wilerdr

4 brush starter from a 96 RSV with 22K coming tomorrow from Pinwall ($57). Don't think I'm going to break into it for the augmented grounding mod per the forum posts I've read. May, however, run an additional ground from the lower starter mounting bolt to the motor ground on the front right. Not sure yet. Opinions? I've also read several forum posts re: thermostat housings and how they warp over time. So more new guy questions: -Should I just go ahead and get a new thermostat housing while the front of the bike is apart? -If so, does it come with that thin o-ring that sits in the groove in the housing? -Anyone know a good source and/or part number for the thermostat housing? -Bought the NAPA 156 thermostat. Anyone have a source and/or part number for the appropriate flat rubber gasket to replace the stock gasket with the notch? Went to Autozone to try to find one tonight with absolutely no luck. -Anyone have a source and/or part number for the thin o-ring in the thermostat housing? I've had good luck sourcing part numbers on yamahapartshouse, and I'm sure several posts address some of this stuff but thought I'd try to tap the resident expertise and save myself some searching time. Here she is in all her disassembled glory.

Funny you mention the 4 brush starter. I just browsing starter threads last night and found a couple that were very informative RE: what models to get a used one from. Good intel on starter replacement with thermostat housing off. In for a dime, in for a dollar, so I guess I'll source a 4 brush and install it while the thermostat housing is out. I don't care at all for the slow starting when hot. Thanks!

Here are pics of the Air Control Housing that I broke the rotating studs off. What I'm thinking is instead of trying to find a new (used) housing, that I can rig up a sheet aluminum 'wrap' around it, to which I can secure new metal studs. Tolerances aren't tight, so I don't think that would be an issue. But that one is well down the list at this point. I would have tried to do some type of plastic fusing the studs back in place, but they disappeared when I broke them off and haven't seen them since. Will get some decent pics of the bike in it's current state of disassembly this week. Before I started breaking down the cooling system, I made sure I checked fuses. Sure enough, the 10A fan fuse was blown. Didn't run it up, since I was going to drain coolant and change thermostat anyway. Got the plugs changed, plug wires clipped, coolant drained, and radiator and fan off. Bench checked fan and it's good, which was a relief. Manual says to check voltage on the blue lead if the fan checks good, which I did but didn't get any voltage. The manual isn't terribly precise regarding that procedure and I'm wondering if voltage should be present at the blue lead only if the bike is up to temp. Not sure. In any case, I know I have a good fan and now have a good fuse. So once I change coolant and button it back up, run it up to temp, the fan should activate unless the temp sending unit is bad...I think. Provided it doesn't blow a fuse when it runs up to temp, which might indicate I have a problem with wiring. Now for the next "new guy" question: How do I get to the back thermostat housing bolt? Drop the right pipe? Seems to be the only way to get to it and the manual is no help.

Found the temp sensor, no problem. Disconnect the cannon plug and cleaned the leads on the sensor and the plug. Metered the sensor for continuity and had none, not sure if it should have when not sending signal. I'd guess not. Also tried to hot jump the fan from a battery through the harness, no action. Not sure if that indicates the fan might be kaput, or no. Ran the bike up to the red on the temp gauge, fan did not kick on. Let it cool for about 15 minutes and did it again with no joy again. Seems likely to me I have a problem with either sensor or fan, but not sure how to proceed except to pull radiator and fan and bench check fan with a battery. Found several threads that speak to some troubleshooting procedures but haven't yet been able to dig into them. Did end up pushing some coolant out of the overflow hose on the overflow tank, but just checked the overflow tank and it drained back into the radiator now that it's cool like it's supposed to, so I guess that's a good sign. What REALLY pisses me off is that when I was checking the overflow tank, which did indeed fill when the bike got really hot, I inadvertently turned the bars and broke the rotating studs off the air control housing. What an idiot. Guess I'm going to have to McGyver something for that or source another one. Really unhappy about that. But since I have the Air Control box out, I'll check out that board since I have the E4 thing going on. I did find that thread today and it's quite excellent. Can't seem to get this thing to idle properly, either. It runs pretty smoothly on choke at higher RPMs, but when I take it off choke and try to adjust idle, it will eventually stall. Is this perhaps a function of having the air box out? Do these bikes historically have idle problems or setting idle problems when the air box is out? At this stage of the fight, the bike is kicking my ass.

