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Can I get rid of it? I want to remove the breather tube that goes from the crankcase to the intake. Can I remove it and put something in its place like a filter or something? Even with perfect oil level it makes my intake box oily.

Hey everyone! I need some help. I got my '86 Yamaha Venture Royale about 18 months ago. It came with nice floorboards and a heel toe shifter. I figured this was standard equipment. About a week ago, I started home from work and to my dismay, I could only shift into first, neutral and second. I babied it along sidestreets and took my time driving 5 miles. Three more stops, I could only get first and neutral to work. To shorten this story, I discovered that the fitting on the left crankcase cover had broken. Reading on here, I discovered that I could get it welded because the casing is aluminum. I then took to working on removing the left crankcase cover. I have read the service manual, the repair manual and all I could find to get help on removing the left crankcase cover. After getting all the bolts off and discovering other things I need to remove, I found that there are two sets of wires that come from the back of the cover and goes to the flywheel assembly connected inside the crankcase cover. Here are my questions. 1. Do I need to removed the copper coils, the 4-5 screws holding everything in to disconnect the two sets of wires? ( I ask this because the philips screws are tight and I really don't want to remove this if possible so I won't have problems later matching to the flywheel. 2. Is there a simpler way to disconnect the two sets of wires without removing the screws and coils? 3. Is there a diagram somewhere that shows how to disconnect this? (The manual says to remove the electrical connectors like it is a simple switch) 4. Finally, is there much danger of warping or causing some damage to the inner electronics if I leave them inside? (I don't think there is, but maybe someone will have a horror story to change my mind!) I appreciate any help given and hope someone is smarter than I am figuring out how to get this off the bike so I can get it welded. Happy Thanksgiving!

I ran into another local rider today at Cabela's in Sidney NE. Chatted about the upcoming riding season. He mentioned that last fall he intended to take a ride on his 97 RSTD. However he discovered that his petcock gasket failed, leaked the entire fuel tank contents into the carbs and flooded the cylinders and crankcase. Is this a common problem? Good reason to turn off the petcock when stored? He indicated he was going to have the local dealer look at it. Thoughts, ideas.....

What is the size (in mm) of the crankcase vent tube on the "twinkie?" I need a new mini-breather and can't recall if it is a 15mm or not....

I have a 1986 Venture that I purchased last fall. About two weeks after purchasing the bike I pulled a boneheaded mistake by driving off of what I thought was about a 5" curb (that turned out to be more like 8" tall) at a very slow rate of speed and basically dropped the lower crankcase ontop of the concrete curb. I noticed a pretty significant oil leak under the bike when I got home. At first I thought I had cracked the oil filter cover but after hauling it to the local Yamaha dealer to have it checked out it turns out that the crankcase itself was "bent". They gave me two options...turn it in to insurance as totaled (I don't have full coverage) or "JB weld" the oil cover on semi permanently until the next oil change at 10 or 12,000 miles. The "JB weld" idea worked pretty good last fall with just a few minor drips but this spring it seems to be getting much worse. Any suggestions on what else I can try?

I'm embarrassed to say this but I tried to remove the left side crankcase to install my new clutch spring. I got the clutch installed on the right side but only after I screwed up the gasket and the starter clutch wiring on the left side crankcase. How hard is it to remove the left side crankcase and replace the stator coil wire since I think I damaged it while trying to remove the cover? Also it feels like the (left) crankcase cover has something keeping it from coming right off ( springs back when pulled on). Is there something I need to know about when removing that cover?

Hi All, I bought an 83 with twenty thousand miles on it. I am experienceing a problem with the engine makeing burp noises and emitting smoke around the tank filler area. The smoke is blueish, like it prolly is crankcase blowby or would be similar to the exhaust of a car that is burning large amounts of oil. This bike does NOT emit blue smoke from the tailpipes at all. The burp sound, and this emission of smoke, typically happens at low rpm, maybe no more than 2500, under mostly very light to no throttle. The first times I heard it, there was just a burp noise and the emission, but the last time it happened, it was substantially louder, and there was a hiss at the end, along with a larger amount of smoke. I was travelling about fifteen mph in second gear, and it just happened. My impression is that this must be a build up of crankcase pressure, that somehow gets forced out thru the cc vent, into the air cleaner, then perhaps the air cleaner assembly has a rubber seal that is disturbed enough to make the burp sound, and separates releasing the built up crankcase pressure, or at least this is what I think. What think ye all, please.

