BlueSky

So, you guys are saying that you leave the petcock on and don't drain the carbs when leaving it sit for a long time or you drain the carbs and the fuel pump prevents the gas from refilling the carbs?

https://yamahapubs.com/ You will get a reprint at this site. The best way to get one may be ebay. I bought an original owners manual for my Gen I on ebay and it has a fold out large wiring diagram in the back of the manual which is kind of neat.

That sounds like a great idea. Because on the old car engines that I am familiar with for performance the engine needs 32 to 36 degrees of ignition advance for maximum acceleration coming in gradually and all in by 2500 to 3000 rpm. But when cruising, the fuel mixture is lean and for best fuel economy the total advance should be more with some engines that could use as much as 50 degrees total advance. So the manifold vacuum was used to pull in the extra advance while crusing and the manifold vacuum is high but when it went full throttle it lost the vacuum advance and only had the 36 or so degrees advance that includes the initial setting and the centrifugal advance. These bikes should be getting better fuel economy that they actually get if that is the way it's set up.

I'll show my ignorance of these bikes. So, the 89 has essentially a vacuum advance built in to the ignitek fed by manifold vacuum??

Not with all cars. some with manual transmissions can be towed in neutral. I carried my 85 Kawasaki to FL from NC in an open trailer in February. It rained a lot on the way. There were so many snowbirds driving to FL on I95 that had salt all over their cars that my bike got covered on the left side with salt. A real bummer. Best way to transport a bike that you aren't riding is in a covered trailer.

The elevation of the petcock doesn't matter. It's the elevation of the fuel level in the gas tank relative to the elevation of the fuel level in the carbs that determines if it will gravity drain. But, the fuel pump may not allow fuel to drain through it with the bike sitting.

http://www.partzilla.com/parts/search/Yamaha/Motorcycle/1983/XVZ12TK/FUEL+TANK/parts.html They are still available from Yamaha if you want a factory unit. If you leave the bike sitting for a long time you should turn the fuel off and drain the carbs. I think these bikes have overflow tubes that will prevent hydrolocking if the fuel needle fails to hold. I know my 2004 Kawasaki Concours did not have carb overflows and the fuel valve was vacuum operated. So, if the vacuum operated fuel valve failed and the carb fuel needle failed the engine would fill with fuel and hydrolock. It did happen too. Yes there is just a stub to turn and mine is tight enough I have to use pliers on it to turn. But, it works fine.

There's all kinds of things we depend on our primary hand to do. It will try your patience I'm sure. But the time will pass.

As an "Oh by the way", it is my understanding that braided SS brake lines that fit the stock calipers will not work with R1 brake calipers. So, if you are planning to make that change in the future, you want to do it at the same time. Skydoc can tell you all about it and can supply the ss lines. The brake pads are the same size R1 or stock on the MK IIs I think. The R1s supposedly work better because the calipers don't slide and one cylinder is smaller than the other affecting the way the pads are squeezed against the rotor or something like that. Others know more about this than I do. I did buy the right side R1 caliper but haven't installed it yet and I may not.

Oh man! That's tough! Just have to suffer through. Is that you primary hand?

I worked a 6 month job in VA about 45 miles northwest of Richmond with the job ending at the end of the year. It snowed 9" just before Christmas. In NC, it all depends. Mountains on one end and ocean on the other. I live in Wilmington on the southeast coast and snow is a very rare event. It's warm enough here that we have alligators in the swamps, about as far north as alligators can survive. On the west end of the state, of course it's a different story. But the ski resorts have to make their own snow usually.

What really rankles me is that I have a truck, car, and two motorcycles and I have to pay for insurance on all four like I can drive or ride them at the same time. I think we should be writing our representatives to see if they can change this. I'm getting ripped off. The insurance co. argument is that someone else not on your policy could be driving or riding them but that just doesn't flush. That could be prevented by levying a heavy penalty if that happens.

Retired engineer but I'm flattered to be suspected of being an LEO. I just read a couple of news web sites and it popped up on foxnews. http://www.khou.com/news/local/texas/texas-man-who-ran-bikers-off-road-sentenced-to-15-years-in-prison/428463526

Well, I saw a news article a couple days ago that the bitter old man in the car was sentenced to 15 years in jail. From what I understood from the article he has been in jail since he was arrested with a $150k bond that I suppose he couldn't meet. The jury didn't buy his insect excuse.

O'reillys had to order the wire (I think a roll of wire.)but it came overnight. The NGK caps came in a few days after ordering. By the way their web site NGK.com will select the correct cap for you.

I'm wondering if the "backorder" is just a cover story. Tell the shop they can get the parts from partzill.com in a couple days and see what they say.

The spark plug caps were $2.60 each and the copper core wire was $0.69 /ft. from O' reillys.

Not running well could also be caused by corrosion in the spark circuitry such as in the copper core wire where it screws into the spark plug caps. I just bought some new NGK caps from ngk.com and some copper wire from O'reillys to replace mine. The NGK caps have 5k ohms resistance versus the OE caps with 9k ohms. So, I'm hoping for a hotter spark to keep it running smooth.

Yeah, that sounds like a part that would never need replacing?

Dot 3, Dot 4, and Dot 5.1 are all compatible and can be used. The higher the number, the higher the boiling temperature of the fluid. And the higher the number, the more likely it is to absorb water. So, the higher the number, the more often flushing is needed but it might be just what you need for aggressive riding especially in the mountains when riding double with gear.

I bought a Motion Pro sync tool. I got bubbles in the fluid that I couldn't shake down and was told by their tech it needed fluid. It was really easy for the fluid to get sucked into the engine if the carb sync was very far off. I was poed enough with it that I sold if for less than half what I paid for it and constructed a homemade unit. If I buy another it will be a set of gauges.

I wonder if boats.net (partzilla.com) would have the parts?

Welcome! And that is a beautiful bike. It's my favorite color.

I spent 7 months working 6 - 12s at the infamous Davis Besse Nuclear Power Plant during their restart not that far from your home. They replaced the reactor vessel head that had corroded completely through the 6" of carbon steel and the thin stainless steel liner had started leaking. I actually stayed in Perrysburg south of Toledo.

Maybe I don't know where to look but I haven't seen your address anywhere Freebird. I see Oberlin Ohio but that's it. can you post your address so I can find maintenance day? thanks!