Guest bsreg Posted May 31, 2008 Share #1 Posted May 31, 2008 I recently purchased a 1984 Venture Royal after my fiasco with the auction bike. Found a nice shape one that ran from a great member in south Alabama. The only problem is I need a new rear tire. I got some major sticker shock yesterday from bike shop in Slidell La. Seems that the store there wants 187.00 +tax for a new rear tire (brand to be declared) and $97.50+ tax to install the tire. I also questioned front fork seals while I was there since one is leaking. $65.00 for parts, 285.00 for labor... plus taxes. At these prices I can become a mechanic if forced to be, I have air tools and good sets of tools to work with. I have changed a bike tire but it has been years ago and would do it differently now since back then I didn't have spoons just large screwdrivers. I do not have a way of balancing the tire and would like to find a shop that wasn't planning on raping me to purchase a tire from and have installed. Does anyone have any good places here in South Mississippi or South La, or South Ala, or Northwest Fl that they would recommend??? Man I am going to have to try to do some schedule changes to make it to maintenance days somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squeeze Posted May 31, 2008 Share #2 Posted May 31, 2008 If the Tools you mentioned, are metric Tools, why not 'become' a Mechanic. Some Things on these Bikes are not easy to do, but with some common Sense and the People here, you're far away of being alone and left somewhere in the Desert. You turn the Wrenches, we assist with answering any Question which might come up. Regarding the Tire Change, you could find a Dealer which mounts and balances the Tire. You could buy a Tire online, SW Moto or somewhere else and while dismounting the rear Wheel, you could do Maintenance on the Splines, Drive Shaft and Rubber Dampers in the Wheel, check the Bearings and Brake Caliper and Shock Linkage and learn a Lot about your Bike. There is the Workshop Manual to download here in the 1Gen Tech Section. 470 Pages of reading and learning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bsreg Posted May 31, 2008 Share #3 Posted May 31, 2008 Thanks squeeze.... I do have good metric... I am a lazy mechanic... Granddad was a auto mechanic, Dad was a drag race car builder and I was always poor. I did all my wrenching on bikes and cars when I was younger and had lots more time then money. I generally can fix anything but time is a huge factor any more and since the hurricane space ( I am still in my rv/coach). I have never been afraid to tear anything apart and put together and make run better then it did when I started. Seldom do I even have more then 2 or 3 parts left over even... Just wanted to find a decent honest shop that wanted reasonable rates for doing quality work. I don't mind 75-85 a hr as long as it is true hours. Not 5 minutes on this and 20 over there on someone else then 5 on mine again charging me a hr for 10 minutes of work and racking in 4-5 hrs when they didn't work for that time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squeeze Posted May 31, 2008 Share #4 Posted May 31, 2008 I don't know how it is in your Neck of the Woods, but there have been several Members reporting Dealers denying working on such older Bikes. And of Course, who has any Knowledge about these Bikes anymore ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GigaWhiskey Posted May 31, 2008 Share #5 Posted May 31, 2008 yer prolly not gonna find a solid 1stGen knowledgeable mechanic at a dealer anymore. They are prolly retired or working their own shop. In fact, if you drove that bike to the dealer, chances are they have never seen or heard of it before - Even a Yamaha dealer (been there, heard it with my own ears). It would be interesting to hear how many Yamaha dealer mechanics have accounts here to ask how to fix a first gen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiCarl Posted May 31, 2008 Share #6 Posted May 31, 2008 I was in a dealer last week while the Mrs. shopped for a jacket. I wandered to the service department. They have a sign that says if it's older than 1990 they won't touch it. Right above it was their rate sign. $80/hour. Not sure about the MKI Venture, but on the MKII both mufflers, the RH bag and the RH bag guard have to be removed to do the job. I have practice and I think it would take me two hours just to get the wheel off, back on, and the luggage all back in place. I believe on the MKI the bags are quick release and maybe the guard could stay in place during the job. Figure only an hour for that one. For what it's worth, I charge $30 for a carry in mount and balance. And I work cheap. 