OldBear
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Everything posted by OldBear
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That's the sound, BUT it was warm and dry today, no water at all. I was working fine (except for engine noise) 'till I stopped and disconnected. When I hooked back up, there it was a REAL Pain! Can't imagine what would have happened if this had STARTED while I was riding.....
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Hey guys, got a problem I hope y'all can help me with. I've got a set of J&M headsets in Nolen helmets. I am quite pleased with them so far, however today when riding I noted I was getting engine noise (static) through the headset. It wasn't "terrible" but was darn annoying. Anyway, while i was stopped I went to adjust the intercom volume. when I hooked my headset back up I immediately encounted an Unbelievable LOUD SHRIEK!!!! The volume of this was NOT affected by the volume control (at least that i could figure out. I disconnected/reconnect a couple times with NO luck in making it go away. I was running late for home so I disconnected and highballed back to the house. Anyway, does anybody have any ideas/suggestion concerning resolving these issues? I'd really appreciate it! THANKS!!!
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I had my stocker cut down (same profile) to a decent height and then picked up a Yamaha "tall" (which is about 2 1/2 inches wider PER side and higher than stock) Use the shorty in warm/hot weather and the barn door when it's cold.
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Uh, where do we sign up for the FREE Kawasaki's? I knew sales were tough last year but.....
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I will obey the speed limit....I will obey the speed limit
OldBear replied to E-Fishin-C's topic in Watering Hole
Well, if ya REALLY want to keep it to legal speeds, pull the plug wires on #1 and #3 cylinders and ya got a nice 650 twin!, course the thing will STILL run 80 or so, but the top end will be "limited"! (It will idle a touch rough though......). Seriously though, I really liked the power on my 07 FJR, but it was VERY hard to keep it legal. I called it "sneaky fast". Most bikes I've ridden, including my old Duc SS TOLD you when you were hauling a$$. The Feejer would just quietly take you faster and faster 'till you looked down and saw the speedo up in the warp drive area and had a "oh crap" moment. Be CAREFUL and keep a close eye on the clock or she'll get you burned by the local constabulary! -
SOLUTION: Go to Whitehorse Gear.com They make a spiffy aluminum bar that goes through the buckle on your Nolan. One end is big enough it will not go through, while the other end had a hole that fits your helmet lock. Slide the bar into position, but the helmet lock through the hole and you're good to go. I carry one for wife and I in a tank bag so they're always handy! (Be SURE to tell 'em you want the ones that work on a Nolan helmet--there are other out there that are too wide to fit Nolan's. The one's you want are on page 25 of their summer 2010 catalog. Cost is $13.95 or two for $25! Nice folks to do business with too! Phone is 800 531-1133 Good luck!
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I tend to agree with Don. "IF there's a Venture in '11 I'm betting it's the same. I really don't expect to see one in '11 and expect a few years to go by before a "new" Venture emerges. Yamaha builds a solid machine, BUT they do NOT listen to their customers or upgrade their machines regularly. Right now the FJR is a decent sport tourer, however it lacks cruise control (which Yamaha already has on OUR bike) and has a fairing design that it notorious for buffeting and wind noise. Been that way for years. Our bikes still don't have ABS, Fuel Injection or heated grip (again, Yamaha has systems on the shelf but chooses not to upgrade the existing platform). Why, I dunno, looks to me like a few tweaks and tunes from product to product would keep 'em current and improve sales. Just my 2 cents...
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What he said! Ya don't want to be in the southwest (or even deep south) in the heat of summer on a "fun"(?) ride (unless of course you enjoy sweating a lot:)
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Has anybody done the upgrade to R1 brakes on a 2nd gen? I went with stainless brake llines shortly after I bought my bike, 'cause the brakes felt awful "soft" after my FJR and Duc. The stainless lines really helped, but I am curious about going to the R1 brakes. They "should" help quite a bit. Ideas?
