clarke

One side is reverse threaded for the reason of....???? Pretty much any aftermarket mirrors for cruisers/metric bikes come with thread converters so they'll fit. For a better idea look at some sites such as alchemy bikes, custom wizards (google) etc to see what mirrors are available.

Why do you think it needs oil? Do you have a leak? It should be halfway up the sight glass as viewed from underneath the exhaust. To check, warm the engine, allow to settle for 5-10 mins, hold (or better still have someone else do this) the bike level, and take a look. You need motorcycle oil as it oils the engine & the clutch - if you use car oil you'll have the clutch plates slipping... many oils available. To change the oil: You need to get the engine warm. A bike jack helps though not essential. Place an oil tray under the bike + remove oil drain nut. Allow to drain. (you can remove filler cap to help this). Change the oil filter + o ring - its under the circle cover with 'Yamaha' written on it on throttle side (remember to lightly oil the seal to ensure closed). Replace oil drain nut + fill oil (a funnel with flexible pipe is invaluable). Take the old oil to an oil disposal site (some council tips have them) The owners manual will tell you how much oil...

Only til 3rd July then its de-restricted - just in time for my trip to Germany... I still have 3 bikes in the garage at the moment - my two and my brothers VT 125 Honda Shadow. Have to say the Shadow is 2 bhp more than baby drag, but it doesn't half make a difference to the riding speeds. I have to admit the Shadow's engine is much better than the baby drag's, but the baby drag is a much better looking bike!! The Fazer is not resrticted - so its a full 95bhp with 61ftlb torque... (versus baby drag's 13bhp) Once the 1300 is derestricted it'll be 72.8bhp with 78.7ftlb torque; it'll be like having another new bike

Am sad to say my baby Drag went last Saturday. I did love that bike, but afraid I couldn't take cleaning the bike through another winter. What made me sell was my 33bhp restriction on my license went at the end of May, so I went out and got a 2001 Fazer 600cc. Have to say the difference on the commute is staggering, no more struggling to keep up with traffic or struggling against cars when pulling off when filtering either. Fortunately still have my XVS1300A for cruising, just a shame 3 bikes is [according to her in doors] excessive...

I've been looking at all these different makes. From the reviews I've read (webbikerworld have good reviews) I'm interested in the Bikercom system which is a combination system of wired + wireless... They're supposed to be at Bikesafe @ Sheffield arena this weekend so am planning on checking them out + will let you know what I find out.

Hi Magda, I think Gas-up is making a lot of sense. Guess it depends on how much experience you have and how often you ride + how much £££ you've got. I had 50cc scooter for just short of 2 years + used daily (even in snow !) which gave me basic skills on control. In that time some idiot reversed into me in his 4x4 at a set of red lights... then moved to my XVS 125 which I had for another year and a half + used daily all year round. Then added my XVS1300 to the 125 + use this on weekends only. This is my pride + joy & wouldn't have dreamed of jumping straight on this without having had loads of practice/experience in all weather conditions. I will cry if I drop it!!! I've just swapped my 125 for a 600cc 2001 Fazer as my daily commuter - its great! And you can pick up decent 2nd hand bikes for around £1,800 which is much better than full cost of a new bike!

On mine I took wheels off, scrubbed the rims with vinegar using a cheap toothbrush, rinsed and polished using muc-off miracle shine. Although there was still some pitting it looked 100% better. I then covered it with ACF-50 to give added protection. Whilst it improved the appearance of the wheels eventually surface rust will reappear. If it's really bad, you can use extra fine wire wool and a load of chrome polish (again I used muc-off miracle shine) and rub the wheels. So long as you keep the extra fine wire wool wet with polish it'll bring the wheels up great. Unfortunately I'm not aware of any way to permenently fix other than those suggested by neversaydie. Hope this helps?

Hah, just come across this - the tech tip in PDF, http://vstar1300.pbworks.com/Clutch+fix+Service+Tip Hope this helps you with your problem

Me too on my 1300, and I got them write on my order form that they'd remove it for free at the service when my restriction was up. At the end of the day you're spending a few ££££ so if they want the sale... (I'm baffled anyone pays for a restriction kit)

Hi, checkout www.1300tourer.com - they've lots of postson this. Graham

My restriction certificate states both that the bike is restricted to 33bhp but also a max speed of 87mph... I'm not sure if the police would accept rolling road printouts as they could be done half throttle or be adjusted by any other means... don't forget the police can impound your bike for testing (which I'm sure would be a given if you hand them a rolling road printout) & their rolling road may say different to the one you test on... Also if they give you a producer & you take them a rolling road printout & it'd be hard for you to prove that the bike was restricted at the time you were stopped. If they pursued charges you'd also be looking at driving without insurance as tecnically you'd be riding a bike you're not licenced for (which invalidates insurance + you have to notify the insurance company your bike is restricted) As Ttaskmaster says "In short, put the ball in someone else's court and slam the heck out of them if it goes wrong"

Hi Zozle, thanks for your reply I thought I updated this when i fixed it in March (obviously not!) Here's a link to the pics I took when I did mine (hopefully it may help someone?) http://s1030.photobucket.com/albums/y362/clarkegray/XVS%20repairs/ It seems a bigger job than it actually is. I managed to leave my carb on, the only issue I had was getting the clamp off that held the carb to the carb joint - just wouldn't turn + started to strip the screw head, came off eventually though. Oldtimer - thanks for the advice on the petcock, was spot on. I should have realised it was vacumm as I cut into the vacumm pipe to install the scottoiler. Ttaskmaster - thanks for the advice in another post about tying string around the cables before passing them through the tank, made it really easy to thread them back through when reinstalling the tank. Since doing the carb joint, I've noticed I'm getting 140+ miles out of the tank before running out (haven't actually ran out though), whereas before I'd get 115-120 miles before having to switch to the reserve tank. Am also noticing the bike will accelerate on hills to 55mph+ whereas before on the same stretch of road it would top out at 45mph so am pleased with the results. Thanks again for all your help Graham

Maybe you've overtightened the chain? Does the wheel rotate freely in neutral? If you tightened up the chain by moving the wheel backwards did you adjust the rear brake accordingly? It probably needs slackening off slightly... (Edit: you posted above whilst I was typing)

XVS1300A is the UK name, V Star 1300 is the US name... exhaust should fit fine. Good luck!

