skydoc_17

Both Jean and I are sad to hear of Pastor Paul's passing. Paul was a Mountain of a man, both in size and spirit. Always a smile for a stranger, always time for a friend in need. I often wondered if he was in fact an angel, pretending to be a humble motorcycle rider like the rest of us. Best wishes to his family during this time of sadness, Remember that he will live on thru the lives of the people's hearts he touched. God Bless You Pastor Paul. Earl and Jean.

Hey Don, I would like one large and one Extra Large for my brother. Earl

Hey Brian, The Air Box is an Injection Molded part. Plastic "beads" are melted and forced into a 2 piece mold, the mold is opened, and the part (Air Box) is removed. The area in the mold where the molten plastic is injected leaves a "stem" that is removed by a "trimmer" after the molding process. If you will think back to your model building days, when you would cut all of the model pieces from a plastic "frame" before assembly, the small connector that held all of the pieces to the frame would be the stem. Because this hole is on the outside of the filter, just like the air inlet of the Air Box itself, this hole is not a problem. I personally have used a dab of RTV to seal up this hole, and I have seen others insert a small screw in this hole. (a hack job in my opinion) I have seen a very small amount of dirt collect around this hole, and this is why I plugged it with the RTV. If you decide to do nothing, the stem hole will cause very little problems for the intake and engine because it is located on the outside of the Air Filter. As usual Brian, you are very observant, and your quest for information is matched by few. This was an excellent question. Earl

Keep in mind that you are screwing a Steel Bolt into a Aluminum Thread! These two dissimilar metals expand and contract at two different rates. My guess is the female thread in the Aluminum Caliper Body has been "stretched", making it sloppy. I have had to junk more than a few calipers because the threads in the Caliper Body have been pulled completely out. If you were able to torque the bolt to the proper torque spec. and you didn't strip the thread, then Blue Loctite is going to be a must on those caliper bolts from now on. Because of the tremendous amount of heat that the caliper bodies are exposed to, your problem caliper is "on it's last legs" so to speak. If you use the Blue Loctite this time, you will very likely pull the threads out the next time you remove this caliper. I say this so you can have a replacement caliper ready to install in case the threads fail completely. Earl

I pretty much have lived my life working hard, and not asking for much of anything, ever. As I have gotten older, I have found that I simply can't do the things I once did, and was forced to learn how to ask for help. I truly believe that the members of VR.ORG are a very special group. We share our joys, and our tears with each other. With the sharing comes the gift of hope. Both Jean and I hope all will work out for you and your daughter, Mike. You have been a good friend, and your humor has lifted my spirit more than once thru dark times. Like the "foot prints in the sand", we are here for you, my friend. Earl and Jean

Hey Dan, Sorry to hear about your clutch woes! Here's the deal with the clutch slave. Because the clutch slave is at the lowest point on your bike, ANY water that has accumulated in the clutch line settles in the clutch slave. The body of the clutch slave is aluminum, and pits form rather quickly as a result of the exposure to water. Because the slave is a bit of a bear to get to, I usually suggest that you just replace the clutch slave with a new one. You will be guaranteed a properly functioning clutch slave on the first install. I have been averaging about a 50% success rate on the rebuild of clutch slaves here at the shop. I don't personally rebuild them any more because of the fact that I would have to charge DOUBLE LABOR cost in the event that the slave didn't work after the rebuild. In your case Dan, if you already have the rebuild kit, and being retired, I would think that you have a lot more TIME than money, I would do the rebuild, and see how it turns out. If anyone else has a bad slave, and doesn't have the rebuild kit, I would say that you would have a 50/50 chance that you will be removing the clutch slave TWICE, once for a failed rebuild, and once more to install a NEW Clutch Slave. As I said, not very good odds for a repair shop, but if you are like Dan, and have the rebuild kit, and a LOT of time on your hands, it might be worth the gamble. Yamaha is the only supplier of the rebuild kit I would personally use. I have the rebuild kit and the new Clutch Slave available, plus ALL of the related gaskets needed. My thoughts, for what they are worth. Earl

Hey Dan, Both Jean and I are so very sorry for your loss. I truly believe that some people are so beautiful that God can't bear to be without them, and calls them home. Obviously, your niece was one of these beautiful people. You'll see her again, my friend! Earl and Jean

