Jump to content

allwx

Expired Membership
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    287

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Everything posted by allwx

  1. allwx
    I've never heard of a factory-recommended 8k oil change interval on any motorcycle. Never heard of it on a car, either. Older bikes tended towards the 3k interval, and that has gradually risen over the years to 4k. But 8k? Never heard of it, 'til now. The interval on my 07 F150 is 5k. Interval on my 07 Venture is 4k. I rarely even go that far. Being that I'm old and have habits that are hard to break, I still tend towards the 3k interval on both vehicles, even though I use Mobil 1 in both. This is because of locale and driving styles. We live in the desert, which is dusty most of the time, far dustier than many other locales. Many vehicles have two maint schedules; one for "normal" driving, which the schedule will define, and one for "extreme" conditions. Short trips, extreme temps cold or hot, lots of rain, dust, city stop-and-go, etc, will combine to create an "extreme" set of driving conditions that demand a closer oil change interval, regardless of the quality of oil being used. A straight interval of x miles between changes without taking into consideration driving conditions, is not so good.
  2. allwx
    You're right, though. Nobody ever does this. I believe this is a perfect example of the manufacturer covering itself from product liability. Not that it would be a dumb thing to do from a purely safety point-of-view to actually replace the brake lines at such a close interval. It certainly couldn't hurt anything unless one of the new lines was defective. But it is unnecessary, so early. If the bike was over 10 years old, maybe. You'll notice other odd things in the maint schedule. Such as, IMO, the requirement to partially repack the steering head bearings at something like very 16k miles. Maybe not a bad idea to do this upon the first 16k, since the factory guys are chinsey on grease. I pulled mine apart at 22k miles. They were not heavily greased, but they were fine and would've been fine for a long time without any maint at all. Less grease is often more. But if the work wasn't done and documented, and there were a crash related to a steering failure, Yam could wonder if the maint had been done, and if not, it would be a lot harder to get money out of them in a lawsuit.
  3. allwx
    I'd try them both on the bike to see which one I liked the best. Then sell the other one. Or keep it as a spare.
  4. allwx
    It most likely is the original shock. Few owners replace the rear shock unless it starts leaking under warranty. At 36k and 13-some years, it just doesn't seem possible that the shock, leaking or not, could still have enough damping action left to give a safe ride. I know, some riders claim that their oem shocks at 80k are still working "fine." It is thought that if the bike isn't actually pogo-ing then the shock must be OK. I usually replace the shocks and struts on my F150 every 30k miles. The chassis doesn't pogo at all at 30k miles, but those new shocks sure do make the truck ride a lot more taut. Costs a lot, but it is in the realm of normal wear and tear maint.
  5. allwx
    I pulled the AIS off my 05 Roadstar. It solved the popping issue completely, had no discernable effect on how the bike ran. I put the AIS back on before I sold the bike. Because the AIS doesn't affect how the bike runs, apart from the annoying popping sounds, and because it has a beneficial result in emissions, I will leave it on the Venture. Besides, the Roadie was easy to deal with, plugging the ports at the heads, while it looks like the RSV is a bit more involved, and there probably isn't an easy way to go back if you need to.
  6. allwx
    You don't say how many miles you've got on that '99. Presumably quite a few. That would be 13-some years and quite a few miles. With that in mind, it would probably be best to buy a new shock. They are pricey, but if you shop around on the internets you can find one for less. I bought a new oem shock for my 07 for around $400 from a Yam dealer in Washington State. It will go on my bike in a few weeks when I spoon a new tire onto the rear wheel.
  7. allwx
    It most likely is just oil seeping out of the intake plenum that attaches to the tops of the carbs. Oil from the crankcase vent will accumulate there in quantities sufficient to drip onto the ground via the hose that is routed down behind the battery and can be seen near the sidestand. Some of the oil will inevitably seep out and get on the carbs, especially the left side because the bike parks leaned over onto that side. If this is the source of your oil, there is no concern, except the little mess.
  8. allwx
    Not on a Royal but I've had EBC rotors on another bike, a sport tourer. I had no problems with them at all. Take a look at oem, though, I don't think they're all that much more expensive if you shop them online, and they almost surely are better-made. I went back to Yam oem brake pads when I saw them sitting side-by-side with some EBC. Not that EBC are bad (though I have had some fitment probs with them, such as they rattling like crazy in the front calipers of my 05 Roadstar, now gone), but the Yam oem pads just plain look like they're made better, and really don't cost much more. And they will definitely fit perfectly.
