Flyinfool

I think he just saved me a whole lot of work..........

Sounds like fun. Plan on needing 2 new tires. Check the date codes. Can use that to help bargain. $5k is in the middle of the range from Kelly Blue book. Beyond that I have no real idea if that is a good price.

Put the bike on the center stand and use a jack under the front of the engine to raise the front wheel off the ground. 1. Remove front brake calipers. (I am not sure what needs to be done with the Anti Dive brake lines on the 83.) 2. Loosen pinch bolt on front axle. 3. Pull front axle out until you can get the old drive out. (I do not recall if the axle must come all of the way out so you can drop the front wheel out.) 4. install new drive making sure you line up the tabs. 5. Put front wheel back in place and install axle. 6. Torque front axle to spec and tighten pinch bolt to spec. 7. Now is a good time to take a look at your front brake pads. If the pads are still good but the inner and outer do not have the same amount of wear, switch the inner and outer pads to get more even wear. 8. Put brake calipers back on. 9. Go see how fast you are going.

The weather is looking like this is going to happen as scheduled. It is going to be an ugly weekend around here with this traffic mess. Might just have to get a big bucket of ice cream and a comfy chair and watch the pinheads try to navigate this one.

Sorry to hear about you and the bike. Or at least stay away from mini vans.... As far as construction zones, there is absolutely no way to avoid then around here unless you just resign yourself to stay home forever. I never ride next to anything, if I am going to pass or get passed, I make sure it happens very quickly.

Here is a great place to start. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=81297

Glad to have you back. I get some of the best answers when I am talking to myself.....

:sign yeah that: And check all fuses, don't forget the main fuse. Beyond checking for loose terminals and fuses there is not much you can check on the side of the road till you get some test equipment in hand.

I'll have to think about it, That M14 x 1.50P tap is kind of expensive for just messin around to see if I can do it when I or someone else don't really have a current need for it.

I did not post a version with different drop heights. The bearings will move vertically with the drop so that the center of the ball will always be on the vertical centerline of the bike, and the center of the ball will always be on the centerline of the bearings. I think you are not seeing it right. When the coupler tilts enough to hit the shank of the ball it will then cause the ball to rotate in the bearings to accommodate the tilt, exactly the same way that the tongue mounted swivels work. I can make the vertical piece any length to get whatever drop or rise one needs.

I am still working on getting out of having to go to Madison for the weekend. If I can weasle my way out of it then I will come on down. But it is a pretty long ride for my poor marshmallow butt. Lots of gas stops. You mentioned that they open at 10 am. But what time are you planing to be there and how late are you staying?

The trailer its self should not be an issue for the bike to pull. The issue will come when you fill it with stuff. My trailer loaded is about 375-400 and 40 tongue. It is no problem but I am looking into adding brakes to it because I do not like the extended stopping distance required. Since I live just north of Chicago I have to deal with those knuckleheads more than I would like to and want to retain the ability for a fast emergency stop. I think that there are a lot of trailers in that weight range being pulled by our V4s. But that is the fully loaded weight. With the side area of that trailer, you will have to be very careful in cross winds. Whether it will work behind your bike will boil down to how much stuff you pack inside it for a trip. Because it is tall and wide you may need to add something to your mirrors to be able to see behind you. That is required by law in most states. With that height and width expect very much reduced gas mileage and be ready to be cruising one gear lower than you are used to. Especially with a head wind.

What kind of bike did you have previously to this one? It might just be that you are used to a bike that was designed for low engine RPMs, like a V twin.

The stator wires that you are after come out of the very back edge of the left side engine cover and run to the RR. some times the wires are white and sometimes yellow, they should be fairly heavy wires. There should be a connector between the stator and the RR. To test the stator or the rectifier you do the tests from this connector. You may have run your tests on the wrong thing if it was multi colored thin wires.

Well now you know that you can fix it and have a spare.

Good point, I'll use my buddies Ford, or other buddies Dodge so that there is no danger of pulling the tree down......

A swivel hitch is one of those things that you hope you never need, but will be glad you have if you ever do need it. Kind of like a fire extinguisher or a helmet. I do not know if you can or will notice anything in normal riding. As I mentioned earlier I used mine for sure one time when the side stand sunk into wet grass before I could get the plate out of the trunk to put under it. The bike was able to lay down flat and the swivel prevented any possibility of damage to the hitch or trailer. I am betting that the fully loaded trailer would have bent something without the swivel in there.

Ummmmm..... NO! The ladder did not even flex a little bit with 500 lbs on it? At the top the bike did not even wobble a little when he took it off his head? He just somehow knew the exact CG of the bike with zero adjustment needed when it was first put on his head? The bike was not level when the three lifter let go but it miraculously leveled instantly the moment they released it. Must have been when the crane took up the slack. Those 3 skinny guys sure must be strong to pick up 300+ lbs of bike with no visible effort. When you watch circus performers and such balance things on their heads there is a lot of wiggling and adjustment to get it just right. Non of that here. There either was a crane involved with very thin black wires to the bike or that was not a real bike and it actually did not weigh much.

Here is how to test the charging system. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=81297

I'm hidin out all alone in the Ladies Room.

The speedo and odometer on a 1st gen are purely mechanical, and driven off the front wheel, no fuse will matter.

It is possible that the speedo cable is broken, not fully engaged, speedo is dead. Does the odometer work? Does the cruise control work? While working on it you can use a speedo in a GPS or smart phone to know how fast you are going.

Est-ce que tout le monde ne parle français? Yes you would have to be sure there is no other damage before starting. I do not know if it would need to have the lash redone if you put all of the same parts back in that came out?

In theory, the clocking will put the hole at different points in the venturi. this could have an effect on the vacuum realized at the hole. Does it make enough of a difference to matter in the real world? I have no clue. I was told while getting my diaphragms replaced to watch for it and always make sure the hole goes back where it came from. All of the slides were clocked the same from the factory. So I make sure to follow that lead and instruction.

If you do not do it right then all life on this planet as we have known it will end. It could even cause someone like Yammer Dan to buy a 2nd gen....... I had not heard of this procedure when I had mine apart and I just bolted the final drive on and then installed the rear tire as normal. There have been no issues in the 3 years since I did it. I do not know if it is because I got lucky, or if really does not matter. But look at what has happened to poor Dan since I did not follow the procedure.......