slipstreamer

Gary and Jeff, my heart aches for you and your terrible loss, how tragic. May the Good Lord help you through this difficult time and may He bless Leslie richly in His paradise. Cliff

Popeye, at one point, I read an item here that listed reasons for backfiring. I can't recall them but let's both do a search and get back here with the link if we find it. Thanks for your input. i think i still want to do my carbs just for the experience though.

Thanks Squeeze and MBrood. I will embark on this adventure with a whole lot of trepidation with full knowledge that it aint rocket science. However, less complicated things have been challenging to me. We'll see. Maybe I need to buy a set of carbs just to experiment with

OK Squeeze, I am convinced. I will give it a go but it may be a week or so until I get around to starting. Thanks for your help but, as Arnold says, I have not doubt that "I'll be back".

They had them at Americade this year. For my money I would be better off buying a small convertible car. I found it awkward to get in and out of but that may just be me.

If you're mechanically inclined a bit, it's more a Question of Wrench Time and some Money for good Chemistry, but overall it's the best to get it done once and have more Fun with the Bike later. Thanks again Squeeze. I have never worked on carbs before, is this the kind of thing a novice should be taking on . I read that link by MBrood that you provided and I guess it all sounds easy to those who already know this stuff but, a lot of the terminology presumes some knowledge that I don't have. Seems like quite a challenge. Which parts would one take to a shop to be ultrasonically cleaned : I am assuming that would be just the carb bodies.

Geeze Jim you did it up good. The good news is that you are still here to tell us about it. I hope all of that heals up like new with no after effects. I also hope that young lady was adequately insured so you can be properly compensated for the immediate and life-long after effects of this accident if any. I just finished taking a year to heal up from my last roll on the asphalt. I hope you come around quicker than that.

"The instructions in Tech are great so I don't think I need help there" I have to do this too, where do we find these instructions? Thanks

Thanks squeeze. The plugs are new a few weeks ago. By clean the carbs complete and "briefly" what do you mean? Do you mean carbs off, dismantled and soaked in carb cleaner and all the little ports cleaned out? I have never done that before and I am told it is pretty complicated. Is there a step by step instruction somewhere to do that?

My bike has been doing a lot of backfiring on deceleration but has been running like a deer on the highway. Yesterday I went for a four hour ride and it even started stalling before I got stopped at the lights so I had to keep the revs up just to keep it going. I have not got a clue where to begin but I guess I should be starting with the diaphragms and carb slides. I am also thinking that plug wires and plug caps should be replaced: The plugs are new. Any particular type or brand recommended? I see some on e-bay on a pretty regular basis. Any clues would be helpful and appreciated. I am sure this has been discussed before so a link might be helpful too. I suppose a valve adjustment and carb synch would also be in order.

I had a Denray hitch on my 93. They are really a tough hitch. When I went down in Montana in 2001, while towing my camper, the bike and trailer thrashed around all over the place including the camper and the bike going upside down. The cup on the trailer bent but the Denray hitch never budged and stayed completely intact. I don't know how they attach to the 83 - 85 ventures but, they attached to the saddlebag frames of the 86 - 93 with "u" bolts. The principle behind the design is that the more you pull on it the tighter the install gets. I liked mine and it was a simple install although I had mine installed at their factory in Quebec.

You are welcome Carl, thanks for your helpful phone call, you put me on the right track vis a vis the air collars and the wire circlips. I was absolutely certain I had bumped those air collars over the wire circlips when I uninstalled them but I now know that was just a figment of my imagination. First time I have ever been wrong

