New owner of an old object of lust

[skucera]

I've been wanting to buy a Yamaha Vision since I first read about them in motorcycle magazines in 1981, when I was a poor college student.  The best I could afford on my budget was an old Moto Guzzi formerly owned by the California Highway Patrol that was worn out with 55,000 miles.  As the recession worsened, I watched the prices of unsold Visions drop and drop, but even in 1984 when the price of an unsold 1982 Vision dropped to about $1500 I still couldn't afford one.  I tried.  I thought seriously about using all the money I saved up from my summer job to buy one, but I just couldn't figure out how I would pay for the upcoming year of college.

So, fast forward 30 years and a guy I work with who owned an '82 Vision buys a new Sportster.  I asked him what he did with his old Vision, and he told me that it was sitting at home, unridden.  We made a deal, and I brought it home about a week and a half ago.  I also got lots of spare parts in the bargain, and two repair manuals.

What a sweet riding motorcycle!

The only things wrong with it right now are a worn out rear tire, and slight leaks from the coolant tube ends.  I bought O-rings at Home Depot last night, and I'll fix that tonight.  One of the spares is a rear wheel with a Metzler tire mounted, so I've got to get that mounted to my bike's rear wheel.  Oh, I also have to repair a couple of small dents in the tank, but I also got a red and white tank with the bike (might have been a Marlboro model '83?).

Thank you all for letting my join you here on this forum.

Scott

[QBS]

If you have been lurking here for very long, you'll appreciate the value of knowing your bikes' upgrade history.  If you don't, be sure and find out.  Just for our benefit, please let us know what you find out and how many miles are on the bike now.  Also, what is your motorcycling experience?  Welcome to the group.  Yes, a well sorted V is a great bike.  In many ways they were well ahead of their time, which makes their factory installed flaws all the more hard to bear.

[skucera]

Well, I just spent the last 90 minutes changing coolant pipe O-rings.  That gave me a chance to look the bike over pretty well.  I don't think the cooling system has been apart, ever.  The O-rings were the OEM metric size, and were quite hard.  I put on #13's, which popped in with silicone grease just fine.  The radiator cap is Japanese made, not American aftermarket made in China or India.  The water pump cover had some gunk in it that makes it look like it sat for several years without getting its coolant changed, but the coolant I drained tonight was fresh and new.  I just wish I'd thought to buy a jug of coolant this evening when I was in town, because I can't check my handiwork tonight for lack of fresh coolant to put in.  Duh.

My odometer reads 6000 miles.  I haven't had the tank off to see if it has the airbox mods from late 1982 yet, but the bike has been retrofitted with the 120 mph speedometer from 1983.  I also have the '83 instrument panel it came out of, but I don't have the original '82 speedo in my trove of parts.  It may be that the '83 had ~3000 miles before the owner-before-last swapped the speedo before selling it to my coworker.  I'll find out at the DMV if there are any odometer irregularities when I go to register it on payday.

The YICS has been disconnected, and the ports sealed off with really light-weight vacuum caps and zip-ties.  I'll have to put that back into operation, after checking the YICS chamber gaskets.

As for me, I got my motorcycle endorsement in 1981.  I bought an old Moto Guzzi one summer in college, rode it around, and sold it.  The next summer, and every summer after that until I graduated, I thought about buying another motorcycle, but didn't get around to it for one reason or another.  I didn't get bit by the motorcycling bug again until three years ago.  I picked up a little Ninja 250 and rode it around for a couple of summers.  What a blast, and lovely nimble handling!  I also had a "project" FZ700, but every time I worked on it I discovered something else on it that needed rebuilding, and after a couple winters of rebuliding system after system and still not getting it going again I sold it to a young mechanic on a nearby farm... he was delighted to find such an odd, exotic crotch rocket for the price we settled on, with so many freshly rebuilt components.  He threatened to ride it by the afternoon he picked it up from me, but he hasn't yet.  I just hope he hasn't killed himself with its 102 theoretical horsepower.

Anyway... I've still got a lot more to discover about this "new" Vision. 

Scott




P.S.-- That verification code may be built to flummox a computer program, but it sure messes with my dyslexia. :P

[Jimustanguitar]

Glad you finally won your prize! Congrats.

That unreachable bike is a BMW R1200S for me. They're still about $10k, so Someday :)

Welcome to the forum, happy riding!

[jefferson]

Glad you found your bike and us. Sounds like you will be pretty thorough in going over things on the bike. Don't forget to flush all the brake fluid as I am sure that will be pretty nasty. When you pick up that coolant I would suggest getting some water wetter mixed in as well. And do use distilled water for your mix. Another thing I have heard good reports on is Engine Ice. Don't know how easily attainable it is where you are, but it will almost assuredly have to be a bike shop. Good luck with your new bike. Hope there are few things for you to address.

[skucera]

Water Wetter and Engine Ice are both available locally.  I just bought regular coolant, but with the cooling issues discussed here, maybe I should have popped for a little extra cooling.  My temps have remained mid-gauge in mid-90's weather last week and this weekend, but I didn't sit at lights very long either.

Ooh, yeah, I've got to flush and bleed the front brake.  My esteemed colleague didn't realize that you're supposed to change brake fluid every two years, and the fluid in the sight glass is looking dark.  On a related note, has anyone replaced their front brake hose with woven stainless steel?  If so, which brand did you use.  My front brake is both soft feeling, and takes a lot of pressure to stop, in stark contrast to the little Ninja.

As for unreachable bikes that I'd love to own, there are several water-cooled Ducatis that I've always lusted after, and the GTS1000 with the hub-center steering.  I'll work on buying one of those later....

Scott

[Bill]

Sounds like you have had a positive Vision experience .... so far.  I predict that there are a few things you are going to get very good at:
1.  Taking the tank off your bike. 
2.  Remembering how to squiggle the carbs out of the left side of the frame.
3.  Knowing how to attach all the vacuum hoses without consulting the Haynes Manual.
4.  Knowing where the Haynes Manual is at all times... usually on your coffee table or kitchen counter.
5.  Learning how to completely disassemble and assemble the Mikuni carbs....blindfolded
6.  Discovering why an impact screwdriver is absolutely essential in changing a fried stator.
7.  Searching for parts on Ebay
8.  Deciding that not rebuilding the petcock is no longer an option.
9.  Wondering... Is that fan not coming on or is it just very quiet?
10. Finding your oil level is low...not leaked or burned.... just relocated to inside your starter.

Good luck.  It is a fun...but frustrating...motorcycle