GET OFF ME TOM, YOU'RE CRUSHING MY SMOKES! NEED I SAY MORE? EARL

I have slept in Don's "BIG Tent" at Maint. Day, I have Slept in my own tent at Don's Maint. Day, I have slept in MY TRUCK at Don's Maint. Day, and one year, I DIDN'T SLEEP AT ALL! So, Sleepin' in a bed at Don's Maint. Day sounds GREAT to me! Earl

Thanks for all of the great replies! The power finally got turned back on Friday. We spent the night at the house Friday night. The adjuster had an engineer come to the house, he said that there was a problem with the foundation, and would need to be fixed at my cost before the repairs would be accepted. This has turned into a TOTAL nightmare. About 8 grand in damages, plus about $2500.00 out of my pocket to repair the foundation. The adjuster has turned out to be a real jerk. I'll keep you posted as to how this plays out. Earl and Jean

As many of you know, last September, I moved to a new (to me) home. This past Sunday afternoon, my brother James, my wife Jean, and our new 10 week old puppy, and of course myself, were "hangin' out" in one of the bedrooms I have converted into an office/media room. Around 2PM, a gent and his wife, decided to add a new window to that room....WITH THEIR CAR! It appears as if little damage was done to the house, but in fact, the car sheared off the main electrical service to the house, and knocked this end of our house off of the foundation piers. Unknown to me, in the state of Pennsylvania, if you have a "sudden medical condition" your Auto Ins. isn't libel for the damages! Who knew! The other end of the house was constructed in 2005, but this end of the house was constructed in 1949. My Ins. Adjuster wants to condemn the house, or have it repaired, and I cover the cost of the movement, and they replace the walls. It has not been confirmed that the driver has in fact had a "sudden medical condition", but my Ins. adjuster is pushing to start repairs ASAP. With me covering ANY costs that are found to be not related to the accident at a later date. The Ins adjuster brought his own contractor, and between the two of them, it sounded like this is going to cost ME a pretty penny. Some advice or suggestions for any members that are familiar with the Ins. industry would be greatly appreciated. I have attached a few pics. I am currently using my brother's computer to convey these pics and passages. For anyone that has recently ordered parts from me, PLEASE be patient, I have them ready to go, but I am a bit distracted at the moment. Earl

Hey Noel, Welcome to the VR.ORG Forum! Because you have the MKI 1983 VR, you will need to swap out the front forks from a MKII (1986 to 1993) VR to be able to install the R1 or R6 side mount Front Brake Calipers. The spacing on the lower fork tubes is 80MM on the MKI front forks, and the spacing on the MKII front forks is 100MM. The side mount front calipers from the R1 is also 100MM. Here are a few links that will show you some pics of what can be done to the front end of a MKI VR once you swap out the front forks. http://www.venturerider.org/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=3768&title=first-gen1983-1993-progressive-fork-springs-21&cat=22 http://www.venturerider.org/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=3878&title=first-gens-sbrake-line-delink-kit-21&cat=22 http://www.venturerider.org/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=3855&title=first-genmkii-vr-r1-caliper-swap-and-4-s-sbrake-lines-21&cat=22 http://www.venturerider.org/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=4401&title=second-gensteering-head-roller-bearing-upgrade-21&cat=22 This will give you a good idea of what parts you will need to do the upgrades mentioned. If you shop wisely, and have decent mechanical skills, you can purchase the parts from places like Ebay, or Craig's List and do the mods yourself. The above kits are meant to be guides to what parts need to be purchased. Especially for the MKI bikes, which are dangerously under braked in my opinion, this upgrade is well worth the time and money you will put into it. Welcome again, and don't be a stranger, there are a large number of members on the east coast that are more than willing to help you with this project. Earl

I have personally found that what is considered "close enough" by the average dealer, IS NOT close enough for my tastes! My Shim Kit is currently here at the moment, and I am willing to send it to anyone that is interested in trying to do this very important maintenance them selves. The kit comes with the bucket compression tool, a copy of the written instructions from the Yamaha Service Manual, a feeler gage set, a few picks to remove the shims, and 75+/- assorted bucket shims, PLUS a brand new set of Genuine Yamaha Valve Cover Gaskets! The loan of the kit is FREE, you will pay for the gasket set, and the shipping both ways. Feel free to PM me if anyone is interested. Earl

