Venturous Randy

I always tighten the final drive nuts first. I never thought about tightening the axle first. RandyA

Good thing I can understand pictures. My concern would be any damage from running unit broken and also resetting lash after you put it back together with a new crush washer if it takes one. RandyA

Did you remove one of the mounting tabs on the TCI so it will fit closer to the battery box? RandyA

This is making a lot more sense to me and I can understand how the hole in the end of the slide is what actually sees the vacuum and in essence causes vacuum behind the diaphragm, therefore causing it to open. Now, my question; does it matter where the hole is located in reference to the carb body of the venturi? I know that as we have changed diaphragms, most of us probably have not paid much attention to the clocking reference of the tab on the diaphragm and the location of the hole in the slide. Does it matter if the hole is closer to the engine or the airbox? Is there a correct location for the hole? RandyA

Is this because you have reindeer chasing you around Christmas time? RandyA

Wow, Scott, did you not have anything better to do than break your foot? How did you go about doing that? Hope you recover from that and how is the vision doing? RandyA

The trick that works for me is to use a good heat gun and put the heat around the outside where the glass lens and the plastic housing go together. There are two clips that clip on the sides, but what holds it together is the glue. When you heat the glue, it will string some, but it will pull apart and will go back together good with a little heat. I will usually put heat all the way around, but will select a side to start on and add some extra heat and start prying the lens off. RandyA

I don't know. With the lights I have, I could run from mirror to mirror under the chrome trim if I wanted. I am going to see how this works for now. RandyA

I have always been a strong believer in being lit up to be seen. Nothing stealthy about me. One of the things I think is noticeable on auto's is the LED strip lights around or near the headlights. To me, they are more noticeable than running headlights in the daytime. Maybe it is because there are so many auto's that are now running daytime headlights. Going on the strip LED theme, I bought four 20 inch strips off ebay and have installed one strip on the inside of my headlight. This could work the same on an MKI or MKII, but years ago I installed the MKII headlight assembly in my 83. I got the badge double sided tape from an auto paint store and the guy said it was good to a pretty high temp. I will see how well it works inside the headlight lens. I have enclosed some pics and the LED's are very visible on low beam, but may be washed out a bit on high beam, but it is hard to tell in the day light. I got four 20 inch strips for about $16, including shipping. These things are about 2.5 watts per strip. I also have them on a switch and fuse. RandyA

If it were me, I am not sure I would go to synthetic oil at 600 miles. The reason being is that the rings may not be sufficiently broken in at that point, especially if the bike has been run at consistent RPM's, as on an interstate. What helps rings seat better is to do open throttle runs at lower RPM's at from slightly above lugging the bike as this causes gas pressures to push outward on the rings and they break in better. If you go to synthetic oil too soon, you may have such good lubrication that the rings do not break in well enough. Now, I know this is old school and this may not matter with the improvements we now see in today's machining, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it. RandyA

I wish I could help you as I need some of those lenses also. Mine have gotten faded, but since I now have red LED's installed, it looks OK at night. Hope someone else can help. RandyA

Wow, I bet that thing was noisy when you let off the throttle. V-Max final drives are fun on a 1st gen, especially if you ride the mountains a lot. Interstate speeds of 70 mph will have you running at about 4,200 RPM's and hunting for 5th gear and finding out you are already in it. But, that 10% lower 1st gear is a lot of fun, but be careful as 8,000 RPM's can come up real quick, along with the front tire. As far as needing a shim, it does not sound to me like your bikes does. That was the way mine was. I tightened the housing down and the axle freely moved in and out, so I did not use one and it seems to be working fine. I have seen several MKII's with the broken pinion nut/shaft, but I have never, to my knowledge, seen an MKI with a broken pinion nut/shaft. I wonder if anyone else has? RandyA

