79 Special II RestoCustom "Doomy"

Congrats, welcome to the XS..............At least the PO will be able to help with any problems ;)

Don't know if the risers were changed out from rubber but if so then it would be worth thinking about making changing back, make sure they are rubber. Factory Yamaha had rubber dampers all through these bikes...........for a reason............helps with the vibration in the bars, numb hands
 
those dual vacuum petcocks "were" clean and functional.
An easy test is to drain the carbs by removing the 10mm bowl plugs and seeing that the fuel flow actually stops. Then with a longer hose if you suck vacuum onto that, the fuel should start flowing in either the "on" or "res" positions.
"prime" flows without stopping ofcourse.
 
Hello - I am the new & lucky owner of Doomey, who I call Honey:heart:
Congrats and welcome.
You need to start your own thread now "Adventures with Honey" or "Living with Honey".
Treat her right and she will treat you right. Blonds are more fun. They can be hard to live with but most worth the trouble. I hope my girlfriend doesn't see this. She's a redhead.
Pics are mandatory.
 
Just be aware that the "Prime" position pulls off the "Reserve" pipe, so if you run out of gas you're going to be really, totally out, lol.

Hi 5T.
you can get a hard OFF on post '76 gas taps by turning the tap lever so it points straight up.
Do this by filing off the tap keeper plate's anti-rotation nubbin & shortening the tap handle to clear the tank.
Note that if the gas tap's filter tower falls out to lay on the bottom of the tank you won't know it's done so until you switch to reserve and find that it already was.
 
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I’ll test taps and see what’s going on but in the mean time try and keep the tank full!

She doesn’t vibrate - the issue is the position and weight pressing forward that causes numb hands in my case. At least I think so. I switched the bars out yesterday so I’ll find out as soon as it stops raining. Hopefully tomorrow I can ride it. I have to say it doesn’t look nearly as cool without the cafe bars :-|
 
It seems that I have spent a great deal of my older adult life trying to find the elusive perfect bike and or riding position. I have bought different handlebars, grips, bar risers, foot pegs, floor boards, seats, windshields……you name it. In the end, some bikes are just better suited than others for spending extended time in the saddle, unless you are like some of the more hardcore mile munchers on this forum who can do all day / multi day trips on these old beasties.
But more to your specific problem of numb hands. When I first got back into riding after my kids grew up, I had the same problem. A lot can be done to help by being aware of your body position and making some changes. I still have a tendency to forget and I slide into a position where my arms are straight with elbows locked and my shoulders hunched up around my neck, and my back slumped forward. This kills my back in short order.
Try to relax your shoulders, straighten your back, keep a slight bend in your elbows and a light relaxed grip on the handlebars. I have to constantly remind myself and make adjustments to stay like that, but it really helps.
Here’s an article you might find interesting,

https://motoress.com/ride/nine-ways...nd-hands-for-a-more-relaxing-motorcycle-ride/

I am also running a set of foam grips that I find to be extremely comfortable,
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Anyways, good luck with your bike and I’ll see you around the forum! :thumbsup:
 
I am also running a set of foam grips that I find to be extremely comfortable
I remember running those grips back in the 80's. They usually wouldn't make it through a riding season before the foam started to break down. I'd guess modern tech has 'em made from a more durable composition?
 
I have a set of these: https://www.amazon.com/Wimbledon-Gr...1&keywords=7/8"+grips&qid=1623688124&sr=8-265

Very comfortable, helps with vibrations as well. But as suggested, body position is key for fatigue and hand numbness. Mostly, I find that if I don't have a strong core/abs, my posture goes out the window pretty quickly.

For the petcocks, I guess a question that I should have asked is: What makes you think they're not working? Since they don't activate without the engine running... priming the carbs the first time may be needed to fill the bowls, but after that they should be good to go. Just curious really.
 
Fully agree with @Mailman about maintaining a light grip and having your arms relaxed with elbows slightly bent. This is key to being relaxed on the bike. A wise man once said you should hold the handlebars the way you would hold a small bird - just firmly enough to prevent it flying away but not tight enough to crush its delicate ribs.

I remind myself of that when riding. Go through a familiar set of bends with a very light hold on the bars and magically the bike just finds its own way and reacts better to bumps. Compared with when you tighten up and try to 'force' the bike.
 
I remember running those grips back in the 80's. They usually wouldn't make it through a riding season before the foam started to break down. I'd guess modern tech has 'em made from a more durable composition?

Mine have been on for a year and a half and still look like new. Granted it’s not a highly used bike, but for less than the cost of filling up your gas tank, even if you only got a year out of them, they’d be worth it to me, even if I had to replace them once a year.
 
My favorite grips are these Sunline Grand Touring grips, but unfortunately, they stopped making them .....

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A close second I guess would be genuine Granturismos from Italy .....

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5T, these fat, barrel-shaped grips often called Beston grips, were traditional on old British bikes - fat shape helps dampen the vibes. Had them on my Triumph TR6. Some people find them very comfortable, especially if you have large hands.
 
Thanks for the input fellas! Really appreciate all the good advice especially about riding position. I do want to be as comfortable as possible when I'm riding so I can relax into the flow. The new bars (builtwell tracker high) did the trick and lets me sit up more straight. I'm keeping the grips Randy put on for now because I like 'em, but I'm going to keep those foam grips in mind for my retirement years LOL. One of my first bikes was a 1970 Kawi G3SS and it had the original barrel grips and those were really comfortable too. My new job has been keeping me really busy the last couple weeks (which is so awesome!) and I haven't had time to do much about the taps so this weekend I'll probably mess around with it and see what is going on with the vacuum situation. Or maybe not. I might just RIDE that baby all day instead because so far I've only logged 342 miles on it. Plus I got a new lid for my melon.:guns:
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Those tracker bars look nice. For some reason I thought they were higher but they look good, lower than stock but not too low. The only thing I don't like about them is the way they stick straight out on the ends. You may find that uncomfortable on longer rides. My bar of choice is the Euro bar. About the same rise but they droop down slightly on the ends. This is very comfortable, turning your wrists to a more natural angle. They also work well with the angled Special master cylinder, allowing it to sit almost level .....

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