1st Gen V-Max Just Bought a 2001 Black Max

Advertise with us
shop deals on amazon
Shop deals on ebay
VMAX Forum

Help Support VMAX Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
RyzMax said:
Hi I am Ryan most call me Ry, thought I'd introduce myself to the forums to get started, I've read through the 1st Gen FAQs a lot of great information there, I am from Darlington, South Carolina, 68 years old so many have questioned my sanity buying a V Max. My answer is I fell in love with the very first one I ever saw but way back then I could not afford a new one as I had bought a 1987 Honda Magna and the engine style was the V4 but way less powerful than the V Max. Had 77,000 miles on it when I sold it 16 years ago, and regretted selling it the day it drove out of my life, many of my friends won't say it to my face but think I have lost my mind, but I miss riding, simple as that. My V Max looks good from a distance but she is 20 years old and will need some TLC, drove it home last Sunday 110 miles 90 degrees outside, which allowed me to discover the first mod was going to be forward controls. I need to make the bike suit my needs for ultimate comfort and whatever that requires.

Other than that I am very excited to be back on a motorcycle and I wish all of you the best! :) Ry

View attachment 79156
Click to expand...
Nice ride👍🏻

At 68 years young, good for you and enjoy !
 
Fire-medic said:
Congratulations on the purchase. The Hindle exhaust looks to be a full header/canister one, a good performance upgrade. You can remove a CV carburetor cap, and compare the slide needle to this chart, to see if you have a jet kit, which properly-installed & tuned, should increase your RWHP about 10%. I don't see the oil filler hose mod that would suggest you have the Dynojet Stage 7 kit, which is 'the good one.' Sean Morley also has a 'Muscle Kit,' jet kit, more-balanced towards midrange instead of top-end rpm's, that would be a good alternative.

View attachment 79152View attachment 79153
View attachment 79154View attachment 79155
Click to expand...

If mine is missing this, does it have to be tuned for adding it?
 
You can contact Sean Morley [email protected] for the Dynojet stage 7 needles. You also could speak to him about the Morley's Muscle kit which is his design tuned for more mid-range power than stock. The slide needles can be replaced with the carburetors still on the engine but if you want to do jetting you need to remove the carburetors and access inside the float bowls.

If the jetting of the carburetors is stock then just changing the slide needles by removing the CV caps removing the slide and changing the needles is not going to gain you maximum power. If you do a search on here for Dynojet stage 7 instructions you can see what is involved. I do not suggest removing your V boost like they tell you to. One way you can get around that is when you first turn on the ignition, the vboost Cycles all the way open and then shut again. Under the left scoop is a round plug. That is the plug to the stepper motor that opens and closes the vboost butterflies if you unplug it when it has the vboost butterflies open, the butterflies will stay open. That makes it easier to use your carburetor balancing tool to set the carburetors because you just plug back in the Vboost and the butterflies will close so that you can balance your carburetors. After you have balanced your carburetors, then you turn the engine off and turn the switch back on again and unplug the V boost motor again with the butterflies open.

I run my bike with a stage 7 Dynojet kit and the Vboost is still functional. Running with the Vboost open instead of operational will give you a lopey idle that turns heads at bike nights because it sounds like a cammed high compression small block Chevy at idle.
 
Last edited:
Fire-medic said:
I run my bike with a stage 7 Dynojet kit and the Vboost is still functional. Running with the Vboost open instead of operational will give you a lopey idle that turns heads at bike nights because it sounds like a cammed high compression small block Chevy at idle.
Click to expand...

After a year and a half of non-functional Vboost, I repaired my 86. I promptly disconnected it. I had been running full open all the time. That is a characteristic and sound that is hard to give up. I had to have it back.
 
Last edited:
Mine actually lopes at idle?

The previous owner bought it like it is, and all he did was drive it, so I have no way to find out if the Hingle 4 into 1 header had anything additionally done to it.
 
Well, that's why I suggested removing a CV cap from a carburetor, and matching the needle in the slide to the pic I posted.

BTW, you drive a car, but you ride a motorcycle. Pardon me while I adjust my do-rag.
 
RyzMax said:
A good motorcycle safety course will teach you the basics of how to drive your motorcycle, and you can sharpen your skills from there and get quite proficient at, driving it. :)
Click to expand...
Ok call it what you will, read what the Motorcycle Safety Foundation calls-it:

Motorcycle Safety Foundation Ridercourse.pngMotorcycle Safety Foundation.png

Nowhere I've looked do they call it "driving" a motorcycle, it's always "riding." The name of the instructor is a "RiderCoach," not a "DriverCoach." They don't ask, "are you an experienced 'driver?'" or "get valuable training designed to improve your 'drive.'"

For the Kevin Schwantz School-influenced Circuit RiderCourse (italics are theirs), they refer to 'a large riding area,' not a large driving area.

But, if that's how you choose to refer to it, your choice. Skills practice enables proper instinctive responses during an emergency maneuver allowing survivability-outcome to be maximized, instead of a morbidity/mortality statistic portrayed on the local evening news.

