82 Virago Valve Job and Engine Assembly

We have everything powder coated and polished and its time to disassemble the heads and face the valve seats.  Deuce picked up 2 different valve spring compressors and neither one would clear the head and allow us to get the retainer clips out so he had to improvise. 

Deuce took and old socket and cut one side off with the plasma.

Now we can get the compression we need and still have access to the retainer clips.



We needed to pull the rocker arm sleeves to move the rocker arms out of the way of the springs. 

A 10 mm bolt and bunch of washers worked nicely.  Pulled the sleeves out just past the rocker arms so they could be pushed out of the way.

Here is the sleeve with my "puller" still attached.

Pulling the 2 from the other head while Deuce is running around taking pictures, I never noticed the tiny stool sneaking up on me!

A C-clamp and our custom tool made removing the springs simple.



It isn't pretty but it worked great.

Lapped the valves after a thorough cleaning in the parts washer.

Reinstalled the valves the same way they came out.  Assembly lube on everything and a little lube on the retainers to hold them in place.

Deuce lubing up the cylinders so he can hone them and get the crosshatching.

 

Running the hone making sure not to stop while the hone is inside the cylinder.

Cleaning everything up getting ready for assembly.

New gasket kit with everything except the gaskets to split the case.  We inspected the inside of the case and it looks great so we didn't split it.

We couldn't find a ring compressor that broke apart so again we had to improvise and use a hose clamp.  It worked great.

Here is the compressor that wouldn't work for us.
 

One Jug back on with the timing chain and guides fed through.

2 Jugs

The Head crush gaskets were a little too tight to get into the groove so we stretched them just a little and they fell into place.

And here it is, the heads have been redone, the cylinders honed and cleaned, new gaskets throughout, jugs powder coated and all the aluminum cleaned and polished.  Looks pretty good for an 31 year old Yamaha motor.

Ural tube change

Here is a quick DIY for those that do not want to spend money having somebody else change their tires or tubes. All you need is 2 wheel spoons ( don't use screwdrivers, you will pinch your tube)

Picked up tube from ebay $12

Break the bead. I can usually do it with my foot. However if it is stuck you can use a c - clamp or shovel

cover everything with baby powder. this will be great lube for getting the rubber over the rim and will prevent pinches on the tube

remove the valve stem crystal

Spoon off the wheel. I use pro-motion spoons. ebay $20

pull out old tube and slide in new one. This is a good time to note the dot or mark along the tire that indicates where the tire should line up with the valve

 

reseat the bead. Be very mindful of the tube to avoid pinching it

Use the spoons to get the tire back on the rim, take small "bites" as the tire gets tighter.

I inflate my tires to 30psi then toss them and let them bounce to ensure they are seated and it enables the tube to settle into place

Pick up your bike and re-install

Taz and his Heritage

Taz came over with Bible Dave and he had an awesome bike. He rides a 1993 Heritage Soft tail with 137000 miles on it. He bought it 11 years ago and it only had 11000 miles when he bought it. That man has put some miles on that thing.

Rum And Juggs

Deuce has been drinking Rum and Coke lately and Jenny will make him one and bring it out to the shop.  Well she ran out of Coke and had to improvise....let me introduce you to this custom Lagniappe drink we affectionately call "Rum and Juggs".  I know I must elaborate that "Juggs" refers to the small barrel shaped juice drinks for children and not the upper half of a woman.  But the title was probably the only reason you read the post!

Bible Dave laid it down

So Deuce and I hit up the local bike nights to meet like minded people, see cool bikes and just have a good time.  We met this guy named Bible Dave at the Renegade bike night a couple weeks ago.  Very cool dude, went through some rough shit and found God and has turned things around.  I don't want to put all his business out there but any guy that has "FEAR GOD" tattooed on his neck is good with the Lagniappe not to mention he is an ordained minister. 

Back to the bike, Bible Dave was riding and avoided some gravel so he didn't put both his and his old lady's bike down.  In doing so he caught the edge of the road and put it down.  Broke the bars, dinged the tank but over all the bike is in decent condition.  Deuce and I went to get his bike so we could help him out and get it back on the road.

On the way to Bible Daves house we crossed "Choptank Road" , thought it was fitting.

Got the Bike back to the shop.

Bible Dave came over the next day to get his first wife back on the road. 

He got his bars fixed and we dropped some string through to drag the wire. A nut tied to the end made the 90 degree turns easily. 

A little baby powder made dragging 8 wires through each side much easier. 

Dumped out the excess. 

Hey we had to get that baby powder cleaned up somehow. 

And the pulling of the wires begins. 

Biker Mike and Barfight Sarah showed up bearing the gift of alcohol so progress slowed slightly. But that's what the shop is about, good times and good people. 

Wiring done, tested and everything back where it was. 

Front end wouldn't go full lock right because the headlight mount was reversed. Easy fix and the front end was good again. 

Bible Dave back in the wind. That man had the biggest smile when we got it back together and he started it up. He took it for a test ride before he headed home. 

Road rash on the tank....nothing a Lagniappe Shop sticker can't take care of!

So here it is 5 hours later. Bike is finished and Bible Dave is back where he belongs. It was a productive and fulfilling day at the shop.