Friend took his new to him RSV in to get an oil leak checked out and was told that the shifter shaft had play in it and oil was leaking from the "wallowed" out area of the crankcase around the shifter shaft. I have never heard of this nor can I find any info on such a thing happening. Shop says it will be $6000 to fix because you have to replace the ENTIRE crankcase and basically rebuild it all. Assuming they are right, is there any repair for this? The bike shifts fine and is excellent otherwise.

Where would I find the listing for the head bolts in the parts fiche? 1988 1300 MKII I have looked in the Head & crankcase sections, as well as others, but I can't seem to find them. I may need to replace a few here in a few weeks, may not need to. Just trying to find a listing for them. Anybody got a recommendation on procedure to remove them from the crankcase? Normally I use Partshark.com Gary

Noticed yesterday I had some oil on the motor and today started to look for the problem. Looks like it's coming from the long upper crankcase breather cover between the cylinders. The crankcase vent mod has been done but does NOT seem to be coming from filter or connecting hose. In the service manual I cannot tell if there is a gasket or not. I see they are supposed to be tightened to only 7.2 ft lbs. Anyone know if there is a gasket before I mess with it. ALSO. For some reason my oil sight glass is BLACK, can't see through it at all. Just last week it was clear. Oil has not got many miles on it. Is there any way to check oil level on these things without using the sight glass? I looked in some older posts and some said to put Seafoam in crankcase to clean glass. How much do you add and how long do you run motor? I ASSUME it has to be drained fairly soon so it doesn't thin the oil to much. Of course the bike has been running and doing great BUT since I have somewhere to ride this Saturday it just has to act up.

I have a friend who needs a left side crankcase cover for his 83 Venture. Anyone have one lying around? Email me at mrkyoung@gmail.com. thanks! The stator cover!!!

My grandson picked up a Kawi 1980 kd80 non-runer. Kinda proud of him as it now screams like a banchee. The question I have is.... it's a 2-cycle with an oil reserve crankcase like a 4-cycle... does it need a gas/oil mix, or use straight gas?? All my experience with 2-cycles deals with a mix engine...

My 87 model has developed a significant oil leak in the last few months. It does not leak when parked, only when it warms up. It drips about once every 12 seconds, and because of the crossbar that supports the footrests, I could not tell where it was coming from. I thought it was from the shift lever, because it has always leaked a little. I removed the crossbar. It appears the leak is coming from the middle of the crankcase behind the torx head screw that is directly below the big round sidecover (with the Yamaha logo). One of the torx crankcase screws was not torqued fully, but the one pictured was. There is a tiny metal tube under the crankcase and it appears wet. The bottom of the crankcase in the front where the fins are appears dry. There is a light haze of leakage on the heads as well, shown in the last pic. It wipes off easy and I don't think it has any bearing on the drips. An I sunk here? The oil gets all over everything and is a mess. Thanks! http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab244/bigpixels/xarm.jpg http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab244/bigpixels/dripdrip.jpg http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab244/bigpixels/tinytube.jpg http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab244/bigpixels/dripdrip2.jpg See the drip??? Here is one head....They are all "weeping" a little..http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab244/bigpixels/headseep.jpg

Another newbie question. Are Venture's prone to getting gas in the crankcase like the Yamaha Virago's if the petcocks leak or do not shut off? Just checking for overall impressions. Thanks again Don

After you have done the crankcase vent mod, have any of you then had any problems with oil leaks or going through more oil? I have done the mod to my 84 and got a very slow leak afterwords. I also put a vacuum cap over the orifice that the PCV valve went to on the air cleaner, which then mad it sound as if a tribble was stuck in my air box. I'm guessing the air was blowing over the orifice on the inside of the air box making it whistle a bit. Kind of like blowing across the top of an empty rifle shell. I'm gonna undo the little mod this spring and see if things change. PCV = Positive Crank Ventilation. When installed it creates a slight negative pressure, (vacuum), in the crankcase. So if there happens to be a small leak somewhere or a worn seal, the negative pressure won't let the oil leak out. If the PCV valve is eliminated, the result may be a positive pressure inside the crankcase as the engine warms up, and due to blow by. Which then might cause a seal or gasket to weep a bit of oil that might not have done so before. I tried this on my 78 F100 once just to test my theory. The results confirmed my suspicions. Any thoughts?

well, just started my 1300 v-star and ran it on fast idle for 25 minutes, only 3 more to go, since i don't believe in winterizing, i try to run them all at least once a week. we had a light snow, and there is still ice patches on the road. may be able to ride the other 3 later in the day. just a tip, if you do start them up, run them till the crankcase feels good and warm. this will get rid of all the condensation in the engine and mufflers, and coat the innards with oil. winterizing is the worst thing you can do for the internals of the engine and transmission. i have had bike motors apart that sat a few weeks in extreme temperature changes and the cylinders and gears had a light haze of rust due to condensation. if you don't run the motor at least keep it in a heated area. i keep my zx-14 in my shop all winter, and still run it every few weeks. i also keep battery tenders on all of them. if the battery is allowed to go dead and sit it will sulfate and ruin it. best thing you can do is dress warm and ride them at least 25 miles every week all winter if the streets are clear. make sure the crankcase gets good and warm, or you will do more harm than good.

