squigmig

Thought this was bloody superb, then you go and find the only thing you could possibly do to make it.. truly incredible. Nice work, though!

I'm planning a fairly long ride (70 miles ish) on my XV125 Virago from Harwich (east of essex) to see some friends up in Norwich this Sunday. I'm a relatively new rider, been on the road a couple of months or so, but this thread has inspired some confidence at least. How often should I stop to let the engine cool down? as I'm a bit nervous about overheating or burning anything out since it is a little bike. Any good advice for me before I undertake this? Cheers, Miguel

Quoted for truth. And humour value I'm a relatively new rider myself, so welcome! She's a nice looking bike. Make sure to look after it, unlike the previous owner of my Virago. This community is a great place for help and general conversation, so you've ended up at a good place

The idling problem is finally fixed, it sounds SO much better! Thanks for all the help with that, it really has made a difference. But now I'm worried.. see, there was a distinctive smell of gasoline in the oil I removed. Not to mention the bloody disgusting state of it! all black and gloopy and gritty. my god you could tell the sump hadn't been removed in.. well, very many moons. I'm hoping it was just a consequence of the engine flooding some time in the past.. the bike runs fine, I'm guessing there would be quite a few problems if it was the result of a burst oil seal? I'm using the current oil to flush it, so I'll inspect that when it gets removed in a couple of days' time, see if the oil and gas are mixing or if that last batch was just contaminated.. somehow. :/ I have very little confidence in the previous owner. Worrying though.. I'm no expert, but it's definitely NOT a good sign.

Ahhh wait, hang on there. I may have been trying the wrong screw, since I decided to have a good hard look at a blown-up diagram of a similar carburetor (the XV 250 one). here. The screw is doubly hidden, behind the fuel pump and then behind a little cap, the purpose of which I'm not sure about. (they're numbers 10 and 11 on the diagram) Would it be safe to remove the fuel pump, (not disconnect it, just dismount it from infront of the cylinders) then idle the engine so as to adjust the mixture screw? I've read around some places and apparently the way to get to the screw is to drill (gently and slowly) through the cap. Does that sound right to you? I'm also wondering what other effects the rough idling has on the engine, other than the unpleasant running sound. I'm guessing if it runs like this for too long it's likely to cause engine damage? Thanks for that offer Paul, that is really kind of you. Hopefully it won't come to replacing the carb body, and I wouldn't want to take that off you unless I really bluddy need it. Cannot wait to get to the root of this problem and solve it! Cheers again, Miguel.

Sorry for the belated reply! Busy times working/fishing etc. The heated grips are more for longer winter commutes, which I will probably end up doing. I have a pair of thin thermals and a warm, thick and waterproof pair of leather gloves but I'm a long-limbed chap and my circulation makes for cold extremities, quickly. Especially over longer rides. The plugs were a blackish colour, looked a little burnt out so I replaced them... kept the old ones as spares since they work fine, but new ones can't hurt. That bloody mixture screw! It is horribly rusted. The first time I tried to unscrew it, half the screwhead just.. disintegrated. It had the consistency of very soft wood. I'm afraid to force it anymore as I could wear the screw almost copletely smooth.. and then I'd be up some sort of creek without any form of propulsion at all. I'm wondering what on earth to do with it. I adjusted the throttle stop screw so that the engine doesn't stall when it's warm and idling, without revving too much either. Ironically, my parcel of oil and lube arrived while I was typing this post. I'll get right on to replacing that, but I'm stressing about the mixture screw. How the buggery do I tackle that?

Right, oil is on its way, already got the filter. Next issue then. The engine seems confused while idling. What I mean by that is that it will idle for a few seconds at one speed, then suddenly speed up a little for a second or two and then drop back down to the original speed. I'm guessing its probably a fault with the sparkplugs, which are cheap enough to replace. Other than that, its just the front brake that needs looking at. The lever seems a lot more stiff than it should and I suspect the brake might be rubbing a tiny bit. Possible cause for the wheel squeak, though I still need to grease up the spindle. Will chain lube work alright for that? The choke and grips can wait until I get paid again since they're purely cosmetic, and I've since invested in some leathers as well. Also, for the future, how would I be able to figure out if my bike's electrical system would support heated grips? The charging system puts out 23 amps at 5000rpm, these grips normaly consume around 3 amps/36 watts. The battery is brand new and the current electrical system consumes around 120 watts. Would the strain be a bit too much? Just an idea right now. Thank you all for the help, it really is well received and appreciated. -Miguel

I like those grips actually Had trouble finding decent ones on ebay that combined rubber/chrome without looking horribly tacky. Also, which type of engine oil should I be using? I've ordered a new oil filter. Now I know I'll be needing 10W40 4-stroke oil, but I've read aroud online and have come across the advice that 'older engines' (whatever they mean by that.. 'classic' engines or just engines older than 10 years?) don't do well with synthetic oils. Went into my local garage and asked them.. I rejected the synthetic motorcycle oil they had so the bloke there tried to sell me a mineral car oil. It was obvious he wasn't much of a motorbike man, so I was aprehensive when he told me 'it's the same stuff.. they just slap 'motorcycle' on the bottle and charge you more'. My Virago is a 97/98 model (R reg), so would a mineral-based or maybe a semi-synthetic oil be a safer bet? Cheers again, Miguel EDIT: was thinking something like this http://www.wemoto.com/parts/picture/RH-CASTROL-ACTEVOGP-1LTR/ ? EDIT, again.. so I found and downloaded the user manual for the xvs125 dragstar on the yamaha website (perfectly legal ) It says you'll need 1.6l of oil if you plan to change both the oil and filter.. which I do. In fact, I was planning to change the oil at first, run it for a week or so to flush the cr@p out and then change it again along with the filter. Read through some old topics on here where that was recommended.. is it necessary? since it will get a bit expensive to buy 3l of oil and I really don't have the money to be chucking at the thing all the time. But if doing that does make a significant difference to the engine I'll quite happily do it.

