darthandy

Yep, same is true here in Ontario. No blue lights except on police vehicles, plows, sanders and other winter snow maintenance equipment. Although they will usually just give you a warning ... the first time! This guy must have been in a bad mood. Andy

Actually, the variance in most motorcycle speedos can be anywhere from completely accurate to 10% off. My RSV is off by 8% according to my GPS while my Triumph is off by 6%. My buddy's Harley is dead on accurate but zero is always zero when you're not moving. :rotf::rotf: As far as not importing the RSV - well, it's no longer being produced so it would be very difficult to import it. Or did they stop prior to this year? Andy

And to answer your original question, yes - the mufflers could cause the "flat spot". The effect, as with freer breathing air filters, is to cause the bike to run lean. When you crack open the throttle with freer flowing filters, the intake system pulls in too much air for the amount of gas the jets can provide and there is a momentary hesitation till the amount of gas provided catches up to the amount of air being pulled in. With freer flowing mufflers, part of the intake charge can get pulled out of the cylinder as the exhaust gases leave more quickly than with stock mufflers, again causing a lean condition. It does, however, take very free flowing mufflers to cause this unless the bike was already running lean from the factory or the jets have become partly plugged for some reason. I would start by running a full tank of gas through the system, with at least a half a can of Sea Foam added to the fuel. If the jets are only partially plugged, this could clean them up enough to get the bike running properly again. If doing this helps alleviate the problem, then run another tankful with Sea Foam through the system to see if you can get more improvement. If this has no effect, check to see if your mufflers can accept some "packing" or baffles to reduce the exhaust flow through them. If this helps, then you'll have to look at either keeping tha "blockage" in place or re-jetting your carbs to compensate for the greater amount of air flowing into the system. Andy

I agree with Dan. Before taking things off and apart, try running a can or two of Seafoam through it. It is one of the additives that actually work! The cost is low and if it doesn't do the job, you can still clean the carbs but if the idle jets are not completely blocked, then the Seafoam should clean out the deposits. Andy

It took a minute before the video showed up. Something about the way the page loads up I guess. I scrolled down to see if it was at the bottom and when I scrolled back up, it was there. Andy

The odd sized friction disc (The last disc in the pack) can be replaced with a full size disc after it and it's retaining wire have been removed. It is simply a "half size" disc (which is why they needed the wire to hold it in proper alignment.). No idea why Yamaha chose to make the last disc a half size one, but replacing it with a full disc certainly won't hurt. When I replaced my clutch spring with Skydoc17's kit last year, I also ordered the remaining friction discs (The kit came with a PCW spring and a full disc to replace the half size one) so that the clutch pack would all be new. The clutch action was much smoother and more controllable than stock. You should find the same with the Barnett kit. Just make sure the notches all line up as per instructions and use the proper torque when closing it all up. Just to make thing clear: You won't need the wire if you are replacing the half size disc with a full size disc. And I would recommend replacing that half size. Andy

I believe this is the post you are looking for. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69932&highlight=install+barnett+clutch Andy

Mr. Girard was a member of our local GWRRA chapter. He was a great guy and a good member and will be missed. What is even more tragic is that his wife also died in a motorcycle accident some years ago. Perhaps an IQ test should be made mandatory for obtaining a drivers licence. At least we would know that the person is capable of logical thought (Knowing, of course, that there is no guarantee they actually will think.). Andy

No doubt about it here as well! Andy

Since we are becoming the minority these days (Intelligent, open minded people) maybe "they" (the "powers that be") should be politically correct and do what makes us happy and comfortable. After all, aren't these morons where they are because of us? Andy

All right! Who has been slipping these into the cafeteria meals at our various seats of government. Now I know why they all screw things up regardless of where they live. I almost feel sorry for them ... but I would still like to see some of them put out of my ...err, their misery. Andy

Now surely some of you know that the video was from a Canadian Tire commercial selling, yes - what else - snow tires? Right? And you may not need them in B.C. but those of us here in the Niagara Peninsula are looking at 10 - 15 centimeters of the white stuff tomorrow. And that will add to the many feet we've already had so far this year. Man, I can hardly wait for spring!!! Andy

Before buying a new battery, check your cable connection at the battery. Mine was doing that last year and it turned out that the cable had come loose at the battery terminal. That will have the same effect as the battery slowly going South. And it doesn't cost anything to check! Such a deal!! Andy

