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Gearhead

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Everything posted by Gearhead

  1. Gearhead
    Well...I don't think it's quite that simple. Your bearings are too tight, that definitely causes the overcorrection wander thing. But tightening your bearings won't cure an 80mph wobble (at least I sure don't think so). A small degree of whole-bike-weave is normal at those speeds if you bump the bars, and it seems that only solid engine mounts really help that. As for handlebar-front-wheel-shake (usually worst at 40 mph), that's firstly related to front tire pressure and wear and balance. After that, many here say it's often loose head bearings, but I respectfully have to disagree; at least it's not my experience. Can be bad head bearings, wheel bearings, bad wheel, etc. Do you feel a notch in your steering? Put it on the centerstand, lean back in the seat so the wheel is off the ground. Gently push the bars back and forth past center. Is there a notch at center? Having the bearings too tight will show this up better. If so, then you do need new ones. At any rate, you should probably go in there and either replace or at least repack them. Jeremy
  2. Gearhead
    There's a lot of happy Voyager owners out there. But I will confess I compared wet weight to dry weight. As Jason said, they are about the same as a VR. Jeremy
  3. Gearhead
    Do you mean the pilot screws, or are you referring to something else? Jeremy
  4. Gearhead
    Old oil should not cause the light to come on more. Actually, should be less as old oil is thinner and will drain back into the pan quicker. I have a Virago and a Venture. Both are level lights. My Virago light comes on with a cold engine, acceleration or leaning on the kickstand. This is normal, as the sensor on that engine is in the front RH corner, and cold oil drains back to the case slower than hot oil. I'm somewhat "calibrated" now to that bike, and if the light is coming on excessively I know I need to check the oil level. A reliable Yammy service manager told me that the light is only meaningful at idle, bike upright. My Venture does not have this issue, must be the different design of the pan and location of the sensor. I agree that it sounds like you might have a bad connection. Bottom line is, trust your sight glass! Jeremy
  5. Gearhead
    I did all that too and was so disappointed when, within 8 or 10k miles, I had another squeak in the rear suspension. It turned out to be in the bottom pivot of the shock itself (which I had greased the first time). That time I installed zerks. On my last oil change I put a half-shot of grease in each - and no more squeaks! Jeremy
  6. Gearhead
    You're right, this is not normal. Somebody mentioned cleaning your electrical connections all over the bike - that's a good idea. Do it a few connections at a time. Most often the extra resistance simply comes from a little corrosion at the connection point. A little contact cleaner, plug and unplug a few times, then grease and put the connector back together. Two of the first you should check are the stator / regulator connector and the regulator / bike connector. They are both located behind the LH side cover, near where your calf is when riding the bike. The first has 3 white wires, while the second has red and black wires. Heck, just clean all the connectors in there. A bad ground can cause weird stuff to happen. There is a major chassis ground located down and to the left of the battery. It's really hard to get to without removing the LH side of the fairing. On the flip side, that fairing really isn't that hard to get off if you have an hour or so. I also added supplemental ground wires here and there. It really should charge at 14V, not 12, if the battery is healthy and the engine is turning, oh, 2500 rpm or more. Jeremy
  7. Gearhead
    I've heard that leaky carb diaphragms cause top-end power loss and that was my experience, although not that dramatic. I wonder if your low-end felt enhanced simply because the top-end was subpar. It would have come on gradually as the diaphragms wore out. Jeremy
  8. Gearhead
    I have an 87 VR, Dad has an 03 Voyager. I agree with most of the comments here. Voyager was made in same configuration from 86 to 03, so if anything parts should be more available. Dad likes his. He and Mom cruise all over the place on it. Voyager is 30 or 40 lb lighter, but feels lighter still when manuvering around by foot due to lower seat and maybe lower CG. That said, I don't have any problem manuvering my VR - my legs are long. Once moving on either bike the handling is fine. They feel about the same power-wise. Magazine tests back this up. I think the Venture looks better, but not that much difference there and it's subjective. VR stock seat is more comfy for most, I think. Voyager has a more foot-forward riding position. VR is slightly sportier with feet more under you. Both have a big following with forum support and such. Not like a GW in either case, though. Voyager's balanced-shafted I4 is sewing-machine quiet and smooth. I kinda like the pulsey rumble of the V engine. You'll have fun with either. Jeremy
  9. Gearhead
    The plug is behind the LH side cover, behind where your left calf sits when riding, near the stator - regulator connector. Or, on a similar track, my Virago once had problems with those wires right where they come out of the LH engine case cover. Jeremy
  10. Gearhead
    Yup, gotta pull that clutch back in real quick when pop-starting! Funny story! Jeremy
  11. Gearhead
    IMO, that temp setting is too low. The t-stat is 180 deg, so that fan switch would have your fan running literally all the time (once the engine is warm). There's a NAPA switch available (listed online here somewhere) for a similar price that has a temp setting somewhere in between 180 and the stock fan switch. I've been tempted but not bought it. OTOH, the engine is designed to run in the temp range from 180 up to the stock fan switch, so maybe trying to bring it down from there is kinda silly. Jeremy
  12. Gearhead
    Nobody's had this before?? I feel like such an oddball. :-( Jeremy
  13. Gearhead
