RSTDdog

Congrats to your friend on the speed record. That's fast on an old Triumph. Fortunately plenty of room to slow down with those twin leading shoe drum brakes........ If you haven't seen it, go rent/find the movie World's Fastest Indian with Anthony Hopkins. True story and a must watch movie for any Motorcyclist or anyone for that matter. Now having been to Bonneville, you will have an appreciation what this guy went through getting himself and his bike there from Australia.

When I had the RSTD, I had full coverage thru Geico. It was under $400/year. Claim I had when I dropped the bike at 0 miles per hour was handled well and promptly. My ST1100 I had insured through the company that underwrites Rider Magazine Insurance for touring riders only (do not recall, Foremost comes to mind). They considered the ST1100 a touring bike because it had hard bags, full coverage insurance was cheap, under $300 a year) and I was still in my late 20's then. I priced Rider Mag Insurance for the RSTD and it was more money than Geico. Oddly, adding the RSTD to my Progressive auto policy was more money than insuring it through Geico. Similarly, it was more money in total to insure my bike and car's with Geico under one policy. (It appears 15 minutes DID NOT save me 15% or more on my car insurance, I actually told them that.....) So for my situation, Cars with Progressive and RSTD with Geico was the cheapest route. Which company is cheapest can also vary by the state you are in and the pool of people they insure. Shopping around should get you a lower rate. In Florida, one benefit to the bike and cars being on the same policy is if you elect stacked uninsured motorist coverage. In Florida if you elected Stacked UM coverage, you multiply your UM coverage per vehicle by the number of vehicles on the policy. If you have 100K stacked UM on each vehicle and you insure 3 vehicles, with stacked coverage, you have $300K of UM for a single incident. Difference in cost between stacked and non-stacked coverage is negligible. It is always best to elect stacked UM coverage if possible/available in your state. In Florida 99% of the time they will quote you NON-stacked UM coverage. You have to ask.

Air Hawk seat cushion Size Cruiser medium 14" front to back, 15" side to side, fits well on RSTD and RSV. Should work well on other similar size seats. On Edit 9-3-18 : Has slow leak,takes about an hour to leak down, FREE including shipping if you can use it or want it. Thank you for looking.

So Don was the 73 Chevelle available with the swivel bucket seats? In my opinion the swivel bucket seat was one of the best ideas from GM. My brother had a 1974 Monte Caro S-Coupe with factory 454, swivel buckets seats and a console. Met an untimely demise in an accident with a Chevrolet caprice classic of the same vintage. Bent the frame. Not only have I looked for a car from my past, I looked for THE car from my past. Drove the same make and model of car for the first 10 years of my driving career. First Had a 71 Pontiac Ventura II, inline 6, 3 on the tree later converted to a Hurst Indy universal floor shifter (came with a box full of plates and linkage). 2-55 AC (2 vent windows open at 55), NO PS, one belt for the alternator. replaced it with a 72 Pontiac Ventura II, 307 2bbl, turbohydramatic 350, PS, AC, the lap of luxury. Actually posted a photo of the car and description of some identifying features here:http://pontiacventura.com/1972_pontiac_ventura_7.htm Site no longer being updated since 2010. Mine is the blue and white one with the roof racks, left hand side, 3rd one up from the bottom. Actually got an email from a guy about two years ago who said he thinks he had my car. He sent me the VIN, but its a bit of work to get Florida to dig up if that VIN was registered to you 27 years ago. He was in Tampa but seem inclined to let me come check it out in person. It had been left outside and was in need of total restoration, not in the same condition was in in 1992 when I sold it. With no garage space, I did not pursue it further. You may also keep an eye out on a site called bringatrailer.com They get some unique and interesting vehicles there.

BMW=Bring More Wallet That said when I dropped the RSTD years back at 0 miles per hour, for the few dinged and scraped pieces it had it was close to 4K parts and labor estimate. Motorcycle parts prices are due to economy of scale (or lack there of)

So they worked fine before and this problem just started? Don't forget to check the simple stuff like the battery cables, tight at both ends, etc. May also be chafing on the passing light harness where it passes through the bar mount where the PL and turn signal mount. Possibly a loose or bad ground. I don't recall how they ground the PL, but may be finding ground through the display. I think some of the wiring is done inside the headlight bucket on the RSTD.

If I recall correctly there is an alignment and tightening procedure for those. I don't recall it exactly. Check the service manual. I know they get tightened with the weight off the rear wheel. I think you loosen the bolts to the final drive and loosen the axle and make sure it slides in and out easily, and then tighten the final drive, then tighten the axle. Again double check the service manual. Definitely don't run around with just three of them. according to parts diagram there should be a lock washer and an acorn nut. If torqued properly with a lock washer, loctite shouldn't be necessary

You said you drained the carbs? You obviously have at least a screw driver to get the drains out? You are getting fuel out of all four drains?? See if you can shoot some carb cleaner in through the drain holes. That may soften up whatever the float is stuck on. Have some rags handy so it doesn't drip carb cleaner into the V. If you can get the carbs to drain and the fuel pump will fill all four carbs back up, disconnect the fuel line at the tank petcock, drain the carbs, and rig a hose to draw straight seafoam out of the can, through the fuel pump and fill the carbs with seafoam (drains back in) and let it sit several hours or overnight ideally. If you can block the bike to sit up straight that would be ideal. That's your only really options for cleaning the carbs on the bike with minimal tools.

