WIZ

When I did the quick check on the steering and swing arm bearings they both appeared to be ok with no rough or grinding feeling to them. But when I tore it down to replace them, both showed significant wear. After replacement the handling was greatly improved. Since this post my rear shock went out, I only noticed a small puddle under my bike one time but the next ride I could feel the pogo feeling from the shock. I ordered and installed a hagon shock, the bike now handles better than it has since I have owned it. The quick checks are good checks but if you are having issues don't rule out the possibility that the bearings are worn enough to cause your issues. Wiz

I don't normally post on here much, but after my findings I wanted to share. Earlier this year I installed a 130 front tire on my 99 Venture. The first trip was on back roads and loved the slow speed handling. My first trip on the highway had me reconsidering. It seemed very unstable so I started researching posts to find the problem. I started with the steering head quick check and it seemed to be OK. I was riding with my brother and we got our speed up to around 100 mph and I got into a death wobble. It about 1/8 mile to get it under control. (I don't typically drive like this speed) I then ordered steering head bearings and replaced them. They were bad. I checked the swing arm bearing next and they were also bad so I replaced them. Both helped a lot. But since I wasn't sure about the service history of the bike, I went ahead and replaced both wheel bearings. I didn't notice any of these problems with the 150 tire but they were magnified by the 130 tire. So for some of you that have tried the 130 tire and changed it because of the handling, you may want to check your bearings closer. I did the quick check on the steering head and swing arm and both checked out but when I tore it down both sets of bearings still had grease on them but when I cleaned the races both showed significant wear. And after replacing, bike handling was much improved. Wiz

Not sure if Steve (M61A1MECH) in the classifieds makes a harness for first gens, but when I installed my hitch and wiring on my 1999 venture I purchased a wiring harness that plugs into the original bike harness without cutting and converts tag wires that you can connect to with your trailer plug wire that goes from a 5 to 4 wire set up. definitely worth sending him a pm he makes a nice harness. Wiz

Here is the link for the headlight I purchased the price went up since I purchased mine. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B018LXCS0C/ref=ya_aw_od_pi?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Here is the link for the driving lights they also went up since I purchased mine. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B013OVKT8E/ref=ya_aw_od_pi?ie=UTF8&psc=1

They are all three day- maker lights ordered off of amazon. The total for all three lights was around $155.00, the difference it made is well worth the money since i drive a lot at night.

I just finished installing Day-Makers on my bike last week. Wow what a difference! The appearance of the bike is much improved and visibility is awesome. The last picture was stock headlight with diamond cut driving lights.

Had the seat on my 1999 Venture done by Rick. Had a chance to ride it for the first time since getting the seats back on. Rode for 125 miles and wow what a difference, no shifting or repositioning required. Thanks Rick for a great job.

I know this isn't a fall ride but I’m trying to plan a week trip from Maryland up route 219 to route 150 into Canada to see Niagara Falls the first day. We then plan on heading east to Maine. Looking for suggested routes to take and avoid as well as places to visit and sights to see along the way. The only other thing we have planned for the trip is to visit some of the light houses along the coast. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks,

I'm planning a trip from MD to niagara falls and then across to maine the week of July 13th thru 17th. Looking for any suggested routes to take and routes to avoid, also looking for suggestions on sights to see along the way. Any response would be greatly appriciated.

I have read many post about how good Michelin commander 2tires are but they don’t make a 150/80/16 front tire. Just wondering why no one has used a150/80/16 commander 2 rear tire and reverse it for on the front. I am due for tires this winter and am planning on trying this combination on my 1999 venture. I already have leveling links on, which helped the handling a lot. So from what I’ve read I don’t want to go with the narrower tire on the front.