Hi. I am Alex from CT USA. My brother has past back in February. So I put up his 1998 Vmx 1200. It hast run like in 2yrs(long story). So I am anxious to get into it. Need to get new battery, oil, gas. Let’s see how things go. I have been riding for abt 8 yrs. But I do have to admit. I am a little nervous abt the machine. My brother always said the thing is a beast.
Newbie to VMax world
- Thread starter Vman23
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Welcome ! They are pretty timid under 6,000 rpm
Just don't grab a handful of throttle, learn about the powerband a bit at a time. As Kyle said, before 6,000 rpm you are not likely to get into trouble. What bikes have you had? What have you ridden the most miles? How many miles? Answering these will help us to know where you are in your riding skills.
Just so you know, these bikes can wheelie in multiple gears with an experienced rider, and top speed for a USA market bike is supposed to be around 149 mph. A mid 11-second 1/4 mile should be achievable by someone with the ability to ride a bike with 110 rear-wheel horsepower safely. A good rider with experience in launching that bike should be able to make a high 10 second strip pass, and a trap speed of in the 120+ mph range.
However, that's not what you should be trying to do at this point, obviously.
Take a look on the tire sidewalls, and in a oval, you should see some numbers which might look like this: 4819. The first two numbers refer to the week of the year, so 01 would be the first week of January, and 48 would be the last week of November. The next two numbers are the last two digits of the year so xx19 is 2019.
If your tires are more-than 4 years old, consider replacing them before using the bike on the road. You can use old tires as 'rim-protectors' for getting the bike operational, but before doing any riding of distance, replace the tires. Old tires are not capable of giving you the braking and cornering you need to operate the bike safely.
Another 'little round glass' you want to look-into are the master cylinders for the (left) clutch and the (right) front brake. The rear brake is also a hydraulic disc and you can easily see the color of the brake fluid by looking on the right side by the footpeg for its reservoir.
Again, like for the engine oil, stand the bike upright. The handlebars should be holding the front wheel straight. Now look at those windows. The brake fluid should be visible, and it normally should be above the halfway point.
The master cylinder caps have tiny #1 screw head JIS (consider that to be Japanese Industrial Standard for the discussion) screws, two of 'em, holding on the caps. They look like phillips-head screw heads, but the depth/contour is a bit different. That is different-enough that if you aren't careful, the phillips head bit can 'cam-out' of the slots, ruining the X.
Do you have tools? One you need if you don't have it yet, is a hand impact driver. They work well to loosen/remove stuck screws. You use a hammer to hit the end of the steel cylinder, and it shocks the corrosion loose, allowing the cross-head screw to back out, a nut to come loose, or a hex head machine screw to loosen. You need the properly-sized fastener on the hand impact driver, a big part of making it work properly.
Back to the master cylinders and the brake fluid. It's possible the fluid looks opaque and almost like black ink. It shouldn't! It should be clear when fresh from a newly-opened can. After a few months, even a year, it absorbs water vapor from the atmosphere ('hygroscopic' property of brake fluid), and the color becomes almost 'golden.' It should still be see-through. If it isn't, the entire system needs a fluid flush, with new brake fluid. Changing the fluid helps to prevent corrosion in the hydraulic systems. Doing a complete brake or clutch flush every couple of years is a good idea to maintain better hydraulic system function, whether the front or the rear brake, or the clutch.
A suggestion: use the search function, under my screen name, and look for the topic 'reverse-flush.' That's a way of adding fluid to the hydraulic system by pushing fluid up from the bleeder valve towards the master cylinder. It's the quickest way I know to get a firm clutch lever or front brake lever, or rear brake foot pedal. You begin by emptying the master cylinder of brake fluid, and then you use a 60cc irrigation syringe to force brake fluid from the bleeder valve for the brakes, or at the clutch slave cylinder bleeder valve by the left front footpeg. In my directions, you'll learn how to make a brake fluid syringe with inexpensive parts from the supermarket kitchen utensils counter or the meat department (ask someone there for a 'flavor injector,' don't worry, you will not be using the needle, just the 60cc syringe, and a short piece of 1/4" I.D. clear plastic tubing.
