xj650 brat/tracker

Thanks for that so it's a switched power?

Unfortunately sybe inbox is full so I can't message him

 

it is turned on by the ignition switch key and feed by the main fuse

main fuse sends voltage to key when key is turned on the voltage goes to the brown wire back to the fuse box and to alt brushes to excite them

 

Did you get this figured out?

 

I have spliced and wired both browns in with the main 12v red from the regulator/rectifier to a switched 12v I think I have it right

 

what do you mean by switched 12 volt?

the stock configuration the brown wires from key to fuse block are switched on by the key. so is the brown wire to alternator brushes.
key is powered from main fuse , when switched on it powers the brown wires.

if you mimic this action with a toggle switch or something similar you should be good

 

Both brown wires are connected via the aux out on the munit. This way power is controlled via the key.

 

To consolidate some of my threads i am posts some updates to my bike here.

Since the bike was last "finished" everything was great. The bike ran good, looked good and it was home in Brooklyn! Rode it into Manhattan once a week to work which was amazing. The morning drive on the FDR highway towards 42nd street... with the sun shining on the water, the wind and being 80 degrees i was in love all over again.

Once riding weather was over the bike got wrapped up and chained to a telephone pole where i live. The following winter took a toll on the bike and basically beat the crap out of it. From the constant snow, salt and rain, the frame near the center stand started to rust, my gas tanks clear coat showed a few weak points and the rain destroyed the clear over bare metal. Worse of all, the fiberglass seat pan fasteners rusted out as well and broke out of the fiberglass. Being heart broken I brought the bike back to New Jersey and looked at everything that happened and came up with a new plan:

• The first thing i addressed was the gas tank and it was the easiest. After talking to different body shops and paint specialists they didn't recommend using clear over metal, pushing me to my decision to paint the whole tank silver with reproducing the red striping.

• Next was fabricating a new seat using marine boat epoxy and coming up with a new mounting system. The previous system used two 1/4 quick release bolts to hold the pan down. The mounting points were two L-brackets that i welded to the frame. Over time this system became a pain, if the screws weren't tight enough they would fall out and get lost. Also sometimes aligning them up was annoying. The solution i came up with was to cut the two tabs off the frame and weld in a new 1/8th thick cross bar that was roughly 2.5 - 3 inches in depth and use larger stainless steel Butterfly Self-Ejecting Quarter Turn Fasteners. The new fasteners are riveted into the new cross bar and the mounting point is not inside the seat. See link for product demo .

• I did a r6 fork swap....The r6 forks are installed with updated hand controls. I bounced around the idea of going for the new minimal buttons by motone and others but i couldn't justify the price for clicky buttons. The hand controls i went with are from a GSXR 750 GSXR750 (right) and 2002 Suzuki Haybusa GSX1300R Busa (left). The Busa left hand controls updates the look a bit and has an integrated choke that to me is more streamlined. I had to make a few modifications to the controls wiring and create a new collar for the throttle cable. but i am happy with how they turned out.

• New renthal handlebars

• Rewired the entire bike to use 110 terminal connectors.

• Center stand replaced

• repainted parts of the frame

Whats next:

• new shorter headlight brackets: I don't like the current placement.

• new custom brake lines

• master cylinder res removal

• new turn signals

• might modify the rear tail and fender to work with LED Supernova Brake and Turn-Signal Lights

 

How's your ground clearance with the R6 forks? Did you change the rake angle? Did you change the forks springs? I have a set of R1 forks getting prepped to go on my '82 750 Maxim. At 31.5 (Maxim) degrees the R1 forks may be pretty short? I will probably re-set the head tube to 25 degrees.
Cheers, 50gary

 

110 is that a style or quantity? seems like a lot

 

I didn't change the rake angle or the offset. I am using the r6 stock bottom triple tree with a cognitomoto top tree and stem. If you want to do a custom offset on the triples i believe cognitomoto can make those adjustments on a custom top and bottom set. The front of the bike will be lower, i dont recall how much lower. To help balance out the stance i plan on going with a taller front tire. 130/80 17 and lowering the rear shock. i have a 12.5 inch shock on the bike now so going to 11 should be fine.

i am not in a rush so i am taking my time with it. i dont plan on changeing the fork springs unless its needed.

lol its the new trend and look for cafe connectors. i used MTW 2.8mm-.110 connectors for 16-22 gauge wire.

 

I went with 1.0kgm Race Tech springs what their spring chart recommended for the weight of the XJ. I have not got the forks back as yet.
Cheers, 50gary

 

Thanks for the info, if the forks feel spongy I'll take a look at those springs. i might need heavier duty weighing in at 234 @ 6'1.

 

http://www.cycleterminal.com/110-connectors.html
that's better

 

Are you going to install a steering stabilizer with the forks?

