Freebird

There are a couple of things that can cause that. Some of the '06 models had a defect in the exhaust where there was a pinhole right at the "Y" where the front and rear pipes come together. This is usually indicated by a slight bluing at the area of the hole. Carbs being out of sync can also cause it. In fact...that is probably the most common cause. Many of us have plugged the AIS system to completely get rid of it. There is an article in the Second Gen tech library showing a very easy way to plug it.

Well...I've got mixed feelings. They offer some good advice and new riders should certainly take a safety course but geezzzz..........it's just a MOVIE...a COMEDY. WOW...what happened to good common sense. Just let people enjoy the movie and have fun. It amazes me that we need such warnings for every single thing today. Heck...remember when we were kids and watching the shoot em up westerns? Nobody had to tell me that it was only a tv show and that I shouldn't buy a six shooter and start shooting people.

It could very likely be the tires. I've had that happen many times....even on my RSV...when the tires get a little wear on them. Some brands are worse about it than others. I have the Michelin Commanders on my bike and really like them a lot but the only small complaint that I have with them is that they are a bit noisy when leaning through a curve or weaving just a bit the way you describe.

Folks...I got an email from one of our members who is looking for an article that was once posted here about installing a fairing on a RSTD. I've done a search and found a few threads but not the one where one of our members actually did it and posted some instructions on the bracket that he made and etc. I'm thinking that it must have been before the "Big Crash of '06". If you are the one who did it and/or know who did, please post again. It would actually also be good info to add to our tech library.

Well...I've heard most of them and would say that the Baron's are louder than the Bubs. The problem with the new Bub's thought is that the ends are chromed aluminum and the chrome seems to start peeling after a few months. I've had the Samson and the Khromewerks on mine at one time or another and really liked the Khromewerks when it came to quality of workmanship, selection of tips, and sound. They are glass packed and WILL get loud when the glass burns out but can be re-packed.

I have the paint codes posted in the tech library here: http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1404 Hope it helps.

I've not seen it done but it sure looks like a GREAT idea.

I just got off the phone with Allan. He is doing OK considering the circumstances. He is pretty devastated as any of us would be but though his grief is heavy..his attitude is good. I hurt for him but I know he will be OK. He truly appreciated the outpouring of love and concern from all of us. Brad and Lonna, Black Owl and Cinderella made it to the funeral. May have been some others also. Just so you all know, we did send flowers from the VentureRiders.

You bet...will be more than happy to check them. Hope to see you here.

I keep my Battery Tender on the bike all the time. Routine...when I pull into the garage, I plug in the Battery Tender. My current battery is a bit over 3 years old now and going strong.

You said that you HAD the carbs synced. That always scares me right off. I've seen MANY carbs synced by the dealers that are just way off. I would first try to have them checked again. It's not hard to do but dang if a lot of the dealers care to do it correctly. You also said that it has set for a while. I would put a can of Seafoam in the gas and then run that tank out. May just be some trash in the carb.

I actually use hairspray. It's always worked well for me.

I think that those are both EXCELLENT choices.

If I were in the market for a hitch, I would no doubt buy the hidden hitch that Diamond R sells. I really like the design. I already have a Bushtec hitch on my bike or that is the one I would buy. More money but I like that you can remove the stinger and then can't see the hitch.

