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Showing results for tags 'hand'.
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How many of you all have installed leather hand grips on your bikes. I am thinking of putting some on my bike, but am curious to hear back from people who have installed them. Any pics of your grips would be appreciated. I like the looks of the ones on Squidleys bike that is in the classifieds. Ken
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My 83 recently started crapping out while riding-I pulled the left side cover and located the 3 white wire connection--difficult to even pull apart (you guys know what's coming next!) Once I got it apart-it looked bad and burnt and melted the plastic connector! The black plastic wire cover that is over all 3 wires is hard as a rock, splitting, oil leaking out! And the 3 white wires insulation is brittle. So, the $100.00 question is---since it needs to be replaced-is there an upgrade for the rectifier/regulator? I know sometimes VMAX stuff interchanges-and since I need to replace the r/r due to bad wiring--should I replace the stator at the same time-seems like the 2 go hand in hand, and if so, is there an upgrade for that? I don't have a lot of extra cash right now and would like to fix this the first time. Any recommendations for vendors or after market suppliers for these 2 parts? (My bike has 38,000 miles on it) Thanks for the help and advice in advance!--Steve -
The other day I took a nice ride. Came upon a cross road behind two cars. Both of them with left hand turn signals on and over to the center line. Pretty good indication of a left hand turn, right? No, wrong. That meant right hand turn. I went to go around on the right hand side - suddenly the back car begins to turn right. Relying on my lightening fast reflexes, and the legendary crotch rocket like acceleration of a 1st gen, I did a light twist with my right wrist and presto, zoomed out of the danger zone. Moral of the story - stick to your own safety rules. I have preached it over and over. Just because a left hand signal is on doesn't mean a thing. Even if the car is stopped, wheels turned left, car nearly over the center line waiting to turn left - depend on it. They will turn right.
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Just drove from Pennsylvania to Conway, South Carolina to help my daughter. She was involved in an accident on 501, near Coastal Carolina University where she attends school. Met with her as she was leaving the hospital with a broken hand, bruising, and light air bag burns. She is very lucky! The car on the other hand is totaled. I will be meeting with the insurance adjuster sometime Monday, hopefully early in the morning. Any forum members in S.C. know a good ,honest, dealer for a used car in the nearby area? Regards Dave
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OK folks, some of you are aware that with one the upgrades a while back, a new feature called "Social Groups" was added. These are like little mini-forums that are not publicly displayed on the main site. They were very poorly implemented in my opinion. The biggest problem is that there is no way to be notified of new posts to a social group that you are a member of. If you don't check them on a regular basis, it is easy to forget about them. The other problem is that the discussions are not "threaded" as they are in the forum and that makes it hard to have any continuity on a particular subject. There is a new software upgrade that will be ready soon. It is in "beta" right now which means that it is being tested and any major bugs are being worked out. Some sites are already using it and it seems to be stable now but I'll wait a while before installing it. Upgrading the software here is a major pain as I have a lot of customizations that have to be re-applied when I do an upgrade. The REAL question I have is do we even WANT to continue with the social groups. I've had mixed feelings about them from the beginning. On one hand, it is a good place for folks with a common interest that really doesn't warrant a specific topic area in the main forum to exchange ideas, discussion, etc. One example is the "Biker's/Musicians" social forum. This site is not about musicians but we have a number of folks here who play guitar, banjo, drums...even tuba that enjoy talking about their music, gigs, etc. The social group is a great place for them to do that. On the other hand, I think that too many social groups can distract from the family atmosphere that we have here. If enough folks take their discussions to the social groups then the forum could become pretty slow. I prefer that most discussion take place here in the open so that we can all participate. So, those are my thoughts. What are yours?
