Steve S

It was charged out of the bike for a couple of hours. I've checked it several times and still only shows BAD on my load tester. It has voltage, but no amperage.

It barely lit the test light I was using. The battery wasn't just low, it was DEAD!!! Like it had a link inside that had opened up. I've charged it twice and it doesn't have any amperage in it. This is the 3rd Deca battery that has failed on this trike this year. I've had good luck with Decas in the past, so I am surprised at this.

Thank you for that suggestion. I powered it up and the only draw it has is a low amperage draw on the engine line. It has a couple of extra accessories that are dead until the engine is running. I even started the engine and ran it up to a high RPM to make sure the regulator wasn't failing at high speeds.

Folks I am having crazy battery problems and need some input. The crazy part is I have worked with rebuilding automotive alternators and generators, resolved wiring and electrical issues for years, with a bro-in-law that had an electric motor shop, and I can't wrap my head around the problem. I had a fairly new, Deca battery die on my 2007 RSV Trike this spring, replaced it, with another Deca and the new one died after a few weeks of riding. Checked the voltage and found it was charging at 18 volts. Ordered and installed new voltage regulator, installed new Deca battery, and it was charging at 14.2 volts. After installing the battery, I rode it for a couple of hours and parked it for a couple of weeks. Now the new battery is dead too. I removed the battery, hooked up jumper cables to my lawnmower and checked the charging rate. 14.2 volts again at idle and very high idle range. Checked the battery with a battery tester and it is DEAD. Has 2 volts and goes to 0 when I hit the load button. I have seen alternators go bad from bad stators and I am wondering if I should change it out too even though the voltage is well within the acceptable range. Any ideas and input would be appreciated. Thanks. Steve.

If I'm still kicking, I'll be there.

Russ the oil filters for the RSVs are a common filter and are available in most parts stores. I get mime from the local NAPA store. NAPA filters are made by Wix and that is the brand of filter I prefer using. I have ordered them from Amazon as well to save a little on the cost of the filters. The oil I use is Rotella T6 Full Synthetic that I pick up at Wal Mart. These are just my choices and I have had good results with them. Steve

I have worked on automobiles most of my life and did a lot of work on electrical systems. It seems that electronic parts "can fail" without any reason at all, simply because they are electronic systems. However, they do fail every day. The Trike voltage regulator failed and burnt out 2 batteries before I really investigated the problem and discovered it was overcharging. I have since replaced the VR and it is now charging at 13.6 volts as it should be. My Yamaha dealer doesn't have the parts manuals available to look up a lot of parts, but I will look up the part number on Partszilla, and let them order it. It's the same price, but it saves me shipping and they get to make another sale. I prefer to buy locally when I can. Steve

I got a Trike last year to ride with my wife. The Trike has been down for repairs since late April, so I've been riding my bike. The repairs have been made, but I haven't told her yet. Today the wife went to a baby shower, so I used the opportunity to make a 90-mile trip to our "local" Lowes. It was a very important part I needed to fix my bro-in-laws air compressor, so I felt the travel time was well worth it. At 68 I still do well two up, but I know my time is limited to the bike and I ride as often as I can.

I am over the Flu and finally got caught up on my chores that were put aside while I was sick. Yesterday I had a chance to finish the Carburetor job on the Trike and run the engine. I hung a "fuel tank" from the handlebars and fired it up. It ran very well, so I synced the carbs before I out the tank back on. I bought a new voltage regulator and it's charging properly now so I'll get a new battery today. Then I can get it cleaned up and back on the road. The poor thing has not been cleaned since we got back from out west and it is VERY nasty.

Hello VR fellows. I am being held hostage by the dreaded flu virus and am ready for this to get this over with. It started last Thursday after we got home from mowing my wife's property. It was hot and I felt bad that night, so I stayed in all day Friday. By Fri. afternoon I felt like a semi ran over me 3 times. No signs of infection, so I hung with NyQuill and DayQuill to help with the pain. Just going out in the driveway for about 10 minutes today has told me that I will be in for another or two. The bad news is, I have a Trike that has just had the carbs reinstalled, the oil hasn't been changed, or has the engine been run so they can be tuned out. Not to mention that I cannot go riding on the bike or even mow the yard. This being sick during good weather STINKS!!! OK, the Gripe Session is over, but I had to tell my story in the feeble hope of getting a little sympathy. 🤣 (Like that will happen with this bunch). Everyone have a great day riding. Steve

