safetyguy

If you have doubts about your TCI, have you considered an aftermarket TCI from one of Dingy's group buys? They work great.

After trying to get this part for a while now, it is apparently obsolete and none are in inventory anywhere. Would anyone have a servicable used one that they could spare?

Earl: I discovered what you just said to be the case. If you have a Mityvac (or the Harbor Freight $25 clone) and use it after the initial install, Speed Bleeders seem to work as advertised. The problem was I couldn't figure out how to bleed the left front brake with a traditional bleed valve by myself the other night- my arms weren't long enough to tighten the bleed valve while keeping pressure on the foot brake after pumping and I didn't have a second person around to make the operation work. So since I had some SpeedBleeders sitting on the shelf, I said why not give them a try. Once they are bled properly (with no air issues), I think that there may be some advantages to Speed Bleeders. With them it seems like you can pump your brakes pretty quickly and some real tiny air bubbles come out. I am not sure that these tiny bubbles would have come out from traditional bleeding techniques and they weren't coming out under vacuum either. Of course this is a one time observation and not a scientific conclusion. This is a debate for another thread though .... If I had to do it again, I probably would just install a single Speed Bleeder on the left front and use traditional bleed valves everywhere else. With this setup, one person can bleed the brakes alone. Mike

Problem solved. I used a vacuum brake bleeder on the left front bleeder. After about 20 seconds under vacuum, a lot of air came out and things started to flow freely. I used suction on all the other bleeders and pulled a few more air bubbles out of each. I then did a normal brake bleed/flush sequence after that, and everything is just fine now. Moral of the story - it may be wise to vacuum bleed the brakelines first when you do something that opens up them up - like put in Speedbleeders. Thanks for the suggestions and ideas!

The problem is nothing is coming out of the rear bleeder or the left front either. As a first attempt, I was thinking of applying a little suction on all the bleeders to see what that would do. However, you are making it sound like I should start disassembling and cleaning.

as Tweety Bird said once, "I did, I did!"

I was bleeding my brakes per the Service Manual - right front, left front, rear, and the one on top. I installed SpeedBleeders on the left front and the rear as I went along. Everything worked as per normal -- fluid came out exactly as expected. No problems until I tried to bleed the one on top. Nothing came out - no air, no fluid, --nothing. I went around to the left front and nothing came out from there (even though it did a few minutes before). Likewise for the rear caliper bleed valve (which worked before). Hey, at least the right front works perfectly. Everything is like it came from the factory -- I never delinked the brakes or did any brake upgrades on this VR. The brakes were working fine before all of this. I just wanted to do some flushing for maintenance reasons. My guess is that there is something going on with the rear master cylinder. I searched the forum but nothing turned up that is exactly like this problem. I am open to suggestions before I begin surgery on the patient ....

What shape are the carb diaphragms in?

I installed mine today in my 88 VR. Just for background - my original TCI works fine and it is installed in the same spot as it was when it came from the factory. Also, I have the original radio & cassette player in place. Here is how I did it - 1) Removed the battery and battery box. Once I did that I was able to get the two plugs out from the original TCI. (There is a bar under the battery box that gets in the way. Just work around it. You can work the plug's locking tab with a screwdriver and get the plugs out. Took the two connectors (with their wires) and pulled them to the left side of the air filter box. You may want to route them under another wire that was running in that same area. (I duct taped the connectors on the original TCI to keep moisture and junk out.) Reinstalled the battery box and battery. 2) Follow Gary's installation instructions and mounted the new Ignitech box on the air filter cover with the Velcro. Used some dielectric grease and connected the plugs. (I tie- wrapped the connectors to keep them together). 3) I had to find a creative place to put the MAP sensor. Gary's instructions said that he mounted his in the left fairing. Problem is that I still have a bunch of original radio equipment there. After much experimentation, I velcro-ed it VERTICALLY on the left rear corner of the air filter box - i.e., the top part of the MAP sensor is under the airbox lid edge. (By left - I mean where your left thigh would be if you are sitting on the bike. By VERTICALLY - I mean that the TCI box is mounted HORIZONTAL on the airbox lid. The MAP sensor is on the left rear side on the airbox itself and is mounted VERTICAL. It fits just about perfectly there.) Connected the vaccum hose at the plastic connector and snaked it up to where the MAP sensor is. My impressions of the new unit (after a 40 mile test ride today)- a. It works. It works great actually. For the most part it is comparable to the original unit or even better. Gary's program does seem to give my old VR some more oomph at the mid and high end of the rpm range. It seems different at the low end (2000-2500 RPM range) but it is hard to quantify exactly why I think this. Not a problem at all. b. The rev limiter at 7500 RPM is a surprise when it kicks in. I guess it is needed and I will keep it for now. c. It seems to take an extra few revs of the starter to get it started than the original TCI. I think this is part of the programming (if I remember some discussion in another thread.) Not objectionable - just different. d. I don't know what the impact on gas mileage is at this time. All in all, I am very very pleased with the unit. Even if your old TCI works, I highly recommend this as an upgrade. I can't wait to play a bit with the programming in the future but I must admit that Gary's upload is really pretty good "as is". Thanks again Gary for putting this whole deal together !!!

I think you guys are onto something here. Don't the Gen2s have a way to manually add air to the suspension system? Is there any interchange between parts from G2s and G1s?p Can we engineer a system with an adjustable pressure relief device (i.e., to limit the air in the front to 17 psi and the rear to maybe 60psi) that can be hooked into the old lines? Hey after resoldering one broken joint on the CLASS printed circuit board, revamping the dessicant, and cleaning out the air solenoids this weekend - I must admit that I wouldn't mind becoming a biker with no CLASS.

Gary: Just sent my payment to you, so I am in.

I would have interest as well.

Thanks all - this is the info i needed. Re: Flyinfool's question - interesting question but I don't know the answer. I think your switch is either defective or has been bypassed. I could test the switch when I replace it to see if it is normally open or closed. I also would have concerns about bypassing it -mostly for safety reasons. Besides not disengaging cruise at speed, I think that if you bypass the switch that you will create some dangerous situations when using the starter when you are in gear.

Does anyone know where to get a clutch switch for a MKII? Mine was broken & rigged by the PO as a fix- I just figured it out after a few years of ownership whilentrying to diagnose a cruise control problem. I can't find the part number anywhere. Looking at the online microfiches, I am having trouble actually identifying the actual part. Another idea- By chance does anyone have a spare that they are willing to sell?

Just to add more to the diaphragm knowledge database- Working on another bike that had similar Mikuni carbs, I had great difficulty trying to get the raised edge of the diaphragm to stay in the groove while trying to get the cover screwed on. The solution is one that I wish I figure out previously when replacing mine on my Venture. Long story made short, I used four pieces of regular masking tape to tape the diaphragm in. Place the tape on no more than about a tenth of an inch of the diaphragm when measured from the outside edge. (i.e., just enough to hold the diaphragm edge in when it is seated in the groove.). Put the cover in place and put your four screws in hand tight until it just seats and back each screw out - no more than a half turn. You should be able to pull out each of your four masking tape pieces intact. If the tape pieces rip and do not come out intact, disassemble and try again. Again, the performance that gets restored when you replace diaphragms is amazing. You lose this gain by not having your diaphragms properly sealed. Hope this helps someone and please let me know how it works for you.