BlueSky

During the recession of 08, a coworker was joking about what if the USA collapsed. He was a bonafide gun nut/gun dealer and his solution was that since we have lots of guns and the Canadians don't, we could just got to Canada and pick out a house we like and take it! Ha! Joking of course! Nah, you need a 4x4 truck to skedaddle in which I have, sleep in the back under the camper shell. I also have my 85 air cooled shaft drive ZN700 Kawasaki, 498lbs dry, 74hp. that will easily top a hundred.

I worked as a temporary engineering contractor away from home most of the time for almost 2 decades. The idea of using a motorhome or TT on my jobs was always something that appealed to me especially since finding an apt. to rent was always a pita. However, every time I got tempted I would start looking at the reality of using a motorhome or TT and it just didn't compute. For one thing, I could rent an apt. at most job locations as cheaply as the cost of a campground lot. And another reason was that a lot of my jobs were in the frozen north and most campgrounds closed in the winter, not to mention the problems the cold weather could cause freezing pipes and challenging the heating system of the unit. I worked at the Crystal River Nuclear Plant in FL for a year or so in 2008. I rented a nice home with a pool for about $1100/month because my family went with me. A coworker was living in his $240,000 Motorhome. I computed that with depreciation and lot rent he was paying about $3,000/month for a place to stay. I know using a motorhome as a retirement home is different situation entirely but the costs can get out of hand quickly.

In Canada, the second home interest deduction may be different from the USA. Don't know about that.

Based on what I've read, the LT does have the longitudinal flat mounted motor and dry clutch. The K1200GT had the same until 2006 when they went to a transverse mounted four with a wet clutch. They stayed with that configuration with the K1300GT.

I've been reading a lot about the K1200 GT and K1300GT. I like most of the things I've read about them, ~29 degrees of rake would be good for the highway (same as the 1st Gen), upright riding position, comfort, lots of extras like heated seat and grips, cruise, good wind protection. What I don't like is reading about the frequent failures of the ABS and the extreme cost of replacing it. ($3k to $4k). I did see some youtube videos showing how to remove it completely and go back to regular brakes. But ABS could save your butt in the rain or other slippery surfaces. In these bikes from 2006 up BMW went to a transverse engine and a wet clutch like the Japanese bikes instead of the longitudinal laid flat engine with a dry clutch.

Two turns out is what is recommended in the Yamaha video as a starting point.

Soooo, what did you have to buy for the wife?

These need to be done concurrently, meaning that after you adjust the mixture, you need to recheck the sync.

You sure it isn't the clutch slave cylinder leaking brake fluid?

The torque is a consideration too. A cummins would go up the hills better and tow better. But the Ford V10 is as reliable as they get. Ford didn't put the variable valve timing on the V10. The VVT has caused some problems on the V8s.

Black

Recently I was in Sam's club and noticed they had Go Pro Hero 4 cameras for sale for $399. They didn't last long. Beside them on display were the Monster vision action sports camera Villain. Does anyone have any experience with this camera? It's a whole lot cheaper than the Go Pro.

Yamaha trainin video shows adjustment of the fork bearings starting at about 6.19 minutes into the video.

This is a Yamaha training video about fork seal replacement.

The owner's manual for my 89 says fill it to the brim of the fill hole. Is the dipstick something that only the earlier Ventures needed?

Makes sense to me that the oil level has to be lower (from the top) with the forks extended than the distance the lower forks will travel to be bottomed out to keep from "hydrolocking". Addtitionally, the higher the level is without "hydrolock" when the forks compress the quicker and higher the air pressure will increase above the oil level. If there is very little room for air, I would think you need to be careful how much air pressure you put in the forks because the pressure doubles when the volume decreases by half.

Soooo, what did you replace it with?

Maybe, the frame broke at the infamous weld and the Mk I stuff was installed on a MkII bike. Wild guess!

Puc mentioned dual compound tires. They may be just the ticket on the rear but not on the front. On the front due to cornering, the soft sides wear quickly leaving a ridge down the middle of the tire about an inch wide. This makes the bike really unstable at low speed. It'll tip over twice as quickly.

Reduce the size of the photo and try again. there is a size limit on photos.

If you want to hire someone, try craigslist cycle repair. You might find an experienced cycle mechanic who works out of his home whom you can trust.

Did they say September of what year?

Sounds like a great price! Decisions! Decisions!

This may not be relevant. But, in February of 1971, I bought a new 1971 CB350 Honda. However, the bike was actually a 1970. I think back then, Honda and maybe others titled their bikes based on the calendar rather than model. If you google 1971 Honda CB350 you will see the round looking gas tank , not the flat sided tank that mine had. If you google 1970 you will see one that looks like mine.

An economy car may get 3 times the gas mileage of that 87 Suburban. I rented a 2013 Ford Focus when my wife and I flew out to Phoenix and toured a couple years ago. It had a direct injected 2.0L engine and was really good on gas. I didn't check it but it must have been getting 35 to 40 mpg. I think the direct injection was what made it so fuel efficient. I don't like the transmission in those Focuses and I've read they are problematic, but it was comfy and like I said the mileage was phenominal. Actually we rented a 2.5L Jetta from Phoenix to Vegas and the Focus when we left Vegas. The Jetta really impressed us but the fuel mileage was not as good as the Focus. They were close in other areas, comfort, performance, ergonomics, but we liked the Jetta best. The 2.5L 5 cyl engine is no longer available in the Jetta. It was replaced by a turbo 2.0 I think. Anyway, I'm very happy that you are home safely and are back to plan your and your family's future!!!!!!