What happens when you blow a breath through a straw into the bottom of a glass of water? Do the bubbles sink? No? They rise to the top of the glass? Well that same principle is how you push brake fluid into the brake system from its lowest point, using that 'flavor injector' syringe, filled with brake fluid, and slipping the 1/4" I.D. clear tubing over the bleeder valve, open of course, and pushing the plunger to push the brake fluid into the system. You watch the empty opened top master cylinder slowly-fill with brake fluid. A lot of tiny bubbles will come-out into the master cylinder too, because you are purging the system of air trapped in the line. When you get to a point where the tiny bubbles disappear for the most part, in the master cylinder, pushing on the plunger of the syringe may result in a solid stream of brake fluid shooting-up above the surface of the brake fluid in the master cylinder. You probably can now close the bleeder valve snugly, and rapidly squeeze & release the lever. If you're doing the front brake, the lever should quickly only come about halfway back towards the handlebar, before it stops moving.
If you're working on the left side clutch hand lever, you're going to feel the resistance where you can pull the clutch back to the handlebar, but you feel it has resistance to your squeeze, similar to the friction point on a cable-operated clutch hand lever. The clutch lever should move about a half-inch of travel before you feel resistance, and then you're pulling the lever where your effort is now working to release the tension the clutch spring has to lock the clutch friction plates together. Yes, you're releasing the clutch from making the engine transfer power to the driveshaft and the rear wheel.
Well that's a lot of stuff to consider. Read the new owners' questions answered thread by our friend RaWarrior. Print-out a copy of the factory service manual, and save the link in 'favorites' on your computer. Become familiar with the manual's layout. The first 64 pages are annual updates the factory did, some may apply to your year, some may not.
After that, the bike is broken down into chapters by parts of the bike: engine, suspension, brakes, cooling, electric, etc. At the back is the Appendix. Here you can find a list of the nuts, bolts and their locations on your bike. It also gives size specs: number of threads on the fastener (1.0, 1.25, 1.5), its diameter (M4, M6, M8, M10, M12, etc.). Torque values are also given: how-tight the fastener is supposed to be. You do have a torque wrench, yes? Cable routing is also shown so you don't make a mistake and have your throttle become pinched WFO which would be an exciting event on this machine! There are many other pieces of information here. It's a good thing to do to learn your way through the service manual. It answers questions about wear limits, adjustments, and methods of repair to keep you bike operating safely.
And your fellow members are here to help answer questions you may have. Take a try at finding the answer using the search function, and you probably can find answers to many things on your own.
Some names and contact information:
dannymax has a specialty of working on carburetors. Many issues of these bikes especially on ones not run in years, can be traced to dirty plugged carburetors, with plugged passageways, torn CV (constant-velocity, the type of carburetors stock VMaxes have) rubber diaphragms, and rust from a rusty gas tank plugging the brass jets in the four carburetors. The smallest brass jets are the pilot jets, and they are often plugged because of a rusty gas tank. Here is a pilot jet, off the carburetor, with a single stainless steel strand through its orifice. [email protected]
This is where inside the carburetor the pilot jet is.
If you look at one of the links I included at your other thread you will also learn how to set your float level like a pro, for the 'dry-set.' There is also a 'wet-set.' That is done with the carburetors back together, and measuring the float-set fuel level through a clear plastic tube. Look in your downloaded and/or printed-out factory service manual, in the carburetor section for info on the 'wet-set' method.
Sean Morley is who has the most experience in building different types of VMax bikes, from stock restorations, to 1500+ CC bikes with other power-adders like higher compression, cyl head work, turbo systems, superchargers, and NOS. He also can put an upside-down fork on your bike, shock absorbers that will improve your cornering, frame braces, solid motor mounts, big brake kits, European wheels allowing you to use radial tires, and much-more, He can get things painted and plated to whatever your bank balance and taste can withstand. He also stocks many OEM parts, and buying from him, you can ask questions before or after the purchase, if you run into a problem during your installation.
[email protected]
CaptainKyle is in Maryville TN and he builds stock motors. He can also do more, but contact him for particulars. He's very-good with a paint gun too, and you can search using his name and the word paint to find the threads, you will like his work. [email protected]
My suggestion is to read the thread from RaWarrior about new owners, and get to know the service manual. Then get busy in the garage.
Just so you know, these bikes can wheelie in multiple gears with an experienced rider, and top speed for a USA market bike is supposed to be around 149 mph. A mid 11-second 1/4 mile should be achievable by someone with the ability to ride a bike with 110 rear-wheel horsepower safely. A good rider with experience in launching that bike should be able to make a high 10 second strip pass, and a trap speed of in the 120+ mph range.