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While I am most definitely NOT and HD fan, I gotta tell ya the HD dealers I've been around do a MUCH better job of taking care of travelers than most other brands. While there are certainly exceptions, it seems to this old boy that an awful lot of dealers of other brands (not just ours!) simply don't seem to care about the "service" portion of the equation. I've got a buddy who rode cross country a few years ago on a Victory (not many Vic dealers in those days) and he was able to get service at HD dealers without any hassle at all....His buddy, on a Wing, had a couple issues with two different Honda dealers......Weird!
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I'm 59, been riding since '67. Was a "two stroke" man up through my 5th bike ('72 Kawasaki H2 bought NEW), then went to 4 strokers Kz650, Kz 1000R, Ducati 900SS, FJR, Venture and a 650 BMW dakar. Love to ride the beasts!
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That our RSV's are a basic and good design is shown very clearly by how well it stacked up in Rider's comparison with the Ultra, Victory Vision and Kawa Voyager (we tied with the HD for first!). This bike was "right" when designed and remains a very good machine, however, as others have noted, time marches on and progress consists of making "real" improvement in a machine (something our friends at HD have nailed, like it or not. Compare a 10 year old ultra to a new one and there are a bunch of improvements in ride, handling, features, etc). Our problem is that Yamaha doesn't seem to take the touring market seriously, nor invest any time/money in building a better mousetrap. Yamaha already HAS a great, fuel injected V-4 that (VMAX) that would take care of performance issues. They also have ABS and heated grips (FJR). Tweek the chassis and put on some brakes from an R1 along with the VMax engine, ABS and heated grips/seats. Add a GPS option to an upgraded AM/FM/XM audio package and you'd be there!! Simply but using Yamaha components that are already on the market they could make a good machine a truly great one IF they'd just do it. As it is, the Venture is showing it's age and that is costing customers and interest from newbies. Yamaha Corporate needs to get off there respective tails and make the machine a class leader, but I fear they won't. As noted, most of the dealer's I've been around have/know VERY little about the Venture, and it's been on the market for 11 years...THAT, more than anything else, shows ya where Yamaha's interests lie.... and it is NOT in the Touring market!
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Ya know, for the amount of $$ it would take to ship her bike over, she might be ahead (1) buying a USED Gen 2 here in the states (2) putting a voyoger kit on it and (3) selling it when her tour's done. Shopping here on OUR website, it looks like you could purchase something pretty decent for 9K or so, add another 3 or so for a kit and you're at twelve k, but still only 4k MORE than the shipping cost alone. If she could sell the bike (and kit) for anywhere close to what she paid for the bike alone, she should be WAY ahead.... Just sayin...
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Looks like the GT will be a "tourer" with the GTL being the "luxury" tourer (better pillion seating, more electronic goodies, etc. Based on what the dealer tells me and what BMW owners of america website indicates it looks like both of these will be MUCH lighter weight than the current LT. Keep in mind that BMW builds motorcycles to be RIDDEN. (go to any BMW gathering and you'll see a LOT of bikes with 150-200k on 'em) I've got a little 650 GS Dakar (the smallest streetbike BMW made at the time) that is equipped with touratec bags and a BMW trunk. This little 50 horse enduro is, in fact, a great highway ride-so much so that I'm taking it on a 900 mile ride down to GA and back in two weeks (while the Venture stays home). The little bike is very comfortable, light, maveauverable and just plain "fun" to ride. I've got a buddy that's put 25k miles on a R1200GS this past year and he and his wife love it (and they are NOT kids-both in late 50's). We're talking a machine that two up weighs less than our Ventures do empty!!! I gotta tell you, it's got me rethinking the whole tourer thing. I was down to nashville last week drooling over the R1200's.....
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Note the above link. The K1200LT is a great bike but, like the RSV, is now getting to the end of its production run. THe new K1600GTL "will" be the heavy BMW tourer next year, and it will be a LOT lighter than the current 1200 (plus it will be 160 horses:bowdown: I personally am looking forward to seeing one and trying a test ride.....