Hey Pete, Don't even bother worrying weather or not the fork tubes from the other years will fit! Swap out the entire front forks/triple tree from an MKII VR. (1986 to 1993) This will allow you to go to the 4 piston front calipers and larger front rotors, increasing your braking performance greatly. The steering head bearings/goose neck on the MKI and MKII bikes are the same. I have several MKII front ends with calipers and rotors. It would be my pleasure to help you with this project! Earl

Hey Don, I'm sure that ANY self respecting overweight monkey that was on a diet would not be offended. Earl

Hey Don, If we are talking about Big Tom, and Ice Cream, I always thought "Chunky Monkey" would be a good one!:crackup:I don't think there will be an issue with that name being already used! Oh Tom, "Who Loves Ya' Baby"! Earl

Hey Brad, Welcome to VR.ORG! Here is a check list I compiled a while back. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=65738 This is found in the First Gen. Tech. Section under "Known Problems". Check the stator for output at the connector on the left side of the bike behind the side cover. If the stator is good, CUT the connector out of the system, and hard wire the stator leads to the harness leads. If the stator is bad, replace. Use the check list to check out the rest of the bike. If the plastic is unbroken, then the mechanical/electrical items can be repaired. If the plastic is busted up, AND the stator is bad, this is a $400.00 bike. ALL of the plastic parts are no longer offered by Yamaha so used would be the only replacements. I do have a ton of good plastic, if that would help. I personally would offer no more than $600.00 for the bike if the plastic is good (stator is bad), and bump up to $800.00 as my limit. This would be a great project bike for $600.00 with good plastic. Happy hunting, Earl

Well G, I have seen more than one Yamaha Service Manager turn away a Valve Adjustment because of the potential of bustin' up a LOT of plastic parts to get to the Valve Covers on a Second Gen. I personally would NOT let a V4 Yamaha motor go 100,000 miles before a Valve Adjustment. The local Yamaha Dealer in my area just flat won't do that service. He sends you to the next dealership over, 50 miles away. Unless you adjust a LOT of valves, it would be hard for a dealer mechanic to make any REAL money for the dealership on adjusting valves. Besides that, if you burn a valve at 99000 miles, that dealer is going to make a boatload of labor money on the top end rebuild, and machine work it will require to repair that motor! Because the Valve Spring pulls the valve deeper into the cylinder head as time goes on, it's not a matter of "if" I will burn a valve, it's a matter of "when" will I burn a valve. In my opinion, this is the "perfect" job to be done by the motorcycle owner. You can take your time, be very careful removing the plastic, check and recheck the valves as many times as needed to be sure they are correct, all WITHOUT watching the clock! I can understand that there are some people that don't have the time, or don't have a place, or are not handy with tools. These are the people that keep dealerships running. I'm OK with these people, at least they know their limitations. But by all means, don't kid yourself into thinking that unadjusted valves, unsynced Carbs., underinflated tires, and unchanged oil and brake fluid are not signs of a neglected motorcycle. I personally don't brag about how many coats of wax I have on my bike, or the number of "safety chrome" do dads I have either. I do brag about the last time I changed the brake fluid, or my Final Drive Oil, or my fork oil....well you get the idea. Earl

Hey Beave, Without fuel pump pressure, and the fuel tank above the Carbs. the fuel "dribbles" down the fuel manifolds and is pulled into the front two Carbs. by the engine vacuum, leaving very little for the rear two Carbs. With FULL fuel pump pressure, ALL four Carbs. are supplied with fuel equally. MikeWA has brought up a very good point about the rear coils on these bikes as well. Mark, if you have a good used fuel pump, that would certainly remove any doubt about the fuel delivery system. With that variable removed, you could move on to the coils next. Earl

