am leaning back on Tippy and am stretched out with my feet up on the cases - the bar ends are resting on my hands and my hands are resting on my legs - kind of an old school chopper guys way of covering the miles.. If I am on the open road, all leaned back and something happens I can manuver out of the mess without fear of my tank bag getting in the way cause it will just swing to the side.. The swinging action also come in handy when opening the fuel door on Tweeks!! The tie wraps are thru the bottom of the bag and looped thru the cover and are not visible.. Tweeks has been over on her side (actually almost upside down once) and the bag has stayed safe and secure!! It would also take a LOT Of ripping to remove the bag in the event of theft.. Been doing the tie wrap thingy for many years now (knock on wood). Its all crude by most standards BUT - it works for me AND - you gotta admit,, it does go really well with the raw patina that adorns Tweeks by her precious stickers!!! By the way, I know the theft thing might sound like a non issue but,, a few years ago I was out at Sturgis parked next to a gorgeous Harley that was missing its tour pac. The owner was saying that the "Quick Detach" docking hardware he had paid big bucks for to be able to remove his tour pack worked really great - he only wished he would have stuck some locks in the holes on the small clips cause someone had decided they needed his tour pac and belongings more than he did - when he told me that my eyes instantly fell on my little "tie wrap secured" tank bag!!!

That dog gone Fool beat me to it!! Hey ya gul derned moderating minibike restoring lop eared varmint Eck, I wash my bike!! Tweeks is just little soft skinned is all - she has to have pure rain water for her baths or she breaks out in a rash real bad!!

WOW Jimmy - THAT is one GORGEOUS old scoot:clap2:!! Looking at my crystal ball here I see many many many miles of smiles associated with that lady!! CONGRATS TO YOU!! Wishing you nothing but the best as you and her get to know each other and as you sort out the little issues needed to find those many miles of pure happiness!!

Hey Steve I have a gut feeling that your problem is air in the system, it doesnt take much of an air bubble to displace the small amount of hydraulic movement that the master provides. This may sound corny but here is something that I have done several times in diagnosing situations like your working with. Break the system down into components and test them one at a time (make sure you have ample rag coverage on your scoot - brake fluid is nasty). Start with your Master, disconnect the master at the bango - put a plug in the master bango hole, bleed off the master at the plug and see if it will pump up in a stand alone situation.. I have yet to have a rubber brake line get old and rubbery enough to displace the hydraulic pressure BUT - I have heard of it and know that some folks end up going with braided lines because of it.. I cant think of how a caliper (other than an air bubble) could cause what your talking about - if a caliper has no air in it and it is loosing pressure it is also loosing fluid. That said - I have rebuilt a number of calipers and always refill them manually while they are off the bike and carefully reconnect them only after I am sure they are full of fluid - that way I am not depending on a master cyl to do all the work of refill and fighting air bubbles. On the master, sometimes it helps to tip the bars up so any air bubble is given a chance to float upward, tapping on the side of the master can also help as can tapping on line joints and connections. Those tiny little bubbles that you sometimes cant even hardly see (the kind that get caught up in the fluid itself - swear on a stack of left over 1st Gen parts - I have seen this happen) can be very difficult and time consuming to remove - its take slow easy movement back and forth on the lever at a pace that allows you to move the fluid around with the lever with the master cover off (if its squirting from the bleed back hole your doing it to hard) while you watch in the resevoir for tiny bubbles.. A half hour of this is not uncommon..

My nephew is a stickler about having to everything spotless like you guys.. He finally got tired of washing and cleaning and polishing and fighting tight spots on his chrome and all that.. Anyway, he got to playing around with some of the new "easy to keep it clean" bike stuff, its been a while since I seen him but it seems like he was bragging about some stuff called "S100" or something that once applied - it was a rinse off the dirt with a hose and then blow the bike off with a leaf blower and SHAZAMMM - LIKE NEW!! Wonder if that new faindangled stuff with do the same job on a car.... Anyway,, THAT IS ONE PRETTY RIG ECKSTER!!!

I ruined one years ago while out east messing around looking for old coal mines (wet shale rock gets REAL slippery).. I stopped at Goodwill Store, pawed around and found a fake leather CD case for a buck!! Used it for the rest of the trip and it worked great!! Never went back to an actual Tank Bag, the one I have on Tweeks is also a CD Case that came from another Goodwill in Sacramento - cost more (like 2 dollars) but they are definitely a must have for touring!!

OUTSTANDING FOOL:clap2:!!!! NOW THAT IS LIVING BROTHER!! BEEEAAUUUUTIFUL PICS!! Oh,, by the way,, did you know that your new Nuckleer Misssl thing will lift and tow a Wisconsin White Wash Machine straight up and CLEAN OUT OF SITE and that the hole that it created in the roof of your shed when it left looks like it is big enough to be able to use a crane to lift your bike out of the shed so you wont have to use that roller thingy you built to assist in getting the bike out..