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Check out War Eagle Mill while you're in the area. Good roads to and from and a pretty decent lunch or breakfast (plus a lot of fresh made "goodies":thumbsup2:
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I found 'em in cycle world. The web site is: www.coolingapparel.com Phone is 888 672-6963. I called 'em to order and they were very nice on the phone. Package was shipped right out and I had it in a couple days. Price is higher than some ($90) but the vest is nicely made and has what appears to be cordura on the outside. I'm a very satisfied customer:thumbsup2:
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Guys, I just got back from a 150 mile ride where I tried out a new (to me) cooling product. I bought a Silver Eagle cooling vest. (saw it advertised in Cycle World) Basically you soak it in water and then, when the temps get too high while riding, you put this on UNDER your jacket and it will help keep you cool. Well today after about 50 miles the thermometer on my bike was showing 102F and I was getting pretty warm. Stopped and took the vest out of the trunk, put it on and replaced my jacket. I was immediately a whole lot cooler than I'd been before, and the cooling lasted 'till I was back home. It REALLY made a difference and was well worth the money IMHO. Makes hot weather riding a lot more pleasant, especially when wearing full gear. I'd never tried this type of thing before, but it REALLY helped me, and it is hot and humid here in Kentucky. If you ride ATGATT in hot weather it's worth a shot....
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It's truly a different world outside of the service. My very good friend is a retired Master Gunner in the Corps. He went to work in the safety office at a hospital. He would mention to someone that "we need to take care of that" and then was shocked when the following day nothing has been done! Seems that a Master Gunner (or a Navy Chief) USUALLY just needs to "suggest" something and the troops take care of it.....Too bad things don't work that well in the civilian world:whistling:
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FJR is a Great motor crippled by the WORST fairing/windsheild design out there. I bought a new 07 and loved everything except the wind noise and turbulance. I fought it for two years and 5 different windscreens. I "finally" got past the worst of the turbulance, however the windnoise remained a real PIB. I had to wear earplugs the whole time I had it (something not necessary on my old Ducati, my BMW Dakar or my Venture!) If you go to any of the FJR websites you'll find LOTS of folks with the same identical problem. Makes ya wonder if the guys that designed it ever actually RODE one. On the other hand, handlling was great and power was unreal....If ya want want, be SURE to ride it first and make sure it works for YOU!
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BMW builds a pretty good machine. Regardless of engine size, they're built to travel long haul. I swapped out my old Ducati SS for an F650 Dakar and LOVE IT. It is comfortable for long rides, handles great, is light, easy to handle, and will run two up loaded at 85+ all day (and still give more than 55 mpg!!) Not as comfortable as the Venture, but it weighs HALF as much! I also love the RT, what a great sport tourer! Not the fastest, but a Very well equipped long haul machine.
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Turn up the wick!
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Happy to hear you made it without serious injury. These things can get serious in a hurry. Bikes can always be repaired/replaced---people not so. Take care, and get back on your motor:sun:
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Easiest way to REMEDY an Oil overfill
OldBear replied to rumboogy's topic in Royal Star Venture Tech Talk ('99 - '13)
Try using a Turkey baster from momma's kitchen (don't tell her though AND you'll have to buy her a new one). Stick the tube in the fill hole, squeeze and release the bulb and voila, you'll have a few ounces of oil in the baster (return THAT to you container). Works great. Found this one out when I overfilled the old Ducati a couple years ago. a WHOLE lot neater than trying to do a "partial drain"... -
Well, not REALLY, it just feels like it. I put a set of Diamond R's leveling struts on my Venture-WOW what a change!!!! This is without doubt the BEST $100 I've EVER spent on a motorcycle (and I've spent a chunk on motorcycles over the past 40 years:grandpa:. This makes a huge difference in the way the bike handles, feels like it's lost 200 lbs at low speed. A GREAT investment (and great customer service!!!!!!