 

Made some new additions to the bike. Got the r6 front end installed lsl 6.5" headlight bucket and lsl brackets. I also rewired the bike and installed motogadget blaze pin turn signals, new brake lines, epoxy sealed and painted the center stand, cut and welded kick stand, xj700 rear rim still needs to get installed after sanding and painting, wiring needs cleaning up still. looking for ways to minimize the rats nest and have to fabricate a new speed sensor bracket. koso brackets are horrible

 

Bike looks awesome man! You’re going to love the way that front end feels!

 

it's easier to hide something on the back wheel/swingarm than the forks

 

i am trying to come up with rear mounting options. thinking of welding a bracket to the rear swing arm. Other option for the front is drilling into a chunk of aluminium between the calipers and the fork. I have an m5 Reed sensor that works with the speedometer and its small enough to hide. just not comfortable with drilling into the bottom of the fork. I really don't know why they don't miniaturize sensors for motorcycle applications. I am talking about you koso!

This weekend i am painting the rear wheel, cleaning up rusted parts on the bike and shooting them with etch primer and 2k epoxy primer ontop. while they dry I will shift to the speed sensor. I want to do the dynacoil upgrade, I don't have starting issues now but they are original coils. is the upgrade worth it or wait till they fail?

 

I can’t zoom in on the pictures too close but in my case I used stock bottom fork bracket where front fender used to mount for speed sensor. Works well.

 

My setup has a slightly different pattern on the bottom bracket. The fender mounts work but arent clean. the bracket would be visible. It looks like I can drill a hole into the fin looking area and not compromise strength.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tbran/48001285381/

 

Yeah, your layout is different than mine. Here is how mine. Not the cleanest set up (wire is visible) but that’s the only thing I came up with, at least for the time being.

 

i have it mounted inside the front fender, never thought about taking off the front wheel. the wheel won't come out with it mounted.
i made my own little pain in the

 

Also just noticed that you have same front brake fluid “reservoir “ as I did. It won’t work. I found out the hard way. I would advice you to look into proper reservoir, I am using one from rear brake of R1.

 

I already tried it and it worked for me. I only have it on there as a temp while i bleed the brakes and tested everything . What i don't like about it is has more to do with the lack of brake fluid circulation and i am not sure i trust the rubber tube to hold up over the long term with the high internal pressure from braking. I am currently looking for a low profile reservoir. British customs makes one but i don't want to shell out $100.

I ended up painting the rear wheel with 2k hot rod black and 2k satin clear. I decided to strip the satin clear and go with gloss. Stain clear is annoying to maintain and holds onto dirt. I also made a bracket to mount the speedometer on the front fender mount. The bracket tucks nicely on the inside of the fork and hides everything by the fork fluid reservoir. To make this work i ditched the Koso speed sensor and went with the motogadget m5 passive 2 wire sensor. I wont be working on the bike again till after my sons birthday on the 23rd. At 2 years old he loves to help me tighten bolts, steal my tools, and beep the horn.

i love it

 

For a reservoir on the rear you might try one of the small sized translucent cup style like the sport bikes use. There are two sizes, the smaller one is preferable. I think there isn't any pressure on the reservoir.
Cheers, 50gary

 

Yeah, did some work on the mower and also the older son's bike with my 3 1/2 yr old this week. It's a hoot, watching them get all serious as they work on "grown up" stuff... and then less of a hoot as you realize that your last 10mm socket went missing! I know what I'm getting for Father's Day this year! lol

 

10mm sockets are a myth! ask anyone , nobody has one in there tool kit

 

I actually own more 10mm sockets than any other size....for a very annoying reason.

 

I think you can dismantle 95% of a japanese motorcycle with a 10 mm wrench and #2 JIS driver.

 

I love that, my son just turned 3 and he takes working on the bike very seriously. According to him he installed the horn, front wheel, brakelines and rear wheel. oh and helped me make sure all the bolts were tight for the exhaust.

 

my 10mm sockets mysteriously vanish. I am buy a new one on average twice a year

 

I want this shirt

 

to give an update to this the wheels are painted and look great. I tried two motogadget speed sensors a two wire and three. The two wire sensor worked but wasnt accurate, so I removed it. to test it I glued a magent to the chuck on my drill and placed it 1/8th of an inch from the sensor, and wired it to the bike. the drill spun at a consistent speed but the two wire sensor would jump from 25 to 80 mph. the koso speed sensor is 3 wires and was consistent. I am still looking at other options but might try a gps sensor koso sells. just don't know how reliable it will be driving through Manhattan. I found other 3 wire sensors but aren't worth the money or smaller than the koso sensor

 

To recap another thread, I was getting rf and emi interference on my mbutton, so I replaced my plug wires with supression spiro wires by taylor. seems ok but I still see the occasional random turn signal flash. less than before, going to try a copper wire mesh on the button to see if that helps.

