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Freebird

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Everything posted by Freebird

  1. Freebird
    HEY...don't encourage her...she'll just go on and on and on and on and on......
  2. Freebird
    I agree with you about the performance. I actually never had any complaints with the way that the 404's felt or gripped. I was perfectly happy with them. I was also very pleased with the mileage that I got out of the original tires, close to 13,000 and only changed them because I was leaving for an extended trip and didn't want to push them. The problems started with the 404 replacements. I only got about 9,000 miles out of them and that is the same story that I have heard from a lot of people here. The OEM 404 lasted 12,000 to 16,000 miles but the replacements lasted less than 10,000. Almost seems that the tires that Dunlop supplies to Yamaha aren't the same formulation as the ones that they sell for the aftermarket. Glad you are having such good luck with them and wish that had been the case for me.
  3. Freebird
    The last I bought here, a few months ago at Advanced Auto, was about $8.50 a quart if I remember correctly. It's expensive but in my opinion, worth it.
  4. Freebird
    I think it's great that you thought of the members here. I certainly have no problem with such things being posted as we have a number of folks here who are out of work.
  5. Freebird
    That sounds like a good deal for somebody. Sorry the pain has taken it's toll and hope for the best for you.
  6. Freebird
    That is most likely the problem. I know that when I was building and selling my stands, I had to be very careful that I designed them to NOT break over too far. If they did, it was almost impossible to get them off the stand.
  7. Freebird
    I'm not finding anybody with that name in our database. People don't always include their last names though. Either way, I'm really sorry to hear the news.
  8. Freebird
    I've never seen them but they look good. They look very similar to the KuryAkyn grips but apparently you can retain the end weights if you choose to. Looks good to me.
  9. Freebird
    Yea, and at least there was a bit of good news this morning. One thing that I forgot to add to the list was that I got home yesterday and realized that I had left my laptop power supply in the hotel room in Pittsburgh. I called the hotel and they promised to ship it if they found it. So, I was planning to make a run to Best Buy this morning and probably have to spend close to $100.00 for a replacement. I ALWAYS put in in my computer bag when I'm not using it. Well this morning I opened my overnight bag to get out my electric razor and right there on top was my power supply. Never put it in that bag before but I swear that lately I'm losing my mind. Last week I left my prescription eye drops at a hotel in Erie, PA. It was about empty so I just got a refill on it when I got home but I'm just doing careless things lately it seems. Anyway, I'm plugged in again now so all is good.
  10. Freebird
    I just installed an update to Tapatalk. I know that some of you Iphone and Blackberry users use it. They just released Tapatalk 2.0 which is supposed to fix a few bugs. I have already installed it here on the forum but the release notes say that an update on YOUR end is needed to realize the fixes to some of the bugs. So, if you are using Tapatalk, you might want to upgrade to the latest version.
  11. Freebird
    Well, it's really a matter of preference but I happen to think that the RSV is geared higher than it needs to be. My opinion on this subject is not shared by everybody here and I think that a couple of people have actually installed the VMAX rear and then didn't like it and went back to stock. Most seem to like the change though. It basically just lowers your final gear ration. I run about 500 RPM higher at the same speed as I did with the stock rear end. I think it puts you in a much better RPM/Power range. I found that with the stock rear end, I would sometimes have to run in 4th gear when fighting a heavy headwind, in the mountains, etc. Now most of the time this was when riding two up and pulling a fairly heavy trailer. I was on a trip to Colorado a few years ago and fighting a very heavy headwind all day. I did a little experiment where I ran in 4th gear for an entire tank of gas. I was surprised to find that my gas mileage was almost exactly the same as when I was trying to run in 5th gear. I was also riding with a couple of first generation Ventures and talking to them on the radios while riding, I determined that when running in 4th gear at around 65-70 MPH, I was actually running about the same RPM that they were running in 5th gear. Changing to the VMAX rear sort of divided that difference and pretty much put me in what I think is the "sweet spot". I find that under those same conditions, that I now run about 500 RPM higher in 4th and 5th gear than I did before. It still puts me to running about 500 RPM LOWER than a first gen running at the same RPM in 5th gear. To me, it is a good compromise. The bike is more responsive and the gas mileage is pretty much the same as before and in some conditions, even better.
