Hucklecatt

I still have the originals if someone is into fuggly saddle bags... PM sent.

Great stuff Erik - thank you!

Just as followup I used Sirius Consolidated to find these parts. Diaphragms only at ~$27.00.

Just as followup I used Sirius Consolidated to find these parts. Diaphragms only at ~$27.00.

Hi all: Very sorry for posting off-topic here, but hoping someone has experience with this... Need rebuild parts for an early 1996 Royal Star standard with the 28mm Mikuni carb set. Specifically need diaphragms and O-rings for pilot screws. Cannot find ANY kits for this carb. model - all help appreciated! John

Hi all: For an early 1996 Royal Star standard with the 28mm Mikuni carb set. Specifically need diaphragms and O-rings for pilot screws. Cannot find ANY kits for this carb. model - all help appreciated! John

Just confirming that you know your carbs are in good shape - that the diaphragms are not pinholed, that the jets are clear as are all channels within the carb body. If you are over-gassing your mixture no amount of spark will overcome that.

As mentioned, you are referring to a carb size that was superceded by the 32mm. This is complicated by the fact that later models also used differing jet sizes for front and backside carbs in later models. A WAG is that you are running 117.5 Mains and 22.5 Pilots with (possibly) adjustable needles. That is the typical DynaJet or Baron's Stage 1 kit setup. If you are not mechanically inclined I would enlist a brother VentureRider to help pull, clean, and verify your jets and needles, and clear the idle adjustment hole of its protective brass insert. At that time, I would highly recommend you replace the rubber diaphragms X4 since they get pinholes and become unusable over time.

It's funny, but sometimes simply having the bike on a sidestand will influence the floats and the side to side performance at cold idle warmup. You might try holding the bike upright and shaking it just a bit to see if there is a noticeable change.. - BUT - As carefully as possible, check header temp at warmup time. A cold header pipe will reveal a lot. I would guess that your idle circuit would benefit from adjustment. Do this before you perform a carb synch. - AND - ABSOUTELY get a carb synch. Not hard - a long (12") standard screwdriver and a synch device to do so.

Worked in the bicycle industry and worked with everything from Campagnolo to Chris King headsets. Remember that after adjustment on any headset, tightening the top nut will provide your final preload. Perform the adjustment, but keep in mind that when you cinch that acorn nut down, additional load is placed on the bearings and will provide the final swing test feel for your bike. If you have repacked the bearings, it is almost certain the viscosity and amount of grease will give you a false sense of tightness. 100 - 300 miles will set things into place at which time it is a very good idea to recheck this adjustment. Fork judder was the scary part. With carbon fiber forks, and even steerer tubes through the headstock, you could not allow oscillation and front-to-back forces to occur or your fork would simply break at the crown/bottom race/steerer tube junction. Not so much with our big bikes, but what a difference a proper adjustment can make!

Okay, so to be absolutely obnoxious about this, at http://www.yamahapartshouse.com/oemparts/a/yam/50043abdf8700209bc78d0c4/drive-shaft, item number 32 is removed and greased at both ends? Huge thanks!

Would someone expand on the shaft greasing task? Are we talking about removing the four acorn nuts and pulling that part for greasing?

I still have a set of the mercury-based synch tools - even these move as you have described, though not quite as much. So yes, you are tuning the pair, the other pair, then the two pairs. A long screwdriver is very useful for this task. You will notice immediate results in riding, and will want to revisit this procedure if you readjust the idle screws or if your machine is working out built-up carb residue from sitting.

Great thread here! I would only add that our early bikes now suffer from pinholes in the rubber carb diaphragm, and the inlet boots as well. I will again be stripping the carbs to replace both (x4) items over the winter myself as a preventative task.

Ah-ha! The hunt is on! The shop that did this removed the airbox, then removed the carb covers, ditched the old needles, original springs, and should have removed the brass blocking items that cover your idle screws. They have installed the DynoJet kit's adjustable needles and longer springs and put in a K&N. Your Jardines flow a LOT of air, so it is not surprising you would set that needle at position #3. (Instructions at http://www.dynojet.com/pdf/4148.pdf). From the description, your plugs sound very good. I do a lot of plug reading via plug chops and if you are not seeing "white hot" (all white; small dots showing heat damage from lean condtion) and not all sooty from a rich mixture, you are in the sweet spot. Most important is not to stray too far into a lean condition - a rich mixture may soot up everything, but a lean condition causes seizures in the worst case scenario. Stray/expermiment into a lean condition with your eyes wide open! So I would go/stay with position #3. However, you should closely follow advice on http://www.mrlarsson.com/pdf/files/dynojet-troubleshoot.pdf, especially the section on Acceleration Problems with an eye to how the bike responds at steady cruising (my ref. above to the "twist grip" evaluation). Really sounds like you are in good shape all around. At this point, proper idle adjustment and a spot-on synch should be job 1, after which you can safely run the bike and evaluate its performance. TIP: Get a VERY long screwdriver to perform your synch adjustments - trust me! I bought one of about 8" in length to reach in to the screws.

