luvmy40

Are the RSTD brakes linked? If so, you've probably got the rear line bleed thoroughly and the air is in the high point on the front link. Start with the front and make sure to bleed at the steering neck bleeder first.

Go to Harbor Freight and buy a Mighty Vac vacuum pump with the brake bleed kit, about $30.00 IIRC. It takes about 3 minutes to bleed the rear system and get all the air out.

Mega Comfy! I am just a little disappointed as the maker told me the seat would be tailored to my inseam so I could flat foot the ride. No way can I comfortably flat foot this set up when one up. With the wife riding pillion and loaded for the road, probably. I have a feeling this is due to the fact that the maker asked me about how I sat on the stock bike to determine my true inseam. My original seat is broke down badly and I had not installed the progressive fork spings at that time. I could force my heels down flat but not comfortably when we talked about it, so he told me I had a 30" inseam. I've always bought 32" inseam jeans because I like them a bit long, so this sounded reasonable. Oh well, like I said the seat is very comfortable when riding and I'll get used to the added height.

One might say, "You'll just shoot more and not save any money." And, that might be true. One could also say, "You can load a better shell than you can buy for the money." That could also be true. What I will tell you is this. Both are true. You can also load your own and save a lot of money if you do it right. If you are not a competition shooter, go with Lee Precision and MEC. Look for deals on used gear on ebay. If you have money to burn, buy new Dillon or Hornady gear. PM me if you want help setting up Lee or MEC presses. I have loaded many, many thousands of handgun, rifle and shot loads on "cheap" equipment over the last 40 years.

Once again, more plastic broke in re-assembly! I finally got everything back together on The Beast after installing skydoc_17's delinking brake line kit and of course, I busted a mounting tab off of the right side main fairing. The one that the lower fairing mounts up to. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to fix this one. I also had a weird thing happen and I pulled a really stupid, bone head move as well. I took her out for a short shake down run. About 8 miles round trip to my favorite craft brew supplier. When I pulled into the store parking lot, the front fender was dancing around and making a horrible racket. My first thought was that I forgot to tighten the mounting bolts. Nope, all tight. I have no idea what happened but the "chrome"(plastic) extender on the rear of the front fender was busted half off and rubbing on the side of the tire. The fender it's self is cracked about 6 inches up from the back end. I'll definitely need a new fender. And now for the bone head move. Somehow, in my excitement to get everything finished I failed to notice the rear brake line was touching the #3 exhaust header. The brakes worked perfectly right up until I pulled back into my driveway. The pedal lost pressure and I was engulfed in a cloud of smoke. I'm an idiot.

To steel a phrase from cowpuc; Wowzey Wowzer! The beast gave me a workout yesterday! I had planned on finishing the brake mods, running a carb sync and getting her all back together yesterday. The term "Pipe dream" comes to mind. Earl's stainless steel brake/clutch line kit is extremely well made and high quality. The problem was one of hubris on my part. There are, necessarily three swivel banjo fittings that need to be tightened after installation for proper alignment. These are at the manifold splitting the front brake line to the right and left calipers. I got everything tightened up and started the bleed process. It took a few minutes to get any flow started at all and when it did start, brake fluid poured out from the manifold area. I thought it was coming from the banjo fitting where the two lines are connected in tandem to the right side of the manifold. I tightened it further, still leaking. I pulled it apart and inspected the mating surfaces. Everything looked good so I put it back together, still leaking! I finally figured out it wasn't the banjo joint but the upper swivel connection on the line coming from the MC at the manifold banjo joint. I thought I had them plenty tight(this is the hubris) even though there was barely enough room to get a stubby combo wrench on the swivel and not much leverage available. I wound up getting it as tight as possible in place then disconnecting the line from the MC and removing the manifold from the mounting plate. Pulling the whole assembly out from the font let me get at everything to get enough torque on the swivel fittings the seal them up. I had to do this 3 time before I got everything sealed up AND aligned for proper installation. Many bloody knuckles, a few hundred new curse words invented and a quart of DOT 3 later, the bakes are done and bled. Unfortunately, nothing else got done. Maybe today?