Looking good. I'd be far too nervous drilling through my mudguard though!!! I prefer that to the leather ones in the link above (im not into tassles or concho's either, must be a US thing?). I like my chrome rad cover, but it gets filthy whenever I ride and its already started to pit! Still rather the cover take the damage than the radiator itself. Wonder why Yammie didn't give a bit more thought to radiator protection during the design phase???

Hi Andy. To answer your question, if you do your test on a 125cc motorbike then your licence will restrict you to riding a bike with a maximum of 33bhp (25kw) of power. You can ride any size bike (in terms of cc) you wish so long as you restrict it to 33bhp (or 25kw). This should explain it: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/WhatCanYouDriveAndYourObligations/DG_4022547 You need to remember that you can't ride an unrestricted larger bike (above 33bhp) until you reach 21 years old and/or two years after passing your test on a 125. I did my test 23 months ago on a 125cc, and have been riding a restricted 1300cc bike since last August (it's restricted from 72bhp to 33bhp). The only thing to bear in mind is that resticting a bike increases your insurance (!) - put mine up by £300... If you do go down this route, Suzuki throw in free restrictor kits on all new bikes and are offering 0% finance over 3 years on some models. You can also get restrictor kits for most bikes out there. Even if you don't restrict a larger bike and stick with your 125, 2 years passes quicker than your think, and before you know it you'll be able to ride any bike you want unrestricted. You should do your test as it's great to get your full licence + lose your L-plates (+ do you really want to spend another £80-100 on doing the CBT again when as you say that can pay for the test?). Hope this helps + good luck Graham

Mudflaps: http://www.chilhowee.net/yamaha-mud-flaps/071214001.html (in US...) My chrome rad cover looks like this: Or you can get these ones: http://www.sscustomcycle.com/products/soon/Yamaha/v-star1300.shtml (I like the show chrome mesh one...) You could also look at this? (Maybe expensive when you get it sprayed?) http://www.sscustomcycle.com/products/bodyshop/v-star1300.shtml Am sure you could speak to a chopper shop and get a mudguard made up?? Hope you find something that works for you + post a pic when you do Graham

I changed my radiator cover to a chrome one which seems to give a bit more protection than the OEM (but needs more cleaning etc), there are loads of different one's out there (alchemybike, sscustoms, customwizard to name a few shops) I also found this on a different forum: http://1300tourer.com/content/skid-plate-mod (click the pic at the top right) or http://1300tourer.com/content/mudflaps - couldn't find a pic of the bike with them installed but am sure I've seen one somewhere before (am sure Butch would send you a pic if you ask) Graham

Hopefully this will point you in the right direction? http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/BuyingAndSellingAVehicle/RegisteringAVehicle/DG_10014246 http://www.dvtani.gov.uk/vehicletesting/sva.asp http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/repository/Motorcycle%20SVA%20Guide.pdf Good luck Graham

I've heard that too - hairdryer to melt the glue then carefully prize it off or you can use something like dental floss to 'saw' through the softened glue.

Also just noticed my restriction paperwork says the bike is limited to 33bhp (25kw) and it's restricted (tested) top speed is 87mph... I know some peeps consider removing their restriciton kit saying the cops won't know unless they test the bike, but if you're stopped above the restricted top mph then...!!

How'd you get on with the theory??? Hope it went well. Had a mate fail his mod 1 last week, failed to stop in the box after the swerve test. He had his Mod 2 booked for the same day as his CBT expired last Sunday. Cost him £110 for the tests (one of which he couldn't do) and £90 for his CBT this coming weekend. He's rebooked for Mod 1 next Monday... You do know your bike goes 10mph faster when you take the L-plates off don't you???

Hi all, Due to an error on Yamaha's part I've got the Yamaha XVS950 OEM quick release side arms for sale. If anyone is interested I'm sicking them on ebay (would post a link but would be naughty). Normally wouldn't mention it here, but I know how much yammy charge for parts (£219.99 for these http://www.yamaha-motor.co.uk/accessories/acc_overview.jsp#Star+Acc/XVS950A/XVS950Seat//5S7-F84A0-V0-00) but I know a few of you on here have the 950, so if someone here wants them cheap have a look. They come with the mounting hardware for the 1300 which may/may not be any use for 950? It is only the side arms so you still need to get the uprights and pad... (They also fit the XVS1300 but won't go on with the OEM hard leather bags) A pic of them mounted on my 1300 is here: And mounting hardware: Graham

Hi Jerc, You don't need any special tools, just torque wrench with either 17/19mm sprocket (can't remember which one), allen keys and a BIG pan for collecting the used oil. Did mine last summer and saved about £40 on labour Good luck Graham

The opposite side has fuses in the way, but you can wiggle the battery out from the 'glove compartment'. I put a fly lead on my battery - best thing I evet did = key in, side cover off, plug in, battery on charge. Takes 2 mins max. Can you bump start a bike if the battery is completely dead i.e. ignition light doesn't even come on?