litteacher

ohhhh... trust me... I have had my eyes opened to all of the maladies that seem to haunt this specific motorcycle. I have always been drawn to "underdogs", so I have a feeling this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship with my Venture...

Imagine my surprise when my girlfriend came over to see my "new" purchase of an 83 Venture yesterday... and I proudly went over and slapped the tank and declared ,"I'm going to take Old Grampy for a ride tomorrow." Instead of a nice metallic sound resonating from my open palm, the plastic cover that was masquerading as a gas tank popped off at the top. I have a feeling this motorcycle has many, many surprises ahead for me......

I second the KLR650. That is my daily driver and although it is the ugliest motorcycle ever built and it sounds like an old farm tractor with its single piston banging around, it is soooooo much fun to drive.

Thanks.... I most definitely have a standard Venture then... I went out in my garage this morning and looked at all the trim... all I saw was the word "Venture"... hmmmmm... .I noticed one hard saddlebag took the worse of a tip-over... oh well.. that is on my winter list of things to do....

excellent!! This Venture is completely new to me. I will order that bar I found online at Ebay... thanks so much for the clarification!

You're not scaring me at all, Dan... this bike was purchased on a lark. I have two other daily drivers for motorcycles, but this is my first large touring motorcycle. I am THRILLED to find this usergroup with such devoted Venture owners! I have always wanted to learn how to be more of a motorcycle mechanic, so I think this is going to be an amazing project for me.

I haven't looked for the stamp yet.... From the picture that was sent to me, it looks like I have to start to dismantle the engine to see if the stamp is there? To be honest, I'm the bike is still on the trailer... I'm waiting for a buddy to come over after work. I wasn't that excited to try to wrestle the bike down a ramp by myself going backwards.

Hey Zag, Did you mean to say that it probably WILL fit? I'd be shocked too if they had different components for handlebars on the two different models. I went to your link and it seems as though the suspension and shiny chrome is the main difference between the two. My Venture definitely does not have a control screen on the right side of the fairing for suspension. Thanks for steering me in the right direction. (Yes... I was going for a pun!)

It's most definitely bent.... this vice-grip custom clutch lever was probably invented the same time the bar was bent and it caved in on itself a bit. I'll look at all of the plastic I have that came with it and see if I can find the word Royale anywhere.

Well, my handlebar is handle bent on the left hand side of my 83 Venture. It seriously threw me off my game when I took the bike for a quick test ride to hear the engine and feel the gears shift. This needs to be my very first repair on the bike. So I found a replacement bar on Ebay. I'm assuming there is no right or left hand bar.... I'm thinking they are interchangeable. I was about to order this item (web link) when I noticed this bar would not fit a Venture Royal. Since most of the skin is missing from this bike, how do I know if it is just a plain old Venture... or a Venture Royal?

Wow.... I find a repair like that to be SOOOOO over my head. But I know I would feel amazing if I could do it. Is it correct for me to assume that every 83-85 Venture will experience this second gear failure? It's not a matter of IF it goes bad... it's WHEN it goes bad?

Thanks Zag... that is my game plan.... I will not be tearing into anything engine related for quite sometime unless it's necessary! The tabs on the plastic trim are in rough shape... I think I'll tackle that first.

Ohhh... and a very custom clutch lever was included in the deal! So... I didn't want to jinx the deal before it happened, but I picked this up for 450.00 and it has 28,000 miles on it and I took it for a test drive and all of the gears were there.. even second! The backseat of my vehicle is filled with saddlebags and trucks and every other imaginable piece of trim that came on this bike originally. I think I have a fun winter project ahead for me!

The Eagle has landed!!!

900 , Yammer Dan !!! Wow... I guess I hadn't read that online yet.... I'm heading out the door now to land this whale, but because of your post, I texted a buddy who lives near this bike and told him to be on standby to do some grunt work, just in case! Thank God the Patriots played on Thursday or I would not be able to find anyone on a Sunday afternoon here in Maine to help.

Putting my fingers in my ears and humming and pretending I didn't just hear that... Yes, I did come across that information and the seller says it is mechanically sound and drives perfectly, so I am going to roll the dice and hope the second gear God is smiling down upon me today!!

That is excellent advice Puc... I really appreciate your detailed response and you taking the time to measure your motorcycle. It's going to be tight, but I think it might just happen. I'm bringing a friend down with me on the trip just in case I have to ride the bike home if I can't squeeze it onto the trailer. I will DEFINITELY take pics of the adventure. I have been an avid biker my entire life. I currently own a 2003 Hayabusa, a 1985 Suzuki GS700ES, and a 2001Kawasaki KLR650 affectionately name "Big Ugly". I have always wanted a larger touring motorcycle and over coffee this morning I stumbled across the Venture and the price was just too good to not buy! I can't wait to really read this forum and make some contacts online. I'm single and my kids are in college, so this bike is being wheeled right into my living room this winter so I can really get to know it and work on it. Thanks again for the detailed responsel. I think with determination and six or seven tie-downs it will be in my driveway in the next 24 hours!

I have a sneaking suspicion you might be right.... it's going to be very tight. The tail gate does have to be latched in a vertical position when closed. I'll have to see if it will detach. I appreciate your response.

So I found an interesting Venture to purchase online and I agreed to drive fours hours tomorrow to buy it. I borrowed my dad's trailer and have my vehicle gassed up and ready to hit the road when the sun rises tomorrow morning... but... out of curiousity... I measured the length of the trailer. From front to back it is seven foot four inches long. If I go from corner to corner, it is 101 inches diagonally. Will an 83 Yamaha Venture fit onto this trailer?