OK guys, I am done. This has been an interesting learning experience. I went for a 150 Km ride yesterday and all works perfectly thanks to all of your help. So, here are some of the things that I did and learned in the process: I figured out a way to set the air collars firmly against the wire circlip on the upper/inner fork. First I secured the bike so it could not fall over. I did this with ratchet tie downs hooked to the rear crash guards and to the rafters in my garage, one on each side. Then, with the bike on the centre stand I jacked it up, using a car jack under the motor, just high enough to get two pieces of 2 X 4 under the front wheel. Then, I released the pressure in the jack with a quick twist so the bike came down quick and voila, collars set. Tightened the upper pinch bolts then removed the 2 X 4s from under the front wheel. The CLASS works and holds pressure. I also had a tool made by a local tool and dye maker to hold the damper still while I tightened the bolts at the bottom of the forks. First I went to NAPA with my damper and bought a nut that fit, turns out to be 5/8. I then had the T&D guy use a piece of solid round stock to make the handle and attach the nut to the end which he did by turning the end of the stock rod to the exact dimension of the inside diameter of the thread on the nut. He then banged the nut on with a hammer and spot welded it and then the handle at the other end. Perfect tool, 25 inches long. Cost $20. Worth every penny. One of the previous owners of my bike had removed the stock caps that go into the top of the inner fork just before the cap bolts, at the top of the forks, and replaced them with slightly longer pieces of ABS. Presumably this was done to make the ride firmer. Those ABS pieces were about the same diameter as the guide that they sit on and were consequently awkward to work with when putting the cap bolts back in. So, I had my T&D friend manufacture two replacement caps out of round aluminum stock. They are about 1 1/4 inches long and he milled a recess about 1/8 in deep in one end to accomodate the guide. He also bored out the middle to make the pieces ligher but not through to the other end. The diameter of these pieces is just a bit smaller than the inside diameter of the fork tubes. Cost $15: I gave him $20. They work perfectly and I was able to install the cap bolts with ease. While I could have used lacquer thinner to clean up the brake pads, after they got soaked with fork oil, I chose to replace them. The biggest lesson I learned while doing this project is that it took some two handed pounding with a piece of 1 1/4 inch ABS pipe slid over the inner fork tube to seat the seals deep enough to install the circlips. If you do this make sure that the ABS is chamfered on the inside edges and that it is cut squarely at both ends so that the fork tubes do not get scratched and the seals are set squarely in place. I would not have believed I had to pound so hard but I did it under the guidance and supervision of a motorcycle mechanic who makes his living repairing any and all MCs but has done hundreds of Ventures. Removing the handle bars, to get access to the fork cap bolts, also required some heavy pounding using a special tool that my motorcycle wrench had just for that purpose. This tool consisted of a 30 mm socket welded to a solid piece of steel which he fitted over the hex nut that holds the handle bars in place and which he pounded vigorously to loosen those nuts. Even then, it took some determined effort to remove those two nuts. Why those nuts were put on so tightly I will never know. What would I do different? I would not remove the fairing and I would leave the anti-dive mechanisms in place. I will be keeping a close eye on the anti-dives on my first couple of rides: Hopefully they won't leak oil on my new brake pads. I would also leave my impact wrench in its box. I was able to do the job quite nicely with manual tools. I only say this because I have not had much experience with an impact wrench. Others here are quite comfortable using them. I will also always remove the upper forks: It just makes things a whole lot easier. No big deal. Just bump the air collars off the top and remove the wire circlip. The uppers and lowers come apart easily and the damper slides out of the top of the inner fork when you turn it upside down. Nuther lesson learned: read the label on the fork oil that you buy. I picked up a litre of 5W fork oil thinking I had 10W. I had the container opened before I discovered the mistake. Duh! Anybody want a litre of 5W fork oil ? LOL My expereinced local MC wrench advised me that it was not necessary to always replace the bushings and dust caps although the manual recommends it. He examined mine and said they are good as new. Another tip: The manual says to put tape over the circlip groove on the inner fork. My wrench advised me to just make sure you slide the seals diagonally over the circlip groove so the whole seal lip does not get caught in it. The spindle cups that cover the three wave washers at the bottom of the damper were stuck firmly in the bottom of the lower forks. I had removed the anti-dive units so, I could see the lips of the cups through one of the anti-dive ports. I was able to dislodge the cups using a screwdriver as a pry. However, I protected the edge of the anti-dive port with a slim piece of plexi glass, about 1/4 inch wide, inserted behind the screwdriver shaft. Wood did not work, it just got crushed. Nuff for now. Thanks again for all your help guys http://www.venturers.org/Forum/images/smiles/grinning-smiley-003.gif FWIW