Hey Jeff, The answer to your question is a tuff call. Many Second Gen. owners, for what ever reason prefer to have a dealer do this type of maintenance on their motorcycles. It's not that they don't have the ability, it seems that they just don't have the time. Doing this maintenance procedure the first time could easily take an entire weekend! Not because of the measurement of the valve lash, but because of ALL of the plastic that will need to be removed to get to the valves. Basically, you would take the feeler gages that come in the loaner kit, measure the distance between the lobe of the camshaft and the top of the valve "bucket". It will be within the spec that Yamaha calls for or it will not. If the distance is too tight, (which is bad) then you would use the bucket compression tool to compress the valve bucket, and remove the old shim and install a thinner (or fatter shim) to bring the valve lash back into spec. The thing to remember about these bikes is usually, as these engines run for a while, the valve lash gets tighter because the valve spring pulls the valve deeper into the cylinder head. The valve bucket will reach a point where the cam lobe will not let the valve close completely, (loss of power) and then the cam will eventually bend the valve stem. (in extreme cases) Because I have the valve shim kit here at the shop, I check my valve lash yearly. (because there is very little cost to me, just time) This is the main reason I try to share the valve shim kit with as many members as I can. You save the labor cost of the adjustment, but more importantly, you learn how to remove the plastic from your bike, and work on your own motorcycle, which to me is as important as riding. Only YOU know if you have the patience and the amount of time it takes to do ANY maintenance on your motorcycle! I can only provide the tools and share my knowledge with you. But the bottom line is YOU HAVE TO DO THE WORK! If you are up to the challenge, and can overcome your fear of the unknown, then by all means contact me, and I will get you on the list for the valve shim kit. This post will either "scare" you into taking your bike to the dealer, or it will inspire you to pull your shoulders back, and hold your head up high and learn how to work on your own motorcycle. The choice is (as it always is) up to YOU! Earl

Hey Mark, I would suspect that the fuel pump is on it's way out. Do you ever have a hard starting issue. In other words, do you have to crank the engine for a while after it has been run and warmed up. The front two cylinders will run up to mid speed due to gravity feed from the gas tank, the back two cylinders will not run without the fuel pump. After you run the new plugs for about a week, pull them and look for the black, sooty, fouled pair, (usually in the back cylinder head) If this is the case, then your fuel pump diaphragm will keep the bike running at idle, but when fuel demand increases under load, (4th and 5th gear) the fuel pump can't keep up. Eventually the pump will fail completely, and the trouble shooting will be much simpler. Earl

Hey Clawed, Her are a few things I have discovered after working on a "few" of these bikes over the years. First and foremost, you must make sure that the rear caliper is not dragging the inboard pad on the rotor. There is nothing inside a motorcycle brake caliper that retracts the caliper pistons. Period. If brake pad dust and brake fluid have built up around the caliper pistons then the brake pad is going to rub the rotor, causing premature pad wear. Next, with the linked brakes on a First Gen. if the front left brake caliper is dragging, it will pressurize the left front/rear braking system controlled by the foot pedal and keep the rear caliper partially engaged. When you De-Link your braking system, you will remove this issue from the equation. Next, if you have the brake foot pedal adjusted to tight, when the rear Master Cylinder brake fluid expands because it is located right next to the rear exhaust manifold, it will increase the length of the fluid path and engage the rear brake caliper, causing a rear brake lock up. (or just cause the rear caliper to drag) The fix is to remove about 1/4 of the fluid from the rear Master Cylinder. I have had good luck installing the rear caliper without pads, and measuring from the caliper pistons, (fully compressed) to the inner and outer edge of the rotor and using shims, centered the caliper body on the rotor. Lastly, check the rear caliper for a gash that has been cut by the steel backing plate of the brake pads. This gash will not let the brake pad back off when the brake pads have been released. You see this quite a bit on the MKII First Gens. because the rear rotor on the MKII's is HUGE, and the rotational torque on the caliper body it tremendous. I have attached a pic to show you what to look for. For the MKII First Gen. owners, I now offer a 4 piston, progressive engagement rear caliper (just like the R1 front calipers) from a Yamaha FJR that is a direct, bolt on replacement for the stock MKII VR caliper that comes freshly rebuilt. If you have questions, or are interested in this upgraded caliper, please feel free to PM me. Earl

