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Treb

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Posts posted by Treb

  1. Problem solved....

     

    IMG_20181130_162735116.jpg

     

    So here is the story. My Honda adjustable clutch lever just uses a threaded pushrod to change the length slightly to increase or decrease the travel. I found an MC pushrod in my junk pile from a Honda that is identical to the one in the Venture. I cut approximately 1/16 to 3/32 off the end that goes into the lever bushing and now the clutch starts engaging about 1" from the grip instead of 2". The clutch still fully disengages and does not lurch forward when put into gear even with cold oil.

  2. Guys this is not that unusual...My V65 Magna has an adjustable lever on the hydraulic clutch as well as the brake and I'm sure there are others. There is plenty of room for adjustment before there would be any slippage or failure to disengage on the Venture as well. There is easily 2" of travel at the end of the lever before the bike starts moving forward. If I could decrease that by 1/3 it would make a huge difference. Most of the time for normal riding it's not an issue at all. But try a full lock right hand turn while feathering the clutch sometime and you will see what I'm talking about.

  3. Yours may be a little different then mine was. But my clutch didnt disengage until just about at the grip. So like I said if it has to have say 1.5 inch of travel to compress the slave master, unless you change the length of the piston in the master, I do not believe your going to be able to change angle of the dangle of the lever.

     

    There is easily 4.5" of travel at the end of the lever where you have the most leverage. Offset levers decrease that distance so you can use the end of the lever to provide more mechanical advantage. Offsets and adjustable levers are common upgrades on most other bikes and I'm sure there is some aftermarket company that makes them for the Venture as well, I just haven't found it yet.

  4. I like the clutch to engage before the end of the lever travel. Hydraulic clutches are notorious for engaging a long ways from the grip and it makes low speed handling more difficult. When you are trying to keep it in the friction zone that far from the grip it wears you out. m.youtube.com/watch?v=H52l-e-Uo1k

    I practice the sort of stuff in that clip all the time.

  5. UPDATE: Took it out for a 150 mile trip and the mpg is up to 39 with a mix of highway and twisties. Now as far as the other crimes go... I notice a different noise I think coming from the front end when I make turns, even just banking back and forth on a straight away. Is there a history of worn wheel bearings at over 60K miles? And has anyone actually gotten good sound from modifying the stock exhaust or is there a reasonable replacement that won't make my ears bleed and empty my wallet but has a little rumble to it?

  6. Marcarl Yes I understand how the jets overlap in duty as the throttle is opened. Here is a little graphic that that popped up on another MC forum that shows it quite nicely.

    Jetting.PNG

     

    As far as a pic of the pilot jet adjustment screw location...Its not easy to take a pic of it while the carbs are on the bike, Heck it's even a challenge just to get a screwdriver on them. You have to look thru underneath the carbs to the back of the opposite side and it's a cross tip brass screw so you can use a flat tip from vertical or horizontal.

     

    P.S. If they haven't been adjusted they might have some brass caps on them that you have to remove.

  7. Well after getting a whopping 32 mpg on my last run over to the hills and back I decided it was time to have a look at the carbs. Other than being dirty on the outside, everything looks pretty good inside the bowls. No plugged jets and float valves appear to be in good shape. Also did a bench sync check and it's set as good as any I've ever setup with the paper feeler gauge method.

     

    Then I checked the pilot screws for blockage and found all of them at a little over 4 turns out. No blockages but 4 turns out? I checked the spec sheet I have and it shows some nonsense about 15 something or other...After searching here I found many threads asking the question of how many turns out but no answers. So I started turning them in first 1/4 turn at a time and test riding it. No difference noticed except maybe a touch quicker acceleration for the first two tries then I just decided to go with the old standby 2.5 turns out. It starts easier and does not backfire on decel. I will read the plugs after my next run to make sure it's not too lean but I'm pretty sure it was waaay too rich.

     

    So I'll preface this by saying that I live at over 4,800 ft and almost always go up from here to something around 10K to sometimes over 12,000 ft. If anything I would think the factory jetting and or pilot screw setting would be a touch rich for me in the first place?

     

    P.S. If you guys think getting the carbs off of a RSV is a pain in the neck you should try a Magna...

  8. Well after looking back at this thread I noticed I kind of hijacked it...sorry about that. That being said I measured my links and they are 6 5/8" and look to be factory, not home brewed. Took it out for about a 100 mile run today and the handling has improved with tightening the steering head nut. The mileage is however not impressive. I'll start another thread on that but thanks for the info on the leveling links anyway...

  9. As mentioned, raising the rear about an inch makes a world of difference. If you can handle a slightly taller seat height it works great. However if this makes the seat to high you can accomplish the same thing by sliding the forks higher into the triple tree, thus lowering the front the same amount.

     

    OK I thought it had something to do with the front end like a steering damper or the like. I'm pretty sure the PO told me already did this but I am unsure of how to tell for sure. Is there a way to positively identify the smaller link?

  10. I first put on leveling links and that took 50 percent of the muscle out of the steering. Then did the 130 front (gen2) and to me the bike feels like it has power steering. The only negative is in severe crosswinds the bike requires two hands on the bars. With the stock wide front tire I was comfortable in crazy crosswinds just holding on with one hand.

    FYI ultimatemototcycling.com bought me a set of Pirelli MT66’s and I now have 5000 miles on them. They still look brand new and they actually feel like they cushion the ride. They are really inexpensive.

    Everyone: remember when changing your rear tire make sure to rotate your brake pads they wear incredibly uneven

     

     

    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

     

    Thanks for the reply I just tightened the steering head bearings and that got rid of some of the "OH $hit" feeling in every corner. But that Avon tire still wants to follow every crack in the road...and BTW what are leveling links?

  11. I'm not familiar with that tire since I have always run E3's on my VR MkII. I like to keep the E3's at 40 lb on each and do not get any squirmy feeling. Occasionally the pressure gets down to 36 lbs, mostly due to weather changes although sometimes due to a lack of attention on my part and I do notice the occasional squirmyness and or tracking on tar snakes. I suggest you try running your tires at 40 lbs or at the Max rated pressure on the tire and see if it makes a difference.

     

    Tire is at 40PSI and I've tried 36 and 42 with no change in it's bad habits. I've never owned an Avon tire and I likely will never own another one... And just to make things interesting I get quite a lot of head shake if I let go of the bars. I tried this at multiple speeds and speed seemed to make no difference.

  12. I was just going to ask this question because the Avon Venom on the front of my RSV is squirmy as hell. It's not worn out and it's properly inflated but follows every seam and crack in the road, road snakes are also a pulse quickener and it does not feel good in the twisties. I had to keep reminding myself to relax my arms when I went for a mountain ride the other day and my shoulders were also getting fatigued. I realize it's a heavy machine but it steers like a Sherman tank. I'm definitely thinking of changing over to a 130 Michelin Commander II. The 130 width should theoretically turn in a little easier and the Commander II's have worn like iron and never had traction issues on any of my other bikes.

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