Does anyone know if a 2007 1300 Venture engine will mount in my 2000 Royal Star Tour Deluxe. My local parts guy says the crankcase part # is different, but thought it would. I would like to know for sure though. Thanks for any help.

I'm such an idiot! This spring I started hearing a really horrible noise that sounded like metal scraping metal then changed to sounding like a knock. I thought I spun a bearing. So I pull the engine so I caould put in the engine out of the other VR I picked up for parts after I got hit last Halloween. While I had the engine out of the other bike I decided to take it to the car wash and clean it up before I instal it. On my way home I looked in my rear view mirror and saw that one of my straps had come undone. Before I could come to a complete stop it fell off the trailer. Luckily I was only going 5 mph or so. But it was enough to destroy both valve covers, the stator cover, a couple camshaft caps, and the bottom of the crankcase where the oil filter mounts. :bawling:Got the crankcase welded up and replace all the broken stuff with parts from the old engine. Finally got a friend to come over and help me get the engine in. She started right up and run great. For about half a tank anyway. Then I start hearing that noise again. Like I had spun a bearing. Either I have the worst luck and the new engine is crap too, or there is something else causing the noise. Just to rule out one possibility, I yanked off the eahaust collector, cut it open, gutted it out, stitched it back up and threw it back on. Low and behold the noise went away! I wonder where it went. Long story short... I'm such an idiot. With guys like me around, the rest of you look that much smarter!

