sbr41

I tried downloading it already (http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?20228-97-to-01-Royal-Star-Service-Manual), but the guy who was hosting it doesn't have the site up any more. Does anyone have the file downloaded that they could upload here, or email me?

welp, rebuilt the water pump, replaced the mechanical seal, a couple rubber seals, gasket and o-ring, then thoroughly flushing oil and coolant systems, and it seems to have fixed the issue. We did notice some coolant leaking, the white smoke from the engine (not in the exhaust), that turned out to be a faulty rad hose (the 1 inch diameter piece, about 6 inches long before it splits to two). It was dripping onto the engine and burning up. $2.50 at O'Reilly fixed that! Now I think I just have to have the carb re-built/tuned/re-jetted, that stuff's all a bit over my head. It seems to be misfiring, but I'm not an expert by any means, and dies if I don't have the choke pulled out at least one notch, even after warming up. I've replaced the spark plugs, and have ordered new plug caps. Hopefully in about a week here I should be up and running! Thanks to everyone who has replied so far with help, I really appreciate it...I'd still have the thing apart in my garage trying to fix a perfectly fine head gasket.

I didn't notice any coolant in the oil, if any it's a tiny enough amount that I couldn't see it in the drain pan. It sounds like I'll probably just rebuild that water pump and go from there. It can't hurt especially given the previous owner; if i notice it continues after that, then have a shop check compression. Looking at this diagram, is the seal # 7 or #8 (or both while I'm at it)? Or does someone make a rebuild kit I can order?

Thanks for the reply Steve! I was assuming it's the gasket for a couple of reasons: -white smoke when still after bike warms up to operating temp. -edit: coolant started overflowing, shut the bike down before I could see exactly from where. looked like the rear right side. -flushed the coolant and what came out looked like a chocolate milk shake Would a water pump seal be a bit cheaper or easier than head gasket replacement? I know it's been a really busy weekend for shops here in Colorado, but my local Yamaha dealer quoted 16 hours for head gasket replacement. I'll try joining that Delphi forum, it's just so poorly laid out. might be easier to just get it from Amazon haha

Hi Guys! I just got what I'm pretty sure is a 1998 Royal Star. The title doesn't specify, the previous owner thought it was a 1500 v-star, but I know from the year that that's not possible. Hopefully from my picture you guys can confirm. The bike needs a new head gasket, and I don't really know where to find a manual to start. Does anyone have a link to download one? I'm okay buying one, just want to get started right away. Will I need to buy a case splitter Is there a standard place everyone orders their parts from? I've only seen the big box looking yamahapartspitstop.com. Also, does anyone here have any experience with replacing the head gasket? it's got 70,000 miles so if there's anything else I need to do let me know! I love the bike; it's comfortable and fast and looks great! Thanks in advance, looks like a great group!!