Hey Dingy, As I remember, we were discussing using Kevlar brake pads on the front of a VR, and I said that the heat transfered from the pads to the rotors would overheat the rotors on the front of the bike. I will say that after we talked about it, I did try quite a few experiments with the Kevlar pads on the REAR of the First and Second Gens. What I found was there is a LOT less "grabbing" of the brake pad when applying the rear brake, and because the rear brake is not generating the "lion's share" of the braking force during a stop, that the issue of too much rear brake, and the possibility of a rear wheel lock up is GREATLY reduced. I admit that Dingy planted the seed, but after some serious testing I STILL think that the Kevlar pads generate WAY too much heat for the First Gen. front rotors, and would shorten the life of the Second Gen. Rotors. Now, because Dingy has R1 rotors on his "Frankenstein VR/VMAX" I am sure the rotors will handle the extra heat just fine. The Stainless Steel that the R1 Rotors are made from are of a much higher quality that the rotors on a First or Second Gen. But for us "average guys" that have the stock First Gen. or Second Gen. rotors, I think the Kevlar pads are a GREAT improvement in the REAR Caliper, but the EBC HH pads are as aggressive as we can go on the front rotors without upgrading to a different heat range of rotor. Dingy, you are one of the smartest guys I know when it comes to the engineering side of these motorcycles! Even when we disagree on a subject I still have the utmost respect for you and your ideas. The only "rub" I have ever had with you is that you have taken your bikes to such a high level of modification that some of your suggestions work just fine on a highly modded bike, but for the average VR/RSV owner, sometimes they deliver less than acceptable results. In my opinion, you "set the bar" for performance and engineering on the First and Second Gens. on this forum. Your electrical/electronic knowledge is FAR beyond mine, and your ability to "graft" parts from many different bikes is legendary. I am, and will continue to be humbled in the presence of your machines, and look forward to your Modded Second Gen. this year at Freebird's Maint. Day, as I always am. The "Tweety" bike is a work of art. I am resigned to the fact that I will continue to offer "modest" upgrades for the First and Second Gens. and continue to help ANY VR.ORG member that I can with the upkeep of their motorcycles, with the "limited knowledge" I have to work with. To get back on topic, I keep the Kevlar Brake Pads in stock as well as the EBC HH Sintered Pads for the First and Second Gen. bikes, and I do believe that the use of the Kevlar Brake Pads is an Excellent choice for the REAR of the Second Gen. bike to reduce the "grabbing" issue these bikes have. It would be my pleasure to chat with anyone about the condition of their brakes, and the tested methods I use to overcome them. Please feel free to PM me. Now, if you want to put a Dodge Viper engine in your RSV, then Dingy is the guy to talk to! Earl

Hey Miles, I sent the shim kit early not to drive you into your sub-zero garage with a peg leg, and a parrot on your shoulder, but because I promised you that it would be there upon your return!:crackup:I too would have adjusted out the .001 tightness of the valves in your bike. I don't consider this "anal", I consider this doing the job right the first time. There is nothing worse than a "lazy" mechanic in my opinion. It seems like the dealerships are riddled with this type of mechanic, so this is why I do ALL of my own maintenance. I am glad you had the opportunity to take the ride that you did, and was able to make it home with no more injuries than you sustained. I am extending my offer of the loan of my shop shim kit to ANY of the VR.ORG members. As I am sure that Miles will attest to, you may be surprised just how many valves will be out of adjustment if you take the time to check them. This is an expensive service if done at the dealer, but with the use of the shim kit I offer, and the ability to "take your time" with the loaner shim kit, I believe you can attain excellent results (as good as ANY dealer would) with no more cost than the replacement Valve Cover Gaskets, and that "odd" shim that I do not have in the shim kit. Please feel free to Pm me if you are interested in the loaner shim kit. Welcome back Miles, You Sir are the "poster boy" for enjoying the open road on a motorcycle! I am green with envy as it is 8 degrees F here this morning in Pennsylvania, with snow on the ground, and more to come! Earl

Hey Ed, Thank You for the kind words about the Clutch Install. This is the time of the year when many of us are not able to ride for weather reasons. This makes it an excellent time to take care of maintenance issues that get overlooked when the weather is good, and you would rather be ridin' than wrenchin'. We had three inches of snow here in South Central Pennsylvania just yesterday. Come on SPRING! Thanks Again, and congrats on the install Ed, Earl