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I'm trying to replace my starter clutch but cannot get the flywheel bolt to budge, even with an impact wrench set to its highest torque (210-250 lb-ft). Is this a left hand thread? I'm trying to turn it counter-clockwise. What am I doing wrong? thanks
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I have a problem with my right hand, and sometimes my left, going dead after riding a while. I know...Carpol Tunnel... On the '83 I have a throttle lock that I can set in order to relax the hand and get the blood flow back into it. Some rides are worse than others, but on Saturday's VWIV ride from Ft Hunter-Ligette, 25 miles over to Hwy1 on the coast, we were in some fairly twisty road conditions, and I couldn't set the lock to relieve the numbness in my right hand. So for just about all of that portion of the ride... 1.5 hrs.. I had to twist the throttle with a numb hand. After a while it hurt like 'H'. Long story short, I think I screwed up my hand big time. It's been two weeks and the tips of the fingers on the right hands are numb 24/7 and they ain't getting any better. Went to the Doc's and she was non-comittal as to the cause. I have an appointment with... I guess.. a neurologist for tests on the 12th. I wondering if anybody else has had this happen to them, and did you finally get the feeling back?? Talk about a PITA trying to zip up the fly when I can't feel the tang!!!
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No big deal you say? Well, yeah, I know, but ya see, I haven't been able to ride at all since May. I injured my left hand pretty good while cutting firewood about the 1st of June and haven't been able to close it except partially and with effort and pain. I went out a week ago and sat on the bike and worked the clutch a time a two but felt the hand was still too weak to trust for a ride. But it's finally improved to the point that I can almost make a normal fist and put some strain on it, so.....well, as I was about out of booze anyway, and the liquor store I patronize is 15 miles away, I thought that I could try it, and did. No problems at all going up there and back other than discovering I had no back brakes due to an undiscovered leak in the low pressure hose at the master cylinder. About an hour later my hand stiffened up some and is still a little sore now, 6 hours later. But I think I have it whipped now, and will ride to my VA appointment Monday morning which is about a 70 mile round trip. Was nice to be able to ride again and nice too to be able to stop and fill up for ten bucks.....think I'll go make me nice cool stout one and relax. Between the medicinal alcohol and the physical therapy with the clutch I should be normal in no time. Well, at least as normal as I was before.
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Not sure if it's my motocross experience.......or my auto mechanics training that puts me "at one with my machine"......but I'm always surprised by the number of folks who are not aware that almost any non-automatic vehicle can be shifted from one gear to the next WITHOUT using the clutch. Virtually all motocrosser transmissions are built to be abused and anyone who hopes to cross the finishline first NEVER uses the clutch to get from one gear to another. It's bang up....and bang down. Simply back off the gas........and kick it.......And it works! Guess what? It also works on street bikes. Even big ones like Ventures. You just don't want to be doing it at "racing" throttle settings. If you're accelerating moderately, as the 'responsible' Venture Rider that you are......you'll find that you can up-shift from 1st all the way to 5th, without pulling your left hand in once. (You WILL find it's a little easier in the 'higher' gears than in first and second.) Just roll on the throttle slowly, and when you've reached 'optimal' RPM's in the gear you're in, start to put the slightest pressure on the heal/upshift portion of your gear lever as you simultaneously back off the throttle. Suddenly, as an almost imperceptably "synchronous" act of god, the transmission will smoothly snick itself into the next higher gear. This happens at the exact moment your road speed, transmission speed and crank speed are in perfect "harmony". It sounds tricky, but if you haven't tried it, give it a shot. After a little practice, it'll become second nature....and feel like it's the way your bike WANTS to be shifted. You can do it at all speeds providing you are not heavy handed on the throttle. (Great when you're adjusting the radio, or holding hands with Honey behind your back.) When you're out on a cross country trip, with 50 miles between stops, shifting isn't such a big chore. But if you're running across town, with forty-five lights to negotiate, you can save a helluva lot of "clutching" by adopting this "one hand" gear shifting method. Down-shifting doesn't really work out all that well, (unless you're amazing at double tapping the shifter and double twisting your throttle!), but with just a little bit of practice, you'll be saving a whole lotta left hand work on all those upshifts. Try it. You'll like it. Look ma......one hand!
