Bench Wrench

After-market Horns — March 1991, page 20

If you have purchased a pair of electric horns to replace those wimpy stock horns on the Venture, you will need to add a horn re­lay to the horn button circuit. Failure to do so may result in a burned out horn switch. One such relay is Radio Shack's #275-226, or the same relay called a Desert Fox #DF005 is available from many auto parts stores.

I chose to locate the relay in the fairing space below the radio. Figure 1 represents the wiring to the Venture stock horns. It is necessary to locate the wire going to the horn switch.

CAUTION: Ignition key "off" for all these tests.

Disconnect all wires going to the horns. Connect one lead of an ohmmeter to chassis ground and the other lead to one of the wires removed from the left horn. Depress the horn button and look for the ohmmeter to indicate near zero resistance from one or the other of the wires removed from the horns.

Figure 2 represents the wiring for the re­placement horns. Power to the horns is de­rived directly from the battery and only a minimal amount of power is required for the horn relay from the accessory fuse terminal. The ends of the wires previously connected to the horns should be covered with electrical tape. Install new wires for replacement horns including a wire from the relay to the original horn switch wire located next to the left horn.

Past articles have discussed sources for after-market horns. Some good ones may be found in auto parts stores for a reasonable price.

Bob Vogel. #00705

Alcohol In Fuel — Aug. 1987, page 18

Alcohol in fuel has been a growing concern in the last year or so because of the in­crease in its use by gasoline manufacturers. Basically, a little alcohol never hurt anyone (bike, that is), if it's used correctly. The U.S. government does limit to 10% the total amount of alcohol that can be put into your Venture's fuel, but the government has no control over each state to make them show the exact amount on the gas pump.

It's important to note that this 10% alco­hol restriction is only for unleaded fuel; there is no limit for leaded fuel. You should be us­ing unleaded in your Venture anyway.

In time, alcohol will cause the fuel lines and any plastic parts of the Venture's fuel system to become very brittle. It could cause some cracking or fuel leaks.

In the Tech Tip following this article you'll learn how to use water to make alcohol, if there is any present, separate from gas­oline. This should also tell you something about the way your fuel will react to local hu­midity in the air. Since water causes alcohol and gasoline to separate, if you get water in your bike's fuel system, the engine might be burning plain gasoline, or plain alcohol, or trying to burn mixtures of gas and water or alcohol and water, or even plain water. A mess no matter how you look at it.

Alcohol in the dry desert is no fun either, because alcohol has a much lower boiling point than gas. After parking your bike after a long ride, the heat of the motor trapped around the carbs will cause the alcohol to boil out the vent hole in the top of the carb body and cause a rich condition the next time you start up. This will blacken the plugs and cause the bike to be hard to start.

Also accompanying this article is a chart showing which states require labeling of fuel pumps. The chart was accurate as of March 1986. If you will be traveling, contact your local office of the Bureau of Weights and Measures for specific information on the states you'll be traveling to. At this time we have no information on alcohol in fuel in Canada.

Following are the current Environmental Protection Agency's definitions of various fuels, and regulations concerning their for­mulation.

*    Regular Fuel — Leaded type. No restrictions on alcohol content. Maximum lead content reduced from 1.1 grams per gallon to 0.1 g/gal. on January 1, 1986.

*    Regular Fuel — Unleaded type

*    Gasohol — Generic. EPA defines gasohol as unleaded fuel with up to 10% ethanol by volume.

*    Oxynol — Trade name of Atlantic Rich­field Co. EPA allows Arco a waiver to blend unleaded fuel with a maximum 4.75% TBA cosolvent. (Used only in the eastern U.S.)

*    Premium Fuel — Unleaded type. All major refiners in the U.S. sell premium unleaded gasoline.

*    Ethanol (Grain Alcohol) is more expen­sive than gasoline; more stable (stays mixed) better than methanol; raises octane value by 2 to 3 points; has a higher caloric content than gasoline, thus a higher fuel consumption.

*    Methanol (Wood Alcohol — coal and natu­ral gas origin) is cheaper than gasoline; is very unstable, especially if any water is present (requires a cosolvent to stay mixed); raises octane rating and fuel con­sumption.

Air Lock

If you find that your bike is not starting due to an air lock, there are a couple of things to check out before replacing the fuel tank cap.

The roll over valve has a one-way check ball; be sure the ball has not become stuck.

Also, the overboard line can sometimes become crimped underneath the gas tank where it makes the 45 degree turn to the bottom of the bike; be sure it is clear and reroute if necessary.

Dale Baker #09956 Safety Director, OH-10

Alternative to Costly Exhaust Collector Canister Replacement

My exhaust collector canister has a loose baffle inside, by diagnosis of myself and my service manager. Can you guess how anxious I am to spend $262 for a new one? Even a parted out collector would be very chancy and new pipe gaskets might as well be 18K gold.

I wanted to get an auto body man to plasma cut the bottom off the collector and fix the baffle. Have you ever seen this fix attempted?

Also, my speedometer emanates a "tinking" sound when only pushing the bike. While riding at any speed it escalates to a hornet's nest sound. A new speedometer cable had no effect and "no cable" eliminated the sound. Is there any way to fix this other than the obvious expensive way?

Paul Kuhn #08494
Craryville, NY

Although it wasn't plasma cutting, we do know of others who have use conventional welding methods to accomplish the same thing. As for the speedo problem, you might want to take it to a reputable speedo shop. Be sure to get an estimate first.