RedRider

I noticed that when taking it apart. Will be a PITA putting all the tie downs back where they belong. RR

Big brown truck arrived yesterday delivering my new stator, R/R, and a set of JIS screwdrivers (including 2 impact versions). Picked up the gaskets from the dealer Wednesday (along with new rear brake pads). Should be back on the road this weekend. RR

Why would anyone ever want to sell one? RR

Rear is only a 2 piston caliper. RR

Scribz, Welcome to the family. In order of your questions/info: 1) The Roadstar is a V-Twin. Lots of torque at low RPM. The Venture is a V-4. Likes to rev and has the power band at higher RPMs than the V-Twin. If you drive it the same, the Venture will seem sluggish. The 2nd gen Ventures (of which yours is) has a rev limiter so you can't hurt it. 2) Clutch basket whine - a fairly common 'feature' caused by some harmonic in the spur gear on back of the clutch basket. Some have had luck changing the clutch basket to the G version (this is from memory - search for this information on the 2nd gen tech forum to confirm). If it doesn't really bother you, it's not a technical problem and won't cause any failures. 3) I have been running the Rotella 15W50 diesel dino oil and have 153k miles without issue. My clutch did not seem to like synthetic oils although several on here have run it successfully. The big thing is to make sure the oil does not have friction modifiers in it as the clutch REALLY does not like them. You can identify the inclusion of friction modifiers by looking at the circle symbol on the label. The bottom half of the outer ring should not have writing in it. Look at the different jugs at the store and you will see the difference. 4) Oil filters - aharbi posted a good list. I would also include the FRAM PH6017A. This is usually available at Walmart. 5) Lift adapter - +1 on the CarbonOne lift adapter. Get the one with the legs. Rock solid. Although, if you are really into wrenching, you may find the Harbor Freight lift table (a little under $300 when on sale) is the bomb. It will handle the weight of the Venture (at least mine does). 6) Seat - Boy does this open a can of worms. Several choices, but not as many as other bikes. I am an advocate for the Russell Day Long. But it is expensive and custom made on your seat pan (you will be without a seat while it is being built). It depends on the type of riding you do. If you are a 100-200 mile a day rider, the stock seat may work. 200-400 miles, there is a member here (Rick Butler) that does a modification to the seat that really helps. He does exceptional work. If you are looking to do major miles per day (Iron Butt type miles), there is no substitute for the Russell. Another option is to add a backrest. I find it really helps. Utopia and (I think) DiamondR makes one for the Venture. 7) This one is being added - Drop $12 to become a paying member here. Freebird (Our Supreme Leader without the funky bowl haircut) puts in a ton of work to make this a spectacular forum. It will be the best $12 you can invest in your Venture. Have a great trip. You are on a great bike for this type of travel. Ask away with any other questions. We are all glad to help. RR

I always use the OEM gaskets. Overall, they are inexpensive relative to the time involved. Besides, it gives me something to purchase from the local dealer (they give me a discount since I am their Venture 'expert' when they have one in the shop and are stumped - new mechanics). RR

OK, the proof is in the pictures. You can even see bits of the outer insulation in the bottom. I think I'm going to use this event as an excuse to purchase a good set of JIS screwdrivers. RR

OK, here are the test results. I took a bunch of pictures and will put into another post. Resistance test: All combos showed about 0.3 ohms. Resistance to ground: All 3 showed some resistance - not open. This is bad. Voltage phase-to-phase: 1-2: 20Vac at idle, increased to 80+Vac at higher RPM (don't have a tach); 1-3: same as 1-2; 2-3: about 3Vac at idle and stays the same at high RPM. I think we found a bad stator. All connectors look good at the R/R. Will replace both stator and R/R as soon as I can get them in. RR

