Venturous Randy

I hope you folks on the east coast, especially near the Outer Banks are going to be OK. This one may not be as bad as some, but be careful out there. I love this part of the country and hate to see the damage a hurricane can do. This thing is pretty big at about 450 miles in diameter. RandyA

Here I have been sitting here on pins and needles waiting for a followup. Brian, thank you for asking about this. RandyA

Tippys got that look on her face of "hummm...what in the heck are you talking about?". RandyA

Are you going down to visit Arthur and I'm not talking about ADC either. You may not get to do any swimming at Tybee Island if this tropical storm turns into a hurricane, which will be named Arthur. If that is the case, there will be a lot of vacant rooms. Good luck and hope you have a good trip. RandyA

To keep from having to look, it's an 87 Venture. RandyA

If you released "valve spring tension" the valves would drop and hit the pistons. It still sounds to me like you have something laying on top of a piston or you may have driven it into the head and it is stuck there. It sounds like you have narrowed it down to the cylinders that it may be. When it stops, is it a distinct clunk that would be metal to metal? I feel for you. Many years ago I was rebuilding the carburetor on a neighbor's truck and dropped a small screw down the intake and ended up having to remove the head to get it out. RandyA

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1986-Yamaha-XVZ1300-XVZ-1300-Venture-Speedometer-Cable-and-Gear-/360973760382?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item540bb6777e&vxp=mtr

Another option is to clean the surfaces real good where the grommet and the stud is and use industrial strength Velcro. I have used it for years and have never had a problem with heat hurting the glue. On the panel, you can cut a hole where the stud is if it is still there. Works good for me and have used it for a long time. RandyA

Gerald, I know what you mean. I have been dealing with diabetes for about 35 years and did not do a good job with controlling it. I have also had thoughts and discussions about what is in my future. I have a 96 wing with reverse that I have thought about triking and even the Miata route. We have one locally I would love to have that would probably pull a trailer easily. Look at this one: http://tricities.craigslist.org/cto/4474135543.html RandyA

When I put the V-max final drive in my 83, I bolted it onto the swing arm and the axle slid through as easy as with the stock final drive, so I did not need any shims. I have been running it for awhile now and don't appear to have any problems. So, I would say no. RandyA

Hey, did I mention, "Check the main fuse"? I had mine blow as I was coming to a stop several years ago. I bypassed it to get home and then replaced it. I never did find out what caused it to blow. RandyA

There are two ways to handle the driveshaft disconnect. You can unbolt all the engine stuff and when you pull the engine out, you can twist it slightly clockwise, looking from the top, and the u-joint and driveshaft will slide apart. You can put it back together the same way by pulling the rubber boot out of the way. My personal preference is to remove the final drive first and pull the driveshaft and then after putting the engine back in place, reinstall the driveshaft into the u-joint. The reason I like this better is because with all the wrestling around you will be doing to get the engine out and back in, that is one thing less to have to mess with. Are you sure you have to remove the engine to do the head gaskets? It is my understanding there is room on the front head and the top frame comes apart to get to the rear heads. I am not sure as I have never done anything to a 2nd gen. RandyA

Again, check the main fuse. You should be able to pull the positive cable out enough to get to the fuse holder or you may have to undo the positive cable from the battery first. You may even have to pull the battery out to get to it, but I don't think so. Everything you describe sounds like the main fuse is blown. RandyA

It looks like a Metzler to me from what little I can see from the tread pattern. RandyA

Yeah, you lost your cable and all you have is the housing. Backtrack and you may see it laying in the road. If you find it, just clean it up, regrease it and reinstall it. Yes, the housing fittings have been known to come loose before. The cable itself will go in from either direction and has a ring on one end so it will only go so far. The trick I use to not loose my cable is I put the ring end at the top and I put a wire tie very tightly around the cable housing and when I undo it from the speedometer, it will only drop down so far as the tie keeps it from going through the hole the housing goes through. This way, if either end of the housing comes loose, I will not loose the cable. RandyA

Check the main fuse. That fuse is in a plastic box off the positive cable. Do you still have the original fuse box? If you do, those fuse holders tend to get loose and the whole fuse holder needs to be updated. Are your battery cables clean and tight? RandyA

Hey big guy, I hope you have a wonderful day. RandyA

http://www.wimp.com/revvingcar/

I posted this a while back and had it as a favorites. It was a MSF address, but I can't seem to find it at that address and the computer I had it on is locked up. This is from Roadrunner magazine, but it is the same thing. I just went back and looked at this and with this being an "excerpt", it does not allow you to change the ball size, color or speed. http://www.roadrunner.travel/2012/05/22/motion-induced-blindness/ Puc, another thing to explain to a kid about driving is to ask them what it means when a vehicle is coming at you with their signal light blinking. The normal response will be; "they are turning". The correct answer is; "No, it only means their signal light works." RandyA I found the original post, but when I click on it, it brings up the MSF home page and I can not find the motion part. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=84711&highlight=motion

First of all, put it on the center stand. Now, once you have that done, you are well on your way. Then, step back and tell your self. "Man, am I one lucky guy!!!!" Next, think of it as eating an elephant....One bite at a time. Once you start getting into specific systems, take some time to look at some of the data and manuals that are available on here. Do not be timid. When you have a concern or question, do not hesitate to ask. Yes, these are big bikes.....but, once you have it tweaked in you will be surprised how well it can handle....and you may be real surprised at how much power that it has and it will love the high RPM"s. If I had a buck for each time mine has been past the redline, I would be doing real good. Now, the most important part. You now have the opportunity to get to know some of the greatest people you will ever meet or not meet. You will be amazed at how many folks will do their very best to help you with every little problem. You will find that with the expertize here that there is NO problem that someone does not know something about. Yep, there are some crazy folks here, but they got real good hearts. Oh, one more thing, welcome and we hope you join. It will be the best $12 you will ever spend on your bike. RandyA

The search address I have used for a long time, Yamaha Venture motorcycle parts, used to have about 250 to 300 listing in their auction only section with at least some used Venture parts. Now, this same address has about 1,000 to 1,100 listing and it seems like fewer used parts. Most are aftermarket parts consisting of handlebar grips, lights, covers and on and on, with many duplicate listings in a row. I will occasionally add buy it now, but in almost all cases, the buy it now prices are so outrageous they are a joke. Have any others experienced this or have any better suggestions? Thanks for any suggestions. RandyA

There should be a small hole under where the switch goes in and if you stick something into the hole, there is a little catch tab. If you push it in, the switch will pull out. RandyA Oops, I was thinking front brake.

Good for you Gary, Best wishes and I hope you heal quickly and completely. RandyA

Maybe Puc should check the date code on the tires and make sure they are not dated in the 70's. RandyA

Linda and I took one of those dodge-the-rain rides. We had a lot of spotty rain in just about every direction and we took off in the most clear direction. When we came to a point that looked like rain ahead, we made a choice again on which way looked best. All together, we probably put about 180 miles on the bike and when we came in, I pulled up weatherspark, which has a great map, and where we were just hours ago was raining hard. Sometimes, the dodge-the-rain rides are the best if you don't have a destination, as the weather kind of dictates the direction. RandyA