Beau-Kat

Thanks Cowpuc. Looking forward to the move.

We always wanted to make a move toward the mountains when we retired. Well, after we retired in 2010, we adopted two small boys, so our plans took a little side-step for a couple years. Now, we finally bought a house outside of Liberty SC. Will be moving in the next couple of months. Don't have an actual move-in date yet. Trying to get the logistics all done for the closing. Gonna be renting a 26 foot truck (with a lift gate) and making a few trips to get things done. May be seeking help unloading the big stuff at the new house if anyone would like to help a guy out. Would be so much appreciated. Looking at the Community list, I don't see any members in that area. Anybody near there? Will like living closer to the mountains and about 3 hours closer to my aging father-in-law. Thanks guys. Rusty

Nice photo! Glad you had a nice ride.

Appreciate the response. I just took mine apart. I bent the ears of that "kinda sorta star-type" washer to put a bit more curve in them and put it back together. Tightened up that mechanism just right.

I see that this is an older thread, but now I'm appealing to you all who may be able to help. I need the same carb bowl drain elbow for my '88. Must've broken it taking the carb rack off. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Rusty

Thanks for y'all's help. I'll look at it more closely. Right now, I have the carbs off for service and I'll do the valve check while I'm at it. When I get it back together, I'll post if I had any luck with the choke control.

How do I adjust choke lever tightness on my '88? My choke won't stay where I set it. Seems springy and goes back to nearly off when I release my thumb from the lever. I can't see any way to tighten it up. My 2000 did the same thing, but I knew how to fix that and took care of it. This is a different bird. Any suggestions? Thanks. Rusty

Blue and Gold were our school's colors too.

Don't know why, but this happens to ours with 8.1. I have to click the next button until all the images roll around and the first one comes up again. Then it will show all the photos as you scroll through. Or you can click on the pop-up and that one photo will appear in its own window, only larger. Rusty

I'm "up" three or four times a night while I.P.

I think you got a good, simple plan. Cudos to ya. We who do a lot of tinkering end up with a whole lot invested in tools, lifts, service manuals, multiple bikes, etc., etc. But that's what make us tick. I just have to work on things, mechanical, electrical, doesn't matter. I love making things simply run better or all-out resurrecting them when others write them off as done. I have what is known as the mechanic's curse. Rarely do I throw anything mechanical out. I think in my head, "I bet I can fix that." Well...got too many projects around here now. One day, I'll get them all done. One day... So, go ahead and make your money doing what you are good at and pay the professional bike mechanic to do what he is good at. Spend your time enjoying riding that bike and save your tool money. Maybe I'll try that someday when I'm older.

Praying for all involved.

Thanks. She is still recovering and has her hand in a brace. Still working on getting her bike repaired.

Yup, I agree. I forgot that I had to also do that to mine a few years ago. I may need to check that again too.

I've had 750 and 535 Viragos and a VStar 650. Liked them all. The 650's rear pinion-driveshaft teeth stripped because of poor lubrication. Had to replace the entire differential. But, the 1100s don't have that problem because that area on them is lubed by diff fluid. We sold the VStar 650 a couple months ago with 16,500 miles on it. Now, after the new owner put on about 750 miles over this very hot summer here in South Carolina, it's back in my shop with a failed pickup coil. Verified by testing ohms. Spec is 188-220 ohms. I read infinite, or open, for this one. I googled the problem and seems it is a common problem on VStar 1100s and 650s. Fortunately, this 650 is a 2002 model and I ordered the pickup coil by itself. I understand owners of models 2004 and up (I think) can only order the pickup coil and stator combo, which is pretty expensive. Don't know if the same combo purchase is required for an 1100. Just something that may be worth the research.

After many years mine began to do that also. Don't know why. But try this. When setting the cruise, press "Set", then immediately press "Resume". It should hold right then without delay or dropping speed. I bump mine to accelerate once and it goes up 1mph.

At 56 now, I have joint pain and stiffness pretty much anytime I'm not moving around. Nothing debilitating. I think it may be a side effect of the cholesterol medicine (niacin and lovastatin combo) I've been taking over ten years. However, on occasion, I take two naproxen (what's in Alieve) 200 mg. Lasts for many hours more than Tylenol or Ibuprofen. Don't forget to drink plenty of water so dehydration doesn't magnify your symptoms. Hope you discover what's wrong with ya and feel better soon.

Thanks for the kind words and for your own honest feelings. People should take responsibility for their children. But the children are helpless if they don't. I lived in foster care for nine years. I've seen the bad and the good in fostering and adopting children. Our boys are Chinese orphans. Our daughters, following their hearts, went there to volunteer in orphanages. They saw the many, many beautiful children there who had no traceable parents. Their hearts were just broken. Not sure if our sons' natural parents could not have fed them, but there are strict rules governing the amount of children a family can have over there. Adoption may not be for everyone, I understand. Our four children were adults and we thought we were headed for a "see the world" retirement. We hadn't even truly considered adoption until God revealed these two boys to us. We had to learn to see the world, but "through God's eyes". With compassion. So, our family is expanding into another generation. Our boys' next older sibling, our youngest daughter, happens to be 21 years older than they are. Don't know if there is yet another out there for us. If so, God will surely make that revelation to us at some point. Even if someone doesn't see themselves as having, adopting, or fostering children, there are still many ways they can assist the children. It's about providing for others who can't provide for themselves. Providing out of our own abundance.

Thanks. We covet all prayers. Attaching photos of: Simon last Saturday. And Evan.

If you're a moderately good mechanic, it's just cheaper to punch out an 883 then to straight-up buy a 1200. You also have a little lower gearing due to the smaller front sprocket of the 883. Get outa the hole quicker, but do have more revs and vibes on the highway. The R version Sportsters have the wider handlebars and, in my opinion, a better riding position. The Bolt's bars aren't as wide, but that bike seems to handle much better anyway.

Well, some of you may remember that 3 years ago we adopted 16 month old Simon. He is now 4 1/2 and doing just fine. So, we are doing it again! We will be adopting Simon a 4 year old brother (Evan) next month. Both boys have OCA1A Albinism (no pigment in hair, eyes, or skin). As a result of the condition, they have very poor uncorrectable vision and nystagmus (eyes wiggle). They may not be able to ride a street bike when they come of age. We're praying that some technology will come around before then to help them to see better. So, I'm trying to get my two person sidecar installed on either the VR or RSV. Haven't made up my mind yet which. Then, they can go nearly everywhere I go. As soon as we get settled after the adoption, I'll post a photo of Evan. In retirement, we're homeschooling, playing with Lincoln Logs and Legos, and being soccer parents all over again. Other than being stiff and struggling to get back up off the hardwood floor after playing with Simon for an hour, life is just wonderful!

I did the test ride on the bolt last year. I really liked it. But I have my 2003 883R Sportster (carbureted and solid engine mounts) to use as a comparison. The Bolt was sporty, responsive, and overall quite impressive as long as you consider what you'd use it for. Maybe I'll replace the Sportster with one a few years from now...or, maybe not, as I may punch the Sportster out to a 1200 or 1250 just for fun.

Nicest looking rack set-up I've seen yet!

That's not a gps they got mounted there. It's a fish finder.