1984 Yamaha Venture Second Gear Repair NOTE: The 2nd gear problem was fixed in 1985 after serial number 0001413 Part 1 Engine Removal http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic1.jpgFirst Step - Strip off the fairings and luggageAbout 2 years ago I purchased a 1984 Yamaha Venture Royale. It was in great shape with 60,000 Km on the clock. It seemed mechanically sound and with a few minor repairs was a great runner, fast, powerful, comfortable and surprisingly agile for a big bike. I managed to put on another 30,000 km, including a trip from Vancouver, BC to Ottawa, Ontario in the summer of 2000. I found the Venturers web site in February of 1999 and promptly joined and it became a goldmine of information as I learned about my trusty steed. One of the common problems found on the 83 to 85 Ventures was a failing second gear. I kept hearing of this problem but continued to see no evidence of the problem on my bike. I kept my fingers crossed that the problem wouldn't crop up as it seemed a huge problem to tackle. I had heard of other Venture owners either riding the bike without any second gear for long periods, or giving up and parting bikes out rather than repairing them. One Venturer, Scott MacMartin, had done his second gear repair several years ago and he had posted a parts list on his personal website. He also had a more recent parts list contributed by another member. The list seemed formidable. I kept hoping mine wouldn't develop the problem. Finally the inevitable. My second gear started to skip under full throttle in September 2000. I nursed it along, keeping a light throttle hand through to the end of riding season. Coincidentally, Scott updated his website in September with a pictorial description of a repair to his main clutch bearing. While not aimed directly at the second gear repair, he showed a number of great tips that would help in the repair. I had a shop manual and after studying it for hours and repeatedly checking Scott's site I decided to tackle the problem over the coming winter. I figured I might save money on parts if I got to it before the gear failed completely. Also, I didn't think I could get much selling the bike without 2nd gear, nor did I want to keep riding it without 2nd. Hell, 2nd is my favorite gear. Like a lot other first generation Venture owners, I had come to really like this bike, it's a real runner. At any rate, I kept a log during the teardown and took a number of photos, with the idea that they might be of assistance in reassembly in case I ran into any problems. After getting most of the work done, I decided to try putting this into a web page with the idea of helping other Venture owners gain the confidence to tackle this job. I am not a professional mechanic therefore, anything I write here is simply my own experience with this repair. My only intention is to pass on some information and knowledge to other Venture owners who may wish to attempt this repair. Think of it as preserving the breed. Don't take this project on lightly, but is within the grasp of a good home mechanic. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic2.jpgEngine Cleaned up prior to dis-assembly.http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic3.jpgBattery, Carbs, Radiator and Exhaust removed. I'm basically a lazy mechanic. I hate trying to fight my way around things. I'd rather take the time to properly gain access as it makes it easier in the long rub. I started by removing all the luggage, fairing, auxilliary lights, horns, etc to get proper access. A simple technique I've learned is to clean parts as I take them off and put fasteners for each component in a zip-lock bag. The bag is labled and kept with the component ready for reassembly. It's a lot easier to sort through a half-dozen parts at a time rather than a few hundred at a time. Especially if your project takes a number of weeks. I then washed the motor and frame to get rid of as much grease and grime as possible prior to dismantling. (I use Simple Green and a brush as degreaser.) I then warmed the bike up thoroughly to dry things out. With the bike still warm, I drained the oil and removed the oil filter. The battery was then removed and the carb float bowls drained. The engine coolant was then drained. Don't forget to drain the cylinder heads. There are plugs behind the chrome inserts on the side of each cylinder. The air cleaner box and carbs were next off. I found that the drain hose on the air cleaner was loose on mine. The hose drains off residue from the crankcase ventilation. With it disconnected it had sprayed all over my carbs. A few hours of cleaning was required. The crankcase ventilation hose was hardened and cracked during removal. The first item for the parts list. Clean rags were stuffed into the intake manifolds, to remain there for the duration of the repair process. Next to go were the bypass hose, YICS chambers, and Air Baffle plates. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic4.jpgHeader Pipes, Drive Shaft and Side Rails gone. The radiator and coolant hoses were removed next along with the footpeg assemblies and the middle gear case cover. I then disconnected the AC Generator leads, neutral switch lead, and pick up coil lead. The clutch slave cylinder was loosened and the hose left connected. I wanted to avoid having to bleed the clutch fluid again as I had done that recently. Not a great plan. I found during engine removal that it would have been easier to disconnect the hose and remove the engine with the slave cylinder in place. The mufflers were then removed. The rear wheel was removed and the drive shaft taken out. I then remounted the rear drive and wheel as I wanted to be able to move the bike around when the engine was out. The front exhaust headers were removed as well as the baffle chamber under the engine. The rear exhaust header was loosened. It would come out when the engine did. I unbolted the rear brake master cylinder and reservoir as instructed in the manual. Again, I was trying to avoid a brake bleeding. However, the clearance was such that I ended up taking them right off to get the engine out anyway. Might as well have done so from the start and saved some sweat. