CaseyJ955

I think there will be a comp test. When I had mine on 3 cyl it was nothing like that. It was a little hard to tell there was a problem. I suspect the parts bike may become instrumental in solving this mystery.

I had a trashed, clapped out old E150 cargo van converted into youthful partymobile. It had an auto and 300/6 which was tired and noisy as a diesel. It burned over a qt of oil per tankful of fuel. I had no money in 1980s rural SD and priorities of both time and money that did not include taking care of my crappy old sintruck. I carried a couple jugs of used waste oil and just topped off with that. Never could kill that thing regardless of how many times I had to ad 1gal plus to get it beteeen the crosshatches. I abused and overloaded this vehicle regularly for a number of years. When it clattered louder than usual I knew it was time to drown it in a few more qts of oil that some other vehicle already used up. I sold it still running to a friend on Pine Ridge res for almost nothing and it still had a shocking amount of torque in spite of being well into borrowed time. I used this van, a chain and a friend or two to drag full size trucks, cars and vans, sometimes on flats, to the scrap yard for money to fund youthful misadventures. The abuse and neglect were jaw dropping. The things I put her through:fiddle: Engine design is an overwhelming factor in how long they last, even above neglect and abuse. The legendary slant 6 was Chryslers peak, anything after that is hit/miss in my opinion/experience. Some oils are better than others but if you have any at all the engine has no excuse not to do 250k or better. Aside from a few real jewels born of detroit steel the Japanese have handed our asses to us in regards to vehicle/engine design and engeenering, especially post muscle-car era.

If any carbs have fuel they all should, assuming the floats are allowing it into the bowls. Someone mentioned a carb sync, out of sync carbs have a more profound effect at lower RPMs but still it needs to be done if the carbs were off. If they are far enough out of balance the thing will barely run. To see if all the carbs have fuel in the bowls you can do a quick float level check using the bowl drain screws and a length of clear line trimmer fuel line. I cant seem to link it with my phone but its a quick check. Make sure the carbs are fully seated in the intake boots and the linkage is as it should be. Also check chokes and linkages to make sure they all actuate together.

What an excellent writeup, I agree that this would make a fine pinup. I have a significant decel whine but it comes from the gearbox. Also have a rhythmic rubrubrubrub at lower speeds coming from rear but I'm sitting on new E3s. I plan to change the final drive oil before I leave on my next trip. I agree about the Metzlers being aweful. Have em' on my vmax too and they feather like nothing I have ever seen. Im not sure what noise my clutch makes but I do hear the faint knock that mimicks a tired rod bearing. I have an audiophile ear that picked that up and last time I put the hammer down I thought it might have slipped a little. Time to open her up but I have another trip coming up before I can get to it. I attributed some of this to it being almost 30 and having 70k on the clock, even though it aint much its pretty far from new. I did notice some sparklies when I did the first oil change. Thanks for this great info. Ill be ordering a clutch and inspecting final drive, shaft and rear wheel/bearings...after I get back.

I have an Ignitek in mine, I do like it but my take out is the later model so it wouldnt do you any good. I think Gary has stopped selling Igniteks, I dont know if anyone else here sells them. I got mine from another member that bought but never used. If nobody here sells them I believe Sean of Morleys Muscle sells them and may have a used OEM. Hes a Vmax guy but Im pretty sure its the same box. Also with the Ignitek you can run simple resistorless COPs. I hope you get it sorted soon. If you do go this route I have Venture maps that Gary was kind enough to send me.

Maybe they were doctored up for that. I wonder if tbere isnt something going on with the bushings hanging things up.

Heres a thread that covers the gen2, the procedure is the same for a gen1 but the screws are slightly different. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?258-Syncronizing-the-Carbs Here is some discussion on the Vmax side. The screws on the Vmax are the same as the Venture. Same engine and carbs, just tuned and jetted differently but you will recognize the correct screws for synching. http://www.vmaxforum.net/showthread.php?t=43398 http://www.vmaxforum.net/showthread.php?t=3959 Enjoy!

I rode my Gen1 home after purchase and I was sure it was wheel bearings. Any lean angle at all produced a significant hum. The tires (Metzler Marathons) had lots of life left but also had significant feathering. Replaced with Dunlop E3s and problem is gone. It was definately more of a hum than a whine though. I have an audible amount of gear whine but I dont think it's unusual on these bikes.

Agree. I noted that some of the earlier "new" Indians had an overkill of retro. It looked good but it was a little bit over the top for me. This more modern with a hint of retro is a hit IMHO. Darn good looking bike.

Many years ago I saw a documentary on the female Russian snipers, very impressive and I have never forgotten it.

A purdy bike indeed! Love that color too. It's amazing how well these 1st gen bikes handle. They seem to defy their age and weight.