Thanks Paul After everything is tightened up on the forks except the triple tree bolts (still a little loose), Does this mean that the pinch bolts are tight enough to hold the forks from sliding out of the triple tree but loose enough to allow them to put pressure on the air collar front wheel is mounted to the forks & on the ground. I normally climb on the bike, while it is on the center stand, stand on the footpegs & gently rock my weight back & forth a few times. I am assuming this means not enough to set the bike on its back wheel each time you rock backward This helps get the air collars & top triple tree seated evenly on those circlips, before torquing down the fork tube retention bolts.

Thanks Rocket . I have received the same answer from Willy Burke (JoeCanuck) by e-mail and Carl (MarkCarl) by phone. I had been of the impression that the air collar had to slide over the circlip and I have been trying to make it so. Your posting has helped immensely. I hope I have not damaged the O rings by trying to force the collars down. I am working on my 84 and it has that alignment notch that you are talking about too. I wonder what purpose that serves? When I first got the forks back together with the front wheel on I took the support out from underneath the bike (and the tie-down straps from the garage rafters) and let the bike settle onto the front wheel. Upon doing that, there was a hissing of air coming from the left air collar and oil had seeped out from the bottom of it. I will force the forks up and see if I can't make the connection tighter. Willy says to put weight on the front forks to achieve this but I am not quite sure how to do that

OK, I am reassembling and can not get the air collars to go over the circlip. I have tried WD 40 and they will still not slide over the circlip. What is the trick here Sure would like to ride this weekend. Thanks guys.

See my comments in blue below:

Thanks again Jeremy. I have resolved to not use the impact wrench and, even though the manual says to use locktite, I think I will forego that too. But, a new issue. Both of the taper spindles that are supposed to keep those three washers in place at the bottom of the damper seem to be missing. But, I think I can see them sitting at the bottom of the lower fork casing: Or are those the cups that the taper spindles sit in . The lower forks came off quite easily but the dampers remained securely in the upper fork tubes. I am guessing that this is because the process called for removing the lower fork bolts too soon. I could put the lower forks back on and pull the dampers out but, the question is, is that necessary I think I can put new seals in and get on with it since there are no parts to replace on the damper. On the subject of putting the new seals in: I tried moving the existing seals down the upper fork to see how easy they would come off that way. I find that there is a rough surface there and a couple of what appear to be fixed bushings that could damage a new seal. So, it looks to me like removing the upper fork and sliding the new seals on from the top end is the most adviseable way to go. Any thoughts on this I think I have discovered that I already have progressive springs. They are 18 inches long with the top 6 inches having about 4 coils per inch and the bottom 12 inches having about 2 coils per inch. There is also a 1 inch plastic spacer at the top. Can anyone confirm my suspicions I plan on using gasoline to clean out the fork tubes. should I be using something else like varsol maybe

Don't ever torque a bolt with in impact! Besides, if you spin the damper rod at impact speeds, I think it will wear off some fresh aluminum from the fork slider inside your newly cleaned forks. Are you suggesting that an impact wrench should not be used to reassemble the forks? I probably would have done that so it is important to get some views on this question before I do. I don't want to screw anything else up. Anyone else have a different slant on using impact wrenches for this job? Are the damper rod bolts special, so that you can't use standard bolts from the HW store? Not sure about that. I think standard bolts of this type have longer heads on them and deeper sockets. I don't know if they would clear the axle. The heads on the originals are probably shorter for a reason. However, that is a moot point since I have ordered some from Yamaha. Should be here by Friday. One more thing. On my 87 I was able to remove the complete fork assys without removing the fairing. All the pinch bolts are accessible. Not easily, but accessible... Yeah, I'm sure it can be done, others have said the same. I just could not get my alan wrench in there so I took it all off. I don't mind the extra work. Besides, I identified some wires that had the insulation rubbed off of them in the process. So, I can repair that while I have it open. I guess it doesn't hurt to have a peek at the guts every now and then. Thanks for your input Jeremy BTW, There was no locktite on these bolts. From that, I would assume that locktite is not necessary in this application since these bolts were in there solidly and have been for many years???

