Patmac6075

You contact me. I bought one and never installed it. I’d need to dig it out (two moves since I put it away). send me a PM and I can give you my phone or email. Pat

Oh yeah! As a set, it had a significant “notch” in the center position which has been getting significantly worse. It was testimony to the fact that 40 years is WAY too long to go before changing out and regreasing your bearings. Even though I hit every kind of snag possible, I wouldn’t hesitate to do it all over again….just happy I had a knowledgeable resource to keep me going. Thanks again guys!

First off let me say thank you for the help and instructions…. I got it all finished and put back together. I had to totally destroy the roller bearing on the bottom of the triple tree, but the top bearing has stayed intact. Really surprising how difficult it is to spin that bearing. After a couple of weeks the grease inside that bearing really gummed up…it’s almost impossible to spin now.

So, I thought I’d give you guys another update. It seems l’ve had nothing but problems, my bike has been sitting in my wife’s parking spot in the garage since The beginning of September, I haven’t been served with divorce papers (yet). My latest problem had been removing the races….there has been absolutely zero purchase to gain (even with the small cutout they give you)…punches, long handle screwdrivers, old tools, new tools, nothing had worked! So then I tried cutting them out….advice to anyone who reads this “DO NOT TRY TO CUT THE BEARING RACES OUT!” There is just too much metal at the top of the race. So I went to YouTube….and found a solution…weld in a piece of metal to give yourself something to tap against, sounded simple enough. The problem is, I don’t have a welder, but I was desperate, so I went on Craigslist and found a mobile welder who’d come out for $50 for the first hour and $50 per hour. At least in his ad he seemed to have plenty of credentials…WRONG! This guy had no idea what he was doing. He ended up basically welding the race to the frame! I gave him his $50 to get rid of him and sent him on his way (I know, a few of you will say I shouldn’t have given him anything, but that’s not how I roll). I then had to cut all of his welds and mountains of slag to free the races….the good news was I finally had something to tap against, and viola! I got the race out. The good news, I don’t think I messed up the seating area at all. So hopefully I’ll get to putting everything back together over the weekend….just in time to winterize the bike for the season.

Welcome Elton, The air ride system on the Venture Royale only operates when the key is in the acc position. I’m 5’8” with a 30” inseam and this bike is a tad tall for me. I rarely am able to stand flat footed at a stop light. Some years back I heard tell of a member who shaved some padding from the seat to help lower the stand over height.

Sorry for the absence, life gets in the way sometimes. Cowpuc wins the prize! Hand impact won out (was also the first thing I tried). I retightened the lower of the two bolts and gave the upper bolts a couple medium tappy-taps to tighten, then changed direction to loosen and let loose with a 3lb maul. Came right undone (even on the stripped out one)!Thanks guys! As a side note my bearings had some notchyness in there (I’m certain they were OE), and after pulling them out, the grease was like glue. Also, those races are fighting me every step of the way (can gain almost zero purchase, even with that little cutout they give you)…I’ve gone the destructive route and started cutting them with a dremel. I’ll update when I have more. thanks again Pat

Thanks! I’ll update when I get back to it this weekend

Thanks for the response Carl, there are 2 pinch bolts on the upper tree and the lower tree. I was able to loosen the 2 bolts on the upper tree. There are 2 bolts on the lower tree (a lower bolt and an upper bolt), I am having trouble with the upper bolt on the lower tree…both sides.

So I finally decided to replace my steering bearings…started loosening the (fork tube) pinch bolts on the top and bottom of the triple tree…I had no problem with the top pinch bolts, and really had no issue with one of pinch bolts on the bottom (the lower of the two on each side), but the upper Allen bolts ON BOTH SIDES are just so tight, I’ve stripped one out and fear I’ll strip the other out if wrench on it any more than I have. I thought maybe I could just remove the main steering nut and slide the lower triple tree out (still attached to the fork tube), but I seem to remember there is a small clip on the upper triple tree that needs to be removed before the tubes will slide out. Any ideas? I’ve used an impact, I’ve tried a long lever (with a constant even torque), I’ve used penetrating oil….although I haven’t tried heat (concerned I might melt fork seals).

I have a routine I do every year… 1. Do a deep clean of the bike and fill the tank with non-ethanol gas with 1/4 can of SeaFoam (it can be used as a stabilizer as well) 2. Change oil and Filter as well as clean and re-oil the air filter (it’s a K&N, please don’t judge me) 3. Replace with new properly gapped spark plugs, I also spray the inside of the cylinders with SeaFoam spray 4. I disconnect the battery and put it on a tender 5. Finally I put the bike on the center stand with a Jack stand under the front center member to get both tires off the ground Now I live up in Wisconsin so, once I put my bike up for the winter, chances are it’s not coming out until Spring. But my bike fires up no problem once I take her out.

A couple of years back I’d replaced all of my dash bulbs with LEDs. I can’t recall the part numbers, but they were readily available and relatively inexpensive. Pretty sure I got them at a place called Superbrightleds.com , it was pretty easy to cross reference them, I may have even talk to their customer service. My one piece of advise….don’t put a white bulb behind a colored lens…if it shines through a green lens, get a green bulb. If it shines through a red lens get a red bulb. Also one tip to others so you don’t make the same mistake I did…I replaced my warm white dash bulbs with red, although it looks really cool….it’s functionality leaves something to be desired. My dash at night is somewhat difficult to read. Luckily I don’t do that much night riding.

Whoops, double post….wander on by any time

Thanks Jeff! I’m now in Greendale…so if’s you’re ever just wandering around let me know!

Thanks Saddlebum….it worked! Kind of one of those “mixed emotions” moments….I’m totally stoked it worked, on the other hand….I’m bummed that I bought a new retainer spring ($10 for the part and $10 to ship…thanks partzilla). No matter, it’s back together and all because of the helpful crew here on the site. Thank you

Thanks Saddlebum….to be clear…I need to take the wire retainer off again! And remove both ot washers on either side of the 1/2 disc? Thanks…