100 for the whole job doesn't sound out of line to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChurchBuilder Posted June 1, 2008 Share #7 Posted June 1, 2008 I just bought some tires from traxmc.com. Very good prices but you have to mount your own. Mine is fine without balancing so far. It was a pain to mount still. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeS Posted June 1, 2008 Share #8 Posted June 1, 2008 Buy a Bead Breaker tool, real handy, and a couple of tire irons. Its not that hard to change them yourself!! Also, be sure to pull out the drive shaft, and greese the front spline of the shaft. And Clean and greese the Wheel hub. And you might want to replace the Wheel Bearings as long as you have it off. Its not really that bad a job. Its good for the Soul, as they say. !!! We have lots of members in MS, maby sombody will stop by and give you a hand. !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiCarl Posted June 1, 2008 Share #9 Posted June 1, 2008 If you do bearings beware the issue that hit me. There is a sealed bearing on the right side of the rear wheel - no problem. The left side has a "cylindrical bearing". That's not the whole bearing. There is another part called the "collar" that is essentially the inner race. Get that too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark62 Posted June 1, 2008 Share #10 Posted June 1, 2008 Hattiesburg Cycles in MS will mount and balance a tire for $19.95 if you purchase the tire from them. Don't know how they feel about older bikes though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86er Posted June 1, 2008 Share #11 Posted June 1, 2008 ......................................................................... Not sure about the MKI Venture, but on the MKII both mufflers, the RH bag and the RH bag guard have to be removed to do the job. I have practice and I think it would take me two hours just to get the wheel off, back on, and the luggage all back in place. ............................................................................................ I have a homemade trailer hitch on my 86, which means I have to take the rear tire out the bottom. You don't need to remove all that stuff if you can lift the bike high enough, and I use a standard bike jack. Take the right muffler off, lift the bike just a little, remove the caliper, loosen the axel and pull it out. Now pull the tire to the right until it drops off the pumpkin, lift the bike the rest of the way, wiggle it past the pumpkin and then lean it and bring it out. It helps to have an extra set of hands but you can do it alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bongobobny Posted June 1, 2008 Share #12 Posted June 1, 2008 Yes, there is a lot involved with removing and reinstalling the rear tire. According to the manual, you need to remove both mufflers (unless you happen to have a 26mm box wrench) or at least losen them so they can be dropped out of the way. It also calls for removing the rear fender, or go the route of raising the bike enough to clear it after unbolting it. Heaven forbid if you happen to have the ooptional aftermarket rear bumper and trailer hitch like I do. Sooo, their labor price is not out of the question. I paid $186 (with a discount) for my Dunlop Elite II, which are getting scarcer every day, plus another $20 nto mount and balance the new tire. So, I'm thinking your local dealer is not too far out of the ballpark. As far as the front shocks, there is also a lot of labor involved with removing the front tire to remove the shock tubes from the bike just to replace the seals, and then reassemble everything. At $40 to $50 per hour for labor or more, it adds up quick... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rez Posted June 2, 2008 Share #13 Posted June 2, 2008 I have had the rear wheel off of my '88 Venture. Didn't remove any luggage, racks, fenders etc. I followed a procedure I found here or possibly the Venturer's M/C site (sorry).....not sure any more. Basically you set bike on center stand. 'Secure' stand in position to the bike frame with cable/wire/rope to prevent it from 'collapsing'. Remove front tire (an easy 10 minute or less job) and allow bike to rest on ground on the forks (i used a small jack under the front of the frame...to gently lower it down...the bike is well balanced in this positon and 'weight load' is light). This in turn causes the rear of the bike to rise which will allow removal of the rear wheel. You do have to remove the right side muffler. Maybe someone can direct you to the 'post' (if it is here)....with the total detailed instructions (this is the basic short version). Or maybe someone else is aware of this method and can fill in details. When I first read it....I questioned it....but it