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic5.jpgEmpty Frame - Side Rail removed. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic6.jpgDr. John smiling after a successful engine-ectomy. The right lower side rail was then removed and with a wheeled floor jack supporting the engine and the help of a couple of friends we managed to wrestle the engine out. A couple of points. The shift mechanism had to be disconnected to enable the clutch slave cylinder to come free. It would have been easier to disconnect the hydralic line and remove the slave cylinder with the engine. Also we tried to turn the engine out of the frame. We ended up removing the rear brake master cylinder and reservoir as well as the rear cylinder valve cover to get enough clearance to lift the rear mounting bolts clear of their frame slots. Once clear of the frame we carefully lifted the engine onto a wheeled cabinet. With the engine safely out of the bike, I was ready to move on to phase two of the project! Part 2 Dismantling the Engine http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic7.jpgEngine Inverted - Crankcase covers and Oil Pan removed. With the engine successfully removed from the frame, I was ready to dig in to see what was wrong. The next few hours were spent thoroughly cleaning the engine exterior, top and bottom. It was time well spent as it made disassembly a much more pleasant job. The added benefit is that it's a lot easier to keep dirt and grime out of the engine if it is clean to begin with. The thermostat housing was then removed followed by the starter motor. Both of these parts could have been removed prior to removing the engine. This would have given a lot more clearance. I will not put them back on until the engine is back in the frame. The next step was to remove the left crankcase cover. The starter gear train is then loose and it comes out easily. The right crankcase cover (clutch) was next. As I had changed out the clutch plates and springs the year before, this was quite straight forward. The plates were stacked and wrapped. The clutch pushrods were then removed. Be careful to catch the ball bearing that resides between the two pushrods. A tip from Scott's website helped in getting the clutch lock nut off. You need a special tool to hold the clutch boss while loosening (or re-torquing) the lock nut. Scott used a 2x6 with a couple of brackets to hold the boss and a hole to allow the socket to go through. It works great! You'll need a 30mm socket for the job however. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic8.jpgThe clutch assembly is gone. The Oil Pump assembly and Water Pump are gone too. With the clutch assembly out the way, you'll need to remove the oil pump driven gear. Ring clip pliers are required. The water pump assembly is next. I understand the water pump originally came with a plastic impeller. It cracks with age and the upgraded part is metal. I was pleasantly surprised to find that someone had been here before. I was prepared to upgrade the impeller while it was apart but now didn't have to. Before carrying on, I spent considerable time removing all traces of gasket material from the side crankcase covers, the water pump and the crankcase itself. A bit of steel wool works great on the stubborn spots. I then inverted the engine and thoroughly cleaned the bottom side. The oil pan came off next. The oil pump assembly comes out with three bolts. I originally didn't plan to dismantle it but after a word with my friendly local bike shop I pulled it apart to inspect for scoring on the pump impellor surfaces. Clean as a whistle and quite easy to put back together. The main oil gallery was removed as an assembly. Be sure to make sure all the oil seals come out with the gallery. Note: One of the gallery bolts is also one of the lower crankcase bolts (#20) and should be installed and torqued in the proper sequence upon reassembly. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic9.jpgThese are the lower crankcase bolts laid out in order of removal from left to right.http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic10.jpgThe lower crankcase has been lifted off the inverted engine. The crankcase bolts are numbered. There are 36 of them and it is extremely important that they be reinstalled and torqued in the proper sequence. Taking them out in reverse sequence allows you to lay them out in order saving considerable confusion and time when reassembling. Start by turning the engine right side up and removing starting with #36 which is also the ground strap bolt. A nice touch on the Venture is that all 36 are actually marked right on the crankcase assembly. (Bolts # 31, 30, 28 & 27 will loosen but you cannot take them out with the cylinder heads still in place. Just let them hang loose, as they will not get lost.) (Note, in my shop manual the illustration on page 3-22 shows the crankcase tightening sequence. Unfortunately, the diagram captions are reversed with the lower crankcase labeled the upper crankcase and vice- versa.) The clutch bearing retainer needs to be removed prior to separating the crankcase. This retainer has large phillips head screws which will require an impact driver to loosen. I hadn't used one of these since owning a 1970 Kawasaki 90 many moons ago. On that bike, every screw was a phillips head and you couldn't do anything without an impact driver. I had to go an buy one. The middle gear bearing retainers also have to be removed prior to separating the cases. This retainer uses Torx 40 fasteners. I bought a Torx 40 socket for the job. (If I keep tackling these jobs, I'll eventually end up owning every tool known to man. Is that a bad thing?) The three bolts holding the collapsible collar holding the driven pinion gear will also have to be removed prior to separating the cases. Be careful not to bend the thin shims behind this collar. Since