Hello Friends. My wife and I made it home yesterday afternoon and are resting today. We went 4500 miles through 10 different states in 27 days and saw so many BEAUTIFUL sights. We had planned on staying out a couple of more weeks, but the trike had a charging malfunction, so we came home early. Due to some rough weather, we didn't get to ride as much as we wanted, but we still had a wonderful time and met some amazing people. I have posted some beautiful pictures in the Pictures Folder so enjoy the scenes we saw. Steve

We stayed in the RV to go through Bryce Canyon. When we got to the top of the mountain there was 6 ft of snow on the ground.

In Winslow Arizona... We celebrated out 1st anniversary in Winslow. Sorry for the delay on pictures, but we had very poor Wi-Fi at the campgrounds we stayed at.

I have switched to all LED. I will check that out before I do anything drastic. Thanks. Steve

Thank you. I'll order some. Steve

Big Dog, where do I get the kits?

I believe I have gas getting into my oil. I realize this is a carb issue, but when I change out the needle and seat valves, will I need to replace the bowl gaskets as well? Thanks Steve

I have an 06 Venture Trike that is overcharging. On a 160-mile trip yesterday, I shut the bike down to go shopping. When I tried to start it, the battery had NO voltage in it at all. A very kind gentleman was kind enough to go home, bring his truck and jumper cables back to get me going. Since the battery is only a month old, I knew it shouldn't have died. I came back to the campground and parked it. This morning I jumped it off to go the NAPA store to get a new battery. The fuel light came on when I stopped last night, so I turned to tank to reserve to make sure I got to the store figuring to fuel after the battery change. Well, I didn't make it to the parts store before it shut down. I coasted into a used car lot and asked for some help. The mechanic there was kind enough to give me a gas can so I could walk next door and get gas. After putting gas in and checking everything out, I jumped the bike off and it fired right off. The mechanic got his voltmeter and checked the voltage, and it was charging at 18 volts. THAT is why the new battery died so quickly. An alternator is to charge at 13.7 volts max. I didn't go after the battery. I brought the rig back to the RV and loaded it on the trailer. I don't want to get stranded a hundred miles from home like we were yesterday on our ride. I feel we were blessed to have made it back to Durango before the battery failed. Steve

I plug my iPhone to the auxiliary port in the radio and fire it off. I also have Amazon music on my iPhone. It will drain the battery after a couple of hours, but I switch the plug to charge the phone while I listen to cassettes. 😁😁

These are pictures of the "Bottomless Lakes" near Roswell New Mexico. They are very deep, small lakes that are saltwater lakes. The largest is also the deepest, 90ft., at it's deepest point. This first picture is a large boulder that is on the side of the road near Lincoln MN.

I was able to put some pictures in the Picture Folder section. I will keep adding pics as we get to ride more. Steve

The first 3 pics are random shots in Oklahoma, the rest are pictures of our ride from Roswell NM to Ruidoso NM. Roswell is 3500 ft. elevation, and Ruidoso is 6900 ft. It was very warm in Roswell, but that changed quickly in Ruidoso. We stopped for lunch and put liners in our jackets. But the time we stopped for fuel 20 minutes later, we decided chaps and heavier gloves were needed. The locals say this has been a very cool spring for them. These are pictures leaving Roswell NM and heading toward Tombstone AZ. They all were taken in NM. We stopped for the night at a rest stop in Arizona. 4-28-23

I am probably one of the few people that still use their cassette player. My wife has several cassette tapes. We do use Pandora off my phone as well.

My wife and I have made it to Rozwell NM Saturday, and it finally got warm enough for us to ride some this afternoon. I got the ride off the trailer, and we loaded up to head out. I fired it up, gave it some fuel, hit the switch, and for the first time ever, I slung gravel everywhere IN REVERSE!!! I love this Trike having a reverse on it, and I had to brag on what Hannigan Trike did for us when they added the reverse to it. Sorry, no pictures yet. Steve.

We made it to Roswell New Mexico Saturday night and are taking a day off to rest and prepare for a few days of serious riding. AND to allow it to warm up above 55 degrees. It is COLD down in the Southwest. Thankfully it will be much warmer tomorrow so we can get out and see some sights. Pictures will come soon. Steve