Virago Starter Hell
Wade Dunham
starter fix kit for my 1982 Virago 750. I had installed a new Yamaha
solenoid, starter mechanism spring, gear, and wishbone springs early
this year (at significant cost), as well as a new AGM battery, which
seemed to help for a few starts, but pretty much reverted to the
original gravel crushing sound after that. I e-mailed Chopper Bob, who
sells a kit on eBay to fix the Virago starter, told him what I had
done, how many miles on the bike, and asked if his kit would fix the
nasty starting sound. Of course he said it would, so I bought it, and
it's been sitting on my desk in the basement for about three months.
The kit has a shim to be installed in the starter, another one to be
installed by the idler gear in the mechanism, and a 'J' clip to add
tension to the wishbone spring on the idler gear. After installing the
kit Saturday evening and testing it, with little or no improvement, I
realized that I had forgotten to install the clip. Drain the oil
again, remove the gazillion screws on the cover, and take it apart
again. It's not a hard job, but doing it two days in a row isn't fun.
After installation of the clip, I didn't notice any improvement. I
can't recommend this kit, although others have apparently had some
success with it. It's surprising how much the new gear has worn
considering how few starts are on it.
I noticed that the starter brushes were worn when I took the starter
apart to install the shim, one more than the other. I didn't have a
replacement set, so I put the starter back together with the old ones
in it. The starter doesn't spin the engine very fast, and seems almost
weak. That may be the biggest part of my problem. I checked the price
of original Yamaha brushes online, and *cough* *gag* they are about
$30 each! That's about a third of the price of a new four-brush
starter, which is supposed to work better than the original. I'm more
than a little hesitant to throw another $180 at it, not knowing for
sure if it would fix the problem. I think I have found some Gold Wing
brushes that will work and are much cheaper. I'm waiting on
measurements to see if they are the same as the Yamaha brushes. If
not, I'm hoping they will be a little larger, so I can file them down
to fit.
If anyone else has a Virago with the starter problem, don't buy the
CD's from 'Dr. Virago Pete'. They are a waste of money. There is no
narration on the videos, so it takes him a lot longer to get his point
across than if he has just narrated it. He spends a lot of time
holding each part and turning it at all angles so you will understand.
It's like he is fondling the parts, and I was almost a little
embarrassed watching the videos! If you still want to see the videos,
don't waste your money, you can borrow mine. I found much better
videos with narration and clear instructions on YouTube for free.
It's a shame the starter is so bad on the early Viragos, as the bikes
aren't bad at all.
Wade Dunham
CP
Wade Dunham
920 by swapping in the case and starter parts from a later 920 that
has the redesigned starting system, but this fix doesn't work with the
early 750. :-(
Mine starts fairly easily, but it sounds like the starter is barely
turning the engine over. The gravel crushing sound lasts for a few
seconds after it starts, and is somewhat embarrassing.
Wade Dunham
Ray & Lori
Sent from my iPad
Chris Lewis
Hey Wade, bummer about the kit. I bought one from a guy on e-bay that went by "George Fix it" or something like that for my 920 Euro..I just never got around to putting it in. If you want to look at the parts included let me know perhaps I can send a picture (presuming I can find it in my garage) that would help you out. Chris
Wade Dunham
have been happy with my purchases. I would like to see the parts that
came in your kit, if it's not too much trouble.
I rode the Virago today, starting it many times. I found that the
secret to not being bothered by the starter sounds is to wait until
another bike with loud pipes starts up, then I start the Virago. Then
I can't hear the rock crushing sounds! :-)
Wade Dunham
> --
> http://www.vinmoto.org/gallery/v/VinMoto-Garage/CO-OHVinMoto-Garages/
Mike
Just wanted to chime in here. There really isn't a fix for those problems.
There are no shims or kits that will solve this. Stiffer springs may help,
however by the time you are buying these kits your gears have already worn
themselves out. Unless you're replacing the gears, you won't have the solid
engagement required to prevent slipping out. And the only way to replace
the main large gear on the back of the flywheel is to buy another flywheel.
This is cost prohibitive for most.
Even after replacing the gears and everything else, things will still grind
out every once in a while.
Wade Dunham
--
http://www.vinmoto.org/gallery/v/VinMoto-Garage/CO-OHVinMoto-Garages/
Wade Dunham
trying to fix the original design. It looks like my '82 may be able to
be converted to the second generation starting system which is
supposed to be much better. I have to verify that my engine case has a
machined hole to accept the newer parts. The '81's didn't have it, but
it looks the '82's did. I'll have to remove the left side cover to
verify it, though. If so, I'll start searching for some cheap parts.
I'll be looking for parts from a 1984/85 XV1000 or 1986/87
XV1100/XV700. If anyone knows of one of these bikes being parted out,
please let me know. Thanks!
Wade Dunham
On Mon, Oct 10, 2011 at 7:34 AM, Mike <dudem...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Guys,
> Just wanted to chime in here. There really isn't a fix for those problems...