camos

Water in the saddlebags is not normal. Do you have the rubber gasket that fits into the rim of the lower bag? When the two latches are snapped into place they should compress the gasket and provide a waterproof closure.

That's basically how I do it too although with a couple of small differences. In the past I used 7mm tubing which fit the bleeder tightly. Currently I'm using 1/4" tubing which needs to have the end opened up a bit to fit the bleeder. It's easier to find 1/4" tubing than metric tubing around here. My tubing is 24" long and easily reaches the waste bottle, which just happens to be a Tequila bottle, on the ground. There is no need to put water in it since the hose cannot fall out of it. The most important part of this technique is to have the hose go up an inch or two from the bleeder so fluid sits on top of the bleeder valve which prevents air from getting into the system while the valve is open. Pumping slow does not do any good for the actual bleeding part. In fact, since air will rise towards the MC, the slower you pump the longer it will take to get the air out of the bleeder valve. Putting the lid loosely on the MC reservoir without the bellows gasket will keep the back squirt from being a problem. Bleeding the clutch this way will take less than 10 minutes.

That would be both sensible and fair particularly since that is almost what they are doing already. You notice that they ask if you are the principal driver. Other people with less than 10 years experience or too many accidents or too many points have to pay an additional fee for coverage. That seems fair enough to me. That would work best with basic liability coverage but maybe not so well for comprehensive coverage. Of course, it would also mean the insurance company would get a much reduced premium and would seriously affect their profit. Probably a no go there.

Perhaps it is the ephemeral reflection of your dark side about to leave the annoying straight shooter abandoned on the highway in the middle of nowhere. Just a guess of course.

Since you seem to be open to alternatives to a log house, I recently read an article on homes built with shipping containers. Looked like it might an economical method if you are handy.

Yes, that might cause wobble but it won't cause cupping.

In this case there is no difference between the 83 and 89 except for possibly the tires. One thing is certain, if tires are cupping then they are too soft. I've been running Dunlop Elites @ 40 lbs exclusively since getting my Venture in '09 and regularly get around 20,000 miles and have never had any cupping.

Up to you, 36 lbs is too soft on my 89 and it is noticeable when doing slow speed maneuvers. Despite the fact that I have on occasion failed to keep the pressure at 40, I have never had cupping on any of my Ventures tires. If you want to save your tire, pump it up.

I understand the physical changes when going from feet forward to feet under. When I first got my Venture I was very inclined figure out a foot forward position. It was a bit of a low priority at the time so just over a year later I thought about doing something with the controls. By that time though I was so used to the position that I was very comfortable riding all day with my legs tucked. Having highway pegs is still a good idea when doing long rides. When I'm sitting on the Venture with my feet on the pegs, my toes are pointed slightly down so I adjusted the shift lever so it would slightly touch the top of my foot. Shifting with that setup requires only an effortless slight rocking backwards of my foot. In the winter I readjust the shift lever to fit my felt-pac rubbers. Works just fine that way too.

So what pressure did you put in the front tire? Personally, I prefer to run both front and back tires at 40 lbs. Cupping could be the cause or at least a contributing factor. Unless the cupping is really bad just live with it. Keeping the pressure up to 40 will allow the tire to wear off the high spots.

Drag as in still trying to go with the lever all the way in? There is a good chance there is air in the system. Bleeding is worth a try.

I have braided nylon boot laces on my 90 VR which work well enough but require them to be tucked in which is not very convenient. On my 89 VR I put a light twisted chain which does the tether well and has the benefit of not needing to be tucked in since they sort of fall into place.

Hey Will, don't take it personally. You are not the only one who has difficulty understanding Steven's posts. I think he has some valuable experience but has difficulty communicating it clearly.

Seems to me there is a lot of fuss over nothing. Looks like you did a nice job of replacing the filtre seal and chose a very good battery as a replacement. According to you the bike is running great so there is currently no indication there is any need for a compression check. I was very happy to have paid $1800 for my 89 VR with 25,000 miles on it so I'd say you got a really good deal on your beautiful bike.

With the cover off the MC do you see the back squirt when releasing the lever? If not then that little hole might be plugged. It might just be a little dirt in the MC or it might need to be rebuilt.

If you get more brake by pumping the pedal than there is most likely air in the system and properly bleeding it will restore your brakes. Once that is done, if the brakes get spongy again then there is some other problem that is allowing air into the system. If the MC has failed then it is not likely you will get any braking at all.

The biggest problem with LED's compared to OEM/DOT is they put the centre of the light in the wrong position. There is a fairly precise focal area that reflects the light forward. Any light that is not in that area will get sent out who knows where. The Broviews are the only LED that I have found to work properly and that is most likely because they were designed to pass DOT specs. Getting a DOT designation is probably the best thing to look for when changing over to LED's.

What about a piece of flat bar that goes either forward of the fender mount or down from the fender mount? Looks from the pic like there would be enough clearance.

What about a piece of flat bar that goes either forward of the fender mount or down from the fender mount? Looks from the pic like there would be enough clearance.

That's partly right. the slots allow the riser to be pinched without popping out the centre filler piece. If they were not there the bolts would most likely strip the threads before allowing enough pressure to grip the handlebar stubs. The circular hole at the end of the slot in the cover piece allows enough flex so the cover piece does not eventually crack from the pressure.

When I first got my 90 VR I added a half can to a tankful and it smoked so much my neighbour came running over to see if something was on fire. I guess it depends on how cruddy the fuel system is.

Lots of good advice in this post. Referring specifically to Seafoam though, it is my opinion that putting a whole can in a tankful is a waste. I commute daily on my VR all year and have found adding a quarter can of Seafoam every three or four months was necessary to keep the motor running properly. Thank you ethanol. I followed that process for five years or so with good results. For the past year I've been doing it differently, adding 2 oz to each tank. That seems to be working as well although I can't say it is working better than the other way but there has been no apparent degradation in performance like with the first method. When it comes to resurrecting the carbs, the shotgun method of filling each carb through the drain hose should be done first. Let it sit for a day or so then drain it. Put 1/4 to 1/3 can into a full tank and run it down to almost empty over the course of several days. Make sure to do some WOT runs to get the mix into the main circuits. If it is still not running properly do it again with another tankful. If you get through the whole can of Seafoam and it is still not running properly then there is most likely a more significant problem than Seafoam can handle.

Makes sense to me. I'm not ready to give up two wheels yet but have been considering the move to a three wheeler at some point. Trouble is the Miata is made for short people. I had a 1967 MGB which is the inspiration for the Miata but it had tons of leg room. Not sure I want to trade in my old Venture for an even older car. Perhaps it will be the time to move to Mexico where riding a quad is allowed on public roads.

I would go with this advice too. I had a stent put in about 20 years ago and was advised to go easy on physical activity for a couple of weeks to a month until the incision healed properly. That advice was related to the incision rather than to the stent, don't want to blow out the artery that was used to access your heart. I suppose a lot of it depends on what kind of physical shape you are in and how well you tend to heal. Haven't had any issues with the stent itself.

Good luck with finding a roll of film. You have a set of feeler gauges right? One of them should work just fine.