Finally received the tag for my bike. I got it from a local Notary Tag Service business local to me. I wanted the antique tag so I didn't have to worry about state inspection. The only thing I can't do with the antique tag is ride between dusk and dawn, no big deal. Unless I'm sitting still I doubt the tag can be read to see it's antique. I don't plan to be riding the bike at night. I was told three to four weeks and they didn't have a temporary antique tag I could use until the metal tag came in. Four weeks and four days and it finally arrived.
 

 
I took the NJ tag off the bike I'd been using that had expired in 1995, I'm now legal!

What relevance does an antique tag have to lighting?

Very nice bike! I trust you'll be putting on the miles now!!
Sneezles61

What relevance does an antique tag have to lighting?

I guess since the antique tag doesn't require a yearly state inspection (which includes checking all lights), the bike could be ridden without operational lights?

"I guess since the antique tag doesn't require a yearly state inspection (which includes checking all lights), the bike could be ridden without operational lights?"

Fair point. However, that could apply to any part of the bike that is tested annually (brakes, steering etc) and I would have thought that, if any of these items were unsafe, then that would be an offence in itself, regardless of whether or not the vehicle was Vintage.

We have a similar thing here in the UK, whereby if a vehicle is more than forty years old, then no annual test (we call it a MoT) is needed and no road tax is due.

I did a 20 mile road ride several weeks ago that went pretty well. However, the next morning I noticed a large drop of oil on the low side of the steering damper and it's underside wet with oil as the bike sat on the kick stand. The damper was wet with dirty oil when I brought the bike home and had cleaned it all off. Oh well, another oil leak, this one should be pretty simple to take care of. I ordered the new O-rings from DEET.
The screw holding the damper on was tight/stuck, so I used my JIS impact driver to break the screw loose and failed. Guess I got lazy and tried with the tank still on and wasn't paying attention to how the tip of the screwdriver was making contact with the screw head. I was more concerned with not slipping and hitting the tank with the hammer. I rounded the screw head past any screwdriver breaking it loose.
Off with the tank and drilled into the screw enough to get an easy out into the hole. That was able to break it free.
I opened the damper up, which was crazy easy, none of the screws were very tight at all (now I wonder if that's why it was leaking?). Anyways, I cleaned all the oily black sludge out of the damper and pulled the old O-rings and the piece that goes through the oil creating the dampening. That was last Saturday morning.
 

Ready for re-assembly this morning.
 

Bel-Ray 20W Fork Oil is what I put in. DEET recommended using Fork Oil. New O-rings in position.
 

All back together with the screws a bit tighter than they originally were and sprayed clean/dry with Brake Clean.
 

Back on the bike
 

I'd taken a 13 mile ride last Saturday afternoon with the damper off and felt no difference in the steering vs. with it installed. I'm putting it back on since it was there when the bike was built.
 

Is there like a big gaping hole when not installed? I may remove mine.. and not return..
Sneezles61

Yea, there's a hole there where the knurled stud goes up into, but it's not all that large or not noticeable unless you get down to its level and look for it. I had trouble cleaning it out, it's smaller in diameter than the end of my pinky finger and I wear medium sized gloves.

I still had an oil leak on the left side of my motor, I'd bought this oil seal kit off eBay:
 

I've replaced all the external seals from the kit; clutch push rod, shifter and the one for the counter shaft sprocket on the left side as well as the kicker shaft one on the right side. I've not done the two crank seals since they don't seem to be leaking (yet). The oil on the left side was enough it's been hard to isolate where it's coming from after a ride. Today I pulled the left side rear cover off and removed the boot over the shifter shaft. I then sprayed Brake Clean in the area and on all the seals and plugs, put her back together and went for a ride. Got home and pulled things apart. The seal for the counter shaft sprocket was the culprit, it was leaking from the center lip. I'd suspected it was either this one or the shifter shaft seal and had already bought genuine Yamaha seals for both. I pulled the one from the kit off the engine, installed the new Yamaha one and went for another ride. Got home tore everything down again and it all looks dry.
 

None of the other seals from the kit are leaking, most likely I'll not use the two crank seals included in the kit, but source a set of Yamaha ones. Once bitten twice shy...

Someone will hopefully correct me if I'm wrong but that specific NOS seal kit probably has OEM crank seals in it?

.