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When the rage subsides...


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OK. I'm not screaming anymore. Sometimes things just overwhelm me and I just need a little foot-stomping, screaming hissy-fit to get back to seeing clearly again.

 

Since the dog decided that 5 AM was a good time to puke on my bed, I got him over paper towels in time, I figure it's a good time to pull out the real keyboard and put some thought into this. Now he's snoring and here I sit talking to you guys! And people told me I NEEDED to get a dog...

 

What helped this time was 7 hours of windshield time and taking care of some patients around the State yesterday. Good time to reflect on all the progress that has been made and to lift my eyes to the next challenge.

 

You all have shared tips for most of the things on this list and now I just need to find them and follow through on my end. It's all on the list because it's good to be reminded how close I really am getting to being able to CTFW at will.)

 

From off the top of my head, here's what has been done so far...

-New TDI box

-Front fork seals and springs. (OEM springs, don't think they were progressive)

-Transmission rebuilt and 2nd gear fixed.

-Replaced Clutch Springs

-New Clutch Slave

-New Drive Shaft seals and final drive gone through

-Fuse box replaced with mini-fuses

-Valves adjusted and new Valve cover gaskets

-Carbs rebuilt, (Leak to be addressed)

-New plug wires and caps

-New brake lines (Except the one's from the rear master down to the plunger, and they look bad but I haven't found the lines with Banjo on one end and then straight connection coming from bottom of master cyl.)

-Upgraded the Stator cooling/oiler

-New Shinkos F & R

-New Exhaust (Take-offs from a Road King or Road Star? Harley)

-New Windshield

 

Current electrical issues...

-Upon reflection, when I picked up the bike this last time, the mechanic again told me about one of the relays on the back of the dash that is "In horrible condition". He said he did a bunch of zip tying to hold wires there up out of the way and as much coverage from weather as he could get. This is probably what's blowing the fuse (This is where it bumped to the 20 AMP, but now even the 20 is blowing)

 

-Headlamp intermittent issue between no high or no low but one or the other always works, just never know which bump is going to bring up the warning light and require flipping the switch to the other (Either high or loW)

 

-Two current issues, the leaking carb (front left) and leaking Clutch hydraulics have been discussed with the shop who did the repairs and they fully intend to make it right. Now arguments. Just tell me to bring it in. We've agreed that I will address some of these other issues before I bring it back in to get their part right before Spring.

 

-Need to find a collar wrench to check torque of my triple-horn. (Each of the three times the shop has had it, I get "Swimming" at different speeds. Was around 90 MPH, then 80 or so, then 90 to 95. I'm thinking I need to check the torque at the triple horn. Tires are balanced, inflated and suspension has been adusted, 17lbs. forks, 48 lbs rear shock.)

 

-Need to reposition handle bars to my comfort (I like them up and forward. I ride gravel and not great roads at times and I believe this gives me better control, like a dirt bike, on these surfaces at slower than highway speeds. Still comfortable enough to sit for hours and eat slab all day.) God blessed me with 36" sleeve length arms which is only a curse when finding dress shirts with a skinny neck and long arms...but that's another deal...)

 

-Like everyone, I want to find better plastic parts and repair what I can. Pretty sure I've mentioned that the PO was a little guy, 5'7-8" and he dropped this girl a few times. The last time, she lay on her side in the back yard for a year and half)

 

-Need locks for mounting the saddle bags. My Original key works to open all bags, gas cover, trunk mounting lock, but the locks to hold the bags on just spin without moving anything.

 

-Need to do something to repair the clamshell closiers on the bags. Trunk is good but bags don't line up and are wonky. NOT broken, just don't fit nice anymore.

 

-New pinhole in top left corner of radiator. Can these be repaired or do I have to find another radiator?

 

Here's a thought from yesterday's rumination that I came up with, what do think?

"My wanderlust needs no destination, I only know I've got to go!"