That bike has manually adjustable spring preload. He indicates in video he had it set in the middle. What happens when you add spring preload? Does he have the same video of the Traxxion set up on the same bike somewhere to compare? Does he have any shock dyno plots of the stock suspension vs Traxxion? For that kind of investment I would want some data. Suspension is a compromise of package space limitations and ride height that suits the widest range of users. Use of bump stops on the shaft to limit travel and add spring rate and damping at the limits of travel is common. Look at miata suspensions and other sport cars with limited travel. Bump stop material, length and stiffness selection is also key. Wrong Bumpstops can make a suspension harsh. If you have the money, the suspension mod may make it better. Question is does it make it $2800 better? I don't particularly care for the styling of the bike so that and $25K would keep me from buying one. If its like any other Honda, it is probably smooth, very well balanced and well sorted for 90% of the intended users. I thought the stock suspension on my ST1100 was great. There are a number of ST1100 forum posts and riders out there touting suspension mods that would suggest my perception of the stock suspension was wrong.

Would be interested to know what the heat is like when you duplicate this ride or something similar in 85-90* Temps.

Is this a battery that had the electrolyte already in it when you bought it or is it one where you add the electrolyte to it to activate it?? In the first instance, was it full when you bought it ? In either case Did you fully charge the "new" battery before installing it in your bike?? If its been sitting around Walmart, it was probably only at 80% charge. Will it start your bike that way? Sure. Will your bike ever charge it to 100%? No. Unless there is a problem with your bikes charging system, its unlikely your bike boiled the electrolyte out. Change in specific gravity of the fluid as a battery discharges will cause the level to drop. Trickle chargers will slowly boil fluid out also. Years ago new motorcycle batteries were shipped/stored dry and you filled them to put them in to service. When we used to fill new batteries at the Motorcycle shop, you filled them to the lower line. Once they sat and the plates absorbed you filled them to the lower line again. Then you charged them. Fully charged they would end up at or above the upper line. Anyway the cell with the low level is probably a dead cell now. Not a fan of Walmart or any aftermarket Autostore battery for motorcycles. WM battery dead after a year of sitting and not taking a charge is not surprising. I have had good service out of the Yuasa brand batteries. The one in my RSTD went 7 years and was still starting the bike when I replaced it.

That really is a shame about the heat issue. It is also unbelievable to me that they released the bike with a heat issue with no apparent attempt to address it. Its probably the number 1 complaint of HD V twin owners and Yamaha had a well known heat issue with the FJR ( liquid cooled) that didn't get fixed until 2006,so Flyin is spot on with the 3 year wait for a fix (if it comes at all). Makes you wonder sometimes.

I gotta ask what is CTFW- I have seen you post that a few times. My best guess was cruisin the freeway?? But I generally try to avoid the freeway when I can. Never mind figured it out Chasin The Front Wheel. I think its cool they offer that bike with ABS brakes. My ST1100 had ABS brakes and I loved those. Takes a while to get the nerve to grab a handfull of front brake in the rain the first time, but once you do and you stop, man its tough to beat.

They used to make a 450cc rebel back in the day. I think it used a version of Honda's air cooled 450 twin back then. I see they offer a 500cc also. Looks alot like the Bolt to me.

I couldn't find it listed on rock auto either by application. May not have one. Googling 2008 E450 6.8 Barometric pressure sensor I only find listings for the 6.0L diesel on fordparts.com. (links below) It is also referred to as a manifold absolute pressure sensor in the part description. If it was that common of a problem as a part failure (BPS) on the V10 there would be more hits for it I would think. A you tube video indicate the BPS reading is derived from the MAF. I saw your post on the ford forum. Sitting 10 months have you checked to make sure nothing has eaten a hole through a line somewhere? Majority of both banks lean issues are typically vacuum/airleak or unmetered air (not going through the MAF). PCV lines known for cracking. Look for cracks damage loose connections in the intake tract ducting. Are you getting PO171 and 174 codes correct? https://www.stockwiseauto.com/motorcraft-cx1961-barometric-pressure-sensor?gclid=CLbX2PmuudQCFQUoaQodFNULIQ&fit_id=12587&Year=2008&Make=Ford&Model=E-450%20Super%20Duty&gsID=pxf338533f12587& http://www.fordparts.com/Commerce/CatalogResults.aspx?y=2008&m=Ford&mo=E-450%20Super%20Duty&cat=Emission%20Control&catId=40751609&scat=Sensors&scatId=40875835#Search

If its the same as the V8 tritons (My Van is 2000 and has the 4.6 V8), Check the PCV line. In the V8 anyway is a hard plastic line with rubber ends molded on it for the intake connection and PCV valve connection. Those are known to be problematic too but maybe they fixed that by 2008. If you look up the part (Baro sensor)on Rock Auto and click the part info they have color pictures of exactly what it looks like.