  9. allwx
    mine were broken by the time I first split the faring, which was no more than a month after I bought the bike new in 2007. Heck, they might've been broken at the factory. Somebody wrote an article about a reinforcement using common hardware strapping and using one of the speaker attachment nuts to hold it in place. This repair I did, like I say, about a month after I got the bike, couldn't have had more than a couple thousand miles on it. It has held very well and keeps the faring pretty solid. I like the idea of the plastic ties, though. They'll probably get the job done perfectly without all the installation foofaraw, and if they're big enough will hold a long time.
  10. allwx
    The cold probably made the rubber harden and shrink. Get ready to be surprised at how much those little plugs cost. 'Round $10 ea at the dealer. These plugs eventually leak, no matter what. I tend to replace them whenever I change coolant. The leaks are never more than a small dribble, usually most noticeable under a cooled bike. You could live with it forever, but it is annoying.
  11. allwx
    Dana, how many miles you got on that clutch before it started slipping? Do you pull a lot of weight (two-up riding, pulling a trailer, etc)? Thanks for the info. Patrick in Albuquerque
  12. allwx
    It is embarrassing; we've all done worse, but few are willing to admit their mistakes to the world. I'd just like to thank you for doing so, and giving me a chance to learn something valuable, like that part about the magnetic interference with the alternator cover.
  13. allwx
    Or how 'bout this: http://powersports.honda.com/2012/vfr1200f.aspx
  14. allwx
    Riding style probably has a lot to do with it. "Conventional wisdom" with these RSTD/RSV drivetrains is that because A) this is a short-stroke, high-revving motor, engine rpm must be kept to the high side in order to achieve efficiency, and B) because 4th and 5th gears are overdrive, it is necessary to keep the bike in a lower rather than higher gear than might ordinarily be considered wise in other motorcycles for everyday traffic riding. Going back to my 97 RSTD, which could barely pull itself down a straight line highway into a headwind in 5th gear, I got into the habit of riding around in 3d and 4th all the time. The only time I could ever feel good about 5th gear was downhill with a tailwind. The old RSTD with the coffe-can-size airbox was a slug. They're better now, with a much improved horsepower curve. It is no longer necessary to avoid 5th gear. The bike will ride just like any other normal machine, meaning it will pull fine in higher gears at lower speeds. Once I started riding my RSV with traffic, staying to legal speeds, keeping the bike in higher gears and keeping a light hand on the throttle, my mileage jumped up to the mid-forties. So, I'll bet riding style is the more significant factor when it comes to fuel mileage.
  15. allwx
    Because the pump wasn't completely dead. It was intermittent. It might've gone on that way for weeks or months. The dealer shop might've replaced the pump under warranty, taking my word on it, since these intermittent things never break down when you take them in to the shop. But most likely I'd have had to do a song and dance over several days, that would have left me po'd and the bike running poorly. This dealer shop is about as good as any, and the people there are helpful. But I've done all my own work. I don't bring the bike in for oil changes, or other maintenance. I don't buy accessories. Months go by without my darkening their door. I don't expect favors. If I had a long established pattern of them doing all the work on this bike, I would feel better about asking the shop manager to just take my word the pump is dying, and let me trade the old one for a new one, and he probably would. But there is also a practical calculation that makes sense to me: The chinese pump only cost $45 (compared to the Yam pump around $250). The chinese pump will probably last only a few months, maybe a couple of years. But unlike the Yam pump I can get a new $45 pump in any town in the USA off the shelf. I've already re-plumbed for the new pump, so a replacement in a faraway city isn't much of a problem, while the Yam pump could leave me sitting in a motel for a week or more.
  16. allwx
    It's an 07 with just under 27k miles on the clock. This is really the first out and out failure I've had with this bike. This would've been the first warranty claim, but I didn't bother Yam with it.