 

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Edited by s.tyler58
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Adjustment of the bars was easy on mine. It's a MKII but I think it's the same. I scribed the position before I changed it. I moved the bars back one spline and it was perfect. That should take maybe 10-15 minutes if you have the socket sizes.

 

If your adjusting the steering head bearings, Dingy sells (if he still does) a wrench for that. I cant recall what I paid for one but it's a very nice tool, I think it was in the neighborhood of $25 but dont quote me on that, it was a fair bit cheaper than the one the local motorsports shop had. Well worth it. My bike being an 89 and with over 70k on the clock I opted to replace the head bearings and races. At the least they should be inspected, cleaned, re greased and adjusted. That is a bit of a PITA job whereas adjustment is quite simple. I've read that some folks have loosened them up enough to work some grease in without actual disassembly.

 

A relay like that sounds like an issue, betting enough folks here have parts bikes that a replacement should be easy to find. It's possible that a relay that is zip tied together could be responsible for a host of electrical gremlins. I would knock that out before getting butthole deep in trying to iron out the other odd electrical problems. I would not be shocked if some/all of that traces back to a relay like the one you describe.

 

The frustration and expense should pay off when the snow melts, It's a pretty great bike to be sure.

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Adjustment of the bars was easy on mine. It's a MKII but I think it's the same. I scribed the position before I changed it. I moved the bars back one spline and it was perfect. That should take maybe 10-15 minutes if you have the socket sizes.

 

If your adjusting the steering head bearings, Dingy sells (if he still does) a wrench for that. I cant recall what I paid for one but it's a very nice tool, I think it was in the neighborhood of $25 but dont quote me on that, it was a fair bit cheaper than the one the local motorsports shop had. Well worth it. My bike being an 89 and with over 70k on the clock I opted to replace the head bearings and races. At the least they should be inspected, cleaned, re greased and adjusted. That is a bit of a PITA job whereas adjustment is quite simple. I've read that some folks have loosened them up enough to work some grease in without actual disassembly.

 

A relay like that sounds like an issue, betting enough folks here have parts bikes that a replacement should be easy to find. It's possible that a relay that is zip tied together could be responsible for a host of electrical gremlins. I would knock that out before getting butthole deep in trying to iron out the other odd electrical problems. I would not be shocked if some/all of that traces back to a relay like the one you describe.

 

The frustration and expense should pay off when the snow melts, It's a pretty great bike to be sure.

Sound advice. Thanks.

I left out the intermittent/always wrong fuel gauge, too. I MEAN REALLY? HOW MUCH COULD BE LEFT?

 

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Sound advice. Thanks.

I left out the intermittent/always wrong fuel gauge, too. I MEAN REALLY? HOW MUCH COULD BE LEFT?

 

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

Fuel gauge should be simple. take off seat, pull gauge, clean and check the wipers.....and connectors to the gauge. may have to bend some things to get the gauge more accurate....should be some more info on this site. Do believe you aren't the first to work on a 1st gen gauge!1

Of course,make sure fuel level is low enough! Someone here should be able to tell you how much gas in tank to safely pull the gauge. it's on top of tank....

Interested in all these things you've done. It does help the rest of us....to read what you have done...

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I left out the intermittent/always wrong fuel gauge, too. I MEAN REALLY? HOW MUCH COULD BE LEFT?

 

Looks to me that you have already taken care of most things that might give trouble. Not sure I'd worry much about the fuel gauge since the other fuel gauge, the odometer, works ok. I've never had a bike with an actual fuel gauge over the past 50 years of riding, and I haven't yet been stuck someplace after running out of fuel.

 

I hope that you enjoy your 83 venture. My 83 is a great bike to ride and is very fast. Last summer on a back road, I came up on the tail end of a long line of harleys cruising along at the speed limit. After following them for awhile, I decided that I was tired of the pace and started passing. By the time I got to the front of the line I was going 120mph and left the nose to tail riders quickly. No idea what they thought when an old chopped venture passed them at more than twice their speed.

zag

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Looks to me that you have already taken care of most things that might give trouble. Not sure I'd worry much about the fuel gauge since the other fuel gauge, the odometer, works ok. I've never had a bike with an actual fuel gauge over the past 50 years of riding, and I haven't yet been stuck someplace after running out of fuel.