Venture Royale Upgrade for Lowrance i500C After too many years having no motorcycle, while raising a family of 4 kids, I finally broke down and bought the bike of my dreams. Or was it a mid life crisis? Anyway, on June 1, 2005, I bought a 1986 Venture Royale that was in really nice condition. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image002.jpg But something was wrong with this picture. It was a great motorcycle, even after 19 years, but a Cassette to take my tunes along? That had to change. I also wanted to resume taking some long trips. Maybe a return to the Blue Ridge Parkway, and see what all the fuss is about at the “Tail of the Dragon”. But to do that, I wanted something a bit more advanced than paper maps that get all tattered up, and don’t tell me where I am when I’m really lost. So after doing some research over the winter, I decided to buy a Lowrance iWAY 500C GPS with a 10Gig partition on the hard disk for MP3 music files. I found one on Ebay for a great price. Now all I had to do was to mount it on the bike, and connect it to the Mitsubishi sound system. I figured I could do it. I had the tools to do the mechanical mount side, and my Dad is a genius with Electronics. So read on, and see how I made out. Hope it helps you turn a first generation venture into something that the 2nd generation owners will be envious of. Mounting the iWay on a Venture Royale. The iWAY comes with a RAM motorcycle mount, but I couldn’t figure out a good way to use it on a Venture Royale. It’s meant for mounting to a 1” tubular handlebar, which the first gen doesn’t have. I wanted to mount the unit above the gas tank for visibility, and to avoid adding any mass to the steering. The iWAY is much heavier than some units, due to the hard disk drive and very large screen. So I came up with my own mounting bracket system that attaches to the fairing under the battery cover (fake gas tank?). This is a bracket that attaches to the fairing, one on each side. It is on top of the faring electronics covers, with the rubber battery cover pad on top. You can see 10/32 weld nuts on the vertical side of the bracket. After the battery cover is re-installed, the top GPS mount bracket will screw into these weld nuts. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image004.jpg Here is the top bracket mounted to the side brackets, on top of the battery cover. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image006.jpg The top mount bracket follows the contour of the battery cover with about ½” clearance. The top bracket has a bit of flex in it so that the GPS bounces slightly over big bumps, isolating the hard drive based unit from severe pot holes and vibration. Rather than using the Lowrance provided motorcycle mount which mates with the clip on the unit, I bought a RAM RAP-326MU “Ezy-Mount Quick Release Male Plate on Raised Diamond Base” that mates with the existing clip on the GPS. To position the GPS at an appropriate viewing angle, the clip is mounted on a wedge. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image007.jpg The RAM clip works OK, but I was a bit worried about it failing, causing who knows what calamity while riding, or the unit being easily stolen when left unattended. To fix this, I came up with a simple steel bracket that mounts to the GPS, between the heat sink and the RAM female clip. This bracket is bent to mate against the wedge bracket. A simple padlock secures the GPS to the bike mount bracket. I put 3/8”grommets in both the GPS bracket, and the bike mount bracket for the padlock loop to go through, and Velcro between the padlock and the bike mount bracket to keep the padlock from vibrating and disturbing the music. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image009.jpghttp://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image011.jpg With the GPS mounted in it’s bracket, the handlebars clear the unit at both right and left lock. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image012.jpg Here are some diagrams with dimensions of the main bracket parts. I didn’t have access to a shear or brake to cut and form the pieces. I used my table saw with an abrasive cut off blade to cut up an old computer case for the bracket pieces, and used my MIG welder to attach the weld nuts to the fairing brackets, and the wedge to the battery cover bracket. Simple nuts and bolts would also work fine. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image014.jpg Now for the Electronics side of the story. I had no desire to keep the old cassette unit it the bike. So I removed the unit from the original radio shell, and added my own cover plate. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image016.jpg Normally, ejecting a cassette turns on the radio tuner, and inserting a cassette turns off the radio tuner, and turns on the cassette. A switch is used to replace this functionality. The red switch is used to turn on/off the radio tuner. It isn’t integrated into the GPS, so if you want to listen to the radio, you have to turn off the MP3 music if the iWAY is turned on. If the iWAY tells you about your next turn, it will be heard above the radio level, depending on how loud you set the iWAY audio and speech settings. This is the inside view of where the cassette used to be. The beige cable that used to plug into the cassette, now plugs into a female 8pin DIN connector on a small prototype circuit board. The circuit board has a bracket for two RCA audio connectors for right/left audio, and a little PCB jack that feeds the red radio on/off switch. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image018.jpg Here is the design for the cassette replacement chassis. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image020.jpg This is the electrical diagram for the connection to the Mitsubishi radio unit. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image022.jpg I got the 8 pin DIN PCB receptacle from Electrosonic in Toronto. The prototype PCB and tuner ON/OFF switch and Audio Ground Loop Isolation transformer came from Radio Shack. It’s fairly simple to connect the GPS to the bike’s switched accessory power connectors. Front of the fuse panel on top of the battery. There are two screws, left is ground, and the other is +12V. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image024.jpg It’s a bit of a job to feed the wires into the fairing area. You might remove the top left fairing cover that holds the speaker and radio pieces to get clear access to the cable routing used by Yamaha. In my prototype unit, I found that the Mitsubishi amplifier seems to pick up a lot of electronic noise from the GPS. To reduce this to acceptable levels, I used a Radio Shack Nexxtech 2700054 ground loop isolator transformer. http://www.venturerider.org/gps/index_files/image026.jpg I think that the radio RF noise filter in my 20 year old bike is not what it once was. The radio power filter is mounted in the left fairing just below the speaker. I suspect that the capacitors have dried out, and have lost their original capacitance. Even while listening purely to the Mitsubishi radio, I hear some static at low volumes from either the ignition, or the voltage regulator. Anyone else have a similar experience? Any one who has owned a 1st generation Venture Royale from new have any experience in this area? So what’s next? Over this winter, I plan to re-do the electronics portion, and design a professional grade circuit board with built in audio isolating transformers. I’d also like to try and find some connector pins for the Mitsubishi amphenol like connectors. There are 5 spare positions in the connectors that the radio plugs into when connecting to the bike wiring. This would allow the removal of the radio for washing purposes without having to remove the RCA audio connectors to the iWAY audio wiring. Overall, I think I succeeded in my project. The iWAY MP3 player provided endless hours of our favorite tunes on a few trips this past summer. The GPS was great at keeping me informed of where we were, and where to go. With the help of the Venturers web site, I’ve been able to do all the maintenance and mods to my bike that keeps it running great. I hope that you enjoy your 1st generation Venture as much as I do mine. If you find this project interesting and want a complete set of parts, let me know. If there is enough interest, I might be convinced to build a kit. John C. Das VentureRider JCDAS john.das@sympatico.ca

