Venturous Randy

I saw this on my Comcast news this morning, but it did not have the interview. The guy is lucky he was not hurt worse. This is the reason I am FOR redlight cameras (sorry eck). RandyA

I have Farm Bureau on my home, two cars and my bike. They have been very good to me on some lightening and storm damage on the house and they are much lower on the vehicles. I had Allstate on the bike and finally switched about two years ago to FB. RandyA

I am with Comcast and the internet is pretty good, but unfortunately most of the TV is crap. I don't have the premium channels, but still have a half dozen or so movie channels and this is costing me $99 a month. The problem is they show the same thing over and over again. They have shown the Rocky movies at least 20 times in the last month. I am a bad channel surfer and it frustrates me to go thru 50 channels and there is nothing to watch. I am also NOT a fan of reality TV and just can not get into stuff like two naked people walking thru the woods knowing they have a camera crew right behind them. It makes me wonder if the cameras crew is naked too? RandyA

I did the undercut on mine about 15 years ago and all together I think I spent about $28, and that was on gaskets and oil. The problem was at that time I did not realize that Yamaha had improved the thrust washer by making it harder, so I just flipped mine over and reused it. The local Yamaha shop was clueless and the only thing they wanted to do was sell me a lot of expensive parts. Remember, at this time I did not have internet and just winged it. The three dogs on the side of the gear were rounded off enough that I had to remove material along the side to bring them back sharp. Then I started at the top and cut more material off as I went to the base of the dog. I did this with a Dremal grinder and a 1/8th inch radius gauge as the width of the dog is right at 1/4 inch. I also used digital calipers for measurements. Now, the hard part begins as I had to make the other two dogs match as close as I could. I then did a matching undercut on the six slots in the matching gear. Now, the next trick was to straighten the forks. You can tell if the forks are bent if you see score marks near the tips of the forks on one side and at the base of the forks on the other side. This from the forks being pushed to one side as they are sticking into the groove of the gear. I put about 60,000 more miles on the bike without anymore jumping, but as the thrust washer was getting worn again, the bike started to rattle while idling and leaning over on the side stand. At this time, I found an 86 engine that was in a crash and pulled it apart and transferred everything over. I have now put about 65,000 miles on this setup with no problems. I now have another 1200 engine in the garage with 30,000 miles in it that has a transmission from an 04 Venture that I got from Pinwall. It also will fit, but you will need the entire transmission, including the drum and forks. I think I paid about $50 for the gear sets and when I found out I needed the rest of it, I paid another $20 for the drum and forks. I also have another complete transmission from a 2nd gen Venture that I bought for about $60 from Pinwall because no one else bid on it. My intention is, with the 2nd gen gear ratios being wider apart and using a V-Max rear, the changeover will have 1st gear being about 10% lower, 2nd being about 5% lower, 3rd and 4th are the same and 5th about 5% higher than the stock setup. In other words, if you are running down the interstate at 3,500rpm's, with the changeover, you would be running about 3,325 rpm's at the same speed and this would be with a noticeably lower 1st gear. I already have the V-Max rear in my bike and am having a blast with it, but I need to get the other engine put in. Now, this is just a little of an overview with what will be needed to fix your 2nd gear problem. Obviously, if I had known there was a change in the thrust washer, I would have changed it rather than just flipping it over. But keep in mind that if you have a worn thrust washer, you will have some scoring on the matching contact point. AS far as which option to use, they all have their benefits, but the easiest would be to pick up an 86 to 93 transmission with forks and swap it over. The 2nd gen transmission will work, but if you still used the Venture rear end, I don't think you would be happy with how high geared it would be and this is why a lot of 2nd gen guys go with the V-Max rear end. The 2nd gen transmissions seem to be a lot cheaper as there is no demand for them. the 86 ton 93 are in demand for fixing the 83 to 85's Hope this is a start and as I have said, if you have any questions give me a call. RandyA

The engine I had in my 65 Chevelle ultimately ended up in a 72 240Z Datsun that I put 156,000 miles on with a stock 350 with the 327-350hp cam and then with the 327 in it. I did have to go with a different intake as the Z-28 intake was just too tall for the hood. Ironically, this same engine recently went through a complete rebuild and is currently in my son's 65 Chevelle. It is a 300 two door post car and has a 4-speed. RandyA

That brings back some great memories. My 65 Chevelle had 11.5 TRW dome pistons, 327-350hp cam (L-79), original 68 Z-28 intake(taller than others), Headman headers, 4-speed and a 12 bolt 4:10 posi gear. It was refrigerator white and the interior was white and came out of a 72 Gran Prix. It had chrome reverse wheels and was a beautiful car. I just wish I still had it. RandyA

My memory of San Antonio was in 69 while I was at Lackland AFB doing basic training. I did go to town once and saw the river walk, which was very nice and I did go to the Alamo. That was interesting, but with being homesick and walking in the door and seeing a picture of Davy Crockett's birthplace did not help. His birthplace is about 15 miles from my house. RandyA