 

I hope that you enjoy your 83 venture. My 83 is a great bike to ride and is very fast. Last summer on a back road, I came up on the tail end of a long line of harleys cruising along at the speed limit. After following them for awhile, I decided that I was tired of the pace and started passing. By the time I got to the front of the line I was going 120mph and left the nose to tail riders quickly. No idea what they thought when an old chopped venture passed them at more than twice their speed.

zag

Exactly the kind of Thrills I can't wait to give those Harley Riders and why I picked the first gen and over everything else

 

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17lbs. forks, 48 lbs rear shock.

 

Mine use to act squirly at high speed, I dropped front forks to maybe 5 psi, seemed to tighten everything up nicely. I have found my 83 to be VERY temperamental with fork, shock, and tire pressures.

 

I moved my bars up like you plan (I'm a tall guy), and love the feel.

Might not be as relaxed and causes a little discomfort on longer rides in the arms

. I tend to ride and use mine as a sport bike. I leave the bags off, and snap on trunk if I need.

 

Keep on pluggin, you'll get there.

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Cover me! I'm going in!

First glance, here's how the first two relays are rigged. Rubber holders gone, boot on second one looks to be disintegrating. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180121/b0c4d994a095dfdeebc4a1fd6189b2cd.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180121/c06deefed189832fac5e5495ac17ee5a.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180121/99e5f1d96f07a34040555ee5db4a4fd9.jpg

 

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Headlamp issues? Maybe one culprit?349643542c0a8645445c1610034d19b8.jpg

 

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Well, that connector is junk. Time to solder in a new one. I wonder if a dealer would have that connector? I just looked on ebay and didn't find one.

zag

Thanks! It plugs into a common headlight. Seems like it should be easy to find something that will work. There's no clearance issues...

 

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?http://cloud.tapatalk.com/s/5a6507c00f219/20180121_152721.mp4

 

The widow looks like it was never connected to anything (very corroded terminals). Looking on the wiring schematic, I see a red/black wire labeled "Acc Terminal" (I'm assuming accessory terminal). I'd guess that red is +12V and black is ground (just a guess). By the way, do you have a complete yamaha service manual? If you don't, you should get one. Like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-Original-1983-84-XVZ1200-Models-Factory-Service-Manual-Motorcycle-Repair/302603126205?hash=item46748d45bd:g:vsMAAOSw4GVYHrsY&vxp=mtr

 

zag

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The widow looks like it was never connected to anything (very corroded terminals). Looking on the wiring schematic, I see a red/black wire labeled "Acc Terminal" (I'm assuming accessory terminal). I'd guess that red is +12V and black is ground (just a guess). By the way, do you have a complete yamaha service manual? If you don't, you should get one. Like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-Original-1983-84-XVZ1200-Models-Factory-Service-Manual-Motorcycle-Repair/302603126205?hash=item46748d45bd:g:vsMAAOSw4GVYHrsY&vxp=mtr

 

zag

I had downloaded a complete owner's manual and service guide but when I went back six months later to check the manual for something it said the download was no longer available. That one was for a 1200 TK. Which is more like my 1200 t. I also have this Electric schematics downloaded. Right now I'm just opening things up looking for the obvious and have found some fairly obvious things! There is a 10 amp ACC fuse, perhaps that's what I'll use to power my Outlets.

 

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Thanks! It plugs into a common headlight. Seems like it should be easy to find something that will work. There's no clearance issues...