Haven't had a chance to get any more work done. Picking up a thermostat tomorrow on the ride home from work, and should be able to get after her tomorrow evening. Got a mess of parts in the mail today with some more coming. Good times.

Turns out my fan isn't kicking on. Temp gauge working perfectly. Going to pull fan and bench check it off a 12V to ensure the fan itself is good, and I see the thermostat housing on the right side of the radiator bottom. Question is, where is the temp transducer that's telling the fan to turn on and off? Any good sources for a thermostat, fan, and temp transducer if I need to replace any / all of them? Thinking that I should replace the thermostat regardless since I'll be pulling the radiator and changing coolant anyway and I have no way of knowing if that thermostat has ever been changed. Thoughts?

Had some time to work on her today. Pulled both rear plugs and the right rear, which was missing, was definitely fouled and wet. I do have new plugs on the way, but since they aren't here yet, I unscrewed the end of that right rear plug wire, inspected it, ensured I had good connection, then cleaned that plug real well. I then switched the plugs and put the known good plug in the right rear, grounded against chassis and turned her over to inspect spark. Good spark present so I re-assembled and fired her up. Ran smoothly on all four cyclinders. Put a can of Seafoam in the tank, which is less than a quarter full so good Seafoam concentration mixed in with the fresh gas. Was even able to spin her up to about 6k rpm with the air box still out once she warmed up. I'll call that a step in the right direction. Should have a little more time to fiddle with her tomorrow. The plastic 'shields' on top of the cylinder heads: What's the general consensus on running with or without those? I assume they are some type of weather/moisture shield? How well do these bikes tolerate a good engine cleaner soaking and careful hose off? I have some accumulated grime on the bottom of the engine that definitely needs to be cleaned off. Seems to indicate a small oil / fluid leak down there, but I'll never be able to isolate it with all the grime. With the age and mileage on the bike, I'd guess that the grime has been accumulating forever and no drips on the garage floor so I doubt it's a serious leak. And it smokes pretty good when the bike gets heated up. Thanks for all the great info. Can't wait to start start getting her out on the road for the shakedowns, but still got some work to do.

Hi folks. New member here. I just picked up an '89 Venture Royale, 29K miles, overall good shape but hasn't run regularly in over a year. It's my first touring bike. I've owned an inline 4 (Kawa), two Triumph in-line twins (including my current other bike) but this is my first V configuration bike. I have what I would self-assess as intermediate/advanced mechanical ability. The bike has a couple of problems that need to be addressed immediately before getting my state inspection so I can title and register it. First: It's missing and it appears to be the right rear cylinder (don't know yet how the cylinders or numbered). It will only idle somewhat smoothly when it's warmed up, about middle of temp gauge. On the ride home, it was clearly missing, but when I hammered the throttle, the missing cylinder would start firing and it would pull like a train...an obvious difference in engine performance. Now, in the garage with the air box out, it bogs immediately at more than half throttle. I'm thinking that I have some seriously gummed up carbs, maybe a fuel system issue, but not entirely sure. Do I try to clean and clear out the fuel system with Seafoam or some other product without pulling, disassembling, and cleaning the carbs, or should I just go straight to getting those carbs off and giving them a thorough cleaning? Anyone experience something similar and what was the fix? I've printed off an excellent 1st Gen Carb Service tutorial and am confident that I can pull those carbs and give them a thorough going through...I'd just rather avoid it if I can get away with it. Second: Front braking action is decent, but not great. Certainly not as good as I'd expect. Rear braking action is virtually non-existent. Good meat on pads all around and rotors are in good shape. I've ordered sintered brake pads all-around for it, which I'll install after I'm sure I have the braking action issues resolved. My hunch is that while the bike was sitting, some air has infiltrated and my lack of brake action can be resolved with a thorough bleeding and replacing the brake fluid. So what's the best method for brake bleeding on these bikes and what else should I check to ensure I have properly functioning, reliable brakes? I've also ordered new fuel, air, and oil filters and intend to replace all the fluids to include coolant and to inspect and lube everything identified in the manual. What else should I be doing to the bike to get it back into tip-top shape? Thanks and happy to be aboard!