This leaves me absolutely speechless. I truly enjoyed the time that I was able to spend with both of you at Vogel last year. She was truly a special lady. Please know that you and the rest of the family are in our prayers. If there is anything...ANYTHING that we can do for you ... please let us know. My telephone number is in the members list. Call if you need anything. If you read this, please let us know the arrangements...time...place...etc. Don

You are a VERY brave man.

I think that this is a fantastic idea and am glad you are running with it. You much be reading my mind...I had just emailed the moderators a couple of days ago about this very thing. I was getting ready to hit one of our ladies up to work on this. Glad we have a volunteer. PayPal donation is on the way.

I've seen the upper mounts done away with but don't know that I've heard of anybody changing the spacers. I can't remember who it was that got rid of the upper mounts but he said that it DID reduce the little bit of vibration that we have. There have been arguments on both sides as to whether or not it's a good idea to remove them. I am just not comfortable doing so. If you are having a problem with vibration...the first thing to do is make sure the carbs are really synced well. Unless you can do it yourself or have one of our members close by who know how....I wouldn't count on it being correct. I've just seen too many dealers who seem to have a problem getting it right.

I have the Street Freedom but bought it during this winter and have only been able to use it one time. I really like it though. The quality is good and it is very comfortable. By the way, check out my thread from when I bought it. You might find a good deal on Ebay. I bought mine on Ebay for $50.00 plus $15.00 shipping. Brand new...still had the tags on it. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=4699&highlight=Yamaha+Jacket

Yes...the ones sold by Diamond R are stainless. The homemade ones on my bike are also stainless. Diamond wasn't making them when Bob Dakin had somebody local make ours up but if I were in the market now and had to make them myself, I would just buy them from Diamond R. They quality is great and the price is fair.

Very nice. You do good work.

Take a look at this thread. Wish I know who submitted it. Would like to give them credit. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1406

I remember when Bob Dakin bought his that he wasn't happy with the color either. He too thought that it looked more gray than black. I'm very happy with mine but mine came direct from Corbin and doesn't have the stitching like the Yamaha version does.

No you are not....you are one of MANY. Hope that makes you feel better. Warranty should cover it.