I will not be changing any parts on the pinion gears, I plan to re-use the shims and believe that the gear lash will not be disturbed. I did not disassemble the U-joint assembly. With all fasteners off it was surprisingly easy to separate the crankcase assembly. A couple of taps with a rubber mallet and off it came. A couple of hours were spent cleaning the residue from the crankcase mating surfaces. The next step was diagnosing the problem. Part 3 Diagnosis & Repair of Transmission http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic11.jpgLower crankcase with Main and Driven Axles in place and shift forks engaged.Since this was the first time I had taken a motorcycle transmission apart, I placed the two transmission shafts into the lower crankcase, with the shift forks properly engaged on the gears and I spent a fair amount of time manually moving the shift cam through the gears. The picture at left shows the main axle assembly above and the drive axle assembly below. If you can make out the numbers in the picture, 1, 2, and 3 point to the three shift forks. Turning the main axle by hand, you can shift through all the gears manually. It doesn't take a long time to get a clear understanding of how power is transferred in each gear. It also became very apparant as to what the problem was. Even though there was very little wear on the second gear dogs or gears, when in second gear, the gear dogs were only overlapping by a millimeter or so. With the large torque in 2nd gear, the gear assembly would put a tremendous amount of sideways force on the shift fork allowing the gear (#1) to move to the left and jump a cog or two. When the shift fork was inspected it did turn out to be bent. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic14.jpgShift Forks and Shift Cam The picture at right shows the shift cam and shift forks. The #1 shift fork (2 in picture) was slightly bent and required replacement. The shift fork shaft can also bend from the stresses of skipping. To check it, remove it and roll it across a mirror or plate glass. Any bend should show up clearly. Mine was OK as was the shift cam, probably because the problem had just started. The shift cam (#1 in picture) needs to be carefully inspected for wear in the groove that the #1 shift fork rides in. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic12.jpgHome made press for dismantling the Driven Transmission ShaftThe homemade press at left was suggested by Scott MacMartin on his web page and it worked beautifully. It is constructed from 2x6 and large screws. The floor jack compresses the spring and forces the center of the shaft up into the hole in the middle section (arrow) and allows you to remove the thrust washers. The next picture clearly illustrates the basic problem. The wear on the old thrust washer (#2) is evident as is the wear on the slot on the transmission shaft. The combination produces the gap (#1) in the slot. This gap allows the whole shaft to shift inboard reducing the overlap of the 2nd gear dogs. Once it gets to a critical point, the gear is forced sideways by the torque allowing it to skip. This sideways force will eventually cause the shift fork to bend. It also would cause the fork to wear the groove in the shift cam. The bent fork and wear on the shift cam would further reduce the overlap on the gear dogs until there is no second gear at all. Note the plug (#3) in the photo. When I ordered the new Drive Axle, the plug didn't come with it. It could be easily overlooked when reassembling. Without the plug, there would be no oil pressure inside the Drive Axle, hence very little if any oil getting to the gear surfaces. Be sure to order this as a separate part as the old one will not fit properly in the new shaft. I was able to continue with reassembly while waiting for this plug as it is easily popped in after the engine crankcase is put back together as it is on the outboard side of the shaft. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic13L.jpgHere's the basic problem. I ordered a 2nd/5th gear kit which included two pinion gears and two wheel gears. These were substantially different than the originals and I'm told that these are updates that have been made over the years on the Venture and V-Max models. They did provide a lot more gear overlap for both 2nd and 5th and looked sturdier and wider. They fit perfectly. I also replaced the Drive Axle, thrust washers, as well as the 2nd gear shift fork. If your 2nd gear has worn to the point where it isn't there at all, you will likely need the shift cam and shift fork shaft as well. I also replaced just about every gasket and oil seal I could find. (A complete parts list is posted on the last page.) As a side note, virtually all of these parts have been upgraded or superceded several times over the years. The Drive Axle for example is the fifth version of this and there are several subtle differences in the oil paths but it does fit perfectly. With all the replacement parts on hand, I reassembled the Drive Axle, installed the new shift fork and once again laid the transmissions shafts in the lower crankcase assembly mated the shift forks. I manually ran the transmission through the gears several times until I was satisfied that everything was in the right place. The transmission shafts were then transferred to the upper crankcase assembly in preparation for reassembly. Part 4 Engine / Transmission Reassembly http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic15.jpgCrankcase back together - Right Viewhttp://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic17.jpgCrankcase back together - Left View A few points to watch out for before mating the upper and lower crankcases together. First, be sure to replace the clutch push rod oil seal and O-ring prior to reassembly. It is possible to replace the seal once the bike is back together but impossible to replace the O-ring as the collar it fits on is keyed to the crankcase. I oiled up all the main bearing surfaces and poured some oil into as many of the galleries