 

If you cannot find an original connector, I would imagine that standard female spade connectors could be found at a hardware store which would work. Usually they are specified simply by the connector width (like 1/4") but recently I've found weird male spade connectors which are super thin metal and require some crunching down on the female spade to make a reliable connection. Of course, if you get to that point, saving the two connectors which look OK would be possible if you break apart the black connector housing and pull out the good ones. The stock plastic housing on the three connectors doesn't really do anything other than allow all three connectors to be attached as one.

zag

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I had downloaded a complete owner's manual and service guide but when I went back six months later to check the manual for something it said the download was no longer available. That one was for a 1200 TK. Which is more like my 1200 t. I also have this Electric schematics downloaded. Right now I'm just opening things up looking for the obvious and have found some fairly obvious things! There is a 10 amp ACC fuse, perhaps that's what I'll use to power my Outlets.

 

Since you are really digging into things on your bike, I'd suggest that an original yamaha service manual (not owners manual) would be a good investment. No point in getting an after market manual put together by some publisher when you can get the real thing. The one on ebay for $55 might be a good choice unless you can find the same thing someplace else for less cost. I do have the service manual as a pdf which I could email to you (would need your address) but, frankly, having a paper copy is much nicer when you are out in the garage working on something.

zag

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If you cannot find an original connector, I would imagine that standard female spade connectors could be found at a hardware store which would work. Usually they are specified simply by the connector width (like 1/4") but recently I've found weird male spade connectors which are super thin metal and require some crunching down on the female spade to make a reliable connection. Of course, if you get to that point, saving the two connectors which look OK would be possible if you break apart the black connector housing and pull out the good ones. The stock plastic housing on the three connectors doesn't really do anything other than allow all three connectors to be attached as one.

zag

Should be cake. I don't want to pull them apart until I have the other one so I get them in the right spot.9b9d5e7752a63a7c1399cd46f9e87117.jpg

 

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It might be possible to buy new rubber boots to protect those connectors - but I wouldn't bet on it. Another type of protection is "fusion tape" which is a kind of stretchy rubber tape which only adheres to itself. https://www.mcmaster.com/#fusion-tape/=1b88gtu

Pretty weird, I guess, but each surface of the tape is coated with some chemical which creates the bond. The only way to remove the tape is by tearing it or cutting it. It works well in a protected area where it doesn't get sunlight exposure. On the tapes that I have used, it seems that sunlight causes it to break down.

Of course, take a minute to verify that the connector terminals look good before sealing them up!

zag

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Just another thought: If you find yourself needing to crimp on wiring connectors, I would strongly suggest that every connector should be soldered after it is crimped to the wire. It does take a little more time, but the final connection is not going to be damaged by water. If you don't already own a decent soldering station, then this would be a good time to get one. A cheapo soldering iron that plugs into 110VAC power is not very easy to work with and produce good solder joints - usually they have a single tip which cannot be changed. A professional grade soldering iron has a small soldering iron with a selection of tips and a detached power supply that is the part that plugs into 110VAC power. This might be a good place to start: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=weller

Weller is an excellent brand which has been around a long time, but I'm sure there are others that are also good.

zag

 

PS Just another thought about soldering. Bike wiring is usually VERY oxidized which means that solder won't "wet" the copper and create a good electrical connection. On my other bike, I recently had to solder 3 wires to replace a bad connector from the alternator. In order to get a decent solder joint, it is necessary to fan out the little individual wires inside the larger wire and scraped them with something (I use a knife blade) until it is obvious that the copper is exposed. Then use solder which has flux in it - or even use a bit plumbing flux to help create a good solder joint. Most solder is designed by folks who assume that the thing to be soldered is relatively clean. Copper wires that have been exposed to the elements for 30 years are not what they considered. However, it only takes a minute to scrape a copper wire clean enough to make a good solder connection. And a small tin of plumbing flux has enough extra mojo to help the situation. Just wipe off the excess melted flux after making a good solder joint and seal it up with heat shrink tubing. Hope this helps.

Edited by zagger
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Well, that connector is junk. Time to solder in a new one. I wonder if a dealer would have that connector? I just looked on ebay and didn't find one.

zag

@s.tyler58 I may actually have a couple of these connectors as I thought I could use the same plug for my Flasher assembly but for some reason I could not get them to plug into the flasher I will check later when I go out the garage.

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