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Snaggletooth

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  1. Snaggletooth
    Oh! Geesh it moved! Are we smelling hot chrome yet there my feathered friend?
  2. Snaggletooth
    Just went through this on my '84. I was having charging problems on mine with volt reading hitting the red line at up to 16.50 volts. Got to digging and found I had tied into the brown wire for power to my running lights. It's apparently is a feed wire to the reg/rec that tells the unit how much to charge. I removed the spliced in wire for the lights and things returned to a normal charge, except when it got hot. Then the readings were all over the place. I ordered an aftermarket unit from RickH and it does not have a brown wire connection. Neither does the replacement OEM. Looks like they are not a critical issue these days. The aftermarket unit works fine but had a different mounting configuration so I had to fab up a backing plate to get it to sit in the roughly the same spot. I don't know if the wiring I did caused the problem or if the reg/rec was bad when I bought the bike but I know the brown wire is NOT the one to draw power off of. Now. Doh!
  3. Snaggletooth
    Yeppers. Wally World here is selling SF for $5.89. NAPA is asking $11 and change. I noticed NAPA was getting $10.79 for a can of liquid electrical tape. Wallys had the same for $4.99. Lucas doesn't seem to be cheap anywhere but it does wonders for the fork seals.
  4. Snaggletooth
    I really don't know what I'd do with it when I got home but I'm having fits just thinking of towing that missile back to Omaha behind the bike. Honest officer. It's not concealed so what's the problem? But the Roadmaster is the piece to grab. I had a '55 Century when I was 16 that a woman paid me $25.00 to remove from her yard. Not a Roadmaster, but as close as you can come to a personell carrier as a civilian. It would make a great custom project.
  5. Snaggletooth
    Now that is entertainment!
  6. Snaggletooth
    If your gas was basty you're probably finding elephant snot in the masters also or did you get lucky on that?
  7. Snaggletooth
    For now forget the pump. It will click everytime you turn the key on for maybe 3 or 4 seconds. That's priming the lines and the carbs with fuel. It won't click anymore until the bike is using fuel or you open the drain lines up to release fuel. The SeaFoam works best if you just let it sit and work. A good soaking does more than burning it through the carbs. Fill the bowls and let her sit overnight. Tomorrow drain again refill and let it sit again overnight. I'd did this for like 3 or four days before the bike would catch and run. And it proablably will run even if it's only a couple of cylinders. Have you pulled the diaphragm covers yet to check them out? Be a good time to do it. They are critical in the operation of the carbs. And make sure that battey is kept fully charged. You'll need every amp up can get during this process. These bikes are not known for a running a hot spark. As I said before, and I think you mentioned that you understand what is to come later, that the carbs are going to have to come off sooner or later. I did put about 4,000 miles on my '84 before I pulled mine. My floats were sinking and it was flooding the carbs when it sat overnight and fouling the plugs. It ran ok on the road but you could always smell the gas and everynow and then she's start puking gas out of the overflow lines. If you are handy with the tool box read up in the tech section on Carb rebuilding 101. Excellent article. It convinced me to do it myself and it worked out fine. There things to do and not to do that need to be addressed before you decide what to do. It is not a cheap process rather you do it youself or farm it out. I think I spent a bit over and $200 on parts and still need to invest in new floats. So they will come off again in the fall. A lot of folks jump to eBay, myself included, and buy a set of carbs off a "running" bike. Love that term! You need to know what year it actually ran in. Some folks lack the principles of telling the full story on what they sell. I ended up with a set that was in fair shape but not good enough to drop on and run with. I was disapointed but.......it turned out well as I was able to salvage over $400.00 bucks worth of useable parts off that $100.00 investment during the rebuild. So I still have a lot spare parts for the future. And on another note. I assume you may have the air box open or all the way off. The bike will run rough and chuff a bit with it open. The bike need a bit of restriction to make it work right. If you have it open, keep your face clear of the intakes or you may be wearing a full face helmet for a while until you eyebrows grow back. They like to back fire through the carbs when the box is open. So let her soak and keep us posted. Mike
  8. Snaggletooth
    Damn, there's an echo in here. LOL! Always come in second.
