litteacher

I'll check that Dan..... the sun was setting so I didn't spend a lot of time troubleshooting... I just wanted to be able to ride home. I did look at the piston in the rear caliper and it looked a little rusty on the outside (or perhaps dirt or something). Yes.... I'll be careful when I mess with the fluid.. it does love to eat paint. In a strange way, I love these little problems popping up. Every bike has a history and I think this poor Venture was very neglected during its life.

That is great advice Dan.... I bookmarked your advice to me and I think that is something I will tackle this winter when the snow is on the ground. I just took the Venture for its second cruise of the day and I was riding it hard to really work the Sea Foam through the carbs.... when I came to a stop sign, I pulled in the clutch and the bike stopped almost immediately. Ughhhh.... rear brakes were stuck on. Luckily I had some tools with me and some bungees so I popped off the rear caliper and rode it home. I will say, with the rear brakes not dragging and my tires at the right pressure and the carbs coming to life... I had the biggest grin on my face riding home... the thing just purred!!!!!! Time to figure out how to get the rear brakes working correctly. I see this baby as a labor of love.....

Okay! I dumped half a can in and then filled up.... I plan on going for another ride later this afternoon , after my Patriots win again! I'll dump the rest in when I go out later.

Exactly!!! That is why when I jumped up into the top gear and I was only going 70 or so... well... the rpm's just dropped down soooooo low and the tall gearing became so apparent.... I am already planning some long-distance trips for next year!

First of all, I owe the community a big , "I'm sorry!" I won't tell you how much air I put in the front and back tires, but let's just say it felt like a new bike after I set up the pressure correctly... Now... if my girlfriend were riding behind me today, she would have seen my saddlebag pop off and tumble about six feet into the air before landing in a freshly dug potato field. Let me back up a bit. When I put the luggage onto the bike I was kind of blown away by how they just hang there. I thought to myself , "Wow, anyone could just walk by and take the luggage..." Well, after I turned around and grab my luggage, I noticed the little key and lock and the mount on the motorcycle that locks it into place.... I can't believe I was that stupid.... Okay Jeff, I drove it for twenty miles like I stole it and flirted with the red line for most of the time.... after pumping the brakes a few times and getting the tires where they needed to be and letting the Sea Foam hopefully doing its magic... well, I started to get a crush on the old Bike.... it was flicking through the corners quite nicely. I love the support on the lower back provided by the seat. I'm also intrigued by the top gear of the machine. Very tall gearing in my opinion. I'm guessing a person could be in top gear doing 100 or so and maybe be turning four to fourn and a half grand on the tach? I am going to have SO many questions for you guys once I really start focusing on this bike... I love it!

Okay Jeff and Bubber... I'm heading out in about an hour and hopefully my local VIP will have some Seafoam and I will add it to the gas. I was just lugging around in second gear Jeff when I had it out yesterday ... and to be honest, I don't think I had it above three grand on the tach. I shouldn't admit this, but the brakes are toast on this bike... almost non-existent. I think I'll take it out on the Interstate today and come onto it a bit (hopefully, with some Seafoam in the tank). This bike throws me off to be honest. My KLR650 is so nimble when I drive it. My Hayabusa can be steered with me just looking in the direction I want to go... now this beast... ummmmm... It just kind of feels like I'm wrestling a couch around a corner ! Okay.. heading out to get my tire pressure up to specs and then some foam in the gas tank. I just put on the straight handlebar yesterday and replaced the vice-grips with an actual clutch lever this morning. I'm slowly starting to have a bit of faith in the road-worthiness of this bike. P.S. (I drove over to a friend's house yesterday afternoon on the Venture to help him wire up a home theater system... on the way out the door, my girlfriend casuallly remarked ,"Do you want me to follow you to pick up the parts that fall off? ... ouch! )

The spaghetti was lovely! It had a nice aroma of 30-year-old handgrips mixed in with garlic and olive oil... They days of having my ex cooking for me are LONG GONE Eagleeye... The little spin I took on the Venture was interesting. I don't know if mine is cold-blooded or if my carbs are messed up, but I spitted and sputtered around town for a few minutes before I called it a day... I think I need to get it out on a lonely , straight road and just let it purr and come to life again and blow some old stuff out....

WOW.... I dipped it into my ex-wife's spaghetti pot full of boiling water for about ten seconds and I pulled it right off with my hands... Time for my first real ride on the :83 Venture.... She isn't the prettiest thing right now, but in my eyes she's a diamond in the rough...

I take back what I said about my patience.... half an hour later and the thing hasn't budged... I have it in a pot of hot water right now....

Awesome!! I'm glad I'm not a total idiot. I have both of those items!

Okay... so my new handlebar pipe arrived in the mail yesterday so I popped the controls off and unbolted the old bent pipe and slid in my "new" one.... How in the world do I take off the foam grips that are on a plastic tub with a chrome end cap and flange at the top? My gut is telling me that it is glued on somehow and I just need to pound it off... before I work myself in a lather though, I'll ask the members of this forum. Thanks in advance. (I'll attach pics)

This is just the inspiration I needed Saddlebum.... those pictures you took were awesome and the repairs look great. Like you , I plan on trying to salvage all of the plastic I can on my motorcycle, but like yours, mine is rough... many cracks and missing tabs! I'm more than happy with a paint job that looks nice from ten feet away.

well.. I hate to pick sides so early in my time here in the forum, but I guess I do ride a 1st Gen.... I think if it comes to speed, I won't be turning to my Venture to scratch that itch... I'll pull my Hayabusa out and burn down some twisty roads! I appreciate everyone's hospitality in this forum already. It is apparent to me that you guys (men and women) really love motorcycles and that is all I need to know. It is the most amazing sport in the world. Thanks again!

Thanks Dan.... I need to keep exploring this site. I always seem to gravitate to the watering hole!

I am MOST definitely going to become a paid member..... that is a no-brainer!