Many, many years ago, I had a cylinder that would occasionally foul a plug. I tweeked on the air fuel mixture and synced and still fouled a plug. I pulled the diaphragm and found pin holes. I cleaned the diaphragm with alcohol and used some liquid rubber and no more plug fouling. I have since replaced all the diaphragms and also reset the slide needle depths and routinely get 43mpg's or better riding 2-up and that is with a V-Max final drive. If your slides are not opening good because of pin holes or tears, the bike will run more rich on that cylinder. RandyA

You don't want an oil pressure gauge on a 1st gen. All it would do is drive you nuts. You would be afraid to even ride the bike. These bikes have virtually no readable oil pressure as low RPM and very little at higher, but guess what, they do fine. Maybe this is why Yamaha only put an oil level gauge on it. RandyA

After you go there, come over to Asheville. RandyA

WE would love to see you there Ben. We always have fun and we need as many 1st genners there as we can get. It seems we are being over run with 2nd gens and Harleys, but that's ok, we have fun with them too. If you have any questions or suggestions about Asheville, please do not hesitate to ask. RandyA

I was a teen during the 60's and had a 327 four speed 64 Chevelle when I was 17. I remember what happened to the muscle cars in the early 70's. I never would have thought we would ever see muscle cars again. It is amazing what you can now buy off the showroom floor. In those "good old days", if you had anything that was strong, you were tickled to get 12mpg. Now, you can buy many cars that are a lot faster than then and some get 30mpg. RandyA

One of the things I try to do when I change my oil, is after I have drained it, I will turn the ignition switch to ON and see if the oil level icon comes on. I wonder if anyone else ever does this. RandyA

I would love to get you and Yamagrl together at Asheville and she might just whoop your butt. RandyA

I want to say to all, Heather, that you have amazed me with your grit and understanding of this and I have absolutely have NO doubt that you are going to have a very good running, dependable 1st gen when you get it back on the road. I'm proud of you and want to meet you in person sometime. Maybe you can take a few days after you get it finished and come up to Asheville in August. RandyA

Several years ago, I got the set of four diaphragms from Serius or something like that for about $70 and they are still looking and working real good. RandyA

Great to hear that Larry. I'm sure that going to a 2nd gen is nice, especially a trike, but if you have ever had a good running early 1st gen, they are hard to get out of your system. RandyA

You may also want to look at what type pads you have on the bike. If the PO put EBC HH pads on, they are a lot more aggressive and may increase your lock up tendencies. You may want to pick up some organic pads and maybe someone on here will have some suggestions. From what I have seen, this is pretty common on the 2nd gen of having the rear brakes lock up, especially when it is a panic stop situation. I was lucky many years ago with a 2nd gen behind me that locked the rear brakes up and all I saw was the bottom of the bike coming at me after it went down and I was able to move forward enough. Oh, one other thing, you were very smart in doing what you did and at least get a feel for how your brakes react. Keep in mind that it is not an if, but a when that you will jump on the brakes to avoid some idiot. RandyA

Puc, I can sure understand your thoughts on putting that combination together on a bike with about a quarter million miles on it. As good as the bike still is, you have to be logical about it. With my old 83 having 167,000+ miles on it, I also have to consider if I am on the last hoorah or do I want to do one more. I have had this bike over 18 years and have put about 144,000 miles on it myself. My bike fits me better than any other 1st gen I have been on, mainly because of the scooped out Corbin seat. If I were you, I would be on the lookout for a low mileage MKI with 2nd gear out that you could pick up as a parts bike and do all the things that we have just discussed here. While I had the engine out, I would also do the frame repair that is noted here. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1521 I would highly recommend this for you as you tend to get a bit off the beaten path and for sure, this will strand you. If your frame is not broken, this would not be a hard fix, other than turning the bike upside down, if you did it like I did. You know that we would love to see you in Asheville and it may even get some more people motivated to come this way (trying to put a guilt trip on you) to enjoy Asheville. Also keep in mind that if you ever take a hankering to come to this part of the country for some mountain riding with trees, you know you and Tippy are welcome here. You can either sleep in a nice comfortable bed, or if it would make you feel any better, you can camp in the woods behind my house. RandyA