Flyinfool

A full can of Seafoam in the gas tank can fix many neglect evils and is s not a big investment in time or money. I would certainly try that before anything else. Just dump in the Seafoam and do a few hot laps around the block every day until the tank is empty or it cleans up and starts running good. If the full take of heavy Seafoam does not clean it up. then you need to pull the carbs for a proper cleaning. The sticky valve might just clean up with the Seafoam also. If not then while the carbs are off you can look in there as see if there is anything to see with the valve. It is possible that that valve was open the entire storage time and there is a bit of rust on the seating surface that just needs a bit of time to seal back up. I always try the cheap solutions first, I hate throwing money at an issue and hope it goes away.

You will have to grind down below the top of the bucket, The damage is always deeper than what you can see. Not only is the top surface layer of aluminum mashed over the edge of the bucket, but for a small distance the bor that the bucket sits in is also pushed out of round and pinching the bucket into the bore from the side. It is OK if the grinder makes some small mark on the bucket. If you are grinding then you should see sparks anytime you are hitting the bucket, the aluminum head will not throw sparks. Patience and persistence will pay off. It is worth it to keep grinding until it frees up, worst case you have to replace with head off your parts bike. Best case you are able to save it and not do a head swap. the head is no good as is so you can not hurt it with more grinding.

For me, when riding in the dark, all headlights start to look like they are on high beam and hut my eyes. When I am well rested the oncoming headlights do not bother me unless they are actually on hi beam. The other one that is becoming more prevalent in some of the newer cars with LED tail lights. Many car makers use what is called PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) to dim the LEDs for the tail lights, this means that there is a circuit board that is flashing the LEDs on and off at a high frequency to make them appear dimmer. Most people can not see the flashing and only perceive the dimmer light. My persistence of vision is low enough that I can see the flashing of the LEDs and the more fatigued I am the more it bothers me to the point that I must either pass them or slow down to get another car in between us. In day light, when my eyes start to have difficulty transitioning back and forth from shade to sun. Interrupted sunlight like you would get along a tree lined road really hurts my eyes if I am tired.

Well ifin I cant play with my summer toys, then I will have no choice but to make snow year round so I can play with my winter toys. @cowpuc has been hounding me to finish developing that Snow that does not melt until 60 degrees..................

Sorry, I hate rain so I will not work on that one. Rain makes riding much less fun. Rain Makes grass grow. Then I have to waste riding time cutting it. If it never rained there would be no need for expensive roof replacements or foundation leaks. Drought is good. Brown dry grass is good. But SNOW is fun to play in.

I know I bought one of those wrenches, never needed it yet, I'll be darned if I did not find a really, really safe place to put it so that I would never loose it ............... I am getting a pretty long list of things that were put in that really really safe place..............

Yup just like the title says, I tried everything in my power. I took the front end of the bike apart to change out the front wheel bearings (they are the reason I parked it last fall.). Ordered new bearings and seals from Boats.net, should be here in a couple days and the bike should be back together by next week end. The front bearings were the only thing that HAD to be done to make the bike safe to ride this year. I got my foot healed up to where I can move the bike around and lift it onto the center stand at will, so that I am safe to ride. I got my heart working good enough to end the drugs that were giving me dizzy spells. Then I cleaned up the back hall and I put all of the snow and ice removal tools and supplies away. Then I even went and took the winter safety gear out of the truck, put it all way, and even put away the trucks snow and ice removal tools. I even dug out the summer gear an loaded it into the truck so it is ready for any hankerin for a quick trip to the beach. I do not know what more I can do to temp fate and squeeze one more good snow storm out of this season....... You may just have all beat me down enough to allow the full riding season to begin.........

I did that once, pulling a trailer with the cruise set at 85 and into a 30-40 head wind. Sucked down a full tank of gas in just 70 miles.

Do you have a Dremel tool? VERY GENITAL use of a Dremel will clean up your displaced aluminum. Lots of rags to keep the shavings out of the engine.

Gee Puc, it sure is sounding like you are ready to put ol Tweeks out to pasture. As mentioned, you could pump a couple grand into Tweeks and make her like new again and still keep her character intact. be a whole lot more cost effective for you and a LOT less humiliating for Ol Tweeks than to turn your beloved steed into a mail box. OH the humanity..........

There have been times where I really wish I could set the cruise on my 1st gen to more than 85. Sometimes it is not about the scenery and the joy of the ride, but a need to get where you are going as quickly as possible. Like if you are trying to beat a really bad storm that is headed to the same place you are, or a family emergency and you need to get home ASAP. How fast do you want to be able to set the cruise? A 2nd get is an all electronic speedo. It should not be real hard to come up with a circuit to lie to the cruise control as to how fast the bike is going. Would this maybe be real close to the same thing as a speedo healer? Just program the speedo healer to read 10 MPH slow, would that then allow you to set the cruise to 85 indicated which would actually be 95? Just thinking out loud here....................

Once again??? Me? Right??? Lucky guess? The good news is that you are not the first to do that, AND it is not to bad to fix. FWI for others that may find this thread in the future. The curves on the shim tool are fairly precise as the tool only clears the head by a few thousandths of an inch. Unfortunately this makes a weak spot in the tool and if you get the tool just a bit out of position and turn the engine, you will snap the tool in half quite easily. IF you try to weld it back together you must grind the outer profile back down to its original shape so that you do not do this to your head. Take the spark plugs out so that you are not fighting compression and can feel what is happening while the engine is being rotated. When you are turning the engine to rotate the tool, turn it slowly and stop the moment that you feel any resistance. Resistance means something is hitting something it shouldn't.

There is a hex boss on the flywheel that is there to hold it with a big wrench while you tighten the mounting bolt with a torque wrench.

Awesome so far. So is he supposed to be walking around on it with no crutches?????

Another great reason to convert to a new ATM fuse box. What happens if you need a fuse while on the road and you can not find one? The glass fuses and their holders are also a very well documented source of electrical gremlins on these bikes.

I will be there somehow, AND I did sign up on the calendar. I will be camping with the river monsters.

Pull all of the valves out and lap them in. A good cleaning never hurts. Valve seals. Maybe a carb cleaning while they are out. Do all of the valve adjustments with the heads on the bench, MUCH easier.

When it comes to small parts like o-rings and such, I always try the local stealer first. If you tell them what bike it is for they will say they do not have it. If you look u p the part number and just ask for that then they might have it in stock or can order it. When it comes to stuff like O-rings, I try to stay OEM. the 3 cents you save by substituting is not worth the hassle of possibly have to redo it with the right part. I have never seen an O-ring kit, I always ordered them individually.

If that is a fairly heavy gauge black wire with a single pin connector, that is your frame ground. You will want that connected to the battery negative.

I did not have to pull my radiator to get to the starter. just pull the mounting bolts and there is enough give in the hoses to get to the starter. You will likely have to remove the thermostat housing to get room to pull the starter out of the case. There are several O-rings that seal that up. I would replace all of them that you open up.

I agree with everything except cleaning with brake fluid, use brake cleaner. As for the whine, The 1st gens do not normally have a gear whine. Check to be sure the the starter is disengaging and not being spun by the engine. After sitting for 20 years the one way bearing starter clutch could be stuck.

I would think that even the bigger valves with the Venture cam would also be an improvement.

I may be getting older but I refuse to grow up.

Good for you. You should be back to full time in no time at all.......................