Ttaskmaster

And people like Leatherat wonder why I come across like such a tosser sometimes!!!

When you press the starter switch, is it a single click or a series of clicks (kinda like a buzzing)?

Or just ignore the several posts I have made already giving you the exact diameter....

Heya TeeCee. Where ya from?

The Oxford brand of HotGrips that I purchased and fitted state that they fit the 22mm bars of both Classic and Custom Dragstars. Of course, the throttle grip has to (and does) have an internal diameter of 24mm, to allow for fitting over the throttle sleeve (bike don't work without one o' them), but that's beside the point. I have complete, absolute 100% original Yamaha XVS 650 Dragstar Custom handlebars on my Yamaha XVS 650 Dragstar Custom motorbicycle. You are welcome to come measure my handlebars with whatever equipment you care to use, but I promise you they are a very exact Twenty-Two millimetres*... If there's any quibbles over the difference, I can give you the addressess of between seven and eleven locally (in Reading) based owners of Yamaha XVS 650 Dragstar CLASSIC motorbicycle owners too, in the event that the Classic is different... *My neighbour's Snap-On digital caliper measured 22.008mm.

If the battery has to be replaced - It's a sealed one. Cannot top these ones up, I'm afraid. However - Start her up, warm the engine and check some things first: 1/. Lights off, engine idling. Is the Neutral light steady? 2/. Lights off, slowly increase the revs. Does the Neutral light get brighter at all? 3/. Lights off, switch on indicator. Does the Neutral light go dim when the indicator is on? 4/. As above, but with slowly increasing revs? 5/. Try all of the above with headlight on. Does the headlight get brighter as you increase revs? Nip out, check these and report back.

I measured mine in another thread. 22mm. 7/8".

I suspect they will fit anyway. What make are they? I can confirm that the Oxford grips are fine for the Draggie.

I just measured my Custom's bars with the neighbour's caliper set. 22mm, or 7/8"

OK, let's see..... Does the starter turn over? Does it even make a clicking sound? Have you connected everything correctly? Have you checked all the fuses? Have you checked to make sure there's no loose connections or damaged wires? Definitely in Neutral? Could be worth checking the sidestand and kill switches, to make sure both are clean and in working order. That'll do for now, as I have to go pick mine up from the MoT boys. Keep us posted, mate!

Ahem.... 25.4mm

PartFinder, Part-finder, Part_finder, Parts-Finder, Part-Finders, .com, .co.uk, .net etc etc... There are quite a few permutations.

22mm, IIRC.

22mm, IIRC.

Power sockets, lighting, heating/cooling, secure storage. I think that's the main bits. Anything else would be a bonus. Full length bench sounds good, although the chap who does my bike favours a small bench and a big bike jack. You might consider sound dampening of some kind, if you have neighbours.

Check around breakers yards, partfinder etc...

Aftermarket parts are usually cheaper that OEM. However, you can usually find 535 parts quite cheap second hand on the myriad sites. eBay is always good for such stuff.

Here's a real challenge... A Ratted Survival bike!!! Get a real non-runner and use only what you can scrounge, or perhaps find in a scrap yard. For those readers that don't know, a proper Rat bike is one that is kept running using the absolute minimum in terms of kit and cost. Usually this results in a rusty, grubby piece-of-junk looking bike, often painted matte black all over for simple aesthetic reasons, but also some ingenious methods of repairing the bike. For example, rather than properly weld up an exhaust hole, a Rat would just have a piece of Coke can secured tightly over the hole with a pair of hose clips, or something. A popular cheap fix is to accessorise the Rat with military surplus items, such as ammo boxes for panniers. Survival bikes are normally 'Ratted' on purpose for aesthetic reasons. They look like something out of Mad Max, but are often mechanically well maintained. A true afficionado will have a Survival bike that is properly Ratted. I quite fancy doing one myself, actually!

This isn't a free, open library here - You want something, you ask nicely, be grateful and do your best to join in - That's how most of the whole internet works. Not offended so much, but we get so many rude one-post wonders just demanding free help with stuff that the admins have to create a whole Noob section just to enforce some basic good manners in new members. Really? You must not get out much.... There are those who'd have decked you, given how rude you've been. Telling you to mind your manners and follow basic ettiquette is harrasment??!! Since when? Grow up and get with the program, kid

You speak of both starting and turning the ignition on - When exactly does the noise occur? Does the noise happen when you turn the key? If so and you get a sort of electrical buzzing/rasping sound, then that's the fuel pump kicking in to prime the system and is nothing to worry about. If you mean when you press the starter button and the noise happens while the engine is running, chances are your starter button is stuck and the starter motor is still turning. Mine did this once - Open up the right hand control cluster and use an air duster to blast all the crap out. If you have a little brush or something, get that in there and clean it as much as poss. If it's neither, then we'd need to know more about the bike (ie whether you have any non-standard, non-Yamaha, non-factory things installed on it) and the noise itself.

Walk into a pub where you're a complete stranger and annouce loudly to everyone that you want help with your bike. How many people will step forward with a friendly smile and a bag of tools? NONE. Now imagine a complete stranger walked into your local and loudly says, "Hi, I have a bike. It's broken. Any thoughts?". Would YOU step up warmly and help that person, completely free of charge? I seriously doubt it. But what you have done is the Internet equivalent of that exact same thing. Walked into a place as a complete stranger and pretty much demanded free help from us... This is a community. People here will go to the ends of the earth for each other and help out with their wealth of knowledge, source tools and parts, write pages on how to do something, even travel quite a distance to help people, ALL FOR FREE... all we ask is that you join in the community and that starts with introducing yourself and making friends. If you cannot make that simple effort - Fuck off to a professional mechanic. They'll deal with arsey cunts because they actually get paid for it!!

Hi Peedy, As my esteemed colleague Drewpy has so eloquently put it, we do ask that all new members begin by posting an introduction in the Noob section. You'll find people far more inclined to help once you politely introduce yourself.

DO NOT coast round. That is a fail. Believe me. The U-Turn is about demonstrating your control over the bike, hence putting the foot down is also a fail. Don't race the engine and whip round, don't start the turn and rely on momentum to take you round. You want to drive the bike round in a positive, controlled fashion.

I know feck-all about this bike, but... My guess would be that it alters the air/fuel mixture. I've done this myself before, when seeking the idle adjuster. You can take it to get professionally tuned (unless you have the equipment yourself), or get a Colortune kit and DIY - Not as precise as the pro kit, but basically good enough.

Possibly see you on the road already, chap - We often head out Cornwall way. LOVE your roads out there. We usually stay at Colliford Lake and blast out from there. Best ride ever is the road from Tintagel to Boscastle, hitting that hairpin on the way into town. Stop for lunch, then try it on the inside as you leave - Great laugh on a big-ass Cruiser!! Welcome to the forum!!