Once again, the Venture got me home. I was able to make it home last night while running dark most of the way. Pulled the fuses for the aux lights and the headlight; turned off all accessories with the exception of one GPS (needed it for receiving calls from support folks). Interestingly enough, the charging system was able to keep up with the power requirements while running dark. I gambled and didn't spend the extra $100 for a backup battery. This lends a ray of hope as I don't believe the stator is the problem. My understanding of the stator is it's a digital failure - it either works or it doesn't. They don't just fail part way. Please correct me if I am wrong. This leaves me with the rectifier/regulator. Troubleshooting starts shortly. Any input is appreciated as my strengths are in the mechanical side of these bikes. RR

This is exactly the plan. Gotten about 150 miles and the battery voltage is still in the green. RR

The battery tested good. Damn. It is, however, fully charged so I might be able to make it back to Minneapolis. Time to pull some fuses. RR

Well, I'm sitting in a Walmart in Cloquet, MN having my battery load tested. Hoping against hope that is all it is. But I don't think so. Was riding the MN1000 long distance rally when I noticed the voltmeter started showing the battery was loosing charge - even at highway speed. I was not able to restart after stopping for gas. Had to use a jump box (I carry one during rallies). Pretty sure it's the stator. Is there anybody in the Duluth area that might have a place to store it for the night? RR

I've never heard anyone say they wish they hadn't gotten the Russell. RR

It depends on what you are looking for. If you want to go from a 100 mile seat to a 200-250 mile seat, the Butt Butler is the bomb. Rick does really good work. If you want to do major miles - Russell Day Long. Best seat evah!! Not cheap, but is custom made and will provide you with comfort for as many miles as you want to do. I have one on my 2nd gen - done multiple back-to-back 1000+ mile days without issue. Son has one on a 1st gen - done 1000+ days with no issues. RR

I would not consider the pumpkin (final drive) a weakness. From my time on this board, I have heard of a couple of troubles, but it certainly is not an endemic problem. I have at least 70k miles on my replacement final drive and it had 30k on it before I installed it. For clarification, some folks have had their Venture converted to a trike. When that is done, the final drive is replaced with a drive axle and the pumpkin is not longer needed. Hence, a take off. Therefore, it becomes an extra part available for others. Somewhere on here are some pictures of the magnetic plug from my original drive before I changed it out. It looked like a metal ice cream cone with all the shavings. The problem was one of the pinion bearings failed and the misalignment between the gears caused the metal wear. It did not leave me stranded (rode several thousand miles to get home) before checking more closely and deciding to change it out. I change my pumpkin fluid every time I change my rear tire. FYI - mine is a 2000 Venture which runs the same final drive. And just in case, I have a spare in my shop. Don't expect to need it though. Hope this helps. RR

Plug with a sticky string. Ride it like you stole it. RR

I would change the gear oil and check it a couple of thousand miles later. The shavings are expected at the first change. If they are present at future diff oil changes, I would start asking around about a trike conversion takeoff. 12k miles isn't very many. Mine went 80k before I changed it out (and many others have gone farther than that without changing the pumpkin). RR

Words no red blooded male has ever put together. Just sayin' RR

Were you able to finish the SS? How'd it go? RR

The Barnett clutch setup is excellent for improving performance of the clutch. I might suggest installing the heavy duty springs with the Barnett. As for it seeming to lag in power, remember the V4 likes to rev. Don't drive it like a V-twin. Get the revs up to access the power from these engines. RR

TPMS is a good tool when riding long distances. It is essential to monitor a slow leak and LD riding/rallying does not really lend itself to constantly monitoring the tire pressure with a hand gauge. Here is a very in depth discussion from the IronButt magazine of available motorcycle TPMS's. RR

Send a PM to Flyingfool. He makes these. Might be in classifieds.

Yup, that appears to be it. Here is the FI control diagram. No O2 sensor. RR

Now you've got me all curious. Will review the repair manual tonight and advise. RR

This is an '86 bike. My guess is the FI controller only has so much adjustability. So they need to load a new map for higher altitudes. Kind of like loading a new map area in your GPS if it can't​ store the whole country. RR