as I could access with the thought that this would aid lubrication upon startup. Apply Yamabond (or Threebond) to all mating surfaces. It is very important to apply in the areas surrounding the oil galleries to ensure good oil pressure. Also, keep the Yamabond at least three mm away from any of the main bearings to prevent contamination. Don't forget to position the Drive shaft pinion gear at this point. I didn't worry about checking the pinion gear lash as I took it out as an assembly and dropped it right back in. Dropping the lower crankcase into place is quite easy. Touch it down at the front end and as you drop the rear end, guide the shift forks into place on the transmission gears with a screwdriver. Once again, shift through the gears a couple of times manually before tightening anything down. Install and torque the crankcase bolts in the proper sequence. One of the bolts holding in the main oil gallery is also one of the crankcase bolts so I mounted it at the same time and torqued the bolt in the proper sequence. I installed new O-rings on the main oil gallery. The engine was now turned upright and the spacers on the shaft drive yoke were slipped into place and the upper crankcase bolts were installed and torqued. The drive yoke bolts were then positioned and torqued. I then had to re-invert the engine to install the oil pump assembly (new O-rings again) and the oil pan with a new gasket. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic16.jpgShiny Crankcase and Water Pump Covershttp://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic18.jpgScott's handy-dandy clutch removal tool! With the engine once again upright, the main axle bearing stopper (clutch) and the drive pinion gear stoppers were installed. In both cases, be sure to use locktite and proper torque. The pinion gear stoppers need to be punched as well per the manual. In the second picture above, note that the plug is now in the Drive Axle (#2) and a new O-ring has been placed on the Neutral/Gear Selection switch (#1). Note that throughout this repair, I never had to remove flywheel/generator rotor from the crankshaft. While all the internal repairs were taking place, I also took some time for some cosmetic external clean-up. The crankcase and waterpump covers were showing the ravages of UV rays and the factory coating was a mess. Liberal applications of Minwax Paint & Varnish Remover took care of the old coating. A thorough polishing with NEVR-DULL and Mother's Metal polish restored the shine. A fresh coating of clear coat high temp laquer provides the protection. Prior to installing the clutch boss, be sure to re-install the oil pump drive gear. Another tip of the hat to Scott MacMartin. His Clutch Removal tool works like a hot-damn and is easy to build. The piece of 2x6 with a couple of shelf brackets provides more than enough grip to break the main clutch boss nut free and also to re-torque it upon re-assembly. The hole provides room for the socket to grip the nut, while the "tool" holds the boss tightly. I just love great ideas, particulary when they are cheap to implement. The remainder of the clutch plates, and springs were added and the bolts torqued. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic19.jpgThis is a great time to check the valve clearance! The starter gear train was installed along with the AC Generator Cover. (A new gasket, of course, was also installed. With the engine on the bench, this is the ideal time to check and adjust the valve clearance. A whole lot easier than when it is in the bike. No bashed knuckles here. It turns out there were a couple that were tightening up a bit too much so with some shim swapping, everything is back to spec. New valve cover gaskets went on at this time but the rubber bolt plugs looked in good shape so I stayed with the old ones. The right crankcase cover goes on next (new gasket) and we're just about ready to re-mount the engine. Part 5 Re-Installing the Engine http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic20.jpgReady for install - Left Viewhttp://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic21L.jpgReady for install - Right View I'm doing a few things differently from when I pulled the motor out. In an effort to gain as much clearance as possible and simplify the task I've left a few things off and put others on. In the left view of the motor, the clutch slave cylinder is mounted to the engine and the shift shaft linkage is connected. This will be two less things to fiddle with when remounting the engine. The downside, and it's minor, is that I will have to reconnect and bleed the clutch line. In the right view, notice that the water pump, thermostat assembly and starter motor are not in place. This provides some much needed clearance on the front end. Further, the drive shaft is still not in place so all I have to worry about there is getting the yoke into the swing arm and I don't have to worry about mating the splines at this point. The rear brake master cylinder is also not in place. I had to remove it to get the engine out and since I plan to upgrade the brake lines anyway, bleeding the brakes will have to be done regardless. The lower right frame rail will also come off to provide room. I had it re-mounted to the to keep the parts together. One last point prior the task is to have the rear exhaust header handy. It has to go in with the motor. You can't put it in after the fact. http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic22.jpgPart way in with the help of a couple of friends!http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic23.jpgIt's In!!!! I highly recommend the help of a couple of friends for this step. Zolton and John were a great help here. Lifting the engine onto the jack is a tricky step and a couple of extra hands to steady things while sliding it into place are invaluable. Note that there is very little sweat on their brows and we're half-way there. It required a bit of jockeying back and forth but in about 15 minutes, it slipped into place. Three of the