Swedish 1982 XJ550 In Cafe Racer inspired styling.

Okey, So now when I start to get the bike running as it should (close but not their yet, waiting for new pilot jets) I thought I'd post some more pictures and a cellphone video of it running.

Video here :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUsMJbEpbDE

When I bought it :


And now :







Some pics from the build :





















Thank you all for the answers to my problems and thoughts!
And Thanks to Xj4ever that have supplied great parts and great service!

 

Can I ask what paint color/code did you use? I love it and want to steal it for my Maxim.

 

Shure, It's a Subaru color, Atlantic Blue (pearl).
And yes, it's an awesome color

 

Bravo man - that thing is fuggin gorgeous!! I usually don't really care for cafe style bikes (just not my thing.. probably 'cuz I'd look stupid riding one) but yours is choice. Ya' just can't do it any better than that.

 

I said it before and I'll say it again! I love the way this bike looks! Amazing job!

 

well... now i know what color i'm gonna paint it.... if i get my latest issue figured it out.....

 

Now that is a bike I can get behind. Tasteful, improved function over stock yet SOOOO sexy. The new seat/tail section "fits" the lines of the tank 110% better than the original "ducks' ass" tail section.

The only thing that could possibly make it better would be a proper conversion to wire wheels. (I'm still working on that one myself. It can be done, but doing it right is a different matter.)

Love the bike. It does need "tuning forks" on the tank. Just simple, not very big. If I'd done it myself I couldn't do any better. (Except I wouldn't have wrapped the pipes. But that's just me.) The colors really make it work.

Superlative.

 

Excellent, a true masterpiece!

 

That is one beauty, congrads on the results you did a great job.

 

One of the best conversions I have seen, I hope my own one come close to that

 

WOW! stunning. And the level of craftsmanship this bike deserves. I think I can say this bike is unparalleled, no one else out there is doing this caliber of conversion on these bikes. Kudos!

 

Excellent build broberg! All thoughtfully executed and really came out beautiful! Good job on the photo essay. Could you give a bit more detail on how you manufactured the seat cowling? What materials you used and what not?

 

You are an artist very nicely wrought

 

Thank you all so much! It makes me really glad to hear all your comments!
It has taken me several months to build this bike and most of all restore it to a state of almost new on the parts I didn't modify.

teddytedted : Thank you! btw. nobody looks silly on a XJ

bigfitz52 : having seen your extremely well cared for bikes and the time and effort you put in to them I'm really valuing your comments!
And I have to admit, The wrapping is a last resort kind of measure, the previous owner had abused the 4-1 headers with neglect and paint over chrome.
So it was the best and least time-consuming way to go (at that moment I just wanted to go out and ride it, everything else was finished.)

D-ROCK : Aww man, your making me blush


XJOE550 : Thank you!
I started out with a basic sketch on paper what line I wanted the seat to have,
I then glued some High density foam blocks together to cover the area of the sketch and making grooves in the underside of the foam for the frame tubes.
I then transfered the lines of the sketch to the foam and started cutting it down to a manageable size.
And after that I just kept shaping it with a small saw and a file (rasp).



I then taped up the finished shape with "mold-tape", a tape with a wax-like-surface, then started to covering it with layers of "high-temp"-polyester and fiberglass to make a mold of the foam seat.
(the high-temp polyester, isn't really high-temp but it's a polyester that survives a low curing heat in the autoclave)

When the foam was carved out from the mold a grueling period of sanding and overuse of filler started.
Just to remove the marks after the tape and small air bubbles I managed to get in the mold.


Here I could have just applied an epoxy-primer and then cast a fiberglass seat in the mold.
But I have a friend that works with building big catamarans in Carbon Fiber, And he said that I HAD TO make it in carbon fiber, just because I could.



So anyway, the Epoxy-primer was applied and I then (under guidance of my friend I must add!)
applied release agent in the mold and started adding pre-preg carbon fiber layers to aprox. 2-3mm thickness.

After that we bagged it and added vacuum and put it in their smallest autoclave for curing
(on low temp it took 8 hours under heavy pressure).



And then done! Out came a nice carbon seat cowl.

