RedRider

If you have the tools, it only takes about 10 minutes. Not a bad thing to do. RR

Get to the fuel pump and check the points. They are under the black cap on the back of the pump. They should be clean and cross-hatched. It can be checked without removing the pump from the bike. You may have a weak pump that can't keep up with the flow. Look at the last page of this thread http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=81574&highlight=fuel+pump+contacts&page=4 Not a great picture, but these are the points from my fuel pump. 2000 Venture, about 115k miles at the time. http://2000rsv.smugmug.com/Other/Rally-Ready-Venture/i-HsLhjJw/0/M/Fuel%20Pump%20Points-M.jpg RR

Eck, Thanks for posting that. Treasure trove of info for sure. RR

Headlight is a standard H4 bulb. Upgrading to a Sylvania Silverstar Ultra is the easiest way to get more light. There are other more elaborate way to get even more, but his is easy. RR

Pictures of the AH? Love those old English cars. RR

Just rolled 125,000 miles last week on my 2000. Let's see, major problems ...... OEM shock went out at about 110,000 miles (I was living on borrowed time). Replaced with a Hagon. Bearing went out in the final drive. Replaced with a take off from someone triking their Venture (CarbonOne IIRC). Couple of clutches/springs. That's about it. It has been pretty bulletproof. Now, for a longer list, ask about the farkles and mods done. RR

As an additional FYI - You mentioned the friction point is close to the grip. There are some modifications to the clutch that cause the friction point to move towards the grip and be shorter. IIRC, it is the Freebird mod. The innermost half plate and spring is replaced with a complete friction plate to allow a bit more friction material in the clutch. Easy to change back if you have the parts. If you find this is what you have, and want to change back to stock (I did), I'm sure there are several folks on here that have the original components available. RR

+1 on taking the Ferry. Just went through Sarnia Saturday about 10:30 am and it took about 30 minutes. Not too bad, just hot and boring sitting in line sucking car fumes. Our US border agent made us very nervous for a short while. He asked if we were Packer fans. Being in Michigan, I was worried he was a die hard Lions fan and we were going to be subjected to the rubber glove treatment. Turns out he was from Oconto and was a life long Packer fan. "All is good here. Have a nice trip." RR PS. We put everything on the credit card. Didn't exchange any money although we were only in Canadistan for a day and a night.

I use mostly the front brake, make sure to look well ahead (versus at the asphalt in front of me), and put both feet down. Works well. The 'looking ahead' part seems to make the most difference to stability. RR

I beg to differ on the bearings. They are sized based on a load/speed duty cycle with fatigue being the failure. They are generally sized based on an L10 life (9 out of 10 will last to/beyond design life). Fatigue is caused by the loading/unloading of the metal races as the rollers/balls pass over. Double the load, fatigue life is reduced by 90%. Double the speed, design life is reduced by half. In other words, they very well may wear out. And when they do, it can be catastrophic. I heartily agree with using only a quality bearing. US, Japan, or Europe manufacturers are all good products. Stay away from Chinese manufacturers as their quality standards are not up to the first world control. My rear wheel bearings went out about 100k miles and took my rear brake with it. The old girl got me home though (didn't know problem was the rear wheel bearings or I wouldn't have kept riding it). Changing them out every 50-75k miles is a good practice. The steering neck bearings are a little different. Since they don't really rotate, they are unlikely to fatigue as defined in the sizing calculations. They will however, fret (or false brinell) if inadequate lube and/or contamination is present. This is essentially the rollers wearing away the race at the point of contact. You can feel notching in the bearing as you rotate the front steering. They are a PITA to change out and it is unlikely they will need it. A good lube and a reset of the preload and you should be good to go. BTW, I was a bearing design and application engineer for Timken a few years ago (OK, many years go - but the physics haven't changed). Also, unless you have the correct bearing drivers for installation, I would suggest taking the wheels to the dealer for installation. Improper installation can and will damage the bearings. RR

As an alternative, you could change/modify the fenders. RR

Congrats. Now it's time to start looking at LD rallying. There's your next addiction. RR

Yup. Sign is at Lolo Pass on Hwy 12 in Idaho.

Well done. RR

Upon further review, the part I was showing is the CB control. Hmmm. Here we are. In the manual it is referred to as the Radio Main Control Unit. On the Yamaha phish it is referred to as Amp, Power. This is the part that goes in the faring - correct? Again, at Pinwall Radio Main Control Unit also $150. RR P.S. I was just teasing with the $12 comment - kind of. Don't recall the issue coming up with your friend previously or I would have helped at the time. Yes, it must be frustrating to have a machine with a reputation for reliability cause such expensive problems.

That kind of money was spent because he didn't pay his $12 for VR.org. Pinwall Cycle to the rescue. $150.00 Oh, and FYI - Hagan Shocks replacement/upgrade - $400. Rebuildable. Usually in stock in the US.

I doubt it is due to running out of fuel. I run an auxiliary gas tank and change to the main tank when the aux runs dry. The notification of the aux being dry is running out of fuel. I do this often. RR

FYI - I have 122k miles on my original fuel pump. Points still have their crosshatch on them. (However, I carry a spare fuel pump with me just in case.) RR

OK, looked at Boats.net for the fork slide bushings. I was able to locate the designated 'Metal, Slide 1'. Am not able to find the 'Piston, Front Fork'. Boats.net Link Some help here please? RR P.S. This is for my son's '83.

Easy to reinstall. Make sure the spacer is in the right position. While the wheel is off - Get some Honda Moly 60 and lube the splines and the pins. The splines are easy to see. They are on the inside of the pumpkin and the outside of the wheel drive hub. It is handy to have an old tire around for this next step. Laying the wheel on an old tire keeps the brake rotor from hitting the ground while working on it. The pins are the drive mechanism between the drive hub and the wheel. Look at the end of the hub next to the splines and you will see a snap ring. Remove this snap ring and lift the drive hub off the wheel. You will see 5 (or 6 - don't recall) 1/2" or so pins that look like they have some rust on them. Wipe them down and clean them up with some emery cloth or fine sandpaper. Look down in the holes where these pins go. You will see surface rust in there also. A 20 ga. shotgun cleaning brush is a perfect fit to clean these up. Perhaps a little fine sandpaper around a dowel. Coat the pins with Honda Moly 60. I suggest getting a pair of latex/nitrile gloves for this operation as the Moly 60 is a pain to get off your hands. Reassemble. You may want to replace the snap ring if you bent it while removing it. Ride, ride, ride. RR

Doesn't UPS deliver there? Buy on line, have your local dealer install (if they choose not to stock the appropriate size). RR

Thank you for this. I learned something today. RR

Russell Day Long. No substitute if you want to do some distance. RR

Twigg bailed out of VR when he got his FJR. I can get ahold of him if you need. However, since your wife no longer rides with you on this bike, why don't you mount the tank on the passenger seat? I have done that on my 2nd gen and it works great. RR

I bought the Corbin, used it for one long weekend (1000+ miles) and sold it. I apparently do not have a Corbin butt. Purchased the Russell Day Long. Just completed a 6 day, 5500+ miles run and my butt feels fine. There is no substitute for the RDL if you are going to put on some serious miles. RR