MSF factoid: one of my fellow fire/rescue co-workers has a cousin who's a MSF instructor, he was also a 'motorman' (a police term for a motorcycle-mounted law enforcement officer) in Miami-Dade County, FL. He also rode a personal bike off-duty. One day he stopped in at the local Yamaha dealer, shortly after the release of the VMax. "Take it for a ride," one of the salesmen who knew him said. He hopped on, and started out. "The clutch must-be slipping," he thought to himself, as a cloud of tire smoke enveloped him, due to the spinning rear tire. Then the tire bit, and he was launched down the road, for a very-entertaining trial ride. He eventually returned to the dealer, and as he handed it over, he mentioned it was the hardest-accelerating motorcycle he had ridden. His cousin and I stopped by to see him one day, and the LEO told me the story himself. I was on my nearly-new VMax. "I rode one of those, once," he said, and then out came the story.
 
Last edited:
This really hits home for me as "driving" motorcycles has always been one of my pet peeves (and I really don't have that many).

I have never driven a motorcycle in my life. And that spans some 50 years of hard driv...er riding. If one feels as if he's "driving" his motorcycle, he probably hasn't truly made the connection.

Come to Arizona. Tag along with the crowd I "ride" with. We'll head into the hills. You'll never call it driving again. I promise.
 
In the end, call it "spud-sliding," I don't care. Just do it safely, and be sure to describe what you choose to do to your ride, how you do-it, and what happens along the way, we're all interested in what others do, and experience.
 
Vmxmario said:
Ryan,
Riding a Vmax at 68 ??!! And you worry about it ? C'mon my friend I'm 70 and I've been riding my Vmax for 22 years !!

Let the breeze grace your face, and enjoy the ride, old Vmax riders like us, are a very special breed

View attachment 79231
Click to expand...
A tasteful series of mods, looks great. I have you by a few years on both age and age/time w/a VMax.

Vmaxmario's bike:
Vmax age 68 owner.JPG
 
Fire-medic said:
Ok call it what you will, read what the Motorcycle Safety Foundation calls-it:

View attachment 79215View attachment 79216

Nowhere I've looked do they call it "driving" a motorcycle, it's always "riding." The name of the instructor is a "RiderCoach," not a "DriverCoach." They don't ask, "are you an experienced 'driver?'" or "get valuable training designed to improve your 'drive.'"

For the Kevin Schwantz School-influenced Circuit RiderCourse (italics are theirs), they refer to 'a large riding area,' not a large driving area.

But, if that's how you choose to refer to it, your choice. Skills practice enables proper instinctive responses during an emergency maneuver allowing survivability-outcome to be maximized, instead of a morbidity/mortality statistic portrayed on the local evening news.

MSF factoid: one of my fellow fire/rescue co-workers has a cousin who's a MSF instructor, he was also a 'motorman' (a police term for a motorcycle-mounted law enforcement officer) in Miami-Dade County, FL. He also rode a personal bike off-duty. One day he stopped in at the local Yamaha dealer, shortly after the release of the VMax. "Take it for a ride," one of the salesmen who knew him said. He hopped on, and started out. "The clutch must-be slipping," he thought to himself, as a cloud of tire smoke enveloped him, due to the spinning rear tire. Then the tire bit, and he was launched down the road, for a very-entertaining trial ride. He eventually returned to the dealer, and as he handed it over, he mentioned it was the hardest-accelerating motorcycle he had ridden. His cousin and I stopped by to see him one day, and the LEO told me the story himself. I was on my nearly-new VMax. "I rode one of those, once," he said, and then out came the story.
Click to expand...

I see what I wrote went right over your head, Sorry. My Bad. o_O
 
desert_max said:
I have never driven a motorcycle in my life. And that spans some 50 years of hard driv...er riding. If one feels as if he's "driving" his motorcycle, he probably hasn't truly made the connection.
Click to expand...
Actually, it does get complicated.

We observe things differently depending on different factors. For instance, we're IN a car so we're driving it whereas we're ON a bike so we're riding it, whether it's motorized or not.

However, we also throw that out the window when it comes to a bus. If you're the driver you are driving the bus, hence a bus DRIVER; but if you're a passenger on the bus you RIDE the bus.

English: the least comprehensive and most confusing language on earth.

For instance, in German, it's fahrt. Doesn't matter what it is: car, bus, motorcycle. The only difference is if it's a aircraft then you go to pilot.

But then again, we don't have the splitting verb and adjective endings, so there's that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

T
Should I?
2
Replies
23
Views
1K
TooOld
T
W
Finally bought a Vmax....I mean two Vmax's
Replies
3
Views
409
Fire-medic
Fire-medic
DustyMc
New Supporting Member
Replies
8
Views
382
Dkid
Dkid
F
1st Gen V-Max Unexpected 1999 V-Max Owner
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
cdgawatersports
C
GMac
1st Gen V-Max New member - Vmax rebuild
Replies
8
Views
757
GMac
GMac

Latest posts

Back
Top