MikeWa

I wish tires lasted as long as this thread. Mike

Brian Spray some Lysol in the vents including the inlet under the dash. Let the car sit overnight. The smell should be gone the next day. Mike

Check the master cylinder adjustment and hoses. The system may not be fully releasing causing the rotor to overheat. Mike

All this didn't come about on April 1st did it? Mike

I don't run car tires on my bike. Never have. That said I have not seen or heard of any increase in motorcycle accidents due to the use of car tires. Does anyone have any statistical evidence that car tires are more dangerous on motorcycles? Mike

It seems the V-Max bikes are a little to torquie and the Venture not torquie enough. Since the ring and pinions will swap out it is a good trade. For a very reasonable price you can have a third party swap the gears into your pumpkin for you. That way no drilling or modification of the housing is necessary. There is an article in the tech section. Mike

120 KPH puts you in fifth at about 75 mph. If you are running in 4th at over 100kph my feeling is you will still like the v-max differential. You will just be in 5th a little sooner (10%). The bike will be more responsive at highway speed. Torque on the bottom will be much greater and mileage at speed should be improved. With the v-max installed on my bike I hit the stock rev limiter just over 30MPH (48kph) in 1st gear, 60MPH (96.5kph) in second and 90 mph (144.8kph) in third. So you could still be in third at 120kph. I have never had the guts to hit the limiter in fourth (over 120mph - 193kph) let alone fifth. It winds up so much faster with the v-max, it is easy to hit the stock limiter in 1st and 2nd so that takes a little getting used to. As does the change in sound. You will also find fifth very useable from under 90kph all the way up to chicken feathers. Performance at high altitude will also be improved as will towing ability. Besides I like passing without having to downshift. There have been a few who didn't like this conversion but most reviews have been positive. There is a good article in the tech section on how to do the change and where to get, exchange, the pumpkin. I bought a cheap used RSV pumpkin on e-bay and sent that in for the exchange. So I still have my original. The actual swap takes about an hour. Good Luck Mike

Congratulations Brian. I look forward to riding with you. Mike

Good solution. Mike

Great post. Excellent camera work and editing. Looks like the Venture did good but if he didn't already have it the v-max rear end mod would help immensely. Mike

The time sounds reasonable if they didn't have to change any shims. Did they flush the cooling system or just replace antifreeze lost during the valve check? This is one of those jobs I always worry about. A lazy mechanic can claim he checked when in fact he just glanced over valve train. The service writer won't know the difference. I hate this kind of job. When I took my first Venture in for a valve adjustment I told them two of the shims needed to be replaced. I just couldn't remember for sure which two. So I agreed when they said they should just go ahead and check them all. When I picked the bike up they informed me I was wrong. All of the valve clearances were within spec. and they gave me a lengthy explanation of how they checked them. I felt better. Mike

Marc I agree it makes the bike much more fun to ride. 4000 rpm is good all day. 3500 or 4500 won't hurt either. At 55 mph 3rd, 4th or 5th are ok. But mine seems most comfortable in 4th or 5th and with the v-max rear end it will accelerate very quickly if needed. Mike

It is good that Yamaha listens to it's customers and produces the motorcycles they are asking for. Yamaha clearly develops a customer base and then fully supports it. Mike

I have yet to find a tire for these bikes that everyone likes. It seems tires are the biggest single source for complaints with all brands getting their fair share. I have used D404s, Exedra, Exedra Max and others with equal success. So far nothing has stood out either better or worse. E-IIIs seem to have good life, D404s seem to handle rain. I expected more from the Max but I don't know if I got it as my bike was totaled by a car. From the looks of the tread wear, I don't know. So whatever works for you, turns you on or off, go for it. Can't be wrong----or right. Mike

When changing the coolant I highly recommend adding some water pump lubricant. The coolant says it comes with water pump lube in it. But it is not enough. Add a little more and you greatly reduce the stress on the water pump bearings and seal. Mike

New Cover.

If your idle speed is high it will shift harder into first gear. Since I like an soft easy shift I keep my idle speed down to about 950 rpm. As it goes over the 1000 rpm spec setting it tends to slam first gear. Mike

For LEDs I often use telephone wire and connectors. I try to make sure I get the multistrand wire. Single strand wire will work provided you use it where it doesn't need to flex. It's handy because it has four color coded wires in a single small diameter cable. I pack the back of the plugs with dielectric grease or sometimes I solder the connection. The crimper stripper tool for the plugs was cheap at the local hardware store. I bought some plugs and a roll of wire about ten years ago. Haven't run out yet. Mike

With that wage increase it would only take them five hours to pay for the increased cost of a gallon of oil. Mike

You end up with better stories to tell when an outing turns in an adventure. Mike

Happy or sad is often a matter of choice. You have a son who is doing well. The snow will eventually melt. You have reached the age of 65 and get to retire. You are still able to ride the motorcycle. Shed the excess and be happy. Or I will be forced to be happy for you. Mike

That is the same way I felt about helmets until one saved my life. Thing is I would not have been wearing a helmet if it were not required by law. As the crash happened and my head hit the asphalt I remember thinking "I sure am glad I am wearing this helmet". Mike

Rich99 87 over 51 blood pressure is low. If it were to fall any lower say when standing from a sitting position you could easily pass out. I would not like to hear of you being hurt in an accident or some such thing. Visit your doctor and cardiologist. If they do not pay attention get new ones. Methods for raising blood pressure are not as common as for lowering it but they do exist. Go ahead. Ask me how I know this. Mike

It is great that some states will let you carry concealed without a permit. In my opinion permits should not be required to carry a firearm. Also most permits are not transportable from state to state unless the particular state in question has a reciprocal agreement. So interstate carry becomes very confusing and difficult for law abiding citizens. Criminals don't care. Mike

I have a lot of respect for the police most of the time. But I get a little tired of hearing how tough their job is. There is no police department I know of that drafts officers. It is voluntary. So if it is too tough quit. We have given police an inordinate amount of power. We expect them to make judicious use of it. And we expect them to use a little horse sense. Which these guys did not. As they arrested these people the police on the scene knew something was wrong but didn't bother to find out what. It is hard to win if you are from out of state suing in local court. And it is really hard to beat the police whom the courts have a vested interest in. Put these two together and it is a tough road. Mike