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Went out for a burger yesterday evening and on the way home had a "little fun" with some young bucks on sports bikes. I was cruising along about 65 mph (in fifth gear) when these two guys pulled up along side me. They both looked over at me and started doing these little speed burst and slow downs. They did this about 3 times and then hunched over their tanks and took off. I let them get about 500 to 600 feet ahead than I sped up (still in fifth) to pull along side them. We were doing about 85 now. I ran along side them for a few seconds (in a comfortable upright position) nicely waved with my left hand, reach back dropped a gear and nailed it. In my mirror I could see them leaning over their tanks even more but to no avail. They were easily left behind. Later on I let them catch up to me on an off ramp and the look on their faces was priceless. When I took off this time they didn't even try to keep up. Like I said I know it wasn't nice of me but I just couldn't resist
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I was just wondering if anyone knew of a hand held mic that could plug into our socket base on the RSMV tank. I didn't want to go to the helmet sets yet but was wanting to be able to talk on the CB while riding. We can hear the external speakers just fine. Any ideas???? Moakster
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If anyone is available and interested in providing some assistance, we will be holding a work party at Gary's place to get ready for the 2008 Pork in the Pines. Primarily we will be building a new cooker for the hog. But there are some other things that need attention. We will be there next Sat, Jul 12, 2008. Hope to get started around 7 am. I realize that that is real early for some, but want to make a full day of it. So, if you have nothing else going on and would be willing to give us a hand, we sure would appreciate it. Thanks much. BTW: The on-line site is up and running for those who would like to pre-register. This will help us get an idea on how large a hog to order.
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After being shown the proper way, and the proper point, of bleeding the brakes at Freebird's Maintenance Day, I finally got over to Harbor Freight and picked up a hand operated vacuum bleeder and a large can of Dot 3 & 4 brake fluid. The front brake was a breeze and was finished in about 20 minutes. The rear on the other hand was a bit more interesting. I looked at several (and I do mean several) stores trying to find a funnel with a flexible tube that would fit in the fill hole of the resevoir. NO LUCK! I finally picked up a turkey baster and pulled the rubber bulb off the end and the tip fit in the hole perfectly. A little bending of small stuff (tying string for you land lubbers) and the turkey baster remained in place as well as giving me a sight glass. The rest of the bleeding went fairly well and I now have clean fluid in my brake lines. The next bleeding will be of the clutch and shouldn't be too much problem. Most people may think this kind of silly, but I remind you all that I'm about as mechanically inclined as a left handed chimp without his trainer, this is why I teach electronics. I forget the gentleman's name that helped me out at Freebird's, but THANK YOU very much. I learned something!
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I tried to take the nut loose that holds the clutch boss ,so I could change the basket. I used the biscipts with the special fingers and a 30mm socket. I straighten out the washer then tried to loosen it , but it would not break loose.. Also tried an impact wrench with 120lbs pressure. Seems to be tighter than 50lbs. torque.. I hope this is a right hand thread, it looked like it was. Can anybody help? Also would anyone be interested in looking at it in Oberlin on maintance day?
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My low beam went out on me last night, but the high beam still worked. Had two things in my favor, 1) I was only 15 minutes or so from home and 2) have the driving lights, so I had a low beam for oncoming traffic. Looked up in the manual for some info on changing the bulb and it's an easy procedure, as long as the fairing isn't in the way. I don't have real big hands but it was a challenge to get at it from behind. Anyways got the bulb out. Came out here to see if there were any little secrets to the install, seems like everything I found online, was what I was experiencing first hand (no pun intended). I have an '01 RSV, so I'm going to assume that all the 2nd gens are the same. The adjusting knob for the the headlight slides off easily, you'll pick up some extra room to slide your hand in, install the new bulb and hook everything back up. Then just push the adjusting knob back on, it's just like a knob on a stove, has a flat side so just make sure you put it back on correctly.
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Hello everyone....The weather here in central Florida is really starting to heat up (hit 90 today) Hoping someone has found a solution to this problem. I have average size hands and I am having a problem reaching the clutch lever while keeping my hand firmly on the grip. As it appears that there is not an adjustment that will move thelever closer to the grip I am hoping that there is a company that makes a sutible adjustable clutch lever that will fit my 08 RSV. Many thanks......