The calipers are easily rebuilt. The OE parts are available from Yamaha, Partzilla, Revzilla, etc. There are also many aftermarket parts available on amazon or ebay. I'd recommend staying away from Chinese manufactured seals and gaskets. There are a plethora of videos on youtube showing how to rebuild brake calipers. Getting the pistons out can sometimes be a challenge but I have yet to have one stump me. Compressed air(be very careful when the come out, they come out fast and hard!) or a grease gun will almost always work. Clean is the rule. I use scotchbright pads and brass wire Dremel wheels to clean the bore and seal seats. Rotate with the circumference, don't wipe in and out when cleaning with even the mildly abrasive pads. Pre lube with brake fluid when installing the seals and pistons.

So, now we have Schrödinger's Mirror. Is it broken? Is it whole? Yes.

The MC cover screws are available from Yamaha. I just cut slots in the stripped heads on mine with a Dremel and turned them out with a flat blade driver.

Another thread brought this up briefly(OK, I brought it up in another thread briefly) and it made me curious as to whether Ohio is the worst or merely one of the worst states as far as titling MCs brought in from out of state and getting untitled MCs a new title. It's possible that it may a local thing as far as Ohio goes, but it is handled by the State Troopers rather the Sheriff's dept. so I doubt that. Here's what I've run into in Portage and Mahoning counties, OH. A bike with a clean title from another state must have a VIN inspection by the title bureau to be re-titled in OH. The frame VIN must match the engine serial # or the bike has to be inspected by the State Trooper's office for a full search of stolen vehicle registries. They go so far as to ascertain if there any after market parts, which must be individually documented. The same full search of stolen vehicle registries and documentation must be done to re-title an OH bike that does not have the paper title for what ever reason. I have had Ohio State Troopers tell me that it is a waste of time to even try to get the missing title scenario accomplished. It can be done theoretically, but they said they've never seen a title issued in such cases. There is always something that pops and stops the process and in those cases, the bike is confiscated. Now, I would imagine that having a titled frame and an engine with a title matching would make the process easier. I wouldn't hold my breath though. So what is the story in your state? I know there are states that will issue registrations on older bikes without titles and that there are even states that will just issue a title on a bill of sale. What about where you live?

The brake pads came in yesterday and I got the front end put back together and all the brake lines finished this evening. I'm still looking for some 7/16" ID brake or transmission hose to run from the rear MC to the reservoir. The auto parts stores got nuthin'! Is silicone compatible with DOT3? I'm also waiting on the new hairpin clips for the caliper slide pins to arrive. The rear caliper had cotter pins in their place. What a PITA that was. Partzilla has them for $5 and change + shipping, EACH! The local Yamaha dealer has them for $8.15 EACH! I ordered a box of 50 in 8-18 SS from McMaster Carr for $6.00 + shipping. They should be here tomorrow. Diamond Custom Seats called me and let me know my new seat will ship Friday. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter.

Made2care, This may have been said already. Keep in mind the issue with the '83 frames is internal and will not be visible until it's too late. I'd weld the reinforcements on the "new" frame before putting her back together. I'm waiting with trepidation for the day my frame breaks. I ride in inclement weather so it is only a matter of time from what I've been told. And again, I hope you don't run into any issues transferring an out of state title with a non matching numbered engine.

Since you obviously have experience in restorations, this may be a needless warning. Make very sure of your state's laws regarding titling "frankenbikes" In OH, it would literally be impossible to get a title for the end product of that untitled "parts bike" and your plastics put together. It would even be difficult, though not impossible to get the product of one of cowpucs titled frames and a non matching ser. no. engine titled.

m Funny you posted this. My maxim came to me with the Vetter Wind Jammer II fairing and a GK bag and trunk kit. Not nearly as sleek as the factory luggage but in the same vein. I took it back to stock and mounted thee fairing and bag kit on a Suzuki GS850. I've got pics of them somewhere but I can't seem to find them right now.

The Beast is my '83 Venture, XVZ12TK The first time my wife saw her with the trunk off, she said "She is a sexy beast, isn't she?" The name fit and stuck.

I'm signed up and have the weekend on the requested time off list. Hopefully my better half will be able to come this year. I sure hope The Pucster and VAZ can make it this year as well as everyone I met last year.

made2care, I can vouch for the quality of Earl's(skydoc_17) products. I did not use his fuse block kit, but I have installed several of his upgrades, including my current brake and clutch line conversion project. The quality is high and the prices are good Then you also have to take into account the fact that Earl is generally one heck of a nice guy.