mounting bolts were put in and we're there. The lower picture at right shows the engine in place with the water pump, thermostat assembly, starter motor and lower frame rails all bolted into place. Other steps at this point are: Reconnect the clutch slave cylinder hose and refill and bleed clutch lines. Reconnect wiring harness from the AC Generator, Neutral switch assembly and Oil sensor. Install exhaust headers, muffler chamber and exhaust pipes. Re-install Drive shaft - lubricate with Molybdenum Disulphide Grease. Install middle gear case cover and gasket. Re-install Oil Filter assembly. Re-fill with fresh motor oil. Mine took almost 4 litres to get to correct level. Install footpeg assemblies. Install radiator, coolant hoses, and coolant bypass hose. Refilled cooling system. Used long life, silicate free anti-freeze. Installed YICS chamber and Air baffles. Installed new fuel filter. (good time to do this with good access.) Installed carburettor assembly. Lube and adjust throttle and choke cables. Install Air cleaner assembly.http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic24.jpgIt's running!With a good charge on the battery and one last good look around to see what I may have missed it's time to give it a whirl. With some gentle coaxing she caught and fired. After some initial blue smoke (I suspect from being upside down for so long) she settled into a nice idle and the exhaust cleared to a clear vapour. I still didn't have the brake lines on so I ran her up and down through the gears on the center stand a few times. So far, so good! I let her warm up thoroughly and then hooked up the mercury stacks. The carb synch was virtually spot on. A week later I had a new set of stainless steel brake lines installed and fresh set of spark plugs. Insurance on and time to take her for a short test ride. I still had no fairing on the bike, therefore, no signal lights and no mirrors so I kept it short. (It was also darned cold.) Shifting is very smooth through the gears, good power with no clutch slip and best of all, no skipping in second gear. Yahooooooo!!!! Still lots to do to get her ready for a summer of riding but a big job complete. Part 6 Parts Listing The following are lists of parts and materials that I found necessary for this project. Your experience may vary depending on how badly worn your transmission is. For example I didn't replace the shift cam, which may be necessary if you have virtually no second gear. The lists are broken into four parts and all prices are in CANADIAN dollars and include Provincial (BC) and Federal sales taxes. Your prices will vary of course, depending on your locale, dealer and tax systems. The prices are only published here as a guide. The first list contains the parts that I found were specific to the 2nd gear repair. As my 84VR had only just started skipping, this should be considered a minimum. I have included gaskets and seals that can only be accessed with the crankcase split. I believe that they should be considered essential changes as part of this repair. PART NUMBERDESCRIPTIONPRICE99999-01573-002nd/5th Gear Kit - Includes: 1FK-17121-01 Gear 2nd Pinion 1FK-17151-01 Gear 5th Pinion 1FK-17221-01 Gear 2nd Wheel 1FK-17252-01 Gear 5th Wheel$298.254NK-17421-00Axle Driven$206.4490331-15039Plug - Axle$4.695A8-17529-00Washer Thrust (2 required)$7.4790201-252K4Washer Plate (170-16154-02)$11.6626H-18511-01Fork (Shift #1)$25.583JP-12449-02Gasket, Water Pump (26H-13410-44)$8.913JP-13414-01Gasket, Strainer Cover (26H-13414-00)$11.893JP-15462-01Gasket, Crankcase Right (26H-15462-00)$10.363JP-15451-01Gasket, Crankcase Left (26H-15451-00)$11.9793210-14579O-Ring, Oil Pump Pipe (2 required)$1.8793210-29196O-Ring (371), Neutral/Gear Indicator Assembly$2.9293210-18322O-Ring (1L9), Clutch Push-Rod Bushing$2.2093109-08061Oil Seal (12E), Clutch Push-Rod (371-15389-00)$3.2493102-12321Oil Seal (30X), Shift Shaft (93102-12106)$7.5190215-25218Washer, Lock, Clutch Basket$2.42TOTAL $617.38The second list contains materials that were necessary for the job. Some could be considered regular maintenance, but needed to be changed as part of the process. I did not include materials I already had on hand such as solvents, and polishing compounds. PART NUMBERDESCRIPTIONPRICE530405Threebond, Liquid Gasket 3.5 oz$9.2224200Loctite 242$7.423471Copaslip Anti-Seize Assembly Compound$3.1375-080Motul 5100 10W-40 Semi-Synthetic Motor Oil, 4 litres$36.89M4332C 11024Gunk DOT-3 HD Brake Fluid, 1 litre Moly Grease$13.3429-3011-0Anti-freeze, Long Life, Silicate Free$14.81TOTAL $84.81This third list contains some special tools I needed to purchase for the job. I have a fairly substantial work shop, but I still needed a few special items. PART NUMBERDESCRIPTIONPRICEgr m123030mm, 1/2 drive, 12 point socket$22.247207012500 1/2 inch Impact Driver$19.05677763Torx 40 Socket$5.316772588mm Allen Head 3/8 Socket$5.52TOTAL $52.12The last table lists the other parts that were purchased for general winter maintenance. This includes a brake overhaul, cooling system overhaul and general tune-up items. This list sort of grew with the project and kind of got out of hand. However, it all goes towards maintaining a sound reliable bike. PART NUMBERDESCRIPTIONPRICE26H-11193-00Valve Cover Gaskets (2 Required)$48.9947G-11166-00Pipe, Breather 1 (Crankcase Ventilation)$9.3893211-16591O-Ring, Water Pump Cover$4.4193210-27778O-Ring, Water Pump Cover (93210-14104)$0.9393210-27778O-Ring (1KT), Coolant Pipe to Thermostat (2 Required)$9.131J7-13441-10Element, Oil Filter$9.1826H-12169-10 26H-12168-Y0Pad, Adjusting 2.70 Pad, Adjusting 2.65$15.28246-FA88HHEBC, Double-H, Sintered ST Brake Pads (3 sets)$169.2591316-10020-00Frame Bolt$2.851FK-24560-00Fuel Filter$14.4926H-12576-01Coolant Hose #1$18.70 Galfer Clearcoat Stainless Steel Brake Line Set (5 hoses)$372.26350-DPR8EA9NGK Spark Plugs (4 Required)$24.58TOTAL $699.43 http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic27.jpg http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic25.jpg http://www.venturerider.org/secondgear/pic26.jpg