As stated the last part making the seat cowl is overkill, but the principal of the mold is the same.
Hope this covers what you wanted to know!





Here is a list of what changes have been made, I may have forgotten a few things since I didn't type it down during the build.

Code:

Carbs :
New floats and float seats.
New gaskets.
New drain screws.
Every screw on the carb assembly switched to new stainless steel allen heads.
Repaired diaphragms with Liquid Eltrical Tape.
One replaced float bowl.
Everything cleaned and float height set.
New Main fuel jets, changed from 120 to 115


Engine :
Cleaned on the outside.
Lower part of engine painted with spray-can heat resistant paint, black.
Covers painted black (spray-can).
Valve Cover painted black (powder, same as frame)
Oil-Cooler painted (spray-can).
New intake boots.
New exhaust studs.
New gaskets for all covers.
New donuts for valve cover screws.
New screws for everything external. (SS allen heads)
New oil filter.
New bushings and bolt for the upper engine mount.
Sealed the tachometer-drive with modified original fittings.
New starter solenoid
Valve Adjustment, 4 valves out of spec.
New sparkplugs.
4-1 Exhaust repaired and modified for the new muffler.
4-1 Exhaust painted with "hot paint" and then wrapped with Exhaust wrapping.
New chrome reversed cone muffler fitted.

Frame :
Stripped off all old brackets for the original seat.
Cut of the rear section.
Welded on new rear hoop.
Welded on new fittings for the new seat.
Frame and swing sandblasted & powdercoated, satin black.
Side stand and central stand sandblasted & powdercoated.
New needle bearing upgrade for the swingarm.
New rear springs, Progressive 14-series black dampeners with chrome springs.
New bearing races for the neck.
New pegs (xj600 pegs fitted in modified stock holders).
Sidecovers repaired and modified with fiberglass and polyester.
Made seat mold in fiberglass and polyester.
Seat made in carbon fiber
Seat pan made in fiberglass.
New vinyl cover with custom diamond pattern stitching.
Sidecovers, Tank, seat hump and front fender painted in Subaru Atlantic blue and VW white.
Custom made license plate holder, 2mm stainless, painted satin black.

Wheels : 
New bearings and seals.
New tires (Avon Roadrider).
Powdercoated satin black with white decor.
Blasted and Painted calipers.
New piston seals.
New rear brake shoes.
New stainless braided brake-lines.
Semi-polished rear sprocket.

Steering :
New steering stem bearings.
New handlebars.
Handlebars and steering head podercoated satin black.
New Handles.
New starterbutton.
Painted Master brake cylinder (spray-can).
Modified original levers (anodized black).
New Custom made dashboard (anodized black).
Lowered ignition key.
New Daytona Dials.
New handlebar side mirrors.
New fittings for headlight.

Forks : 
New Progressive springs.
New Oil and dust seals.
New cap o-rings and clips.
Stripped and Polished the bottom legs.

Electric :
Custom made "idiot-lights"-pcb with leds (turn signal, neutral, high beam and oil warning).
New led turn signals.
New Turn signal relay for leds.
New clutch-switch.
New Custom Brakelight Lens.


Coming :

New Custom Brakelight Lens (Current one have flaws, making a new mold and will cast a new version).
New Custom LED brake-light (to fit behind the custom lens).
Re-balance my front wheel (forgot to balance it with the discs on, so currently slight vibrations).
Cleaning up and repairing the chain guard.
New Pilot fuel jets, changed from 40 to 37.5
New K&N Airfilter
Final Sync and Tuning

After a couple of KM An oil change is scheduled, just to be safe.

 

Can you talk a little about your gauges, are those euro spec or did you pull then off another bike.

 

The gauges are Aftermarket Daytona Velona, ca 60mm in diameter, so quite small compared to the original ones. They are universal so you just have to choose mp/h or km/h in the setup. I am however having some difficulties with the tach, can't get good enough readings, I may have to splice one of the wires to the coils.

Here's a link to the manufacturer :
http://daytona-global.com/products/?pag ... categID=14

 

thanks for the information. I will look into these for my project.

 

that is a thing of beauty

 

This is straight up sexy. Well done

 

Broberg... love your bike so much... .I should have you build me one + ship it here