Freebird

I have one off an '83 that looks to be OK. I never heard the bike run so can't say for sure but it doesn't rattle or anything that I can tell.

Glad to help. Wasn't sure that they would work but had an idea that they might. Now we know.

Jerry M has the Tri Star trike kit on his. He told me about a company that makes a front end for it but it was expensive. You might send him a PM and find out who it is.

I got read of the CD changer a long time ago but I seem to remember a release tab on the edge that has to be pressed before it will pull out. As for the antenna, not, it should not just lift off. That was a problem with the antennas on the '99 models. They are a terrible design. I replaced mine with after market antennas for that very reason. If you haven't had any problems with the CB, you are very lucky. Mine would barely transmit with that problem and often squealed very loudly when I hit the transmit button.

Well, since mine is a '99, I don't think it would help much to pull mine out. I did have a set of carbs off the '83 that I parted out but I'm thinking that I gave them to Muffinman. Don't remember for sure, I'll look when I get home tomorrow night.

I also wonder if they are the same as the later first gens. A lot of the fisches don't list the '83 parts now but they do list parts for the later models. I just looked at http://www.dgy.com and just chose the '91 Venture and they do list all the carb parts.

There are a lot of them available. A good place to start is http://www.sierra-mc.com They sell J&M as well as other brands.

TSB: M2000-008 Part Number for kit: 4XY-TRUNK-CM-KT

I have the mic mute and so does Bob Dakin. On our trip to Colorado, we had no problems with the CBs so if that is the problem, it's not common. Also, as dumb as this sounds, make sure your mic is not facing the wrong direction. I've seen that MANY times.

One more thing. The gas tank is not plastic, it is steel. They have been known to rust out but hopefully that is not your problem. If so, let me know because I do have one off the '83 that I parted out. I'll take a good look at it but I think it's in good condition.

I will try to post from now on where I'll be. I plan to be in Rochester until Thursday morning. I know that next week I'll be in the Dayton, OH area.

I'll be there waving and am really looking forward to Vogel.

Sorry...don't mean to leave anybody hanging on this or the brake modification but I was in Lexington, KY all last week and now I'm in Rochester, NY. I got home over the weekend but it rained the entire time. The Vogel trip may be the first chance I have for a real test.

Sure sounds to me like you got another bad coil. If you decide that you want to test the ECU, I have a spare one here that you can try. I replaced mine with the DYNA3000. Don't think I want to sell it but would let you borrow it to find out if yours is bad.

My first question about this is was your first bike still within the 5 year warranty? If so, and they refused to repair it due to the miles, I would have had an attorney involved.

Hey...at least this one was CHEAP. How often do you find a tool or accessory for a motorcycle for under $20.00 including shipping?

Yea, that is probably not exactly what she has in mind for the day. I'll only be there Monday - Thursday anyway.

I'll see if my old scanner still works. Haven't used it in a long time. It's just one page and really nothing to it. You just plug the coil wire onto the tester, ground the tester, crank over the bike.

Something just isn't right. Wish I lived closer to you so I could take a look also. I'll actually by in New York next week but I just looked and you are a LONG way from where I'll be. I'll be in Rochester...too bad. Could you MOVE?

Because I have seen several reports here lately about coil failures, I went searching for an easy way to test the ignition coils on our bikes. I found and ordered a Motion Pro ignition tester and it came in this week. According to our service manual for the RSV, the minimum spark gap for a good ignition spark is 8mm (.031). Now you could pull a plug, use a known good plug and test the spark but that really doesn't give a good indication of the strength of the coils. This device allows you to check the strength of the coils without pulling the plugs and the gap is adjustable so you can increase it to see how strong that spark is. You can also easily see the color of the spark. I tested it early this morning and found that it is easy to use and works very well. Just thought I would pass it on. It is inexpensive and I think it will be a great diagnostic tool. http://www.motionpro.com/motorcycle/tools/ignition_system_tester

Been there, Done that got the tshirt...actually the oil stained underwear...to prove it.