That is wicked! Way to go! Does this mean that all Canadians call take us out from a moving train car half way across the county? Next time I hear "eh" I'm gonna duck!

I would keep it and ride it, it's a darn fine bike. If you do ride an 18 and decide you want one then sell yours privately outright. I'm sure there are still quite a few guys that would rather have yours than a twin. Shop around for the first guy that buys an 18 and figures out that it's just to heavy and sells it at a huge loss with almost no miles on it. It will happen, someone else can eat the depreciation for you. If the 18 does turn out to be worthy of all the hype than the value and sale-ability of your current steed might come down. I'm more thinking that the 2nd gens will be known as the last true ventures and regarded as such. It's early to tell before the 18s start hitting the streets and we see what they really are. Also the used ones will start popping up within a year or two. Food for thought anyway.

Check for rodent damage to the wiring loom. Depending on where it sat you might have a robust nest in there somewhere made out of wiring insulation.

The same crying goes on here, and it's LOUD. The NRA and our vast, quickly growing militias do put a real damper on those that would seek to violate our constitutional rights so we do thankfully have these factors. If you want to mobilize millions of Americans very quickly, roll out a gun buyback program or step on the constitution. That'l do er'. South Dakota and most of the states that touch it are sort of like the last bastion of the old west and we happy to go on about our lives without enduring the insane overregulation and revocation of rights/privacy seen on our coastal states that have fallen to terrible leadership. Unfortunately when idiots use firearms as weapons and in the commission of crimes we all take a step backwards.

If there really are oil galleys that encompass the heads and cylinders to some degree, possibly between the fins or internally as we have seen before, with an external heat exchanger. Oil cooling is nothing new but the volume and viscosity of oil vs that of proper liquid cooling has to date been pretty different. With a badass oil pump and a couple extra qts of oil I guess it could conceivably work somewhat. IIRC Buell was using the frame to store fuel on some of their models. I'm most anxious for one of our brothers or sisters to chime in after buying one.

That is a good read, I hope it works and I hope this bike is a win for guys waiting for a better twin. The luggage and analog instrumentation are looking pretty good. It will be interesting to see how cool it runs in hot weather or after being pushed up a mountain pass fully loaded, if they have developed an efficient oil cooling system that really works I'll be impressed. It makes me wonder how the 3rd gen MKII will differ.

X2 I should have something to add as soon as the snow flies and I get onto it. After riding the bike this year I have decided that it has enough power as it is, but a bit more top end would be welcome, and so it will happen.

Assuming all fuses are intact I wonder if someone didnt bugger the 4 way switch. That switch is tricky to manipulate while removing and replacing the plastic inlays on either side of the head assembly. I love the progressives too, those and new head bearings/races made notable differences in ride and handling. The rear shock on my 89 works and performs really well, but I think there are outfits out there that can overhaul and alter valving/behavior of a shock if it doesn't work as you want it to. I pulled this one out of thin air, no experience with them, but they appear to have this service. http://www.brooksuspension.co.uk/services/motorcycle-shock-rebuilds.html Are you still using the anti-dives with your progressives?

I know there are a few that are "cool" with air cooling, but I thought of you right away when I read this article while cruising the news. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-southwest-temperature-idUSKBN19A32D I may be getting old but I'm not thinking that sounds like fun on any bike,

I love your closet there, excellent. IMHO the problem in the USA has more to do with people than guns. No lone gunman should be able to off 30 people, unless they are all unarmed. Sucks that it has come to this but while I may leave my place without a gun I would NEVER EVER go into town without one. Sadly it really has come to that here, so much craziness going on in the world, and on our soil. It's really overwhelming to read national and international news every day. I would never hand over a gun to the gov, not under any circumstances and I'm a law abiding citizen, at least until the day they require all guns be relinquished.

It's good to be careful of anything made in China, and by be careful I mean skip it altogether. OEM stuff is expensive but it's worth it, even for a cheap bastard like myself. I have almost completely eliminated this problem by being very careful where items that I buy are made. Unfortunately there are a lot of counterfeit items out of China, designed to look like OEM and in OEM packaging.

What an overwhelming series of things to deal with. I'm really sorry to hear about this. You will be in my thoughts. It sounds like you might be next in line for about two decades of much better luck. My condolences.

Glad to see you made it home safe, it was great to meet you guys. Good times! The pic came out great, definitely one of my favorite restaurants in the hills too.

I'm actually very happy with the Venture, it's a great tourer, comfy, user friendly, reliable so far, decent power handles deceptively well. I'm happy with the Vmax, it's perfect for hills days and for when I feel more spirited. So adding another bike to the mix would require a bike to do something my others dont do. So probably a BMW GS, Triumph Tiger or Vstrom 1000 something that can be used on the street but also competent off in the hills. Aint nothing like getting away from it all. Great thread.