They did consult with a number of our members during the preparation of their manual and it is printed in the good old U. The factory manual is sparse and is probably written for mechanics who already know what they are doing. Here is how it turned out. This seemed counter-intuitive to me but I did a little research and found that higher viscosity oil makes it difficult for a wet-clutch to squeeze the oil out from between the plates and that the clutch may indeed slip. Contrary to popular opinion, they stated not to use 20W50 oil because it might make the clutch slip. Well finally in 2003, first Haynes and then Clymer published manuals for the 1985-2003 V-Max.
One point volunteered in the Haynes manual, however, really caught my attention. The other differences lie mainly with the fact that Haynes is based in Great Britain. Clymer did have a thumb tab listing aligned with their respective tabs. Sorry, I havent seen a Clymers outboard manual to compare it to. They both agree on removing the rider seat, disconnecting the negative terminal and removing the rear wheel and mud guard but after that, their approach is quite different. I wanted one, but was not sure which to buy. I like it when I can read good things about my old motorcycle.
You can find one at a Sears hardware store. And somehow, Haynes is able to make their pictures clearer and more sharply detailed, no small feat I can assure you from experience. Otherwise, they are about the same on all the hoses, tank bolts, wiring and stuff. A Tools and Workshop section which also has color pictures is included at the end of the Haynes book. Other disconcerting bits involve the spelling of the King's English -- tyres, centrestand and so forth. Overview of Clymer Repair Manuals - M251 Clymer motorcycle repair manuals are written specifically for the do-it-yourself enthusiast.
This makes me lose confidence in the rest of the book ever being 100% right. Seloc I have a Seloc manual right now and its a bit annoying - they cover so many engines that it's hard to pick through it, ignoring one sentence and paying very close attention to the details of another, etc. I've been reading posts here 'til I'm seeing them in my dreams!!! Seloc I have compared some of the manuals. Again, I do like the Clymer's but I think Seloc has the edge most of the time. Seloc bubbakat, Thanks for the info and the link, I read a lot there and it seems a small majority suggest the factory Mercury manual over both Seloc and Clymer, so I will try to get to their website and order any one else's opinions appreciated still. I have a 'real' manual on the way from Mercury if you need the number for them, let me know, they are really hard to reach but very nice once you do so I can compare it when it arrives.
From basic maintenance to troubleshooting to complete overhaul, Clymer manuals provide the information you need. When it came to removing the fuel tank, which is almost never necessary, there was a huge difference in the two manuals. Although I do like Clymer, Seloc has some new features that tell you how difficult a certain procedure will be. The Clymer is easier to read, but in spite of the slim volume, there seems to be more content in the Haynes. This is a huge amount of work. Then I decided to buy both of them and do this service manual shootout, super-comparo, just for you, my faithful readers. Everything is labeled so that you know if a newbie can do it or if you have to be a wrench who's been around the block.
Best to know ahead of time what to expect. Haynes also had a table of contents for the chapters at the beginning of each chapter, a feature I like, but their thumb tabs had no list from which to thumb, largely defeating their purpose. With respect to the front forks and handlebar assemblies, Haynes had 68 photographs and drawings compared to Clymer's 52. First off, Haynes provided a section with an unabashedly glowing history of the Yamaha Motor company and an account of the V-Max model development with color pictures. Review the following guidelines to see how easy it is to maximize your rewards and put your ZillaCash to work for you. Actually, they require the less common 18 mm socket.
The Devil is in the Details Looking at the section on carb synchronization for example, Haynes had eight photographs compared to Clymer's two. Both manuals had a table of contents, an index, color wiring diagrams and thumb tabs. Clymer: The Best Motorcycle Service Manual Shootout Over the years, I have used factory manuals and Haynes and Clymer manuals for my personal vehicles -- trucks, cars and motorcycles. Seloc I purchased a factory manual for my 650 thinking the factory book was the way to go. I need to remove the lower unit and get at the water pump.
Also for the procedure that I bought the book for originally it was wrong. They described the nuts to remove and did not cover the configuration I am looking at. With that one minor exception, otherwise it seemed that in nearly every respect, Haynes went one step further to provide useful content and photographs. I found it to be a little short on procedures and bought the Seloc manual, much more user friendly in my opinion. Haynes makes up for the missing pages by using a 3-column layout compared to the 2 columns and larger print of Clymer.
. Unfortunately, when I bought my latest ride, a new 1998 Yamaha V-Max, there was only the factory manual available. But maybe that's not warranted. This would be of no interest except that it serves as a useful checklist for looking at a used motorcycle here in this country. Any ZillaCash you earn is automatically applied to the next purchase, so you can sit back, enjoy the ride and feel the savings blow through your hair.
This is an awesome site! Their writing style is so, there is no other way to put it, British. Other complaints were that Haynes showed a photograph of the right hand mirror but failed to mention that the fastener was a left hand thread, identifiable by a groove or notches on the points. Haynes says remove the exhaust silencers, the left shock absorber and the swing arm! On the other hand, Haynes had absolutely nothing about the rear fender and grab rail assembly whereas Clymer had a good illustration and explanation. The Clymers is written for the neophyte or the shadetree mechanic at worst which is just my speed. It sells it to me all over again and helps motivate me to keep her running. Haynes also offered an exhaustive pre-ride checklist, again with color pictures. The ZillaCash rewards program is very straightforward - if you have a RevZilla account, you may already be taking advantage of ZillaCash rewards.