KIC

Heres a list that was given to me when i first joined looking at an 89: Cut and paste this into a Word document and you can print it off: Oh Yea...WELCOME ! Checking out a Venture You can check that the coolant is topped up and clean before you buy. If it is low, or gone, or brown then you have a neglected pile of iron, and bid accordingly. Be aware that coolant leaks can all be fixed, at a price. I know this because mine leaked coolant everywhere, and it cost me to fix it. O-rings at $3 apiece are a minor purchase, until you start counting just how many of them there are! If the cooling system is in good order then the fan will fully control the temperature within the green zone in any weather, at a standstill. Some early bikes had poorly calibrated temp. gauges and they climb nearly to the red, but they should never actually get there. If the gauge reaches the red zone, then a cooling system rebuild will be needed (and some of it should be done anyway). Draining, flushing, cleaning out the radiator and physically cleaning the smaller pipes is a must. Sediment gathers there and flushing won’t shift it. Once that is done, regularly changing the coolant and flushing will keep it clean. Before that the oil and filter need changing, and the air filter needs cleaning and/or replacing. K&N make one which can be had for around $50 with careful shopping. You will never need another. If your bike came with one, have a beer to celebrate. When you change the oil for the first time, what comes out will tell you much about the bike’s history. Firstly, about three quarts should come out! It should not be black nor have any metal bits in it. Any “foam” … like mayo, around the filler, filter or anywhere else tells you that water is going where no water should ever go. Waterpump shaft seals, headgaskets and the frail cylinder head connectors can all leak and cause this. About those plastic pipe connectors. There are two of them. They do not come out in one piece and are about $20 each. Each has three of the aforementioned o-rings. Do the math. So the oil should be plentiful, free of slivery streaks and wrist pin clips, and dark but not too black. It should not have gasoline in it either (rare). If it is like that then change the filter and fill it up. Do not overfill it. About halfway up the sight glass is plenty. Anymore and it will be spraying through the breather and all over your beautiful new air filter. Leaks around the valve covers are common and not a big issue. Oil pouring out is a big issue. The original gaskets were poor but better replacements can be easily sourced. If any of the sixteen bolts holding the covers down is leaking, replace the rubber. If you try to tighten them down to fix a leak you will, over time, simply make it worse. If you are going to replace these gaskets then that is a good time to check the valve clearances. If they are uneven, especially if they are “tight”, then they need adjusting. This is fiddly but not hard and you can borrow the tool from members here. Replace the plugs and, if the plug wires are original, remove the caps and snip ¼” off the wire. Check the cap resistance. It should be 10k Ohms. Trying to fix dodgy caps is fraught with difficulties. I would get new ones. Moving on to the fuel supply. There is a hard to get to filter behind the fuel pump on the lower left of the bike. Change it. Cut the old one open and inspect the contents. A little bit of brown deposit is to be expected, but brown sludge or obvious rust means that the tank is suffering. Most of the tank can be cleaned on the bike there is enough access through the various ports. You did look down the filler for heavy rusting before you brought it home? It takes about five minutes to get the tank off my Triple, and about four hours (if you know what you are doing) to get the tank off the Venture. The petcock is likely to be stiff. Move it to “reserve” and leave it there. Use the gas gauge which is accurate, and carry a small MSR Fuel Bottle in the side case. That will get you a few miles if you run out. Be aware that leaking petcocks are a nightmare. Rebuilding one with new filters and seals will cost around $40. A new one can be had from about $54 up to $75, depending on where you buy. While you are down there, the gas pipe has a very sharp bend and could be quite close to needing replacing. While you were doing all of that charge the battery. If it looks old it probably is. Have it load tested or replace it. So …. We have fresh oil, fresh gas, new plugs and no obvious signs of distress. The coolant is clean and topped off and the battery charged. Turn the key, wait a couple of seconds and hit the starter. Unless it’s cold you will need little or no choke. Leave the throttle completely alone until the engine is running. Run the engine for no more than fifteen seconds then shut it off. Now feel each of the exhaust headers, carefully. They should all be warm. If one or more remains cold then the respective cylinder(s) are not firing. If they are all warm, then start it up again. Go quickly around the bike as it warms up looking for anything amiss. What you do not want to see are oil, fuel or coolant leaks. There will be a bit of smoke as it warms, but not much. There should be none from the exhaust. While we are on the exhaust …. One in poor shape will cost. Just the gaskets in the system add up to a hefty $100 if you need to replace them all. The collector can rot out, and it can rattle. The rattle can be ignored or fixed later. If the joints around the collector leak then it will need fixing. This is one to check before you buy because it’s a good negotiating point. Check out all the electrical components while it is warming up. Lights, flashers, horn etc. With luck they all work and the motor will warm until the fan cuts in. Let it cycle a couple of times before you shut it down. Check again for leaks. Tires should be less than ten years old (they have a date code) and free of any cracking. You are pushing 800lbs down the road on them and they need to be good. It goes without saying that they should have sufficient tread. Check the brake pads for thickness and freedom from oil. If the fork seals have blown then fork oil easily makes it onto the calipers. It’s obvious and needs fixing before you ride. Check rotors for thickness and that they are not binding. There should be no signs of brake fluid leaking anywhere, and the fluid should be changed. Check that the steering bearings are not obviously worn. While we are on the subject of hydraulic fluid, change the clutch fluid too J Now you can go for a ride. Just a few careful miles is enough. Check that the handling is not too strange … it should track true and not meander. The suspension should be compliant and not induce nausea causing your lunch to end up all over the instruments. The brakes should stop you in a straight line and the gears shift fairly smoothly

