cowpuc

Great read - thanks Neil!!

Must something in the water, or change in weather BigLenny,,, yesterday - I went to move a 1st Gen parts bike into the garage to steal some parts from, put the kickstand up, rolled it into the garage, got mentally side tracked, lean it down onto the kickstand and let go of it - forgot to put the stand down first... Found out quickly that they care whether it is my fault, the bikes fault or someone elses fault,,, they are still heavy!! Hope you guys are ok!! Puc

Got a question for those of you who know 1st Gen electronics.. Guy asked me today about an issue that just started with his 84 Venture.. Said his Tach has started responding real slow,, wanted to know if he should replace/lube the tach cable.. I was telling him that the tach was actually electronic and that,,, if I recall,, I had read that a "slow movement tach" could indicate ecm problems... Got thinking on the way home that I should ask the pros on here about it NOW so if I gotta call him and eat some crow the crow doesnt have time to spoil before I have to eat it... What do think gang??? Thanks!! Puc

Well,, gonna go out on another limb here DJ,, just for you... Go ahead and whip me if ya need to guys but I gotta say it... I would reconsider Shinko's... Been there, price was right, tires looked great and I thought I would try em.. Bought the correct sizes, as close to weight carrying capacity to my E2's as I could get, mounted/balanced em up, loaded up the bike and Tippy and I headed for the Dragon.. Going south on the highway out of Johnson City TN, 104 degree day, hot tarmac, Tweeks all of sudden let me know she her shoe came off.. Got her landed ok.. Back tire flatter than a pan cake. Got her ripped down, up on center stand spun the back tire and heard a noise inside the tire.. Guy stopped to help, rolled the back wheel and said "you got drivetrain problems", said no I dont - what ever punctured my tire is still inside it.. He took me back to "Jims" (GREAT FOLKS) in Johnson City.. Told the mechanic I wanted what ever was inside the tire rattling around for a keep sake.. Below are a couple of pics of what went thru the brand new Shinko - I keep this piece in my maintenance department bag just to show folks.. Notice that there really are no pointed edges on the piece, not like a nail or a screw or something.. The guy at Jim's agreed with me when I commented that something like that should have never punctured the tire.. He said that Shinko's dont have the carcass strength of the most other brands... Personally,, l wouldnt run em again unless I had to.. Just my opinion..... Puc

Indeed Lewis,, YOU are on my hero's list!! Thank you for all you have done and are doing for the kids of St. Judes!!!!!!!!!!:clap2::clap2::clap2: You are loved and appreciated Fozzie!! Puc

Tell ya one thing there Dragon Rider,,,, if I were Dingy (current leader in the auction),, I 'd be getting a little nervous because of that revelation...:stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot:

""""WESTWARD HO!"""" I LOVE how this guy thinks!!! Driften along like a tumblin tumbleweed,, Happy Trails,, Bluuue Shadows on the trail, Give me land lots of land with the starry skies above....... Yeaaa,,, DONT FENCE ME IN!! Puc

1 dollar is a small amount, a tiny price to pay. When you think of all those St. Judes kids, suffering on this day. A dollar from every member, what a great idea Lewis! Everyone I know could do that, from the oldest to the newest.. A dollar or 10 dimes, would make no difference really. Such a simple thing to figure out, it almost sounds kinda silly.. A dollar up here in Michigan, is 10 pop cans at its best. Their laying in a ditch out there, I KNOW I could do the rest. A dollar buys a donut here, which my doctor says dont eat. Why I could give it to those Children, for an extra special treat! A dollar buys a water bottle, now that kinda makes one think.. Your not really giving a dollar, just a glass of water to drink.. A dollar bill is hiding, over here and over there. Waiting for me to find it, so with those children I can share!!!

Winddancer,,, I am sure it was a new tire - very possible it was new OLD Stock though,, place that sold it to me was a back country small town joint that just happened to have something that fit my bike, got me back on the road!! Matter of fact,, I think that tire is still on one of my "parts" bikes (my wore out bikes become victims),, because it did wear so well I may very well slip it on my current bike when I head to the desert this year - like you mentioned Dancer,, they do wear extremely well!! Dancer,, what do you run for a car tire on the back? I have never gone that route BUT by the sounds of things maybe I will give it a try.. Hey Bill,, probably oughta listen to Dancer,, sounds like that Texan may have gotten the best of me in that one:rotf: I get a chance I will snap a pic of the Commander 2's profile on the parts bike in comparison to the new Metz I just stuck on my rider.. Got me curious now.........

really nice Dave!!

