Freebird

Well said Bubber, you summed it up very well. Russell was always willing to do whatever needed to be done for others but never wanted any recognition for it and never wanted a fuss made over his own problems. There is no doubt that he knew what a great friend you were.

Just restored the pdf file.

File recovered and attached to original thread.

Here are my answers. Others may have different opinions. So my first question is, this is a Commander II 130/90 B, did something go wrong with the tire such as belts or balance, or is it just because of how many miles it has on it? I think that 25,000 miles is pretty good, even for a front tire. It could be just the tire worn out causing it to shake. Run your hand along the edge of the tread and see if you feel any cupping. The other possibility is that the steering head bearings need tightened and probably greased. My second question is, I have read and would like to try the Elite 3's. I have seen what size to get for back. What size did you get for the front? All I see is a 150/80. How much difference is there going from a 90 to an 80? Would this have an adverse affect on the leveling links? 150/80 is the correct tire size for the front. Not sure where you are coming up with the 150/90 number. Third and final question is about the leveling links. I am interested in them and would like to try them. Where do I get them? I have looked on Diamond R Accessories page and don't see them. You might check with member Carbon_One here on the forum. I got my last set from him. I tagged him in this post so hopefully he will reply.

Sad news for us that will miss him. Maybe best for him though. He has suffered for a long time and sometimes enough is just enough. I'm sorry he is gone and will miss him but am thankful that is pain is now finished. Prayers to all family and friends. Godspeed my friend.

They apparently weren't too bad. Saturday I turned on the fuel valve, switched the key on, and I could hear the fuel pump working. Immediately started tapping on the carbs and when the pump stopped running, it never leaked. Started bike and let it run for a while. Added a half can of Seafoam and ran it long enough to ensure that it had gotten into the carb bowls. It never did leak so obviously the float is no longer stuck. It is also obvious that I never treated it last fall. Some of you will remember that on my last ride of the season, I lost a big chunk of rubber from the rear tire. Eileen and I were about 45 miles from home when that happened and slowly nursed it back home. I usually top of the gas tank and add a full can of Seafoam before parking it for the winter but because of the tire problem, I never did it last fall. So that explains why after all these years, I finally experience the stuck float issue. All is good now.

I had gotten an email about this earlier this afternoon and it was certainly not something that I wanted to hear. Those of you that are newer here will not know Russell. Due to his declining health, he hasn't been around for a while. He is one of our original members though and is truly a friend to anybody he meets. He has helped me in many ways through the years from the first days and weeks as I was launching this site and often through the years. He is truly one of the good guys in this world. My sincere prayers have been said and will be repeated.

I can see the pictures fine.

Only 22 people confirmed for my Maintenance day on June 10th. The best year we had almost 300 people here. Come on people, Eileen and I are feeling unloved. Here is the link to the calendar. Please RSVP. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/calendar.php?do=getinfo&e=483&day=2017-6-10&c=1

First thing I would check would be the current tire. Run your hand along the outer part of the tread and see if it is cupped. Then I would check the steering head bearings and make sure they are not loose.

That is true if you try to add the image after you've already posted the ad. If you do it while you are initially creating the post though, you just click "insert" and it opens up your computer folders so you can select an image to upload just like you do here.

This thread is not a problem but I just wanted to say that you can post pictures in the classifieds. The boxes are right there when you create the ad. Not sure why you had a problem. Just posting this as information.

No problem. Most of us have done it at one time or another. I don't have a windshield bag on my '05 nor on any others that I've owned. I would like to have one but I like the vented shields and they don't work well with the bags. J&M makes one that many here have used. It's for a Harley but I don't remember which one. I'm sure that somebody will chime in.

Looks like he rides an '04. Moved this to the second gen tech talk area.

That's just what it is. About what it's always been. All I carry is liability.

Just renewed the insurance on my '05 Midnight. $76.00 for another year. Guess I can't complain.

This bike had white walls when I bought it. I knew that once I needed tires, they would not be replaced with white walls. Not only do I really not care for them but the tires available in white wall are simply not the best tires that you can purchase.

No white walls. Just not my thing.

It still belongs to IronMike. He sold his RSV so I know wants to sell this wheel/tire. Send me an offer if you are really interested and I'll pass it on.

Thanks. That is what I intend to try first.

I've always used Seafoam. Had 100% confidence in it. Still think it's as good as anything else but obviously not 100%.

Managed to get my new tires on today. It started snowing again about the time that I finished so I decided to at least see if the bike would start because I haven't started it all winter. Well, it started just fine but then I saw the gas running out. Apparently, I have at least one stuck float. I've often seen others here post about stuck floats but in all my years of owning Ventures, first gen and second gen, this is the first time I've ever had it happen to me. I just turned off the petcock and let it run until the gas stopped running out. It was getting too cold in the garage to mess with it today. When the weather warms up a bit, I'll try the tapping on the fuel bowls with something and try to get it unstuck. Not going to worry about it too much right now. I had already planned to pull the carbs and check the float levels this spring anyway. The other thing, after getting the tires on and the brake calipers re-installed, I squeezed the front brake lever and there is no pressure. So I'll have to look at that also. Neither of these are big issues but I'm getting to where I really hate working on stuff.

Finally getting the new Dunlop E3s put on. Dropped my wheels off to have them mounted because even though I have a manual changer and a balancer, I just wasn't in the mood to mess with them. The one wheel in the picture was the one that IronMike gave me to try out in the fall. I put it on, took a trip around the block and parked it for the winter. The car tire is just not for me. To be honest, it handled fine and I would have probably tried it for a while except that I have the leveling links on my bike because I wanted it raised an inch in the back. This car tire dropped it right back down to where it was without the links.

I too have bought from Revzilla a couple of times. Had to return one helmet and it was painless. They do NOT offer free shipping on returns but you can buy a pre-paid return shipping label through them that limits the return shipping to $7.00 and something.

Somebody asked if the foam mattresses are hot. Ours is not at all. When we bought it, we opted for the optional "bamboo" cover. That is supposed to prevent it from being hot. Have never used one without the cover so don't know how it would be otherwise.