BratmanXj

Ole Smoky Moonshine Only reason I know is that's what we drank while down at the dragon back in '11. They have a distillery in Gatlinburg, TN. http://www.olesmokymoonshine.com/varieties/#apple-pie-moonshine

Didn't the Goldwing get a major reworking for 2012? Yes, I know its still the same 1800 chassis they have been using since 2001; but the 1500 stuck around for 13 years and is still a major player in the used bike market. Yamaha dropped the ball on the Royal Star line by not making any incremental changes, but even in 2013 it is still a viable player in the touring market. These are touring bikes, people want comfort and reliability and not high tech and cutting edge. Honda is working on introducing people to riding by expanding the sub-600cc product line. Yamaha is expanding their mid-size line to bring in new customers. As BigLenny said, they look at the overall (even outside motorcycles) to improve the company as a whole. The Touring-Cruiser to Yamaha is a SMALL percentage of their gross sales.

I've had my '99 RVS for a few thousand miles now and realize I NEED to change out the handlebars for a better wrist position. The "outward" turn/twist of the hand to grab the stock controls causes pain after only a short time of riding. On my last few cruisers (Road King, V-Star 1100) I was able to put mini-apes on that put my knuckles facing directly forward without putting the controls to tall. I've read some recommendations for the Flanders 'Road Glide Style' bars but they appear to add height and not change the wrist angle. I know the bike uses 1" bars and there are plenty of options out there, but looking to see if anyone has experience or photos to show any other model handlebar mounted on a Venture. Thanks

Usually find them in ANY motorcycle or automotive magazine, in the coupon packs that come in my mail every week; or the Sunday paper in the coupon flyer or even the Parade (or other local variation) magazine in the weekend newspaper. My local HF will not honor printed coupons, must be originals...but they put them out in enough different places that they are not hard to come by. Edit - You can also go to HF website and sign up for mail or e-mail coupons

The market as a whole has gone to the Bobber and Chopped-Bagger look. Full tourers are not as hot of a market as the once were. Yamaha has put out the Bolt & Stryker to compete against the growing bobber market. They have the 1300 Deluxe and Stratoliner Deluxe to compete with the bagger market. They are chasing what is hot right now.

Any Harley touring chassis from I believe the mid 80's through 2008. The best bet is finding pipes from the late 90's through 2005 because they do not have the emissions catalyitic converter like the later models. Any of the aftermarket slip-ons that fits a STOCK HD head pipe will also work.

I have SE HD touring pipes on mine right now. They have a nice sound at idle but don't have enough Bass/Burble at speed, they sound tinny. I've looked at the V&H monster ovals but the best I've found is $400 used. As a joke I threw my buddy's Reinharts of His SE Ultra Classic and they sounded just as my current SE pipes, great at idle but thin and tinny at speed. We just don't have enough CC going to the pipes to get the deep rumble.

Hd has a poor camshaft support plate, known to chew up cam chains and take the oil pump with them. When you rebuild most choose either the screaming eagle support plate to eliminate the flex or go to gear driven cam shafts.

Some people believe they should recoup every penny they ever put into a bike, including interest on their loan. I looked at one bike where the guy handed me a list down to every oil change he ever did to the bike and the prices totaled at the end of the page as his selling price.

I have done the Chicagoland Toys for Tots Motorcycle Parade for 10 years now and every year it gets worse. Usually the temps are cold since it's the 1st week of December in Chicago but last year was mid 50's. Riders lined up with both saddlebags filled with beer and ice and hung out for 2-3 hours drinking at 7:00 am....FOR A CHARITY RIDE. I'm an not a perfect roll model, I do poker runs and will have a beer or two throughout the day, but I know limits and safety and do not drink to excess. When on some of these runs I'll see guys holding 2-3 empty beers at the 1st stop at 10:00 am. I couldn't bring my self to spend $20k or more on some of these bikes and drink to this excess putting your investment and your life in danger.

Hour and half ride for me. Been lurking on here fixing up my new-to-me '99 so it would be nice to meet some of you guys.

Forwards by Mapman are necessary if your anything over 5'8" tall...those mid-mounts made that bike CRAMPED.

I had a '96 xv750. Bike is known for weak stator and rectifiers but engines are mostly stout and fairly simple to work on. Carb tuning is usually the bigest issue as they are air cooled and the rear cylinder runs HOT. I'd stay away from a fully siezed bike as they usuaaly are not worth the time/money to repair. These bikes fall into the usual "inexpensivd jap cruiser" market of the 80's and early 90's and can be had running for under $2k in very good shape.

Correct, I was doing a fork oil change on the bike and pulled the bolt on the bottom of the leg to drain the oil. I didn't think ahead and the whole leg slid down from the internals, so I had to compress everything to get the bolt back in.

I walked away from the bike for an hour, did some house work, then had my Do'h moment. Remove front fender Bike on lift & block the rear wheel Floor jack under fork leg and jack the leg back into place Replace Allen Head screw.

So I was following the Tech article on how to change out the front fork oil knowing the previous owner didn't change it in 50k miles; but now I can't get the suspension back together and get the dampener bolt to thread back in. The front forks have slid down a bit and I can't get them back together. Looking for the trick to bolting it back together, or at least the "hand-on-forehead" comment to make me realize the stupid thing I'm overlooking. Thanks for the help.

So went through my usual Used Vehicle Maintenance last night, battery is a wet cell and 3 of the cells were down below the top of the plates. I filled it back up and charged the battery. It is holding a charge and not "sagging" on start up any more. Not saying I trust it, but I'll use it for a few more weeks until a few of the house repairs are paid for...then a new battery over the winter.

I have a AGM battery from the other bike I got clipped/totaled earlier this year. I used it a few times in the tractor this summer, and its only a year old. If its the right size and CCAs I'll just replace it.

No, just the OD & Clock, radio holds the memory just fine. I do know about the date codes on batteries, just haven't taken the bike apart enough to see how old the battery really is. Previous owner gave me the "its a new battery" line, but for what I paid for the bike I have no problems getting a new one. Thanks for the help.

I need to put the battery tender leads on the bike anyways, so good enough time to clean and grease the battery terminals. I don't know how old the battery is since I just purchased the bike about a year ago. Previous owner did mention the bike sat for a while hence why he was selling. I guess on a related note the bike does seem a little slow the fire off, could be like my old Virago when the battery got weak you then had a weak spark Thanks for the help.

Recently purchased a '99 RSV and having a minor electrical issue. The clock and trip odometers reset after the bike has been sitting. I've double checked both the fuse panels, including replacing the 10a fuse in the left side-panel. I've done a little bit of poking around here and haven't found other problem areas associated with this issue. Hopping someone can guide me in the right direction.

Yea, I've been looking at the R1/R6 or the Warrior brakes as an upgrade. I've looked at Skydoc's kit and tried to research on here but I haven't found a reason/purpose for the VMax splitter on the 2nd Gen Ventures. I think it was part of the 1st gen upgrade to remove the linked brakes.

So you already have someone interested in the lines? or you might be putting them up for sale? I just picked up '99 RSV a month back and looking to upgrade the brakes, so SS lines is step one. I've read a little bit but can you please explain the benefits of the VMax Splitter?

New to the site but I'm the ride planner from my group of riding buddies. My usual resources: http://www.sundaymorningrides.com/ http://www.motorcycleroads.us/