Hey Kev,, THANK YOU for your service too!! Its an honor getting to hear from you guys on this board!! Now,, is there any chance you could put names to those chopper numbers?? Are we talking "gunships", "Hueys" or something? Kinda let us in on some of your pilot nick names for them if applicable.. Talk to this old geezer like he was one of your pilot brothers,, after all,, I have Piled a lot of It in my life Good stuff! Puc

Hey Bill,, While not exactly the same application cause I have never owned a RSTD, I have been down the Michelin Commander 2 road on one of my 83 1st Gens.. I tend to go thru a lot of rubber touring the desert regions. Got talked into trying one on the rear of my bike out in Texas one time, was told by the guy at this little bike shop that "their all we use out here", paid $135 for mine (not bad for a desperate desperado).. After spending time on that tire I could see why the guy sold a lot of them out there.. It wore like iron compared to the Dunlops/Shinko's/Pirelli's and Metzlers I had ran before.. Definitly a high mileage tire,, HARD rubber tire.. The down side of it was, to me,, though I didnt end up with rubber all over the back of my bike like in the past, it hated cooler pavement - had to be very careful on the mountain twisties AND on wet cooler pavement I HATED that tire - look in a Websters under SLIPPERY WHEN WET and you will probably see that tire listed.. One thing I noticed right away with mine was it didnt appear to have the tread depth when new that other brands I had boughten had,, like I got shorted half the tread depth.. May have just been my imagination but it really appeared that way.. I KNOW the harder rubber definitly affected the cornering and wet weather handling but I always wondered if the lack of tread depth didnt increase those issues... Also,, the profile of the tire was different,, it didnt have the same "crown" as I was use to, it sat flatter (a little closer to going to the dark side) than the other tires... Bottom line: Wear factor +10 All other Factors +3,, maybe,, depending a lot on how hard it was pushed.. Just my 2 cents.... Puc

Congrats Suds!! Hope you put down a deposit cause more and more folks are finding out what they be missing by not owning one the fastest, easy riding, problem free bikes on the planet... You dont want some sneaky Venture rider coming in and cuttin ya off! ENJOY YOUR NEW BIKE!! Puc

Well put Turtle!! I had NO IDEA of the implications of that very statement until I started riding this bike.. Learning to ride a foot clutch, hand shift, hand spark advance has taken me all the way back to learning to ride my first bike - a 59 Sears/Allstate 2 speed moped.. It is AMAZING how after 50 years of motorcycle riding or all sorts, riding something like this is like starting all over again.. DEFINITLY promotes the "young at heart" feeling!! Only now if I fall it hurts :rotf::rotf: Glad you caught that name on there Shmily!! THAT is indeed AMAZING!! Doesnt surprize me that those military manuals still look the same,, blunt -straight forward - no colored pics to look at - just vital info.. Your a CHOPPER PILOT?? HOW COOL IS THAT!!!:clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::thumbsup: Can you say what model you fly or will you have to kill me if you do?? I have a son inlaw who is a tech sargent out at Travis Air Base.. Took us out on the flight line,, looked at me and said,,, I know your tempted but if you walk across that line they will haul you away..:rotf: Oh,, and beyond the coolness of what you do,, THANK YOU for your service to our great country Shmily!! Puc

Hey,, Spanky,,, ,,,,,,, BUT,,,,, forum rules dictate,,,,, couple some of those with a massive ride report PLEASE ,,, I have heard some really great stuff about those puppies!! Congrats! Puc PS... when/where is that "Big Toms Rally" thingy... Is that open to the "public" or only to dignitaries??

Thanks Orlin, I really appreciate that! Now doent be surprised if you wake up some morning and find a tent set up on your porch and a old guy cooking hot dogs on your grill:rotf:

You say it has new tires, did it start doing this after the tire install? Might be rear bushings/spacers in placed in wrong place/axle(s) not cinched correctly......

Your welcome my friend!

Prayers Up, Blessings Down,, Nite Neverland...

Dont worry Gary,, those sneaky moderators aint about to close this thread over a little sunday school lesson.. DragonSlayer is wayyyy to crafty for em.. He (and others) have done tried every other nasty trick in the book to get this puppy closed,, bribery, politics, threats, name callin,, even beggin em and NOTHING worked.. Knowing DragonSlayer, I have a hunch he planned it this way - the heart of St. Judes beats in his heart!! Soooo,, here's where we are.. Puc looks around the auction room,, amazed at all the discussion taking place about what that meek young lady and the originator of this auction have proposed.. He looks back over at his shadow and sees his shadow smiling at him.. That Bongobob,, he isnt really a bad guy,, just likes to needle people,, kinda like Puc himself..... He smiles back at Bongo and then turns and looks across the Auditorium.. His eyes are searching for the high bidder of the Auction at this point... Before the auction got side tracked Puc swears he heard someone mention a high bid of $200.. Thats the person his eyes are searching for.... He grins back at Bongo as he approaches the high bidder at this point,,, reaches over and pats the bidder on the shoulder,, a likeable chap named Dingy.. Puc says "Dingy,, I really like your attitude,, you stepped right up and bid $200 bucks toward helping these kids in trouble,, I like that,, ya know what,, I am gonna kick my $40 bid into your pot to help guarentee you get crowned as "Master Thread Killer"... Then Puc looks back at Bongo and smiles an evil little smile that only Bongo himself could possibly understand... Dingy,, heres to the winners,, those PRECIOUS little ones and the official MASTER THREAD KILLER - DINGY!!:clap2::clap2::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot::stirthepot: DragonSlayer,, your a genius!! Everybody else,,, ya'll aint gonna take this laying down are ya?

