zagger

A couple of years ago I saw a guy at the grocery store with a big cowboy six shooter in a holster - seemed to be creating a bit of concern with the other customers as he moved through the store. No idea what or if they were thinking, but their reaction is exactly why I keep my 380 in my pocket. I bought a couple of pistol holders made out of very thin plastic (I forget the manufacturer's name) which simply keep the pistol oriented muzzle down so that it is easy to grab inside of a pocket. If you don't hold it in any way, it tends to go upside down and is hard to get into your hand. zag

Yes. I started by cutting most of the steering head off the frame and angling it forward before welding it all back together. I put on extended straight front forks but I hated the slow handling. Then I built the leading link forks which actually moved the front wheel even farther forward. Surprisingly, the handling became super responsive. Measuring the trail dimension, it is in the range of most sport bikes. And the front wheel is extended even farther forward than the long straight forks put it. And when I park the bike, there is zero tendency for the front wheel to crank over to the side, it just sits there, pretty weird. zag

GET OUT AND CTFW!! Ok - could you share with me what "CTFW" means? Thanks, zag

Hey, I just bought the first powerball tickets in my life. Two of them. Since I'm planning to win, I'm guessing that you will have to make other plans! zag

Geesh - You are probably right, but I haven't spent $17K total on every bike I've owned since I was 16 years old (fifty years ago). zag

This is my "beast".

My friends named my chopped 83 yamaha venture "the beast" -- so I'm wondering about your "beast"! What is it? zag

Well, for me, I like my Honda Sabre 1100. Nice handling, good gas mileage. Put on over 70K miles without issues. Added extra gas tanks when I was touring out west with my BMW friends - now it has a range of about 350 miles. zag

My venture runs great with custom pipes and no collector. Mileage is in the mid forties also. With Vmax boost valves on the intakes. Looking for some pics to attach.

Probably running a bit rich I would guess. My '83 gets in the low to mid 40mpg with pretty aggressive throttle. And Vmax boost valves on the carbs - usually just cracked open a bit. Somewhat better mileage than my 1100 vtwin Honda Sabre. zag

Hey, the alternative is being back in the group someplace. About once a month I ride with a local group and quickly decided that I needed to be near the front if I wanted to survive. Way too much random braking in the middle of corners had me dangerously close to smacking into someone. In the front, you are free to hit it and leave the confusion behind. Just my 2 cents. zag

Jeesh. Around here the snowbanks are shoulder high. Had to clear the driveway twice yesterday. Looking forward to spring! zag

I could not care less whether riders wear helmets or not. I always do, along with leather and kevlar liners for my pants. A guy I know never wore a helmet and crashed his harley a couple of years ago. Zero head injuries, but he did manage to grind off one of his legs. He now has a metal leg from the knee down and is done with riding. Ya never know. zag

Here in Wisconsin, our roads are white with salt. Kinda hard to argue with the logic since a few days ago we had freezing rain which coated everything with ice. I used up the last of my salt on my driveway after which I had to scrape with a shovel to break off a half inch of shiny ice. Right after that, we got another several inches of snow. Stores are all sold out of salt and ice scrapers. zag

So - here is a question. Are guns just a mechanical tool, like a hammer, or are they something else? I have plenty of guns, but I think of them as a tool and don't consider them to be collectible. I guess that I just prefer to regard my guns to be useable tools. None of them are collectible but they all can shoot just fine. I guess that my desire to own antique tools and guns is zero. zag

I totally get it. I'm really getting tired of the ice this winter. Big ponds of water and lots of ice. Finally busted the ice off my driveway using salt and a shovel. Best of luck to you. zag

One simple way to double the ammo capacity of a 12 gauge shotgun is to use the new Aguila minishells (https://www.aguilaammo.com/shotshell/). They are 1.75" long which means that a typical pump action shotgun can hold about twice as many compared to standard shells. I thought that they might also be quieter than standard size shells, but experimenting at the range proved to me that hearing protection is still required. My Mossberg 590 required an adapter made by OPSol (http://www.opsolmini-clip.com/) for the shells to cycle properly. Takes about 2 seconds to stick the little adapter into the area where shells travel. It may be possible that other guns wouldn't require the OPSol adapter. When I ordered the minishells, I emailed Mossberg to see what they might recommend. Totally excellent customer support and a quick recommendation to get the OPSol part. I was blown away by the quality of Mossberg's quick and accurate customer support. Just thought you guys might be interested. zag PS In case you might be interested, I wasn't able to find the Aguila minishells at local gun shops - they had zero idea of what I was asking for. I bought some online from Buds Gun Shop (https://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/search.php/type/Ammunition/caliber/10000533-12+Gauge/sort/per-round-asc) but the shipping of $10 cost almost as much as the box of shells. Since these aren't shells that I would just blast off at the range, I figured it was worth it.

Hey Bobber, I think that you should find a tab on the diaphragm which must be aligned with a slot on the carb body. I don't recall if there is anything that forces the slide to be in any particular position relative to the diaphragm, but the little hole is supposed to be at the bottom - sort of a drain hole, I guess. I would just try to copy the original orientation of the parts. zag

Sounds like you are in trouble. zag

You go for it! It's not mine. Anyway, I would suggest that paying a few bucks to get a full printed manual is well worth it. Mine is kinda falling apart but I've used it so much that I really have no complaints. zag

What years are you calling "first gen"? I've got a copy of the 1983... 1200cc service manual as a pdf (nearly 40MB) but I'm not sure how to send such a large file to anyone. Would be happy to help if needed. zag PS Here is a link which gives the full 1st gen service manual. https://www.bergall.org/temp/venture/pdf/1983-1985-yamaha-venture-manual-complete-with-wiring-diagrams.pdf Personally, I would find a source for a printed version which is much more useful when you actually do something on the bike. A printed one gives you the ability to scribble in your own notes and have it available in your shop.

Sounds good! It's only in the mid thirties here in Wisconsin and wasn't tempted to hit the road. Did see someone on a scooter when I ran some errands yesterday. Bikes are snoozing in the garage with stabil in the gas. Waiting for spring. zag

I think that the listed price was in Canadian dollars (something like 24K USD). Of course, I haven't spent that much total on all the bikes I've owned over 50 years! Never owned a car that cost that much. By the way, isn't this year 2019? What's with the 2020 date? zag

Well done! zag