darthandy

The link won't work for me. I keep getting a "Page not fund" message. Andy

:sleigh: Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year as well. Andy

Hey! Hey! Great to hear. Congratulations and a Merry Christmas! Andy

So sorry to hear your news. You will all be in our thoughts. Andy

What a shame! I saw a televised news story about this earlier this evening. It seems the driver was in fact a professional racer. Mr. Walker had just dropped by the guy's shop after a charity event (Before going onto another charity event) and his friend said "Let's go for a ride!". They were dead less than an hour later. Police say speed was a factor. Andy

I assume you mean one of his old "specials" since he passed on in 1995. Andy

Don't feel too bad! We got nailed by one in September of last year and the repair cost was $8,238! Andy

What happens when Honda designs a new Venture! Andy

Good luck Larry and I hope everything goes well! I wanted to come up with a good pun or joke but all the really nauseous stuff has been used! Andy

Those bars (As are most such bars) are meant to reduce or prevent cosmetic damage to the bike should it fall over when stopped or at parking lot speeds. They really aren't there to protect the rider as most of them really aren't strong enough or well braced enough to give much crash protection (Which is why you'll never see them called "crash bars" by the manufacturers!). Those that are longer could conceivably bend back in a crash and trap the rider's legs and worsen any damage. That said, those on the Ventures and the RSTD's can be strengthened so that they don't bend back so easily in the event of a low speed tip over (Don't ask how I know!!). Check here: http://www.venturerider.org/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=3725&title=carbon-one-crash-bar-braces&cat=24 Andy

Here's a shot from an old Cycle World issue from the 80's. I guess if you really want a trike and haven't got the money you just do what you can with your Wing! Andy

It seems that our best bet for getting an up to date touring bike with a model name from Yamaha on it would be to buy a Goldwing and glue a "Venture" nameplate on it. Does Yamaha really care about touring riders anymore? Andy

Great video! Someone was thinking right! Andy

Good idea except that they want to sell a fork, not take it apart to sell pieces. I have to find one that has a wrecked fork and that they'll let take it apart. Andy

Whoever rebuilt the fork on my '87 Royale prior to me left off the rebound spring on one of the damping rods. The Yamaha dealer says they are no longer available. Anyone know of another model or make that has a spring that could be used as a replacement? Andy

Finally went back to work on that '87 Royale sitting in my garage. As I prepared to assemble the left fork leg, I discovered that there is no rebound spring for the damper rod. Checked with the dealer and he says they are no longer available and besides, I would have to buy the damper rod and spring for $229!!! So ... does anyone know if the rebound spring from another bike can be substituted? Was it a Yamaha Venture only part or can I use something else. Thanks, Andy

Nah. At least the Victory looks good! This seems to be another addition to their "scooter look" line of bikes. Andy

Sorry to hear about your accident and I'm glad it wasn't worse. For what it's worth, when we ride in a group (And that means even just two bikes.) The first bike always includes a hand signal with the lights. Gets the other bikes attention real quick. We also ensure that everyone follows the 2 second / 1 second rule for bikes in the stagger. that helps too. Andy

Don't feel bad. The service manual gives me a headache whenever I go to the electrical section. Go to the 2nd Gen tech library. there is a simplified wiring diagram there that is still complicated, but far easier to follow than the mess in the manual. Andy

If memory serves, both horns are on the same fuse. It's possible that the horn itself is down. Try testing the horn itself by pulling off the connector and running a hot and a ground wire directly to the terminals. If it still doesn't work, you have a bad horn. If it does then you have another problem in the circuit but it's not the fuse as both horns would be out. Andy

Something about that video doesn't seem right. I've had experience with small caliber pellet guns and slingshots over the years and I've never seen anything bounce off wood hard enough to bury itself into a human skull the way that bearing did (You can see the shiny object on his forehead just before he puts his hand up there.). It seems to me that a 22 mm (Nearly one inch) ball moving fast enough on rebound to bury itself that far into a human skull would have buried itself into the wood in the first place. As well, that blood looks too clear and runs too quickly. I've had something bounce off my head and break the skin and no way was I bleeding like that. I wonder if this wasn't just a special effects set up. I could be way off base here, but I just can't see a bearing that size having enough energy to do that after bouncing off wood. As well, in the closeup of his head as he lies on the ground, there seems to be quite a wound just beside the spot where the blood is coming out ... how could he have two wounds? And finally, what are the chances that the camera, which seems to have been on a stand beside him, would fall in exactly the right spot to catch a closeup, in focus view of the wood? Like I said, I could be wrong here but i think this was a hoax. If I'm wrong, then I guess I owe the guy an apology.

I have used RainX on my stock windshield and face shield on the helmet and to date, there has been no problem. My understanding is that it takes quite a while for the hazing to show up unless you use the stuff twice a week (Once a month should be plenty). I found that the face shield needed replacing from scratches and nicks before the RainX could cause a problem. I suppose it depends in part on how much riding you do, since that will determine how quickly you'll get nicks and scratches. I now have a Clearview which does a decent job (And is OK for use with RainX) but in barely a year it has already started to show some scratching and a few pits from stuff tossed against it. My next windshield will be an F4 Customs. I'm anxious to see if it holds up as well as everyone says it does. I've noticed that the Rainx doesn't work as well on the various plastics as on glass and doesn't have much effect under 80 kph (50 MPH). It allows rain to stream off pretty well at higher speeds but the slop thrown onto the windshield from passing cars or those that i follow doesn't stream off as well. I suppose that's because it tends to be mixed in with the crap found on the road surface. At the end of the day, I prefer seeing over the windshield since I still need to use my face shield to keep the water out of my eyes and looking through two pieces of plastic reduces my vision more than looking through just one. That's my two cents worth. Andy

My first blind date. Also, my last blind date! Andy

Glad you survived that as well as you did. It could have been worse. Andy

Excellent, well thought out article with some very good tips. Thanks for posting it. Andy