set of push rod cover seals for my Harley.. Made ya look didnt I:rotf: Anyway,, got almost 700 miles on this old Harley that lets me ride it.. Sweetest old flathead ever built,, its a dandy.. Got enough time on it that I thought I would get busy with some real fun and adjust her valve clearances.. While running around today I pulled into the local Harley shop,, went to the counter and said "gotta pick up some parts for my Harley", parts guy said "not a problem,, what model and year",, I looked up from looking at the price on a new Ultra sitting next to me and said "42 WLA",, he lifted his glasses and said "come again",, I said "its a 1942 WLA Harley".. He laughed and said "we only handle non-obsolete parts":rotf: Told him I was about to set the valves in the old timer,, just looking for push rod tube cover seals,,, probably have to make a set.. He laughed and said "or, if it leaks after ya set em just let it leak".. Got home and pulled the book that the previous owner gave me for it.. I was pretty sure the specs would be in there.. Book is amazing in itself and I thought you guys might enjoy a peek at it.. Definitly a step back to simpler times.. Every gearheads bathroom in America should have reading material like this stuff!! Enjoy!! Puc

You betcha brother,, see ya than.. Oh yea,,, didnt say where ya were headed so I thought I might give ya a heads up,,, if your coming from AZ and headed my way ya might wanna bring your winter long johns along,, still winter here!!! God Speed Puc

:rotf: Not laughin AT you my friend,, laughin with ya cause I have exactly those same ailments,,,,,, probably why that old bike still speaks to me Old Goat!!!!

That analog meter has got to be over in the "insane" readings Bongo.. I mean, really,, no person in their right mind would walk into an Auto Zone AUTO PARTS STORE for a can of carb cleaner like I did today,, notice they had a few spin on oil filters for motorcycles sitting on the shelf,, take 30 minutes of a salesmans time sweet talkin him into doing some research into whether or not Auto Zone could get oil filters for a 1st Gen... Of course,, being crazy has its advantages,, that same salesman told me I am the first person that he knew of that bought oil filters for that old bike for 5 bucks each AND am having them shipped to my door for free :rotf::rotf::rotf::rotf:

Sooo,, still tweekin on Tweeks gettin her ready for another great season of fun.. Todays tweekin was gonna be a simple a matter of finishing up stickin in the Progressives, dropping in some plugs and tossing a carb sync at the old girl.. As usual,, nothing ever goes as planned when playin with a very tired, ridden to death, 83 Venture.. 1st off,,, Tweeks exhaust system has been hit by bolders, logs, salt and hailstones so many times that there is no way it will ever quit backfiring and popping... I did notice what seemed to be a much more abnoxious attitude for doing so, so I thought I would dig into that a little too,,, also thought I might be able to help Muay with a little more advice if I found something weird.. Well,, I did.. Once I got the bike back in after warming it up, I hooked the gauges to it and noticed some really strange readings.. Many many miles ago I had diaphram problems on the road and I stopped at a Yamaha shop and picked up a tube of Yamabond to try and do some back yard, road trip fixen,, worth a try right??.. I had checked that old repair several times over the course of time,, always looked great, and thought maybe my diaphram had finally stretched its last stretch.. Popped the cover,, still looked great... Decided to check the other carbs too.. Well,, I found the culprit,, I had a very sticky slide that didnt want to close all the way.. I found that where the slide slips into the throat of the carb, stuff had built up enough that it was holding the slide open and my vacuum gauges couldnt get a good reading.. Carb cleaner on a rag over my finger, a little scrubbing and than a good internal spray down and all was well.. I have extra diaphrams and thought about putting a new one on the bad one but decided I would continue my Yamabond test for another 20k and check it again,, stuffs amazing.. Finished the tune up.. Guess what,, yea it still pops and growls like it always did (cant expect miracles) but repairing that slide helped, A LOT!!! Even had enough time left to push new fluid thru the old girls hydraulics.. Getting ready guys,,, little by little:backinmyday: Puc