Moral of the story: Don't stop for traffic lights.

knock knock... who's there..? NOBODY..... back to TV...

Ahhh...thank you.

PM me an email addy and I will send you a word document from one of the threads here. Also, start a thread asking if anybody near you has a CarbTune. I just ordered one from the manufacturer.

Anybody have a picture of the "banjo" bolt is and where it is located ? I haven't been able to successfully bleed the rear and front of my 87. When I get back in town, that will be my #1 goal on the 87. Next to installing new carb diaphragms.

Thank you . I hope I'm not bidding against somebody on here. How much did you pay this guy for yours ?

More info for BigTom: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/04/23/cause-brain-freeze-revealed/ But you can still call the Ice Cream Rescue Truck "Ice Cream Rescue 51, BigTom has brain freeze, respond code 3. "

I thought about that, but the vent was "misting" oil around the area of the vent. Also, I feel, after riding it some more this morning, that the it seems to run smoother, and just overall better with everything hooked up the way it was originally. This morning it fired right up with no choke. Yesterday, it needed a little choke and warming. Just might be a personal choice. It could also have to do with making sure the air box is completely sealed and the crank case vent hose is not kinked. Mine obviously had several issues. Unless you run the vent hose somewhere else to hook up the breather, or mount it directly on top of the breather vent outlet, there isn't a lot of room for the breather. This is why my vent hose was kinked.

Did you plug both air box openings underneath ? My big one was plugged but the rubber cap was rotted and cracked and the little one wasn't plugged. I know these air boxes are touchy as to the air flow and leaks.

I ordered a set of the nylon shims for both of mine last week. I hope it helps my mileage. My biggest problem right now with the 86 is the diaphragms are shot. That$ gonna hurt the wallet !

Uhm...does buying you an ice cream sundae keep me off the "LIST" ??

Dan, (Or anybody ) where is the best place ( cheapest) to get a set of carb diaphragms for my 87 ?

Well I removed the after market oil breather and returned the 89 to original venting with the t-fitting modification. I really believe it is running smoother and with a little more power. I found the cap on the bottom of the box was leaking big time. Also the breather line was kinked in order to allow for the after market vent breather to be attached. I also re-installed the original set up on the 87 today, but it still runs like crap. So I took one of the carb sides off and found the diaphragm filled with holes and tears around the edges. That could definitely cause the running issues I have. Going to check the other 3 BUT.... Anybody know what the size or number of the special security screw on the side of each carburetor is ? I bought a set of tips that were supposed to include the size I needed, but none seem to be the correct ones. I will have to fight getting those PITA's off and replace with regular screws.

Good thing they don't have moderators at work...we all would be unemployed...

Real problems are for people who can't handle the fantasy world. You need to come over to the dark side......

Never mind. I answered my own question. I removed the little after market filter and replaced everything back to normal configuration with the T-fitting upgrade. Got it all put together and I feel and hear a BIG difference in the engine. Took it for a short ride and it felt smoother. I will be interested in seeing if it improves the gas mileage. I will also have to see if it gets rid if the oil smell after being ridden and parked in the garage.

Thoughts and prayers are with you. Been through it. I understand what you are going through.

Earl, Need Update: Did you keep your mod this way ? I have a similar set up on my 89, but it is on a longer hose that is "kinked" coming out of the crank case. I also just found that the plug at the bottom of the air box is shot and leaking air. Trying to decide if I want to return to original design or modify the modification.

And the wind speed was......????

We also need to know the elevation at which the weight was taken so we can figure in air density and gravitational pull...

Having lost my mom I know what you are feeling. Sorry for your loss.

Good point..so how about it raises and lowers the case for 2nd battery that is installed to run that motor.

Does it just spin one way ? Can it reverse ? What type of power/gear type ration does it have ? Does it have more torque than a 2nd Gen ? ( Sorry couldn't resist) Tell us what the motor can do, we will figure out what to do with it !

I ran my VIN through it and it told me to clean my air filter and sync my carbs.