To go along with what Puc is saying about high vacuum, the way you attain higher vacuum is to be more concerned about throttle opening and not RPM's. The best gas mileage I have gotten is where I will downshift rather then lug the bike some and not make the torque pull harder at a lower RPM. Basically, it is more about how much throttle you are using, rather that what RPM you are running. Short shifting is fine if you have the time to accelerate slowly with little throttle. In my current situation, I am running a V-Max rear on my 83. With riding thru the mountains, I can easily lug the bike a little and it does fine, but if I pay attention, I can get as good of mileage or better than a stock rear. The downside is running at 65mph, I am running close to 4,000rpm's and that can bring the mileage down some. In my last several fill-ups, I have ranged from 44 to 48 mpg's, 2-up. A good rule of thumb is if you are running along and downshift one gear and without changing the throttle, you increase speed, you are not running at the most efficient throttle and you are lugging the engine some. RandyA

Well, at least you got a pic with him holding on to the handlebars. Maybe that 2nd gen is a sign he is maturing a bit.....not!! Looking good guys and hope you have a great trip. RandyA

How do you intend to go about fixing the transmission, replacing parts, undercutting gears or replacing whole transmission? There are several of us that have done this and will be glad to talk with you about the details. If you will check my profile, you can get my phone number and you can call me at anytime, as I am retired. RandyA

I know you said same brand front and rear, but if you want good handling on a 1st gen, the Avon Venom on the front and Dunlop E3 on the rear is my recommendation. This is my second time with this combo and I think it is the best for me. RandyA

Welcome to the forum, Mr & Mrs Jetson. Neat bike and great color. RandyA

Really neat, but with a cruising speed of 35mph, you're not going to get anywhere fast. RandyA

Also, make sure you do not fill the reservoir too full or when your brakes warm up, they may bind and stop you. Always carry an 8mm wrench with you. RandyA

If you have never read it, go to a used book store and see if you can pick up a copy of Blue Highways, by William Least Heat Moon. It is a very good read and he did about the same thing. RandyA

Good luck G I Joe, this post is five and a half years old. RandyA

I would love to have a bike like that, but I would be afraid to ride it. That one is just too nice for the age. It must have never been stored out in the weather. RandyA

First thing, is the slave cylinder leaking? If not, that may not be your problem. How does your lever feel? Is the pressure normal? Sometimes it is difficult to get the fluid going on the master and you may have to loosen the bango bolt on the master. Another problem I encountered was the metal part of the clutch line that goes under the engine got stopped up. One other thing, do not let ANY brake fluid get on the plastic or it will be ruined. RandyA

That is the exact color we are looking for. I see where there is a latch problem, but could not tell what it would take to fix it. Is there any way you could see what it would cost to ship it to TN 37604? My son's is fixable with all the damage on the bottom. It is just I thought I would see what is out there. Thanks for your help. RandyA

I had a feeling that was what you were going to do. Hope you can enjoy it and maybe we can get by and see you sometime. RandyA

That is one of my favorite colors. RandyA

The trunk bottom on my son's bike is in really bad shape. It is cracked and has several big pieces missing. Just thought I would give it a try on here. RandyA

Well, we went from a long drawn out winter to a very short spring into summer. Our part of the world here in the mountains of east Tennessee is usually pretty moderate compared to other places. That being said, we are to be in the upper 80's all week and to me, that is pretty warm. But, I know that if we are hot here, it is really hot in other places. Our problem here right now with all the flowers and trees is pollen. I have a black Infiniti that I cleaned up real good a couple of days ago and with it sitting on the carport, it is almost yellow. RandyA

I would not want to use the one at a service station. You don't know if it has 60 or 200 pounds pressure and it is difficult to do the quick on and off and then check the pressure. To me, this would be a quick way to blow seals out. RandyA

I have seen these comments about which pump to use and how you should not use this or that one and I want to share what has always worked real good for me and my 1st gen standard Venture. Many years ago I bought one of the cheap Harbor Freight compressors that has the gauge on it. It is the yellow one that sells for about $9 or is on a coupon in Rider magazine for less than $6. This thing clips on the air fitting and does not appear to off seat the valve. When you turn it on, and it does have a roller type switch, the air buildup is slow enough that it is easy to monitor and when you get to the reading you want, turn the switch off. I have also found that the reading on the gauge is identical to the reading on a digital air gauge I have had for awhile. I have also used the compressor to air up a rear tire that I had to plug out in the middle of nowhere. I was able to air the tire up plenty enough to get me to a service station, but the little yellow pump did get pretty warm. Anyway, you guys can spend the big bucks for the pumps or you can try one of these and I have used one of these for at least the last 15 years. I also have Progressives in the front so for me, I don't need any air there. RandyA