Prairiehammer

My Debbie is doing the same thing. She shore looks funny in the morning. I am trying my darndest to avoid getting it from her, but I fear it is a lost cause...starting to cough a bit myself.

Flush and bleed your clutch hydraulic lines. I sounds as if the clutch is not disengaging fully.

Drilling the vacuum port in the end of the slide will not speed the return of the slide to closed. That vacuum port is not a "bleed" for returning slides, it is the port through which vacuum pulls the slides open. Confirm that PAJ2 (Pilot Air Jet 2) is clear. Check the slide return springs for nominal and equal length. Clean the slides and their respective bores.

It is rare to find a carb that is "unusable", unless it has suffered catastrophic physical damage to the carb body. What exactly has rendered the carburetor "unusable"?

As with the WWII German 'buzz bomb', you will need to have a catapult to get the ram jet going? In your video, it appears the launcher is using compressed air. Seems a rather cumbersome set-up for the field. Perhaps a disposable 'booster rocket' could be temporarily strapped on to start the launch? Or rubber band/bungee sling shot (ie. water balloon slingshot)?

It may be possible to get a wrench or pliers on the hex head of the hose clamp screw? Or a Dremel may access the clamp to cut it off? Finally, unbolt the exhaust header and move it out of the way? As for the coolant drain valve position: the OFF should point to a mark on the valve housing at about the two o'clock position when in normal operation. If draining the cooling system, the ON should be at the two o'clock position. You may turn the drain valve in either direction to position it correctly. There is no "stop".

Check is in the mail, Bubber. Great looking patch.

The "cover, cap" hides and holds a rubber plug into the cooling jacket surrounding the cylinder. The leak will be coolant, not oil. The "cover, cap" is not just cosmetic. Without the "cover, cap", the cooling system when heated and pressurized, will blow the rubber plug (#12 on the 'fiche, PN. 90338-11152-00 PLUG,SPEC'L SHAPE) out and you will lose the coolant.It is not uncommon for the aged rubber plug to shrink and harden with the resultant coolant leak. Some have found that an appropriate sized spacer (a dime) placed between the "cover, cap" and the rubber plug will eliminate the leak...for awhile.

Stock grips are pictured below. There are a couple of NOS grips on eBay. Seven-eighths is bar diameter, but be aware, because of the throttle tube on the right grip, that there is a right and there is a left. One other point about grips for the First Gen: the stock grips are longer than most Yamaha grips of the era. Nearly six inches long if IIRC. If you elect to go with aftermarket grips, those that are advertized to fit a GL1500 will fit the Venture perfectly for diameter and length. 1984 1993 Yamaha XVZ1200 XVZ1300 Venture Royale Left Grip 26H 26241 00 | eBay Yamaha Grip Assembly 84 85 XVZ1200 86 93 XVZ1300 26H 26240 00 00 | eBay Yamaha Hand Grip LH XVZ12 Venture Royal 26H 26241 00 00 | eBay

Might you be inquiring of the "Drain Cock" assembly? Part number 26H-12560-00-00? It is what some of us call the thermostat bypass. If so, there are a few on eBay: 87 Yamaha XVZ1300 Venture 1300 YM306 Engine Water Coolant Bleeder Tube Pipe H | eBay Venture XVZ12 XVZ1200 XVZ1300 Royale Coolant Bleeder Pipe with Hardware 1983 | eBay 1983 Yamaha Venture XVZ12 Coolant Thermostat Line Lines Cap YM233 | eBay

1968 Doors Hello, I Love You

Years ago, there was a trailer made by Smitty Mfg. that utilized motorcycle wheels and tires without any suspension. Very simple design and apparently the lack of suspension was not a deterrent to comfortable towing.

Thank you Brenner, for the information and for your efforts to improve the database. The latest data has been added.

Very cool!

Thank you, Jamie for this information. Ironically, I had your second VIN already recorded in my database. I discovered it at a salvage auction in Tennessee. It was a maroon Standard, not Royale. (The '26H' in the VIN denotes a 1983 Standard). The build date for the 26H008DA004184 is either 02/83 or 03/83. If you would like a copy of the Excel database, PM me with your email address and I will send it to you. Thanks again.

KISA, as you probably know, the metal strap is not original. It is a patch. The lower fairing mounts to some of the same screws as the upper fairing, but technically, you could mount the lower fairing without the upper fairing and vice versa. Here is a picture of an undamaged lower fairing.

Nice color! And bike! But does it have electronic cruise control? And where is the trunk and passenger backrest? Intercom? CB? AM/FM? Cassette?

Back in my hot-rodding days, I had "cut-outs" on my Fairlane. Pull the cable knob and I had open headers. Push the cable knob, closing the exhaust cut-out, and I had a streetable and almost legal exhaust system.

Bumpity, bump

I bought a new CB750 in 1974. I put a Kerker 4 into 1 header on it after a year. Rode the heck out of it for four years, then I bought a new 1978 Kawasaki Z1R and promptly installed a Kerker on it and rode the heck out of it for several years until I bought a 1983 Venture Royale. I GAVE the CB750 to my brother and he rode it for several years, even taking it to Washington state for four years. He sold/gave it to a friend of his, who had it for several years. Finally, he tired of it and my brother asked if I wanted my old Honda. Shoot YEAH! Bottom line: I have my old CB750, my first bike, still with the Kerker. Now, I wish I had my Z1R, again. And I wish I had my first Venture Royale, again. And I wish I had my first car (1966 Fairlane 500 with a hotted up 390, with Hooker header and glasspacks).

Here is the OEM gasket on eBay: Travel Trunk Lid Saddlebag Seal 54K 2847F 00 XVZ12 XVZ13 1983 1993 | eBay

My FIRST: a brand spanking new 1974 Honda CB750.

Please consider becoming a supporting member.

There is not many choices for the 1983-1985 caliper seal kit on eBay. Yamaha part number 26H-WO047-50-00 has been superseded by Yamaha part number 31A-W0047-00-00. Doing a search for that part number on eBay returns just two discrete hits. Two are for OEM seals from Boats net and Partzilla (same seller) and two identical from Motosupplyco. If it were me, I would stick with Yamaha branded seals. Cheapest, too. 31A-W0047-00-00 | eBay

Attached find the instructions for mounting the Baker Air Wings to the Venture Royale. Baker no longer sells complete Air Wings for the Venture Royale, but replacement parts, ie. the arm brackets specific for the Venture Royale ARE still available from Baker. The rest of the components that make up the complete Air Wings are generic. Replacement Parts Air Wings, ABA-26HCD-32-00, Installation Instructions.pdf air wings, Install Instructions.pdf