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:sick:Hey, I need some professional advice here. I have a 99 RSV with 98K on the clock. The bike is running smooth and strong, but since it had been over a year since I had checked the carb balance I thought now would be a good time. After warming up the bike, I hooked up the gages and to my suprise I got some really strange readings. Both of the left hand cylinders were reading close to 12 inches of vacume which I would expect to be low. The two right hand cylinder readings were swinging so wildly they were totally unreadable. Thinking there may be something wrong with my gages (?two of them?) I swaped them around with the same results. I slowly increased the RPM and at what I judge to be around 1300-1500 RPMs the right hand gages suddenly stabalized and read within a couple inches of the left side (12 inches). Returned to idle and the gages started swinging again. Now if this were my car, I would say that only 12 inches of vacume was late ignition timing or a vacume leak. With electronic timing and multiple carbs probably not. The wildly swinging gages would indicate a burnt valve, but a valve that bad should be detectable in the way the bike runs. And two valves on the same side at the same time is a bit of a stretch. Can anyone point me to a solution? What vacume readings do you experience.
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As some of you might know, I have recently acquired an 89 Venture and am in the process of getting it going to my satisfaction. On the few rides I have taken so far, I have the dreaded steering head shake. It was quite violent at 30-40 mph if I let go of handle bars, but one hand on the bars and did not notice it. At 65 mph I could let go, but if the tire hit a bump or something, then the shake would start, slowly getting worse if not corrected. Driving with one hand it was not noticeable. Since I needed a new tire I thought that would be part of my problem OK, remove wheel from bike...but noticed that bearings seemed rough. Took the wheel to old biker friend, yup something not right here; both bearings seemed to move at same time. Replace bearings with new ones, replaced with new tire, but when static balancing noticed the wheel would not turn freely. It appears that the spacer that occupies the space between the two bearings was a bit too long. Took 2/1000's off and things looked great, and everything turned freely. Has anyone else experienced this? We measured the depth of a few different bearings and noticed there are a few thous differences...maybe this could be the problem? Anyway, installed wheel and torqued to 72 ft lbs. With no brake calipers on, the wheel would barely get one revolution for a strong spin by hand. I did not like this, and loosened torque to 50 lbs and get about 2.5 revolutions for a good hand spin. I did make sure that the pinch bolt is VERY tight as I did not want things to every come apart. SO, did I do right or wrong? One good thing, most of the steering head shake problem has gone away. There is a bit at 30 mph but nothing like it was, and there is none at highway speeds. Probably new tire helped a lot, but I can't help wondering if that spacer being too long caused a bunch of problems with the bearings...it sure made for rough feeling bearings.I feel good about turning the spacer down a bit but opinions are more than welcome. Sorry for the long post
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I am looking for a missing screw on my carburetor. It is off a 1984 Venture Royale, in the service manual the screw is called the drain screw it faces to the outside of the bike lower right hand corner. Please if anybody has an old junk carb or extra screws around I am willing to buy. Itching to ride. Thanks Dave
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OK folks, I've had a number of requests for the small venturerider patches. I have been out of them for a while now. I am sorry for the delay but I did finally order then a few minutes ago. I should have them on hand again in about 3 weeks. Thanks for your patience.
