Kawasaki VN750 Forum banner

Fingers crossed

2K views 13 replies 7 participants last post by  cdaddy 
#1 ·
Hello, everybody. New mamber from New Brunswick, Canada here. I've been looking into picking up a 1985 vn750 with 47,000 km and came across this site while doing research on the bike. I'm going to look at it tomorrow and hopefully all goes well and I'll be here alot. Even though there's still 4 inches of snow on the ground I got the itch.
 
#2 ·
Welcome. One thing to ask the guy is what sort of repairs or maintenance have been done on the bike. There have been some instances of the early model rubber balancer inserts deteriorating, particularly if the bike isn't ridden regularly.
 
#3 ·
'85 was the first year for this bike, and possibly the only year it was made in Japan. If I were buying an '85, I would assume it would have some issues, like the balancer. If it is in good overall condition, it is worth fixing, though top end parts might be hard to find for the 700. If it is in good condition, it shouldn't need any. Read through the Vulcan Verses before you go look at it, so you will know more about what to look for, and what to expect if you buy it. If it looks like junk, I'd pass.

I have 44,000 MILES on my '02, with nothing but cam chain tensioner problems so far. Jerry.
 
#6 ·
'85 was the first year for this bike, and possibly the only year it was made in Japan. If I were buying an '85, I would assume it would have some issues, like the balancer. If it is in good overall condition, it is worth fixing, though top end parts might be hard to find for the 700. If it is in good condition, it shouldn't need any. Read through the Vulcan Verses before you go look at it, so you will know more about what to look for, and what to expect if you buy it. If it looks like junk, I'd pass.

I have 44,000 MILES on my '02, with nothing but cam chain tensioner problems so far. Jerry.
Welcome to the Vulcan madness from sunny Southern Alberta. come around often, we need more Canucks on here.

Jerry`s reference to 700 cc bikes in `85 is only for bikes originally imported into the USA. All other bikes imported to Canada and all other areas of the world in `85 were 750 cc, and from 1986 to 2006 all mid-size Vulcans worldwide are 750 cc.

Ask for all maintenance records for the bike if they are available.

Here is a link to the Vulcan verses. http://www.vn750.com/forum/verses.php

You may want to take some time and read some of the items in the first section on General Info and Specs. ie. "So you bought a used vn750-now what?", and "Used vn750 Bike Check", before you go to look at the bike tomorrow.

Specifically ask if the rear splines were lubed the last time the rear tire was replaced or removed from the bike for any reason. The splines need to be lubed about every 10K miles, and many bikes left Ma Kawi`s factory without so much as a hint of grease on them.

Good luck on the hunt for a new-to-you ride.:motorcycl
 
#5 ·
I'm assuming that the 85 is a Canadian model and is an actual 750 (They were allowed in Canada) If that is the case all model years apply as far as engine components.
The balancer is an age thing and any metallic scraping noise would be an indication, as well as metal and rubber shavings/bits on the oil filter screen.
I've used 85/86 parts on my bike and have them handy as quick replacements. I think the early models were almost bullet proof. Ran an 86 stator in my bike for over a year and it still looked good when I replaced it.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for all the replies and hearty welcoms. The bike looks fairely well taken care of, although he told me it needs fork seals (fun). It has had the carbs replaced last year, new paint, and it looks as it may have had some engine work (I can see a hint of new gasket from the pictures he sent). Ive been lurking around here for about a week and I've got a LOT of info about these bikes, and even if there is some little issues I know I have the resources to get it all taken care of. I'll let you guys know how the inspection works, either way I cannot bring it home today as I don't have a truck and it's about a 4-5 hour drive away. Some of the other bikes I have looked at are the vt1100 & the xj1100. I didn't like the seating position on the shadow. I currently have a 1991 zx6 so I am not new to bikes, just looking for something easier on the wrists, lol.
 
#10 ·
So, I went up and took a look at the bike, sounds good, looks even better (it has a custom paint job that changes from green to blue when you look at it at different angles), but it does need a little bit of work. I was able to talk him down a little bit and he`s willing to store it until I figure out what to do with the bikes I have. Thanks to this site and it`s members any problems I run into should be a breese.
 
#11 ·
Yeah, it never occurred to me that the Canadian model would be a real 750. I had a '91 Shadow 1100 and liked it, though it wasn't as comfortable as the Vulcan 750, and wasn't any faster. The Vulcan 750 has a whopper of an engine for a 750cc v-twin cruiser. I've heard it was originally designed for a sportbike, but have no evidence of that. It does show signs of being redesigned from what it was originally, that, the fact that you have to remove the engine to replace the stator, or even remove the airbox, and the obvious afterthought front bevel gearcase definitely suggests it was not originally designed for the bike it is in. I wish there was some way of finding out how things really happened.

I have also had a couple of 600cc sportbikes, but can no longer ride those things due to medical reasons. It was very painful even back when I was younger and healthier. Jerry.
 
#12 ·
So, the bike arived today, and after going over it there's a few things that'll need a bit of attention, but was to be expected for the year and price I got it at. Put half a can of seafoam in a new tank of gas and just got back from doing a little circulation for about 45 min. Couldn't have done much more as it's 34F and I'm pretty frozen, lol. But all in all I'm very pleased with this bike and cannot wait for it to get a little wormer.

Chris
 
#13 ·
Great. But first things first. Check and lube the final drive splines before riding it anymore. This is a SERIOUS issue with any Vulcan 750. If the splines are good, you're in luck. I would also remove, disassemble, and clean the carbs. Yes, it's a PITA on this bike, but not that difficult if you take your time and do it methodically. It should be a one time thing. I have never seen a used bike that did not have dirty carbs, and the only way to get them clean is to remove and disassemble them. I bought an '04 Honda Rebel a few months ago, which ran great, but when I removed and disassembled the carb, I found it was filthy inside. Seafoam in the gas will probably help, but it will not get all the gunk, dead bugs, etc. out of the carbs. Jerry.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top