  9. Snaggletooth
    I can't help you on the draining the tank completely as I haven't done that on a VR but I sounds like you fighting some nasty old gas. The fuel filter is on the left side of the bike down low. Pull off the left side panel and you will see the fuel pump at the very bottom. The fuel filter is behind that. The forward side (input) is fed from the siphon line form the tank. There is a sort loop off the rear of the filter that goed to the pump. If is hasn't been replaced there is a red braided line that runs off the pump to the carbs. I'd pull the the red line off and run an extension line to a gas can and let the pump run the tank down as far as it can. I'm sure someone will have something better here in a bit. As far as the rust, there are ways to treat it and clean the tank but the tank will have to come out. I've used Evaporust? a couple of times on other projects and it does well. If you chose not to treat I'd drain the tank, flush with fresh fuel, replace the fuel filter and lines and then load the tank up with a couple of gallons of fresh gas and at least half a can of SeaFoam. Switch it on and off a few times to let the pump refill the lines and carbs. Open the drains on the bowls and let the mix run through. Let it sit over night. Do this for a few days. Sitting in the bowls is the best way for the SeaFoam to do what it does. It takes time. I did with with a bike that sat for 9 years and got her running this way. To be honest, it worked, and I got it running but I ended up doing a full carb rebuild this year to make things right. Rust can be a pain and most will tell you that none is the best. I agree with that. The best defense is fuel treatments and a clean filter to keep the particles out of the carbs. I just did some work on an old XJ bike and the owner said he'd drained the tank. When I looked in it was rusty mess. Flakes falling off the sides. I pulled the tank and turned it over and poured out the rest of the gas, maybe a quart. But out of that quart about a half a cup of it was water. No treament in the world will take care of that. He's using a rust remover and sealer this week to clean her up. So that's my 2 cents.
  10. Snaggletooth
    I got my CarbTune through California Sport Touring. ( casporttouring.com ) It took about two weeks to receive it but I have no regrets. Be the last sync tool I ever buy. With the case and shipping it was about $130.00.
  11. Snaggletooth
    Hey I was gonna ask. Did they throw in doing the weave and offset weave only using your right hand? Left hand in your lap. They were trying to make the point of pressing in a turn. Now that was a challenge, idling through the cones one handed. Never tried that before. Hell, it's hard enough lighting a smoke at 75! LOL!
  12. Snaggletooth
    Took the ERC a few weeks ago. Rode the VR. It's hard to get into here as they only take 36 riders a year. Got in after a cancellation. I felt like I was on a monster bike compared to all the crotch rockets that came. It was 7 hours on the track in the heat, the rain, the wind and the lightening. They didn't coddle to the fair weather riders that's for sure. If ya quit, ya took it over. A few bikes went down in the sweepers and a few took some damage. I was proud that the old girl and I made it through with no scratches or scrapes. It was a great experience and well worth the time and money spent. It brought my bad habits to light and helped tune in some new skills. I wish I'd had time to practice the "Ride Like a Pro" techniques before I went. The skills taught on that DVD would have been a huge plus in the ERC class. That 20 ft box with the double u-turns inside would have been a lot easier. LOL!
  13. Snaggletooth

    Deer

    Snaggletooth replied to a topic in Watering Hole

    Living in Omaha, NE you don't see a lot of deer around town but the other day I got a surprise and so did about 100 other drivers. I was on the VR riding West on I-80 coming up on the downtown interchange of I-480 at about 4:30 PM. Just the beginning of rush hour. There are about 5 lanes each way counting ramps for Hwy 75, I-80 and I-480. It's the pretzel from hell at rush hour. From the North a nice sized buck came down from the residential area and shot out into the WB lanes of I-80, danced around into the middle lanes then turned West and ran with traffic for about 100 yards, turned South again and jumped the concrete center divider and ran head on into traffic on the EB side until he worked his way to the shoulder and shot off into another residential area. He made it. However there were a few sideswipes going on from the cagers gawking at the pretty deer. I got out of it fine but I was tasting my undies when I got back into the clear. Deer: 1 Cagers: 0 Pucker Factor: 95%
  14. Snaggletooth
    Bobcat, Thank you for understanding. Mr. T used to say "Pity the Fool". Snaggletooth says "Why? Watch what he does next". Later Mike
  15. Snaggletooth
    I had been trying to get into the Experienced Riders Course here in Omaha for the last two years. They only take 36 riders a year and only 12 to a class. I didn't make it again this year so I ordered the Ride Like a Pro DVD instead. As soon as I ordered it I got a call from the ERC/MSF instructor saying there had been a cancellation and they had an open slot only 3 days away. I was in. On the day of the class the DVD arrived 15 minutes before I was leaving. I wish I'd had time to watch it before I left. The class itself was exceptional and well worth the time and money invested. Seven hours on the track practicing low speed moves and handling tips. They just brushed over things like the friction technique and the stop to stop turns. I was happy to make it though the class without dropping it. Some of the other riders took some damage. I went home and started watching segments of the DVD and making a point of spending