worked great for me. It saves a lot of 'extra' work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobcat Posted June 2, 2008 Share #14 Posted June 2, 2008 re: Leaking Fork Seal...my Rt Front Fork Seal Was Leaking To The Point Where It Saturated The Rt Front Brake Pads Making The Front Brake Useless...i Had Some Old Pads Laying Around That Still Had Good Meat On Them So I Cleaned Up The Rotor And Replaced The Soaked Pads With My Old Ones...now To The Point..i Had A Can Of "lucas Power Steering Stop Leak" So I Figured Why Not Try And See If It'll Stop The Fork Leak..with The Bike On The Center Stand I Lifted The Dust Cover And Applied The Stop Leak Then Put The Dust Cover Back..it Took A Couple Of Rides But Much To My Surprise It Stopped Leaking..on The First Rides I Took A Rag And Everytime I Stopped I Wiped The Excess Stop Leak Off The Fork...its Been A Couple Of Months Now And No Leak... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bsreg Posted June 2, 2008 Share #15 Posted June 2, 2008 re: Leaking Fork Seal...my Rt Front Fork Seal Was Leaking To The Point Where It Saturated The Rt Front Brake Pads Making The Front Brake Useless...i Had Some Old Pads Laying Around That Still Had Good Meat On Them So I Cleaned Up The Rotor And Replaced The Soaked Pads With My Old Ones...now To The Point..i Had A Can Of "lucas Power Steering Stop Leak" So I Figured Why Not Try And See If It'll Stop The Fork Leak..with The Bike On The Center Stand I Lifted The Dust Cover And Applied The Stop Leak Then Put The Dust Cover Back..it Took A Couple Of Rides But Much To My Surprise It Stopped Leaking..on The First Rides I Took A Rag And Everytime I Stopped I Wiped The Excess Stop Leak Off The Fork...its Been A Couple Of Months Now And No Leak... Wow thanks I had not thought about trying that..... I have great experience with Lucas.... last winter had to go to northern Ohio during snow storm over night came out next morning and my ford would not go into gear period could go in reverse but no forward at all. A guy talked me into pouring lucas into the tranny. So I did and let it sit for a few minutes and started the truck up... not only did it go into gear it went into gear better then ever. I drove the vehicle for nearly a year after that putting another 30k + miles never slipping again. ( I did drain some fluid out after I got home to lower to correct level) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobcat Posted June 2, 2008 Share #16 Posted June 2, 2008 Wow thanks I had not thought about trying that..... I have great experience with Lucas.... last winter had to go to northern Ohio during snow storm over night came out next morning and my ford would not go into gear period could go in reverse but no forward at all. A guy talked me into pouring lucas into the tranny. So I did and let it sit for a few minutes and started the truck up... not only did it go into gear it went into gear better then ever. I drove the vehicle for nearly a year after that putting another 30k + miles never slipping again. ( I did drain some fluid out after I got home to lower to correct level) Coinscidently I was having a problem with my Ford truck..the power steering fluid was leaking and the Lucas stuff stopped it so I thought why not try it on the fork seals...So far it seems to be working.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted June 2, 2008 Share #17 Posted June 2, 2008 You can get a Dunlop E3 tire online for about 100 bucks, and it will last you 20k+. You can mount and balance it yourself, I learned how online. I break the bead with a press that I already had. You know how to mount. Use cut up pieces of antifreze or oil bottles as rim protectors. Balancing is cool. Set the tire up with the axle bolt resting on identical buckets on both sides. I use kitty litter buckets. Remove old weights. Now just tap or wiggle the axle continuously. This breaks the bearing friction so the heavy spot drops, and it's quite sensitive and accurate. Add weight to the top and try again. You need a few weights to play with. Jeremy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlRusty Posted June 4, 2008 Share #18 Posted June 4, 2008 I've always changed my tires. I can't see paying the fee for something I can do. I had an 83 a few years ago and it really wasn't that hard. I even gravity balanced them. using a couple of free rolling bearing "no oil on them" , a smaller shaft for an axle set on 2 v notched 2X4s . using the small stick on weights. It worked just fine for me. Also , a local shop will balance the mounted tire and wheel, for a reasonable fee if you don't want to tackle that part it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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