The air filter is not the limiting factor for flow in the Royal Star Tour Deluxe (and Venture) V4. Its all the 90 degree turns in the intake tract between the filter and the carbs. The paper filter flows all the air this engine will need. I think you can use the stock filter with the chrome covers if you want and like the chrome look. I believe you just need to add some foam weather strip to shim some extra distance. Thread on it here somewhere.

Here is a link to free shop manuals and another view of the location-Looks to be more up and to the left of the column area http://workshop-manuals.com/ford/e_450/v10-6.8l/sensors_and_switches/sensors_and_switches_powertrain_management/sensors_and_switches_computers_and_control_systems/barometric_pressure_sensor/component_information/locations/

A google search shows it being roughly under the dash somewhere above the pedals. Have you scanned it for codes? What codes are you getting? With a Ford V10 always a good idea to check if all the spark plugs are still in the cylinder head......next post has a link.http://www.justanswer.com/uploads/Ray60/2008-12-28_075252_untitledc.JPG

If you are going to use a gasket sealant only, I would recommend using Yamabond 4 (gray in color) or it's equivalent, NOT silicone based RTV from the auto parts store. Yamabond 4 was originally developed for sealing crankcase halves on two stroke bikes, stands up to oil, gasoline heat etc. If any leaches when you squeeze the mating surfaces together, it doesn't make little beads of sealant that can break off like Silicone RTV. Anything excess that leaches self levels and bonds to the surfaces. Whenever you buy OEM gaskets from yamaha and you see that bead of gray sealant preapplied to the gasket- thats Yamabond. If the OEM gaskets are still available, I would buy and use those. Also if you have a good Ace hardware store, one of the ones in our market has nice selection of fasteners for motorcycles including chrome finished allen head fasteners. Another good source for quality fasteners is McMaster Carr. Lowe's, Home Depot and Ace are stupid expensive compared to McMaster Carr. They have several distribution Centers. There is one in Atlanta, so for me in Florida its always 1-2 day shipping via ground.

The use of aV4 engine, in and of itself would not have made it a top heavy bike IMO. Top heavy would be a function of the packaging. However they would have needed to design an all new frame, use a frame mounted fuel tank (think ST 1100, Original first gen) and a lot of other design elements and packaging to use the V4 and keep the CG low. They just weren't going to spend that kind of R&D money. If all they did was modify the RSV frame to accept the VMAX V4 and added new fairings to that they would have certainly ended up with another top heavy motorcycle that would get negative comments and not be suitable for shorter riders. V4 has twice the parts of a V twin + all the cooling components, and probably takes longer to assemble, so all that will make it more money. Air Cooled twin is less maintenance than a liquid V4, hard to argue with that. Most of the hard work in terms of frame, engine, swing arm, was already done with the Stratoliner. All they needed was to reinforce the frame and add mount points once they sorted out the fairing design. Just the 27 inch seat height of the new VentureStrat will bring in customers that couldn't straddle the RSV and adds confidence to taller but aging riders. The decision was purely economics IMO and nothing more. Trying to swing and hit the largest target segment they can with one bike. Over all they did a real nice job in my opinion. I am not a 25K dollar bike buyer, just can't justify it in my situation. If the magazine comparison tests of production bikes show they got the balance right, the power is there and that they have done a better job of managing the V-twin heat than the competition, that will be key to sales and moving buyers over. The large fairing ducts may leave them them option to use that space for radiators if upgrading to a liquid cooled V-twin is needed in the future. I wonder if this new venture will go unchanged for the next 14 years like the RSV?

A one-piece plug patch like FF described above (flat disc with a stem) properly installed from the inside works really well. Requires removing the tire from the rim. I repaired a sidewall (not recommended) on a car tire that way when i was broke. It held for 20K miles until the tire got replaced.

180K miles on a Harley Vtwin that has never been apart? No valve job? No Nothing? that would be rare. If you went through all the 280 some -odd photos of people with their bikes on Yamaha's Website during the run up for the new Venture, the Vast majority with over 100K were all the V4 Venture or Tour Deluxe owners, after that there were a few Strat V twin owners with over 100K on the bike. It is a durable V twin, but only time will tell if its durable hauling 1000lbs plus around.

That is not too far fetched and would actually be somewhat doable with parts Yamaha mostly already owns. You are essentially describing the former Stratoliner Deluxe, except with a smaller fixed fairing and a small trunk and the engine from the Warrior. At one time I explored putting the Road Glide fixed fairing on the RSTD when I had it. Actually had located one that was already black.

I think belts are fine. The New Venture has belt drive because it is based significantly on the Stratoliner greatly reducing tooling costs by using parts already in the bin. Its also lighter cheaper and pretty darn reliable. You can see the difference in retail price between air cooled Vtwin belt drive and Liquid cooled V4 Shaft Drive. Simply go to yamaha's website, click on the new Venture, hit the compare to link (you can pick up to two), add the Vmax from 2013 and Stratoliner from 2013 (or whatever the last year was). The difference in MSRP for those bikes (Strat and Vmax) which are essentially similar featurewise except for power plant and final drive(Warrior is probably a better comp) will explain why the Vmax motor and shaft drive are not in the new Venture.