luvmy40

Meh, LPG is low pressure and to the best of my knowledge, there is no inspection/pressure test requirement on the tanks. There is a requirement for portable tanks to have tip valves. That is the reason you cant get the older tanks refilled. OP, Id check with your local RV/camper sales/service center for the needed valve.

I plan to be. Hopefully Kris, my wife can make it as well.

I am extremely lucky to have an excellent Yamaha dealership near by. They take time to help me locate parts from local sources when I can't find them anywhere else. They trade shims for my XJ and XVZ bikes free of charge and have even fronted me several on one occasion. My only complaint with them is that their EGA system is broken and they do not plan to repair it. I asked if they'd sell it to me but they said they could not.

In my experience, there is no contest between the Gen1 Ventures and any Gold Wing of similar vintage, in any category. It is possible, though not certain there might be newer GL models that are more comfortable than Gen1 XVZs. It might be argued that there are more technological gadgets available on newer GLs(or Gen2 Ventures for that matter), but none of them are even close in over all performance, comfort and styling. There is a German word, "gestalt" that defines this beautifully. Gestalt, when the sum of the parts is greater than the whole.

Take this for what it is, an opinion based on past experience. This is not from experience with die cast cars but with the Franklin Mint in general. The Franklin Mint is known for saturating the market with their "Collections". Some which are actually pretty good quality. The problem is they charge a premium initially and then after a few months(or years) flood the market with discounted sales. Thus, rendering the "Collection" valueless. This is not to say your brother's collection has no value, it's just doubtful it will realize any gain in value from it's initial cost. I'm quite sure there are very desirable collectible die cast models out there, quite possibly some in your brother's collection. They're probably not going to be any of the Franklin Mint pieces. I'd contact a local auction house and ask if they have a go to toy or die cast collectible expert on call for evaluation.

Yamaha still makes some of the best musical instruments available today. I played a Yamaha Silver Burdett B-flat Cornet in High School Band. They also were(are?) the largest manufacture of high end pianos in the wold.

Nice work! I wonder how many of our members know the significance/meaning of the Yamaha logo?

If the XVZ engine got hot enough to do that kind of damage, I'd bet it would not be in running condition any longer. I have an '81 Yamaha Seca 750(air cooled inline 4 that runs lean) that was tortured with a 160mi. daily commute in the Phoenix heat for two seasons and the rocker box gasket(same setup for the most part) did not look damaged at all.

s.tyler58, I got the springs from Amazon a week or so ago. They are the correct springs for The Beast. If this had fallen though the cracks, my next call would have been to you.

Definitely a carburetor related issue. As in, there ain't no carbs...

I may be mistaken, but the Royale model had CLASS suspension controls and the CB/intercom. The standard model had a schrader fitting and dial control for the rear suspension and no CB/intercom. There may have been an am/fm cassette available in the standard model. What is the model # on your title? You might also send your VIN to prairiehammer for more details about your ride and to add to his comprehensive data base.

Bob, I pray for all my friends and family daily, but I'll put a little extra request for you in from now on.

The springs are "Out for delivery" and the listing on Amazon was up to $93.00 last time I looked.

Kretz, I know you said you are not looking for a solution, but I'd be happy to middle man the transaction for you. It would add a few $ in paypal fees, but it would put the stock at your U.S. pick up point and eliminate the Canadian Post issues. PM me if you want to pursue it.

Well, the listing is back up to $84.78 and showing 19 in stock. I was charged $60.19 with tax and it was showing only one in stock when I ordered. It looks like I got lucky this time.

Progressivesuspension.com lists the same part number for the 1983 Venture Standard and the 1989 Venture Royale, 11-1112

I've had a set of Progressive Suspension fork springs, part # 11-1112 in my "saved for later" cart at Amazon for about six months. They've been priced at $85.00 or so, up or down a few dollars since I first looked at them. Today, I was checking on a couple orders and I saw they were priced at $58.00 but the fitment check said they did not fit my 1983 Yamaha XVZ12. I double checked the pat number of offering and and the part # Progressive listed for the Venture and everything matched up so I pulled the trigger on the springs. I hope I don't get that email telling me there was a mistake with the listing. That happened the last time I saw a great deal on the Ken Onion Work Sharp system at Amazon. They listed the sharpener at 50% of normal but cancelled many hundreds of orders due to a listing error. We'll see what happens this time.

I measured the exposed threads with a vernier caliper and torqued it back to the same location, which turned out to be the mechanical limit.

Any reason to not consider the Dunlop D404 series?

A deer whistle maybe? Or a helmet hanger?

The new diff. cover does have a magnet and the OEM fill plug does as well. I also spent a good amount of effort cleaning the sludge from the diff. case.

Now that the differential is full, the leaking pinion seal made it's self known! As usual, the job required two extra trips to the parts store(my home away from home) since I grabbed the wrong seal the first time and none of my pullers were up to the job. So, 4 hours later the 1/2 hour job is done. :banana::banana::banana:

I wouldn't worry too much about inhaling lead vapors when casting. You're not vaporizing the lead at melting temps. There are plenty of nasty fumes that are caused by the impurities and contaminates boiling off in the process and you should not breathe them in, but it is not lead you are inhaling. The danger from lead is from ingestion. Residue on your hands getting on food or in your eyes is what you want to watch out for. Wash your hands thoroughly before doing anything after/during casting. I also wear a lab coat that is only used for smelting and casting and never comes in from the shop. This helps keep and particulate transfer to a minimum. The old wheel weights(the newer stuff is all zinc and useless) are pretty hard for casting balls but work very well for 9mm and .45 bullets. I used to be able to get the wheel weights for free from the local service shops when they had to pay someone for disposal. Now-a-days, they go for $.50-$1.00/lb if you can find them. Then you have watch the smelt for zinc weights and get them out before they melt or they ruin the pour.

I haven't built any scale models in quite a long time, but I was quite the avid modeler in my youth. My favorite was a very detailed model of the Formula 1 Elf racer. Steering and suspension all worked and the engine was extremely detailed. I'm afraid I'm too OCD these days to enjoy building. It would drive me crazy if I couldn't get everything perfect and would not be able to focus on anything else. Those look great, BTW!

Saw blades and files are great steel for knives but you do have anneal them then heat treat them properly.