at least a couple of hours week practicing them. I stole, er, borrowed my daughters small orange cones she and her friends use when skateboarding and wander off the the high school parking lot. Got my turns down to less than 18 feet and working on the dip which really it the key to the tight turn set up. Working at the friction technique is a challenge but it gives me a huge sense of control I've never had in all the years I've ridden. I was taught at a young age that the clutch was either engaged or not. No middle ground. That was so wrong. I've got a few other riders that have shown interest in how I ride the way I do and have started showing up at the high school when I practice. It's good to see others trying to improve the skills they have and get rid of the old bad habits we have picked up over the years. I will keep up on my practice schedule and the DVD will be always be handy. It was worth the few dollars that it cost and will save me bucks on scraped up bars and lowers. LOL! Not to mention the damaged ego if I drop it. Hoping for the best. Mike
  16. Snaggletooth
    Hummm.... Provoking a bad situation...... 1. Who squeezed into my lane to get to the front of the traffic? 2. Who was jazzing their bike and smirking? (provoking?) 3. Who was not paying attention to the traffice signals? 4. Who was not paying attention to surrounding traffic? 5. And who didn't even notice the LEO idling next to him? 6. Oh yeah, who was wearing sandles, shorts and a wife beater? First of all if I was responsible for every idiot out there I'd have to retire and work full time to protect them, not to mention hire a sizable crew to patrol the streets of my city. We would still be severy outnumbered. And I'm damn sure the rewards of that career would be minimal at best. I'm a firm believer in "Stupidity Should Be Painful" and those who choose to try to earn a Darwin Award have my full support. I'll even write the nomination. If I had just given this moron the old "WTF" the result would have probably been the same. He chose to engage the clutch before engaging the brain. He failed to engage the brain when he picked out his riding gear. Sorry if I cry not because he might have lost some skin off the top of his foot when he shifted into second gear. I hope it was painful. I hope he crys when he pays his ticket(s) and I hope maybe, just maybe he will lose his licence. One down, how many to go? Idiots like him are the reason that there are warning labels on curling irons that say "Not For Internal Use" and labels on frozen pizza that say "Cook Before Serving". In this case I'd be saying plug it in, have a seat and chow down lil buddy. So the next time I'm sitting at a traffic light in the middle of my lane, on a full dress tour bike, wearing boots, jeans, leather jacket, leather gloves, sun glasses and a helmet, and another moron shows up I'll give your comment some thought. Should I smack him in the head to keep him from proving his mental prowness, or let him be what he is and prove it? Hell, I'd let him prove it. Ya can't save them all. Provoking thought for the day.
  17. Snaggletooth
    I hear ya Orazk. I've let some stuff get away from me to. I've sat up late a few times waiting for a sniper shootout that never happened and got a winning bid in in the last few seconds. Ya never know which way it will go. Don't worry, there will always be more.
  18. Snaggletooth
    Amen on the Progressives. I'm 285 and the front was beating itself to death when I bought her. Rebushed, resealed and added the Progressives with 10 wt. Not going to happen again I assure you. Solid and good response. The stock springs are junk.
  19. Snaggletooth
    They are fun to tease. Had a young joker on a crotch rocket squeeze in next to me at a stop light the other day. He was looking at me and cracking his throttle and smirking. Everytime he cracked his I'd give mine a twist and laugh. The left turn arrow went green and I gave mine a jump ahead about a foot. He shot though the intersection before he noticed ONLY the left turn arrow was green and not the through lane. He also failed to notice the police cruiser that was on his left side while he was looking at me. I was laughing so hard I almost killed my bike when the light changed. They had him pulled over about 4 blocks away and I honked and gave him the thumbs up when I went by. I think he used a different finger for me. Poor loser. After all, I did beat him to the next light. LOL!
  20. Snaggletooth
    Hey Ozark, Were you able to get that bumper? Sold for less than what I tought it would.
  21. Snaggletooth
    The float number I got fits the VMax and '88 and new VRs. Off the top of my head I think it was 1FK and then for sure 14985-00-00. Looks like the the same float that's in my '84. I'm ordering 4 of them for mine.
  22. Snaggletooth
    Howdy Squeeze Weird. That number came off a Yamaha parts CD on a breakdown for an '88 VR. They must have started cross referencing them a while back. As long as they fit and float I don't care if they came from a Briggs & Stratton. LOL! Thanks for the help on this. All I've heard from the time I bought the bike was that I was SOL on finding floats for it. Thus the airplane dope patch up job. It works, but it does add a bit of weight to the floats for sure. I'll probably be yelling for you down the road. Got a few other projects in mind for later in the fall and over the winter. Later Mike
  23. Snaggletooth
    For the $1,500 I'd jump hard and fast. I paid a bit more than that for an '84 and haven't regretted it for a second. Great bikes, damn near bullet proof motors and at 16K it's only getting warmed up. Mike
  24. Snaggletooth
    1FK-14985-00-00 from the '88 VR carbs.
  25. Snaggletooth
    Hey Squeeze. The part number I came up with is 14985-00-00. That sound right to you? Mike
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