However, that's not what you should be trying to do at this point, obviously.
Take a look on the tire sidewalls, and in a oval, you should see some numbers which might look like this: 4819. The first two numbers refer to the week of the year, so 01 would be the first week of January, and 48 would be the last week of November. The next two numbers are the last two digits of the year so xx19 is 2019.
If your tires are more-than 4 years old, consider replacing them before using the bike on the road. You can use old tires as 'rim-protectors' for getting the bike operational, but before doing any riding of distance, replace the tires. Old tires are not capable of giving you the braking and cornering you need to operate the bike safely.
Another 'little round glass' you want to look-into are the master cylinders for the (left) clutch and the (right) front brake. The rear brake is also a hydraulic disc and you can easily see the color of the brake fluid by looking on the right side by the footpeg for its reservoir.
Again, like for the engine oil, stand the bike upright. The handlebars should be holding the front wheel straight. Now look at those windows. The brake fluid should be visible, and it normally should be above the halfway point.
The master cylinder caps have tiny #1 screw head JIS (consider that to be Japanese Industrial Standard for the discussion) screws, two of 'em, holding on the caps. They look like phillips-head screw heads, but the depth/contour is a bit different. That is different-enough that if you aren't careful, the phillips head bit can 'cam-out' of the slots, ruining the X.
Do you have tools? One you need if you don't have it yet, is a hand impact driver. They work well to loosen/remove stuck screws. You use a hammer to hit the end of the steel cylinder, and it shocks the corrosion loose, allowing the cross-head screw to back out, a nut to come loose, or a hex head machine screw to loosen. You need the properly-sized fastener on the hand impact driver, a big part of making it work properly.
Back to the master cylinders and the brake fluid. It's possible the fluid looks opaque and almost like black ink. It shouldn't! It should be clear when fresh from a newly-opened can. After a few months, even a year, it absorbs water vapor from the atmosphere ('hygroscopic' property of brake fluid), and the color becomes almost 'golden.' It should still be see-through. If it isn't, the entire system needs a fluid flush, with new brake fluid. Changing the fluid helps to prevent corrosion in the hydraulic systems. Doing a complete brake or clutch flush every couple of years is a good idea to maintain better hydraulic system function, whether the front or the rear brake, or the clutch.
A suggestion: use the search function, under my screen name, and look for the topic 'reverse-flush.' That's a way of adding fluid to the hydraulic system by pushing fluid up from the bleeder valve towards the master cylinder. It's the quickest way I know to get a firm clutch lever or front brake lever, or rear brake foot pedal. You begin by emptying the master cylinder of brake fluid, and then you use a 60cc irrigation syringe to force brake fluid from the bleeder valve for the brakes, or at the clutch slave cylinder bleeder valve by the left front footpeg. In my directions, you'll learn how to make a brake fluid syringe with inexpensive parts from the supermarket kitchen utensils counter or the meat department (ask someone there for a 'flavor injector,' don't worry, you will not be using the needle, just the 60cc syringe, and a short piece of 1/4" I.D. clear plastic tubing.
What happens when you blow a breath through a straw into the bottom of a glass of water? Do the bubbles sink? No? They rise to the top of the glass? Well that same principle is how you push brake fluid into the brake system from its lowest point, using that 'flavor injector' syringe, filled with brake fluid, and slipping the 1/4" I.D. clear tubing over the bleeder valve, open of course, and pushing the plunger to push the brake fluid into the system. You watch the empty opened top master cylinder slowly-fill with brake fluid. A lot of tiny bubbles will come-out into the master cylinder too, because you are purging the system of air trapped in the line. When you get to a point where the tiny bubbles disappear for the most part, in the master cylinder, pushing on the plunger of the syringe may result in a solid stream of brake fluid shooting-up above the surface of the brake fluid in the master cylinder. You probably can now close the bleeder valve snugly, and rapidly squeeze & release the lever. If you're doing the front brake, the lever should quickly only come about halfway back towards the handlebar, before it stops moving.