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Funny story I found, enjoy. Some of us wear BMW style two piece "open chin" helmets - you know the type - where the lower chin piece can be opened by pressing two thumb locks. Some people have also fitted their bikes with electronic cruise control or a version which operates on friction on the throttle - either way they hold the speed of the bike reasonably constant without any input from one's throttle hand. We also all wear gloves which invariably fasten around the wrist with either a velcro flap or a press stud; some of the more expensive types have a zip fastener as well, among other features. Picture if you will, one lone BMW rider with an opening chin helmet and a pair of good quality velcro fastened gloves sailing along the Hume Highway at 115 kph (that's all I'll admit to!!) dialled in on the electronic cruise control. Weather is good, no cars in the immediate vicinity, scenery is boring, no cops, life is good!! Junction of highway with Albury/Wodonga Road about 5 km away, no need to slow down yet; bike is running beautifully!! Looking forward to lunch. Bugger! Is that a bee that just got into my helmet through the small gap I've left for some fresh air? Could be. Well, I'll just open my helmet visor to let him out. Visor up ... no, the little bugger is going to be stubborn, cantankerous even! He's not going to leave and is now behind my sunnies, must be tired from all that pollen hunting. Don't want to be stung on the eyelid-I'll just open the chin piece on my BMW helmet (very handy) and get him out .... let go of handlebars .... squeeze the release buttons bike is nicely balanced and holding line well ... speed steady ... no cars >... this should be easy ... got the helmet open ... glasses off ... piss off bee! ... glasses on ... slam shut helmet ... hands back to bars ---- oh, sheeite! Thumbs of both gloves jammed in helmet!!! Gloves won't move even though I'm pulling like hell!! Wow, this will be interesting... can't quite press the release buttons with little fingers ... junction now 3.5 km away ... I know, I'll just pull one or both hands out of my gloves.... no, that doesn't work: "velcro is good stuff, won't come undone if you fall off!" I remember the salesman saying that. He was absolutely right, they're stuck fast, I'd have to tear my head off first . Well, next brilliant idea, what if I just touched the foot brake --- nooo, dumb idea! That won't work, this airhead beemer has great engine braking and when I get to about 40 kph and can't balance the bike any longer and the dreaded BMW boxer wheel-wobble starts, which it will, I am going to have major tank slappers --- sheeeiite!! I'll be off on my bum so quick and still hanging onto my helmet so tightly they'll have to bury me in it!! Won't do the bike much good either!!! Hell, I can see the junction up ahead about one and half k's away and I am really starting to get the wind up ... tense even ... certain parts are beginning to pucker ... if the lights change to red and that huge B-double waiting at the lights is in the middle of the intersection when I get there, jeeesus, I'm going to be a hood ornament next to that bloody chrome bull dog!! Must try and pull hands really hard ... can I make them any smaller >... 800 metres ... the left one is giving a little ... maybe the gloves are slipping on the sweat now pouring from every pore ... 600 metres yes, yes, that's it, they're wet with sweat ....... I am going to have to hit the footbrake in the next few seconds ... can't hit that @#$*&@ big truck at this speed, it might scratch his duco ... yes! yes! ripper! Got the left hand out ... now hit foot brake to cancel cruise, de-clutch and slow bike with foot brake ... steer for the shoulder ... slowing down ... slide foot... stop ... ease out clutch to stall bike ... side stand down ...switch off bike with left hand, right hand still glued to helmet ...tintops going past must think I've got toothache ... fall off into grass... lay there for 5 minutes till the shaking stops and the adrenaline rush dissipates... now release helmet with left hand and remove sweat soaked head. Breathe out ---- shizer! Was that ever close! I'll buy a Tatts ticket in Albury! When I had recovered, I realised there were two observation here: -No. 1: It's not a good idea to open or shut your helmet when on the move. and No. 2: Did you know, "adrenalin" is brown!! Rod
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I want to share a couple of good things from today. Just back home after an 822kms (500+miles) ride today out of a 2,000kms (1250 miles) 4 days away with my 4 brothers on bikes. Beautiful weather and a numb bum. That's the first highlight. The second highlight - my (only) daughter's boyfriend of 9 years rang me and asked for her hand in marriage. Couldn't say no, but I did thank him for asking. Ain't that sweet?
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Since I finally got out to try my new headset, I'm convinced I no longer need the hand held Mic I have been using. Several folks have mentioned they want one, so I just decided to set it up on Auction, Starting Bid $25.00, 15 day Auction. I need to go back and add some pictures and the $10.00 for shipping in the continental US. If you are from Canada we will work something out. Happy Bidding Jay
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I am just about to buy new tires for my 99'. The dealer wants $40 each to mount, balance, and new stems if I bring them in. (whether I buy them from him or not) How hard, or even possible is it to unmount and mount new tires on the rims. I have read about some of you buying machinery to do this -- but can it be done without the big tools. I don't have room for any more equiptment, but plan on removeing the wheels myself so I can grease everything, and do brakes. I am interested to hear from some of you that have hand mounted RSV tires before. Thanks,
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I have two daughters, one is 6 1/2 and the other is 4. How old should they be to ride as a passenger? I'm thinking at least 8 years old. What is your food for thought on this topic? On the other hand, part of me says never. If something were to happen to them on the back of my motorcycle, I could never live with myself.
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