Haha, well you are talking to a Spaniard. Not that the cold stops me from riding, but what I'd do for a full day of sunshine in this part of the world once in a while!

83 bids, it's at £940. This man deserves a bloody hug. I particularly liked the line that stated "I've included a picture of a bear using a urinal, this is how I normally use the toilet, notice that the animal is not wearing a wetsuit. Although I am not a bear, I, like a bear, do not p*ss in wetsuits." Very informative indeed. The questions make some good reading as well, haha

It's still bloody freezing in the south! I only got my bike in February this year (not the best time to start off, I know) and since then I've had very few beautiful days to enjoy riding it. Except that one week just after my battery died when it was bloody lovely! Nothing but rain and wind this past week though. Still at least it's warming up gradually.. got to stay optimistic.

Haha no worries neversaydie, good to know my brake disc is on the right side I suppose? I think buying a cable with the knob attached seems to be most logical thing to do.. It's bloody annoying though since I already spent a tenner on a replacement cable from wemoto. And I don't think they accept returns unless the error is on their part. Suppose that's not too much but this months expenditure keeps rising.. new battery, insurance and now all this sillyness. Wait 'til you guys see the sorry state of the cheap foam handlebar grips! Hah... It seems the service manual for the XV125 is a pain in the a$$ to find as well... if this is the thread you're referring to, the manuals go from the 535 up to the 1100. I've had a few looks around the internet for hard copies but no bloody luck there either. But then I don't really know where to look other than google, tried amazon but I think that's the same manual kelum scanned in on the above thread. Is the shape of the carburetor end of the choke cable overly important? The reason I ask is that the honda cable/knob paul posted (thanks by the way) seems to have a different end compared to this yammy one. Really don't want to have to order a third cable!

Haha, lengthy posts are good! Ttaskmaster, thankyou sincerely for your help, but all those pictures and the service manual are for the Virago 535. I'm convinced the choke control is mounted under the housing for the light/indicator controls on the 125 model, since every picture I find and even a youtube video (go to around 2:17 on the video, it'll pause and even label it) seem to confirm this for the XV125. My main concern is finding a replacement as they don't seem to exist! D: The alternative would be to use something else but I'm at a loss as to what to do there. And until I can figure out a way to mount the user-end of the choke cable there's not much I can do. Might try to contact the previous owner, to see what the history behind the choke is, whether it was in that state when they bought it. I know they changed the handlebars (the current ones are straighter than the originals, which to me makes sense as it's more comfortable) The current arrangement works alright, so it's not incredibly urgent and I can be quite patient, but I'm not having that choke control like that forever! Thanks for the tips Paul! Unfortunately I can't go about doing it yet as explained above. My dad is an old-timer so I should be fine doing some simple jobs like that with some supervision no worries there. And yes, I do hope to stick around, I'm a regular around some other online boards and I've modded for a few anyway so I'm like a duck in water. thanks again!

Hahah, at least it works I suppose. But you can see why I'm anxious to replace it So after some scrutinisation of pictures such as this - http://www.rinderer.kennelbach.net/virago_xv125/img0176.jpg and a very helpful youtube video, it appears the choke control belongs just under and to the right of the left handlebar grip. Now of course my bike has no such bloody thing fitted and the choke cable didn't come with one. Any idea where I can find one? Checked wemoto, where I got all my other parts, but no luck. Thanks again, Miguel

I recently bought a fairly cheap '97/98 XV 125cc Virago, and of course there are a few little problems around the bike. There was quite a bad rust problem, the majority of which I've rectified with several applications of Bilt-hamber deox gel and a lot of elbow grease. The rust on the underneath of the bike concerns me though. I think the bottom exhaust has been replaced at some point(there is a receipt for a new one in the paperwork I got) and where it's been welded on, whoever did it didn't care to protect it from rusting at ALL. It's reached the 'bubbling' stage down there, I've taken a lot of rust cream to it but I'm afraid if I keep going at it I might end up wearing a hole in the pipes? Might sound silly, but is that concern justified at all? Here's a picture I took of the bike before I did anything to it at all, the rust on the rear exhaust is quite visible even from this angle. Most of that is gone now though There are two other problems I need to tackle on the bike before getting starting on the niggling little things. The choke cable is knackered - I don't know how to explain so I went out and took a picture: Anyway I've bought a replacement cable, but I'm not sure where the other end goes. As it is now, it sits just above the right air filter and I pull on the plasting 'thingmebob' to close the choke. Not really too sure HOW to fit the new cable either. But the repacement is a good deal longer (around 3ft) so I'm guessing the choke control shoul be somewhere near the handlebars.. but I find no evidence of anything of the sort. Any help there would be GREATLY appreciated. Lastly, and really quite annoyingly, the front wheel squeaks. I don't want to accidentally lube up my brake disc, so what do I oil to fix this? Haha and sorry about the huge post. But as a complete novice I suppose I'm full of questions a few of which are bound to be quite stupid. But I would nbe so very grateful if anyone could take the time to help me, particularly with the choke cable issue. Cheers! -Miguel.