Thanks Bob! My curiosity was killing me! I was able to isolate the clutch line "pipe" with a 12"x1"x1" length of medium density closed cell neoprene foam. I sliced it through half way lengthwise, wrapped the line with it and tied it all together with wire ties then bolted the front scoop and engine guard back on. Everything pulled together nicely and the line is not making metal to metal contact anywhere. The clutch system is tight and bled. Working perfectly. I just hope the rebuild fixed the slow leak. I had been needing to top off the reservoir every other week or so but could not find a leak anywhere. I also got the rear brake line put together(still no pads!) with the front brake proportioning valve removed and the port blocked off.

The Beast is my all time favorite ride. Bar none, it's the most comfortable, road eating, powerful and stylish bike I have ever owned. I also love the Yamaha XJ series bikes. I've owned the SECA 750 and the Maxim 750. I actually still own them. The SECA is a pile of parts today but the Maxim is still a good running little bike. My son has claimed the Maxim as his own(I'm good with that), so I am on the hunt for a new second, short hop ride. I love the look of the Triumph Bobber, it fits the bill perfectly. I haven't ridden one yet but I have many miles on semi customized Bonnies and liked them quite a bit. I assume the Bobber will be a nice ride. The Yamaha Raider recently came up on my radar. It is a gorgeous and mean looking bike right off the factory line. It's a good bit bigger than I was really considering but beautiful none the less. Again, I haven't ridden one but I did get to sit on one and it does feel to be a comfortable ride for local hops and even day trips. Yesterday, I saw the Yamaha Stryker. It is quite similar to the Raider with a 1300cc water cooled Vtwin as opposed to the 1900cc air cooled engine. I would imagine it is a little lighter if not slightly smaller than the Raider, but I could be wrong on that. My quandary is a good one to have I suppose. Which bike do I go with? All are available on the pre owned market now, though the Bobbers seem to be a bit harder to find used. I'd guess that is simply due to them being the newer model of the 3. The fickle first timers and RUBs haven't had enough time to lose interest them yet. Does anyone have any road time on any of these three? Opinions? Thanks.

The "new" front brake MC and old clutch MC are rebuilt and installed. The steel link line and neck mounted proportioning valve are removed, as are the old lines to the front calipers and the anti dive lines. The new front brake line assembly is installed sans calipers as I do not have the new pads as of today. The new clutch lines are installed, but I'm going to have to do something with the steel "pipe" that runs down the frame between the two short hoses. It's rubbing on the rear engine guard mounting tab and looks to be making contact in a couple other places as well. I might be able to isolate it with some neoprene foam, but if that does not work I'll have to bend up a new line and run some rubber fuel line over it to keep it from rubbing. I picked up the crank case cover gasket yesterday but forgot to ask if they had the brake pad pin clips. The rear caliper had cotter pins instead of the hitch clip style retaining clips. BTW, can anyone tell me what the two extra wires are for on the MK2 brake MC? The MK1 MC has the two white/black wires for the fluid level switch and a brown and a green/yellow wire for the brake light switch, all with bullet connectors. The MK2 MC has a black/white and a yellow wire with the brown and green/yellow wire in a four blade Mollex connector.

Take it slow. 1 step at a time and don't skip anything. You've been here before. Just keep in mind, if you do this right it will blow away the Wings or Harleys in it's class. AND SOME THAT ARE WAY ABOVE IT'S CLASS.

At this point, I'd just start cleaning and greasing every connector I could get at.

My local Yam dealer has the gasket in stock.

I doubt the throttle response is pilot circuit related, but I've been wrong before. Too lean on the pilot circuit would tend to cause a stumble coming off idle until the main jet catches up with the increased air flow. Not really a slow, or soft acceleration. It also shouldn't have much effect when rolling on the throttle at higher RPMs. You said the carbs are synched, but have they been properly cleaned and the diaphragms and jets inspected? Floats set? Have you done a compression test? Sorry if you've answered these questions earlier, I didn't review the whole thread this morning.

My care package from skydoc_17 arrived yesterday. All new hydraulic lines, a "new"(to me) MK2 front brake MC, rebuild kits for the new brake MC, clutch MC and clutch slave cylinder. I pulled the clutch slave, rebuilt it and reinstalled it this afternoon. Man what a PITA! The rebuild was painless and quick, but getting that little bugger out and back into it's hidey hole was brutal! I also remembered that I forgot to ode the crank case cover gasket. Hopefully the local Yamaha dealer has one. I've been pleasantly surprised by what they have in stock for The Beast many times.