If you're working on the left side clutch hand lever, you're going to feel the resistance where you can pull the clutch back to the handlebar, but you feel it has resistance to your squeeze, similar to the friction point on a cable-operated clutch hand lever. The clutch lever should move about a half-inch of travel before you feel resistance, and then you're pulling the lever where your effort is now working to release the tension the clutch spring has to lock the clutch friction plates together. Yes, you're releasing the clutch from making the engine transfer power to the driveshaft and the rear wheel.
Well that's a lot of stuff to consider. Read the new owners' questions answered thread by our friend RaWarrior. Print-out a copy of the factory service manual, and save the link in 'favorites' on your computer. Become familiar with the manual's layout. The first 64 pages are annual updates the factory did, some may apply to your year, some may not.
After that, the bike is broken down into chapters by parts of the bike: engine, suspension, brakes, cooling, electric, etc. At the back is the Appendix. Here you can find a list of the nuts, bolts and their locations on your bike. It also gives size specs: number of threads on the fastener (1.0, 1.25, 1.5), its diameter (M4, M6, M8, M10, M12, etc.). Torque values are also given: how-tight the fastener is supposed to be. You do have a torque wrench, yes? Cable routing is also shown so you don't make a mistake and have your throttle become pinched WFO which would be an exciting event on this machine! There are many other pieces of information here. It's a good thing to do to learn your way through the service manual. It answers questions about wear limits, adjustments, and methods of repair to keep you bike operating safely.
And your fellow members are here to help answer questions you may have. Take a try at finding the answer using the search function, and you probably can find answers to many things on your own.
Some names and contact information:
dannymax has a specialty of working on carburetors. Many issues of these bikes especially on ones not run in years, can be traced to dirty plugged carburetors, with plugged passageways, torn CV (constant-velocity, the type of carburetors stock VMaxes have) rubber diaphragms, and rust from a rusty gas tank plugging the brass jets in the four carburetors. The smallest brass jets are the pilot jets, and they are often plugged because of a rusty gas tank. Here is a pilot jet, off the carburetor, with a single stainless steel strand through its orifice. [email protected]
This is where inside the carburetor the pilot jet is.
If you look at one of the links I included at your other thread you will also learn how to set your float level like a pro, for the 'dry-set.' There is also a 'wet-set.' That is done with the carburetors back together, and measuring the float-set fuel level through a clear plastic tube. Look in your downloaded and/or printed-out factory service manual, in the carburetor section for info on the 'wet-set' method.
Sean Morley is who has the most experience in building different types of VMax bikes, from stock restorations, to 1500+ CC bikes with other power-adders like higher compression, cyl head work, turbo systems, superchargers, and NOS. He also can put an upside-down fork on your bike, shock absorbers that will improve your cornering, frame braces, solid motor mounts, big brake kits, European wheels allowing you to use radial tires, and much-more, He can get things painted and plated to whatever your bank balance and taste can withstand. He also stocks many OEM parts, and buying from him, you can ask questions before or after the purchase, if you run into a problem during your installation.
[email protected]
CaptainKyle is in Maryville TN and he builds stock motors. He can also do more, but contact him for particulars. He's very-good with a paint gun too, and you can search using his name and the word paint to find the threads, you will like his work. [email protected]
My suggestion is to read the thread from RaWarrior about new owners, and get to know the service manual. Then get busy in the garage.
Attachments
Last edited:
The yellow stripe is Kyle's work,
The VMax to FZR chain drive is Sean's work, and the blue bike is Sean's work.
The VMax to FZR chain drive is Sean's work, and the blue bike is Sean's work.
Trail Ride
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Welcome to the forum.
user 80813
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Welcome to the Vmax forum, I am pretty new here myself. This forum has a lot of knowledgeable and helpful members and there is a lot of knowledge to soak up.
If your carburetors give you trouble, CaptainKyle is one of the go to guys. He recently fixed mine after the bike sat for 12 years. He did a great job.
I found that the Vmax is actually pretty easy to work. After some trial and error I found that Partzilla is a very good place to get parts. Also, don’t forget to download the factory manual for your bike. Links are on here.
Nice and original looking bike you have there.
If your carburetors give you trouble, CaptainKyle is one of the go to guys. He recently fixed mine after the bike sat for 12 years. He did a great job.
I found that the Vmax is actually pretty easy to work. After some trial and error I found that Partzilla is a very good place to get parts. Also, don’t forget to download the factory manual for your bike. Links are on here.
Nice and original looking bike you have there.
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brookeadams15
Member
Yeah very true, people found their solution here.
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