  12. Freebird
    I too am sorry to hear it. I can't say that I'm completely surprised. Men trying to win custody of their children are really fighting an uphill battle. The thing that helped me when I went through this was that her own mother and grand mother testified in my behalf and the ex showed up in court twice with her current (at that time) boyfriend who came across as a complete sleezebag. Not only that, but one time she was sporting a big black eye, the next time she was alone and said that she had left him because he was abusive, the next time he was with her again and she claimed that he was OK now. All of that and we also had a female judge who saw right through her lies. She was very good at fooling some men but not so much with the very good female judge. Don't give up. Hopefully there will be something that will change things to your favor but without hurting the children.
  13. Freebird
    I think it is probably accurate but that doesn't mean that you would ever hit it. In fact, I'm SURE you would never hit it because you would just never get to that kind of RPM and/or speed on these bikes. In fact, I don't think you could ever hit the limiter in 4th either. I know that I never did and I did try a couple of times. Haven't tried it since installing the VMAX rear but I even have my doubts with it.
  14. Freebird
    Ken, I'm so sorry to hear about your mom. I've been through a good bit over the past year or two but I try not to complain too much because I always know that regardless of how bad things may seem at times, there are always people who are going through worse times than I am. In the grand scheme of things, I have it pretty good. Please know that we are praying for you and your family. Tom, Don't worry my friend, I've got to get up there sooner or later. It truly does have to be SOONER though or it will certainly be LATER...I gave up on Buffalo in the winter long ago.
  15. Freebird
    I am so glad to be home for the weekend. This was a very trying week for me. I know that we all have them from time to time. I was in Pittsburgh, PA all week. Not my favorite place to begin with. It went downhill from there. 1. First hotel I checked into on Monday evening was having problems with their internet. NO NO NO....that doesn't work for me. Checked out and found another hotel. 2. Hotel number two was just fine. The only problem was that a bridge was under construction which required that I take a detour of a few miles every time I left the hotel in order to get back to it. Could have been worse though. 3. Brakes started squealing on the front of my company Caravan. High pitched squeal drove me crazy all week. 4. Every morning when I started the van it sounded like something was coming apart. I'm pretty sure that it is an idler pulley. It would quieten down once it warmed up. 5. Not sure where it happened because I didn't notice it until I got back to the hotel and was walking away from the van but somebody managed to run into the right rear and caved the bumper in. I'm pretty sure that it must have happened in a very crowded parking lot that I was in while visiting a customer. So, this week is FINALLY over. I dropped the van off at my local repair shop for an oil change, front brake job and probably an idler pulley. Will take it to the body shop when I get a chance to get an estimate and then repair on the bumper. Now I just have to decide where I'm off to next week. I had planned on going to Buffalo, NY but I just don't think I can tolerate Pittsburgh and Buffalo back to back. Maybe somewhere in West Virginia would be better. I'm thinking maybe Charleston.....we'll see.
  16. Freebird
    I don't know how many of the newer models have the MP3 but I know that the latest models of the Garmin Zumo do have it.
  17. Freebird
    Yep...that's what I've got on mine too and have it set the same as you.
  18. Freebird
    That's a great chart, I haven't seen it before. Very good information.
  19. Freebird
    I agree...the 550, 660 or 665 are top of the line units that are made for motorcycles. They sell for a premium but I think are the best choice if you don't mind spending the money. Otherwise, there are several models that people here use. Do a search for Garmin and you'll find a lot of posts about the different models.
  20. Freebird
    OK folks, I've started re-programming the countdown to our events page. I've added "Spring, "Maintenance Day" and the "International Rally" so far. If you have dates to other events, see some that won't be held this year, need to add other major ones, please post the info here so I can get it updated. Thanks for your help. Here is a quick link to the page: http://www.venturerider.org/rally/
  21. Freebird
    I agree. They are both off but not by the same percentage. My speedometer was off about 7% and I think the odometer was off about 3 or 4 %. I corrected the speedo so now the odo reads a bit off in the OTHER direction.
  22. Freebird
    They will bolt right on. All seats are interchangeable from 1999 through the current models. All you have to do is find the pillow top seat and backrest. The backrest is very easy to remove. If I remember correctly, it's only held on by three bolts through the trunk.
  23. Freebird
    You know, when Bub's first starting making the mufflers for the RSV, they had polished aluminum tips. People complained and wanted chromed tips so they started doing them in chrome and then the peeling problem started. Those turned out nice.
  24. Freebird
    Congrats to all. Very happy that mom and baby are happy and healthy. 15 grand kids....WOW.....I mean....I knew you were old but that's gotta be approaching ANCIENT.
  25. Freebird
    It's still hanging on the pegboard in my garage. I'll try to get around to it this weekend and report back on how well it works.
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