Patmac6075

When I rebuilt my front end I used Progressive brand springs.....haven't had to put sit in there since. Im not sure if there are any NOS, you can try partzilla.com . Almost any competent hydraulic shop should be able to make something that'll work.

What is your pain threshold?

My headline sums it up....I have an '84 Venture Royale with about 24k, my case DOES have the marking, but from what I've read, that doesn't always mean 2nd gear was fixed ( sometimes it means the stator oiler was added). So, are there any symptoms before 2nd gear drops? Or does it just happen one day?

Crue, I rebuilt my clutch hydraulics a couple of years ago. I did a write up http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?116337-Clutch-Hydraulic-Rebuild-Tutorial send me a pm if you have any questions.

What he said ^^^^^^

Not sure on the size, but it was a trick I learned working on the Yamaha XJ series bikes....a 13/16 spark plug socket has a set of flats on the top of the socket, these hex flats (used for turning with an open end wrench) fit perfectly into that hex (that's hard to reach) down inside the forks. Not confusing at all...basically flip a spark plug socket upside down, use an extra long extension and it's super simple, cheap, and easy to get that portion of the fork undone.

I've had good success using a 13/16 spark plug socket....just flip it upside down and use the hex side....works for me.

Thanks Jeff and Carl... I'm absolutely positive it's fork oil, that side has been clean twice and this is the second set of O-rings. During my rebuild and the second time fix, I knew it was being tightened into aluminum so I just snugged up the anti-dive. This is really becoming a PIA! Does anyone have a template for a block off plate (where I work, we have a complete machine shop), I know Skydoc sells them, but he doesn't have any right now. If not , I might just start collecting parts for a MKII set of fork tubes/wheel/rotors/and either blue dots of MKII calipers.

I'm having a problem with fork oil leaking out of one fork tube right where the anti-dive attaches...I have replaced the O-rings twice and I'm still getting a leak...funny thing was, I made it almost two season without a leak...now I've made the switch twice with new Yamaha O-rings and I'm still leaking. Anyway, does anyone know the torque spec? Since it's aluminum I want to make sure I don't over tighten. Thanks Pat

Hit me up...I have one that I'm not using and would lend it to you. No charge, just pay postage. And obviously return it

As the title states, I'm interested in buying a 1984 owners manual for my Venture Royal. I see them all the time on eBay for pretty cheap, but I seem to find two different types of manuals, one has a yellow cover and the other has a burgundy leatherette cover. Does anyone know which is the correct one for my bike?

Here is what I do...call around to some local shops (either dealers or independent), many will allow you to just swap out what you have for the ones you need. Our local independent shop does it at no cost. One nearby dealer charges $2ea to swap, and another (a little farther away) also does it for free.

Good questions.... There are are no secondaries on our bikes, so maybe there are other reasons for your surge in power. One thing I can tell you is these bikes really like the higher rpm range! On a well tuned XVZ12 have no fear of the redline! Maybe you have a stuck slider? As as far as clutchless shifting... I've never really felt confident enough to do it with any regularity. I did once snap a clutch cable about 75 miles from home....I did make it home, but.... upshifts were much easier than downshifts,

Alex, let me be the first to say, 'It's your bike....' Unfortunately, I don't have any knowledge about how to do what you've laid to be done, but..... The engineers who designed these bikes spent a lot of time and effort to get the intake and exhaust tuned just right in these bikes. Many have tried to "open up" or get theses bikes to "breath" better...at best it'll gain something at the very top end (not particularly useful on a street/touring bike), but usually it will come at the cost of reliability, driveability, gas mileage, and Or the ability to idle. Sorry to be the wet towel...my advice, if you still plan on moving forward would be to make one change at a time and proceed in a scientific manner. Please post your results good or bad so others can learn from your efforts.

Thanks Rick, to be sure, since I added the progressives and did the rebuild, I don't put any air in the front...I do set the rear at about 42psi.