Unless I am mistaken, the 1998 used a Mikuni 95 main and 20 pilot jet. I also seem to recall that the original needle was not adjustable - it simply used a shim. What numbers did you read off your jets when you removed/cleaned them? If the needles are adjustable, you may have an aftermarket kit installed (DynoJet; Barons). If so, you may be reading jet sizes of 110 - 117.5, with a 22.5 to even 25 pilot. If you can get those numbers to us, along with your pipe brand name and airbox mods if any that would help. But from the hip? Yes, go with the 2nd position and try the throttle on/off method to determine if you are running too lean.

Holy cats - just caught this thread. Very nice work! Love it when folks get their hands right into it. PM sent to you.

Since you will need to pull the petcock anyways, throw it away and purchase a sturdy and rebuildable Pingel. It is one of the best modifications I made on my Star and I highly recommend it.

Be sure to check your voltage regulator. It is the finned device sitting under your radiator, pointing forward to catch cooling air. Work back from the unit via the wire to the plug block, and unplug. What do you see? Any corrosion? If so, clean thoroughly. Open your fuse box (under the rightside panel) and pull and replace all flat fuses there to remove any inherent corrosion. Check to be sure all spare fuses are in place. Start the bike and, with the headlight facing a wall, rev and watch light - does it dim, brighten, dim at all? Some is usual, a lot is not. This goes back to the regulator.

I assume you mean part number STR-4NK27-03-01 (ball milled or smooth). These parts are still out there in their original packaging, trust me! The parts are only awaiting internet listing or purchase directly off the Sale table at your local Yamaha. I scored a new set of rear saddle bag guards as seen on the Tour Classics in original packaging for my '96. So... Set a search in eBay on keywords such as the number above, Yamaha Rear Passenger Backing Plate, and similar. This is an eBay tool that any member can use to be alerted via email when something gets listed that matches the description. Use these keywords also performing searches not only on one browser type - choose another as well. Drill into the returned pages, meaning open page 10 first and move upwards - there is a lot of cr@p that fills the first few pages more often than not. It took me ~2months on those rear bag guards I think but they came new in original packaging and the price was great - an overstock or dismantler outfit will usually list these parts so they are just running stock out the door.

Please keep us up to date as to what happens with this episode. My 1996 has a way of smelling like rotten eggs (sulfur) when I am winding it up. I know this to be at least a bad regulator, and I understand our bikes were known to have this issue. John

I cannot recommend the Pingel fuel tap highly enough. Other than looking just beautiful, it is easy to put on and seal up. HIGHLY recommended modification!

What is the date code saying? If it is over 6 years old (date of manufacture) there may also be an issue with aging. How to read it (from AMA site): Other useful information on the tire's sidewall includes its manufacturing date. Look on the side for a raised block with four digits; it's usually next to the U.S. DOT tire identification number. The first two indicate the week of its manufacture, and the last two are for the year. For example, 1702 would indicate the tire was manufactured in April, 2002. Prior to 2000, there were only three digits, with the last one indicating the year.

By RSTD I assume a '97 or so Royal Star? If so you will not find drain holes and yes, you will need to remove the forks to upend the tube and remove ALL oil. If air-assist preload, then by all means do depressurize with weight on front wheel to help before proceeding! When I performed the GVEmulator update to my '96 Standard I went with Progressive springs and played with the oil weight. What is critical is to be sure to drain all the old fork oil, and then put exactly the same amount in each leg. If the oil is especially grungy, I have seen folks use a mild (kerosene - NOT thinner/acetone/etc.) cleanout of the legs, then let them drain and air overnight.

I will be adjusting the valves on my '96 and have a few questions I could use answers on. Once you have measured the current clearance, and figured the difference between current and desired specification (if different), how do you go about finding the correct shims? Do you slide by the local Yamaha dealer with a list of what you need? Is there a kit this 'Board shares among the members, leaving your old shims and taking the new ones? I am quite used to setting valves from 911's to Nortons. But shim-and-bucket is new to me. Just hate the week-long adjustment should I have to go mail order or ? to simply pick up the shims I need. Finally, any tricks or tools I can purchase (bucket depresser for example)? Always looking for new tools to add to my collection!