VMAX Rear End Swap by: Don Nelson Shortly after purchasing my Royal Star Venture in 1999, I realized that 5th gear on these things are very high. At the time, I just accepted it but after a recent trip to Colorado riding two up, pulling a trailer and fighting some heavy headwinds, I made up my mind that I was going to look seriously for a solution. On that trip, I did a little experiment. First I asked a rider of a first gen Venture what kind of RPMs he was running at 70 MPH. He replied that he was running right at 4,000 RPM. When we got back on the road, I checked my tach only to discover that I was actually running exactly 4,000 RPM in 4th gear. When I shifted to 5th, the RPMs went down to about 3200 RPM and I felt that I was really lugging the engine with the load I had and running 70 MPH. So, for a full tank of gas I stayed in 4th gear and was running the 4,000 RPMs. At the next gas stop, I checked with Bob Dakin as to how much gas he put in. Bob also rides an RSV and was running in 5th gear. It turns out that he and I need the exact same amount of gas even though I had been running in 4th gear. I knew then that the only reason I would have used the same gas as him was because that in 4th gear, I was staying in the power band of the engine, not lugging it. Upon returning home, I sent John Furbur and email and found that he does offer a VMAX rear end swap for the RSV. A few days later, my new rear end arrived in the mail and was installed a couple of days later. After getting the rear end installed and taking the bike for a test run, I am pleased to say that it does exactly what I hoped it would. I am now running about 500 RPM higher in every gear. In 5th gear, I now run 3600 RPM rather than the previous 3100 RPM. This is a good compromise between the 4,000 RPM that I had run in 4th gear and the 3100 that I had previously run in 5th. I have not yet had time to take a long enough trip to check the gas mileage again but I really expect to see an improvement when riding two up and especially when pulling a trailer also. Regardless of the fuel mileage though the increase in performance of the bike is enough that I am even willing to sacrifice a couple MPG if that is the case. I have tried various exhausts, K&N filters and the Dyna 3000 Ignition module but none of those have come close to giving me the performance increase as this rear end swap. I promised to do a write-up on the install so here it is. The truth is though, if you have ever pulled your rear end to lubricate the drive shaft, then you have really already done this job. You simply replace the stock rear with the VMAX rear. Very simple job. Since there are already instructions posted for removing the rear wheel, I will start this procedure at the point where the saddle bags, rear wheels and mufflers have already been removed. So here we are at that point. The first thing you will want to do is drain the rear end. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1399%20%28Small%29.jpg Remove the one screw that secures the speedometer sensor to the rear end. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1401%20%28Small%29.jpg After the screw is removed, the speedo sensor just pulls out. There is an O-Ring so you have to pull on it fairly hard. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1402%20%28Small%29.jpg Remove the 4 acorn nuts that secure the rear end to the drive shaft tubes. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1403%20%28Small%29.jpg Slide the rear end off. The drive shaft will come out with the rear end. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1404%20%28Small%29.jpg Here is the assembly removed. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1405%20%28Small%29.jpg You then need to pull the drive shaft out of the rear end. There is nothing it in except for an 0-Ring so you have to pull on it fairly hard but it will come out. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1406%20%28Small%29.jpg There is a spring inserted in the rear end that you will need to remove and insert into the new rear end. It just pulls off so pull it off and install on the new one. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1407%20%28Small%29.jpg http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1409%20%28Small%29.jpg While you have the drive shaft out, now is the time to grease it up before putting it all back together. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1410%20%28Small%29.jpg Install the new rear end with drive shaft. It is recommended that you now install the rear axle, without the wheel, and do the rear end alignment as outlined in the Yamaha TSB. This procedure can be found here: http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1705 http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1412%20%28Small%29.jpg http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1413%20%28Small%29.jpg Now is a great time to grease the rear drive pins in the wheel hub. See this excellent write-up by Tartan Terror for that procedure. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?p=117809#post117809 Now you can follow the normal procedure and re-install the rear wheel. After the wheel is installed, tighten the axle nut to 110 ft.lbs.. Now you are ready to fill the new rear end with lube. I use Mobil 1 synthetic but that is just my personal choice. As you can see, I filled the rear before re-installing the rear wheel so you can actually do it either way. http://www.venturerider.org/vmaxrear/100_1414%20%28Small%29.jpg That's it folks. You now have VMAX gearing in your RSV, Royal Star or Venture. Blue Ridge Mountain Sportmax offers the VMAX rears for all our bikes so if you are interested John Furbur at http://rmsportmax.com/gateway.html

Greasing the Rear Drive Splines and greasing the Hub Pins on the RSV By Tartan Terror NOTE: Most of us here would recommend Honda Moly60 as the grease of choice for this application. It will do a great job and last much longer than other types. First thing you will need to do is raise the bike on a lift and remove the rear tire. For these operations look for the instructions in other articles in this tech area. After you have the wheel removed lay your rear tire flat on the ground or on a surface that you can work on it with the spline side facing up (Looks like a gear). http://www.venturerider.org/hub/Image1.gif I removed the dust shield (Rubber ring around the base of the gear) but it is not necessary unless you want to clean everything thoroughly. Wipe around the top edge of the gear clean and you will find a snap ring. Look carefully because it is hard to miss. Use a pair of snap ring pliers that open to remove the ring and lift it off or gently grab it with a pair of pliers being careful not to stretch the ring. If you do not remove this ring you will be unable to remove the pins from the hub (I know this Cuz this dummy tried to do it!) After you have removed the ring pull on the gear and the pins should slide out. http://www.venturerider.org/hub/Image2.gif Once you have removed the pins clean off any rust on the pins with a piece of scotch brite so that they are smooth. Generously apply grease to the pins. I used lithium based grease but any good water proof grease will do. Below you will see a picture showing the pins, Snap ring, scotch brite pad, and dust boot ring. http://www.venturerider.org/hub/Image3.gif Reinsert the pins into the bushings and replace snap ring. Once again be careful not to stretch out the ring as it needs to fit tightly to keep it in the groove. If you removed the dust boot also replace that and make sure it is properly seated. Apply grease to the splines on the hub. http://www.venturerider.org/hub/Image4.gif And also on the splines in the differential. It will squeeze out any extra grease then you lift the wheel back up and slide the hub splines into the differential splines but here is where most of the noise is coming from. http://www.venturerider.org/hub/Image5.gif It’s as easy as that. Like I said before refer to the other articles in this section to reinstall the rear wheel. Now Get out and Ride it like you stole it!!!

You know....these are for Harleys but I'll bet they...or even Beer30...could come up with something like this for the Ventures and Royal Stars. I wonder how much it would help? http://www.rjsoriginals.com/

I've read pretty much everything you have just said and know that it is supposed to be correct. I tell you though, we can argue here forever and I can read many pages about oil but when it comes down to it, I only know what works best for me. I know that some people use YamaLube and have had good results with it but I wouldn't put it in my lawnmower. I've tried it in two different bikes and I can absolutely tell the difference between it and the Mobil 1 that I now use. I truly believe that regardless of what they tell you about the standard oils maintaining their viscosity at higher temperatures, I don't believe it. I know that with the Yamalube, when I was riding on hot days and the bike got good and heated up, the engine was very noisy and it got hard to shift. Finding first gear could get especially difficult. I do not wish to get into another oil debate. I recommend that everybody just use what they have confidence in. For me, that is Mobil 1 for Motorcycles. If I had to switch to something else, I would try Amsoil.