  17. allwx
    You bet! And all thanks go to Venturerider.org and the great people here who are so helpful. Patrick
  18. allwx
    Well, this isn't a definitive test, but after a 30 mile test ride I unplugged the electric to the pump and cranked the motor. It ran perfectly for much longer than it would've taken for the fuel in the lines and bowls to be cleared out. That tells me the pump will flow fuel even when turned off or dead, probably as long as the tank is full enough to have enough push to get it past the filter and pump. I suppose the definitive test would be to unplug the pump, remove the outflow line and see how fuel flows with the petcock open, full tank of course. If this is true, then about all the pump really is doing is letting you get the last couple of gallons out of the tank, and maybe insure a consistent pressure in the line to the carbs no matter what the tank level is. The Yam pump is probably superior in this regard. But the price of that thing! Plus, I like the idea of having a pump that can be replaced easily out on the road, that I can find in a local auto parts store. Can't do that with the Yam pump, at any price.
  19. allwx
    well not dead, just intermittent. I'd noticed the motor getting a little balky on cold starts. Then it would not run at all unless I rapped on the pump body with a tool, and the plastic end of the pump was getting piping hot. I bypassed the pump and approached the dealer shop guy about the warranty. He said I'd have to bring the bike in and leave it. I rarely do anything like that! Then I remembered seeing an article here about the Mr. Gasket 42S. Thanks to all who contributed to that information. I got the 42S installed pretty easily, and as far as I can tell it pumps fine. I notice it passes fuel even when it is unplugged. That means I'll have to get used to using the petcock. Thanks again to all who took the time to post info and photos. What a treasure this board is!
  20. allwx
    I did this to my carbs following Goose's excellent instructions, about three years ago, soon after I bought my 07. I live at high elevation, above 5k feet, and most of my riding is between there and around 10k feet. Because of this, I figured it would help me more than some others to lean out the mixture this way. As Goose says, I noticed no difference in the way the bike runs. But my average mpg went from 35-37 to 40. For three years I kept precise records of fuel use, so I'm very sure that my fuel efficiency improved by that much. If I ride the bike at legal speeds at all times, keep it in higher rather than lower gears, never lug it by rolling on throttle too fast for what the motor can deliver, then I get a consistent 43 mpg on regular gas. That is warm weather riding, in winter it drops a bit.
  21. allwx
    Personally, I wouldn't do anything. You may end up having to split the cases some day down the road, for maybe a tranny repair, and could fix it then. I don't recall you saying the amount of oil coming out was more than a few drops here and there. As long as it isn't making a big mess, and isn't showing up as consumption, and isn't maybe getting onto your rear tire and brake, this is WAY too small a prob to justify all that work. Patrick
  22. allwx
    Even small oil leaks suck, but if it is only a few drops here and there, personally I wouldn't do anything sudden. Just keep looking for it, and eventually it will show itself.
  23. allwx
    I like having the petcock reminder, but it always seems to crap out at an awkward time. Middle of a turn in city traffic. Trying to beat a Harley up a hill. So I leave mine on reserve all the time. In olden times we always turned off the petcock when getting off the bike. It was as automatic as putting the sidestand down. My 71 BMW R60 had two petcocks, one on each side for each carb. The petcocks always leaked enough to keep both hands smelling of fuel. They said it was necessary to turn them off because the needle valve in the carb could stick open allowing fuel to overflow onto the floor causing a fire hazard. I believe the manufacturers still instruct us to turn the petcocks off when idle, but I don't do it anymore, and don't see anybody else doing it, either. BTW there was a problem on the Roadstars with failing in-take sending units for fuel guages. I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same identical unit on the Ventures.
  24. allwx
    I had my carbs out and disassembled for cleaning this past June. All four diaphrams looked identical to me, this at 22k miles or so. The bike has done a fair amount of sitting over the past year and a half while my wife was having cancer. During that time it only got about 2k miles put on it, ridden sporadically, and for shorter distances. Sometimes it would sit for a month or so without so much as getting started up. So, not sure if that indicates anything with regard to sitting spells causing deformation of the diaphrams. Either way, I don't recall any differences among the four carbs.
  25. allwx
    I don't know about those part numbers, as i've never used Yamalube gear oil. However, anything any person at a dealership says to me is always suspect. You are wise to do your own research. Most people use Mobil 1 Gear Oil in these finals. I've never heard of a problem. It probably is overkill to use a high priced synth oil in the final. Most people change this oil out every few thousand miles, because it is so easy to do. Under the frequent-change rule, you could save a few $ over time not using the high-priced spread. OTOH, nothing is too good for baby.
×
×
  • Create New...