BratmanXj

Do it...any upgrade on these bikes is an improvement over stock. Kinda funny how even the Road Stars went up to the 4-pots in the later '00s when the Venture is an even heavier bike. Pressure and Volume are inter-related in the closed system. I guess some people confuse lever travel with brake effort applied to the lever. Too large of a master cylinder gives that "wooden" feel. If you ever feel a wooden brake you'll understand that term immediately, there is on & off with no modulation. When you go up in size on the master the effort at the lever will increase but the lever travel will decrease. The reason being the caliper piston sweep area is fixed and you are altering the master cylinder diameter. http://www.vintagebrake.com/mastercylinder.htm

Why does everyone equate it back to inches when I show percentage?!? The change in mechanical advantage is the same if you look at it in inches vs mm. Pressure and volme are directly related in a closed system. If you change the volume by 13% you consider that negligible? Again...if someone has the resources to ONLY do a cliper swap by all means do it, it is worth it by its self. But if you can also swap to the proper 14mm master (even if you see it as inconsequential) it greatly improves the brake feel over the 5/8" master. I have ridden both types of systems and I CAN feel the difference. I ride my RSV with a group of sport & sport tourers, I push the bike hard. The casual highway rider might not know the difference but I will never go back to the 5/8" master.

Modulation...brakes are not a switch (on/off); there is a range from light application to full aplication. What I have noticed with the 5/8" master on the 4-pot brakes is only 1/3 of the lever travel is used to go from light to full application of the brakes. You loose "fine" control of brake application due the larger volume of fluid that is moved by the 5/8" master over the 14mm. 5/8" = 15.875 mm That is 13.4% larger than 14mm That may not seem like a lot but makes a big difference in a low volume system like your brakes.

The R1-R6 swap greatly improves the breaking effectiveness, I will always tell someone to make the caliper swap even if it doesn't include the master. The two bikes that I have personally been on and my experience swapping my own I offer the following information: 1. Stock 2-pots brakes require a FIRM GRAB of the brake lever to slow down, to me there was very little modulation ability due to the amount of pressure needed on the lever to obtain useful braking. '99 Venture stock 2. 4-pot brakes with stock 5/8 Master, much more braking applied with less OVERALL pressure needed on the lever yet modulation was only in a very narrow portion of the lever swing. This was on a friends '04 Road Star. 3. 4-pot with 14mm master, same braking ABILITY as previous swap but more more modulation available through out the lever swing. '99 Venture with '02 RS Warrior calipers & master

Not denying that the older R1 & R6 calipers are more predominant on eBay, just saying there are OTHER options to search for. The debate has gone back and forth many times and always comes back to matching the 14mm Master (vs the stock 5/8 master) is the MOST EFFECTIVE brake upgrade. If you are searching for a 14mm Master the Road Star & Warrior parts are a direct swap, and can be paired with the R1 & R6 4-pot calipers.

RSWarrior.com for $65 for the whole set off a wrecked '02.

1700cc Road Star ('07-up) or early Road Star Warrior ('02-'06) calipers and 14mm master match the existing look of the Venture/Tour Deluxe front brakes.

2007-2009 in the US with the 3.0L common rail diesel. If only they'd offer it in the wrangler with a 4.0 gear reduction in the transfer case like the Rubicons, now your talking about some stump-pulling!

my wife is just over 5' and I'm 6'2", she actually wants to sit LOWER on a 2nd gen. I talked to Rick about modifying the seat but there's not much you can do to lower a passenger. I'm sure he can go up but where's the tipping point to TO MUCH.

It was an amateur grab; left the OBO Code scanner on the passenger floor and a few thousand dollars of survey equipment in the back seat. Both garage door openers were left in the car.

Yes, lifetime maps

so what started out as a crappy day, car was picked through yesterday while I was working in the garage. Took my bluetooth headset and my Nuvi 1490t gps. So started searching for a new GPS. Groupon has the Zumo 660 on sale for $359.00! I debated the Zumo series before I found my 1490 refurbed for CHEAP and couldn't justify the extra expense of the Zumo. For this price I could justify purchasing.

Triumph Scrambler Steve McQueen...that ain't no simple triumph.

If I didn't have a car torn apart in the garage that I have to put a new alternator in... I work in Arlington Heights, the next town east.

Make sure the cell phone MUSIC PLAYER volume is turned all the way up. When I plug in headphones my phone defaults to 1/4 volume on the head phone output, I also have to turn the radio volume up into the high 20's.

Engine design and weight of the bike work against you in this situation. If you want a low rpm cruiser you'd probably be looking for a big inch v-twin design versus the rev-happy V-4 we have in these bikes.

Just found some missing allen head bolts that hold the tour pack mount to the fender struts. I'm out and about on the bike today and was hoping someone knew the size/thread so I can stop at the hardware store and pick some up on the way home. Thanks

'06 and later Warriors have radial mounted calipers that DO NOT fit the Ventures, You need '02-05. the later STANDARD Road Star '06 and up (or when ever they changed from the 1600 to the 1700 engine) have the 4-pot calipers that fit the Ventures. Or finding the late model 14mm master cylinder from either of those bikes and use calipers from a late 90's early 2000's R1 or R6.

That's my 20 mo. old, every bike he runs to the front door and waves and watches them pass by. Also, all my friends are in the fire services so he does the same with any ambulance or fire apparatus.

83-86 1st Gen - Mk I 87-93 1st Gen - Mk II 96-up 2nd Gen

about 10 years ago I bought a full set of DowCo Iron Rider travel bags second hand. Women had a mid-size cruiser and rode cross country once or twice and was switching to an adventure bike; bought the 5 bag set for $100!!! I use them regularly lending them to friends for day trips or packing up the Baggers for a long road trip. On their own they are fairly rain-proof but do come with rain covers for those bad storms. DowCo products are sturdy and have held up well, you can regularly find them on clearance for good prices.

Upgrading to Late 90's/Early 2000's R1 or R6 calipers while still using the stock 5/8" master improves braking performance but leaves you with vague brake feel. As @Atoolnut, I also swapped out an entire setup, calipers and master, from an 02-05 Road Star WARRIOR; 06-up Road Star also have the 14mm Master & 4-pot calipers. These generations of the Road Star & Warrior are the same calipers as the previous generation 4-pot sport bike calipers.

IF you hit traffic just right the Ride down Lake Shore Drive (Rt 41) is nice but watch out for the south side. The neighborhoods get bad, but they will mostly leave you alone. The hit the highway and skip over the South Burbs & near northwest indiana; Exit Ripply St in Gary, zig-zag to County Line Rd then up to Rt 12 Dunes Highway all the way through Michigan City and up keep following up the MI West coast.

When will you be comming through Chicago? Weekend traffic on 294 isn't bad but you'll pay tolls, stay away from the city on 94 if you want to keep rolling. The UP is a beautiful ride but Hiawatha Forrest starts to drag on after the 1st few miles. Its all open road and you can keep moving.

Sorry, my color comment was only in regards to the 2 photo's that i put up to show the different calipers/forks relative to the year of the bike. Agreed...