    From J&M: "http://www.jmcorp.com/media/new.gif The new HS-8154B Series Helmet Headsets offer the best value in the marketplace today. They feature two wide-fidelity speakers in stereo, a low-noise dynamic microphone and our single-section 5-pin straight plug hook-up cord, for connection to standard 5-pin audio systems. " This is specifically for their bottom of the line stuff, which is what I bought. Their better stuff has what they call and Aero Mike III and it does not say if it's dynamic. However, it plugs into the same system as the cheaper headset. If it were condenser type, it would require external power from the bike's radio, so I'd say it must be a dynamic type as well. Call them and ask. Jeremy
  14. Gearhead
    It also depends on RPM / engine load. For years MC engines usually have run a little better with the pilot screws richened up a bit. But that's low RPM, low load, low throttle conditions which supposedly comprise a large amount of the factory EPA test. Certainly the test we used to have here in Pima County was idle-only (pilot screws). Get into the needle or main jet range and things may be totally different. Jeremy
  15. Gearhead
    Not sure about your bike in particular, but generally CA models of bikes just have a charcoal canister to collect tank vapors. Pretty sure that's the case on my 87 VR, at any rate. I don't think there's really anything more to it. Could be wrong, though... Jeremy
  16. Gearhead
    My experience (2 bikes) with Progressives is that they firm up the ride. In both cases firming was necessary as I had excessive bottoming. In the Virago I installed the recommended preload and it handles well and doesn't bottom but the ride is too stiff. I've never gotten around to reducing preload a little. In the Venture I think it went from too soft to just about right. Due to my Virago/Progressive experience, I installed slightly less (1/8 to 1/4" less) preload spacer than recommended. The Venture actually will still bottom occasionally, but that's on my dirt road when I don't avoid the potholes properly. It is an 800 lb streetbike, after all, and there's only so much you can do with 5" of wheel travel. I've also found that sometimes ride harshness is caused by too heavy fork oil. I generally like to stick with stock weight oil, SAE10 in most cases. Jeremy
  17. Gearhead
    Great! So weird, though, that they both lost one side at the same time. Jeremy
  18. Gearhead
    Nice bike, Snaggle. That is great charging performance. I improved my stock system significantly by cleaning all the connections and adding some supplementary grounds, but it still discharges significantly at idle with all the goodies turned on. Is that a custom-sewn sheepskin cover? Jeremy
  19. Gearhead
    I've used them and I like them. However, stock wiring is sketchy for the 100W load. I'm aware of more than one case where the plug was partially melted and/or there were wire problems using this type of bulb. I won't do it anymore unless I modify the light to run off a relay. Silver Star bulbs improve the lighting somewhat without increasing current draw, but I have found they don't last very long. Jeremy
  20. Gearhead
    Hmm, I've heard only good things about Edsets. Don't know what to say - sorry! Jeremy
  21. Gearhead
    I replaced my first rear E3 (87 VR) at 18,000 due to a puncture problem, but it was headed for probably 24k. 1/3 of my riding is 70-85 MPH on the Interstate, mostly riding solo. Now I have E3's at both ends and it's a nice handling machine! I did noticed it seemed a little twitchy with both tires at max pressure, which improved after lowering the front to 35psi. Jeremy
  22. Gearhead
    Hi, My 87 VR has had a problem with the rider's headset level adjustment (on the left handlebar). Symptoms: When turned all the way up it sounds fine. I would just use this setting, but it has more engine whine that way. As I turn it down notch by notch, the left speaker goes down more than the right, so it sounds like the music is shifting to the right. The second-highest notch (with the big dot) still sounds good in this regard; the shift is small at that point. Sometimes the sound starts breaking up, like a slightly bad cell phone connection. This is exacerbated by bumps or rough pavement. It never cuts out completely. Again, this does not apply to the max level. Wiggling the attenuator knob does not affect either symptom. Only applies to rider's headset. Passenger's has none of these symptoms. Dash speakers work fine. I don't really understand how these attenuators work. I thought of it as a variable resistor, but that doesn't make sense because if you unplug the attenuator line where it ties into the headset line, the level goes to max. I thought the level would go to zero with a broken circuit. At any rate, I've cleaned that connection and the attenator knob. Clearly something is loose due to the "bump" behavior. Help! Ideas? Anybody seen this before? Is the problem in the knob or its box and circuit card, or in the cable somewhere? Thanks, Jeremy
  23. Gearhead
    I've seen the pintouts for the 5-pin DIN, either in the manual or on this site. There's left, right, mic, ground for audio, ground for mic, and I think the shield is just a ground. IIRC, of course!! Since the bike system is stereo and the cell headset is probably mono, you'd have to just run off right or left. The only other thing I wonder about is, are the mic impedances similar? I think helmet headset mics are dynamic and the cell mic is probably condenser, which could pose a problem. Look up on the J&M website, it says whether the mics are dynamic or condenser. Jeremy
  24. Gearhead
    Did you try unplugging the earbuds and see if anything changed in your helmet? How did you plug the earbuds into the system? The system is designed for helmet speakers, not earbuds per se. If the jacks are not adapted just so, it could cause something like this. Maybe :-) Jeremy
  25. Gearhead
    Weird, I've never had a bad brand-new plug, but if the problem went away when you put the old one back in, sounds like you've found it. Can you ride the bike to work a couple times for a shakedown? If that's all good I'd take her on the ride. I've also never had a problem with resistor plugs. The spark pulse doesn't really travel THRU the wire per se, but rather on the surface of the wire. Something weird about high voltage. As such, the many k ohms of resistance don't really affect the strength of the spark much either. I think that non-resistor will be more likely to cause noise on your radio system. The caps take the place of resistor wires (since the wires are simple copper stranded wire). Cars always have resistor wires and plugs for RFI supression. Well, that's my 2 cents, anyway. Jeremy
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