Good news: I got that pesky bolt out. It actually came out quite easily with a standard 1/2 inch ratchet wrench. This means I don't have to remove the air collars: More good news. It is amazing what the right size socket will do!! However, due to the rounding in the alan head socket, caused by using the wrong socket wrench, the socket sticks in the head when torqued. So, I will have to wait for new bolts to arrive from yamaha to get the job done. I don't know why the impact wrench is recommended for taking the bolts out given that they are only torqued to 29 lbs. However, I can understand using the impact wrench to put the bolts back in. I figure it might catch in the damper without the damper being held in place by a special tool because it will spin the bolt probably faster than the damper will spin inside. Does that compute for you? In the meantime, when I take the bolts out of the top of the forks how much pressure do I have to put on the wrench to prevent springs and things from flying all over the garage floor?

Thanks for all of your help guys, all good stuff, I should be able to gitterdone now. Just for all of your information I goofed. While I thought I had installed a 10 mm alan socket in my impact wrench I had in fact installed a 3/8 socket which caused it to wedge in the bolt head on one and possibly strip the other one which is where my grief comes from. Moral: Put your tools back in their proper place so that when you reach for one you get the right one. I have gone the route of completely removing the forks from the bike (uppers and lowers) which required the extra steps of removing the fairing and knocking the air pressure collars off of the top of each fork. All because I made a dumb mistake. This is what we call experience from which wisdom is supposed to come. Cheers,

Thanks for all of your help guys, all good stuff, I should be able to gitter done now. Just for all of your information I goofed. While I thought I had installed a 10 mm alan socket in my impact wrench I had in fact installed a 3/8 socket which caused it to wedge in the bolt head on one and possibly strip the other one which is where my grief comes from. Moral: Put your tools back in their proper place so that when you reach for a tool you get the right one. I have gone the route of completely removing the forks from the bike (uppers and lowers) which required the extra steps of removing the fairing and knocking the air pressure collars off of the top of each fork. All because I made a dumb mistake. This is what we call experience from which wisdom is supposed to come. I will let you know how the extraction of the damaged bolt goes. Cheers,

I am thinking that there is great potential here for me to make things worse than they are. So, I am going to put it all back together and take it to my local wrench to get the bolt out. I will take your idea and suggest it to him. It will be interesting to see how he does it. I guess the big question is, where do I get replacement bolts in a hurry? Thanks for the tip Sqeeze

Well now I'm in a real pickle. The bolt on the bottom of the right front fork is stripped. I used a 10 mm socket on my impact wrench as prescribed. The left front bolt came out OK but the bolt got stuck on the bit and I had to tap it off with a hammer and cold chisel. when I had a closer look I can see that the socket wiggles a little bit in the Alan bolt heat. From that I am assuming that the 10 mm Alan socket is slightly to small for the job. The Yamaha special tool must be a 10.5 mm or maybe even 11 mm. Anyway that is why the right front is stripped now. What does one do to get that bolt out?

Besides, the only other transmission ratios available would be those from a 1st gen, where 1st gear is about the same, but high gear is quite a bit lower, and then you'd buy yourself into a 2nd gear slipping problem besides. That is only true if you use an 83 -84 transmission. I believe that the second gear problem was resolved with the 85 Venture. So, if the first gen transmission would be a better fix, and I am no gear-head, then, I would say go for it but using an 86 - 93 transmission. The thing I love about the first gens is that you can lug them all day long and don't need to be constantly down shifting to keep the rpms up as you do in the second gens. That is what I found both annoying and disappointing about the second gen when I demo-rode them a few years back.