I replace one spring at a time and did not ever open up the clutch pack. I did a complete clutch hydraulic rebuild (master, slave, and new SS lines) before the start of last season, it performed flawlessly all of last year (other than the slippage, but did has always slipped...just worse now). I did change the oil(and filter) when I opened the case...I used Rotella (Dino oil) 15w 40.. but I've used this oil in every bike I've owned for the last 10 years. i might try bleeding the system, but on a 30+ year old bike...maybe it's just time to replace old parts.

My bike has always slipped a little under hard acceleration in 4th and 5th gear, so over the winter I purchased a set of Barnett springs hoping that would do the trick, well to my surprise.....now I'm getting slippage even when I'm just a little aggressive, and it presents in 3rd now too???!!! My bike has only about 23k mi on it, and I know it sat for about 5-8 years....maybe all those years of sitting allowed the portion of the clutch material that was not soaking in oil to dry out? Oh well...looks like it's time to buy some clutch disks and steels (just to be on the safe side I'll replace both..I hate doing jobs twice, or in this case three times)

Here is an update to my pogoing issue: Over the winter I noticed a very small oil stain right beneath my left fork. I felt around the bottom of the fork an sure enough...I was leaking fork oil, over the next couple of weeks the stain kept getting larger and larger. I've been wanting to change my fork oil from 10w to 12.5w, so off I went to O'Reilly and bought a bottle of 10w and one of 15w Lucas synthetic fork oil, mixed the two together....drained the old stuff and refilled with 360ml into each fork (same as I had with the 10w). After 3 good rides (over 150mi each) in 50's, 60's, and 70 degree temps... I think the 12.5w is just too stiff! I do not have a pogoing issue, but the ride is just a little too harsh for my tastes. Now after reading up on the issue I've found there really is no standard for rating fork oil...each manufacturer just kind of says...this is a 10w, this is a 15w, etc... The 10w I used was made by Maxima, and the 12.5 was a Lucas synthetic. It is very possible that had I used a 10w from Lucas or mixed 12.5 of Maxima I may have had the results I wanted...sooooo, for the time being (maybe over the winter) I'll stick with slightly too harsh non-pogoing Lucas 12.5w and I'll change to a Lucas synthetic 10w at a later date! I'll keep updating as new info comes. just an FYI, I did change the o-rings in the anti-dives on the left side...hopefully that will cure the leak as the fork seals are not leaking (knock on wood!)

Wix is the "go-to" filter for most professionals. And I too would never use a fram automotive filter, but their cartridge style filter for our bikes is as good as anything out there. I, personally wouldn't hesitate to use one.

Hey Jeff, we still on? I'm still up for a burger...might only be able to stick around for an hour or so...1:00p today?

I'm certainly no expert here...are you sure your choke is working correctly? The reason I ask, is it's not really a "choke"... it's actually an enricher system. Rather than restricting the airflow like a choke does, our system adds extra fuel in order to give a richer mixture and if your system is not set up correctly/working correctly, that could be one reason you're not firing when it's cold. Also, how cold is cold? I know my bike is difficult to start below 40f....

As far as rekeying a lock....it's not that difficult. Route #1 , find an old school brick and mortar locksmith (preferably someone who was in business when your bike was new). If he's worth his salt, he should get it done in a day (probably 25mins of his time) and charge you less than $50. Route #2 you can do it yourself...I did, on one of my XJ750's...the locks come apart pretty easy...you just need to get the tumblers in the correct sequence. The problem here is, you need to know the tumbler sequence for the way you want the lock to be keyed, and you have to have all of the correct tumblers to key the new lock. I was lucky because I had the broken original lock assemblies and the replacement assemblies and I just did one for one swaps.

This may be none of my business, but how are we so sure this IS a "he" we're talking about? Could explain why this animal was so determined to return?

I'm not sure about the laws where you live, but here in Wisconsin it's illegal to relocate nuisance animals. You need a permit.

I replied in the meet n eat thread. My meter is hanging heavy between "maybe" and " I'll be there".... so that puts me at about 75% certain I'll be there! So many distractions, but now that I'm working in Oak Creek...it's like a hope skip and a jump now!