I'm so sorry to hear that. And I'm glad help got there so quickly. You and Jean will be in our thoughts and we know she will get better! Andy

You forgot to mention something. That bike was part of the "Bike Pull" display (Like a tractor pull but with motorcycles.) Someone had waaaayyyy too much time on their hands! Andy

It was fun talking to you as well. I may get up your way in the spring for at least one of our rides. Andy

Yeah so did I. I think it was the same guy. Andy

Yes, it is $20.00 per day. Here's a link to their site. Check the black boxes on the left. The fourth one down lets you download a $3.00 off coupon good all day Friday or from 5 pm to 10 pm on Saturday. http://www.motorcyclesupershow.ca/admissions.html On the banner at the top of their site, they call it the World's (Not just North America's) Largest Motorcycle Show. Then, under "Show Info", they say that it is North America's largest retail show for motorcycle enthusiasts and they also say that it is the largest show of its kind. I guess this means that it is a pretty big show. Certainly has seemed like it to me when I have tried to see everything in one day! I'll be at the GWRRA booth this year on Friday from 2 to 6 doing a shift for the club. Drop by and say Hi. Andy

It's always nice to start a new year with a good chuckle and this certainly gave me one! Andy

Happy New Year to you and yours! Hope 2014 is a great year for you! And thanks for all the great products and help!

Sorry for your loss. Very nice tribute. Andy

Damn! I knew I forgot something! Oh well, I guess I'll have to set up the winch and flip the bike upside down to drain it through the fill hole since that's the only way to properly correct this problem. Thanks for the reminder. Now in all seriousness, I appreciate the info guys. I checked in the manual and it says 4.3 L. for a completely drained system (As in taking apart the motor) or 3.7 L with a filter change and 3.5 L. without a filter change. By the way Jeff, I did have the bike level to do the change and the level check. Since I have a garage (Sure are useful, aren't they?) I put the bike near the centre and use ratcheting straps attached to hooks screwed into the upright 2X4's in the walls (No drywall here!) and hooked to the passenger grab rails to bring the bike to vertical. I have to run the rear wheel onto a 2X10 to get adequate clearance for my tall drain pan, but since my garage floor has a pretty good slope to it, the bike wings up pretty vertical (I also have a 3/4 in. board under the front wheel.). Yes Dave, I mentioned in the original post that I did run the engine afterwards, but thanks for the reminder. So, from the sound of the replies, it looks like a normal situation for our bikes. Of course, now I may be looking at some overflow since it's filled past the halfway mark. Oh well ... keeps the rust away. Thanks again for the prompt replies guys. Andy

I noticed this at a previous oil change on my RSV but got too busy to follow up. Now I just completed my "pre-storage" oil and filter change for the winter (Yeah, I'm a little late this year.) and it's happened again. I drained the oil (With the filler cap off) and let it drip for 15 to 20 minutes. I then replaced the drain plug and removed the filter and let that opening drip for a while. I then filled the motor with oil and got the level to about the 3/4 level between the marks with just 3 liters. According to the book, the engine should take 3.7 L. - so what's happening? Could there be that much crud in the crank case? The previous owner had been quite good about doing regular oil changes and so have I. The bike only had 71,000 KM on it when I bought it and has 103,000 KM now. I know I should keep the level to about the halfway mark to avoid overflow but I figured I was OK with 3 L. and then I'd pour more in slowly. Oh yes - I ran the engine for a minute or two after filling just to be sure that oil went into the filter. It registered about halfway for a few seconds after switching off then filled to the 3/4 mark. Ideas? Andy

Oops!! Kind of missed that. My bad! Andy

Not meaning to be picky and I'm certainly not belittling the immense contribution of the U.S. of A. in helping to win that war, but it was 6 years long not 3 1/2. That last number represents the number of years the U.S. was involved - officially anyway. There were U.S. citizens fighting with the allies not long after the war started in Sept. 1939 with the invasion of Poland and the generally accepted date for the end of the war is Sept. 1945, although various countries have set it somewhere between May and Sept. 1945 for their own reasons. Let's hope we never have to see the likes of that war again - especially with today's rather nasty weapons. Now here's some neat trivia for you. Although the main "Axis" powers, Japan and Germany, surrendered in 1945, a Treaty of Peace was not signed with Japan until 1951 and with Germany, the Treaty of Peace was not signed till 1990!! I think this means that, in theory, we were still at war with those countries even though they had surrendered. Interesting, don't you think? Andy