I did run into a new issues this past weekend, for some reason my boot to head gaskets started to leak giving me a lean mixture, so after eating tacos for dinner I made new gasket seals using the taco box... I used permatx gasket dresser and sealant to make it a lil beefier. it works beautifully. Did a color tune to check the new coils, gaskets and wires and 3 and 4 were perfect, 1 and 2 great spark but would not fire unless I gave it throttle. I sprayed starter fluid into 1 and 2 at idle and with the color tune in and they came to life.

I suspect it to be a carb issue, but I am concerned it could be a piston ring problem. I rechecked the valve shims and they were in spec, going to double check after I warm up the engine. last time I checked the valves shims the engine was cold. not sure if that makes a difference.

I won't work on the bike for another 2 weeks but these are the steps I plan on doing to trouble shoot.

compression test
leak down test
check floats
inspect jets

is there anything else I should check?

 

Valve clearances are always to be checked with a cold (ambient air temperature) engine.

I'd check to see that the floats on 1 and 2 aren't stuck, preventing fuel from getting into the bowls. Sometimes they can get airlocked on the first fill too.
Rap on the bowls with a screwdriver handle, and crack the bowl drains to check for flow.
Might be worthwhile to inspect the vacuum port caps too while you're down that way.

 

i'd swap the plugs around first

 

it's not the plugs they are new and it's happening with the color tune in. I can see it arching with the color tune but no bueno unless i give her throttle.

caps are nice and tight. I coated the boots and carb with starter fluid while it ran looking for a leak and nothing.

I really hope it's the floats. I want it to be simple.

 

hi folks, hope everyone is playing it safe with covid. I finally have some time to work on the bike again wooohoo and I have a confusing problem.

I performed a compression test and I got 160 psi on 1 3 and 4. on cylinder 2 I got 150 psi, added a lil engine oil and it shot up to 200+ psi.

I rechecked valve shims, made some tweaks, did another test, same numbers. I performed a leak down test and... I am concerned. 3 and 4 are perfect, minimal psi drop. 1 and 2 is horrible, 2 doesn't hold anything sounds like its comes out the intake and exhaust. cylinder 1 100psi spins the motor, at 70 psi nothing spins but comes out the intake.

I am about to pull the head to look at it but could this be a shim issue or valve seals? I don't thinks its the rings but then why the increase on the compression test.

need advise and I can take video if necessary

 

update... pulled the yics blocking tool i use and replaced the orings. no issues. I did a leakdown at 100psi and it leaked. Thinking the values are moving a bit, did it again at 70 psi no leak. slowly increased the psi to 100 and equal pressure all the way through.

I hate yics. it there a better way to block it?

 

just completed another compression test... 190 psi. there is still oil in the cylinder. shoukd I pull the heads and check?

 

how did you do the leak down test? did you make sure the the valves were closed on the cylinder you tested?

comp test increasing with oil is normal it indicates rings.10 psi difference is in spec.

 

Prior to test i bring each cylinder to top dead center, then hook up the gauges and perform the test. #1 would move at 100psi so i would do 70psi and raise the pressure. I pulled the yics blocking rod that i normally keep inside to check it on a hunch and replaced the orings and i found some burnt gunk on the rod. cleaned and replaced the orings and redid the test and no leaking.

I thought when you add oil to the cylinder there shouldnt be any increase on a compression test. if you do, its a sign of a bad ring. When i redid the compression test on #2 with oil still in it, it shot up to 190 from 150. isnt that a sign of a bad ring or am i looking for a problem i dont have.

 

oil will seal rings it is whats done to find if its rings or something elas.

do you run your motor ride it with the yics blocking tool in place?

 

I do, I never take out the yics blocking tool

 

went for a ride today. couldn't resist. driving good, gotta tweak a few things but all is well.

might swap out my speedo for something different. the koso tnt is fussy.

I have a side project... i am attempting to convert a cbr300 rear wheel with disc break to fit the xj650 by cutting down a rear clutch hub from an xj900. Got most of it done... just need a mill to get everything round. The hub fits the rim with some modifications. I also need to make the bushings which isn't hard.

 

I also want to lower the front of the tank no rush and rather get the rear disc sorted.

 

What do you mean "rear clutch hub" Confused (not unusual for me)
I used a hub from an XJ1100 (has disc brake that I didn't use) and a front wheel (tri-spoke with rim) from a 2000 R1. I TIG welded it together and it's centered properly and true. I can't get pictures to load otherwise I'd have shown it a month ago, sorry about that. About the disc brake, I made an adaptor for a modern rear rotor from a moto-X bike to mate to the XJ hub. Now the front and rear wheels match and are both 17" for modern radials, Pirelli Diablo Rosso III 120/70/17" front and matching Pirelli 140/70/17" rear. Then I run a custom S/S brake line to the left handlebar and M/C for a "Thumb Brake"
Cheers, 50gary

 

on the xj900 rear wheel the drive clutch hub (gear) comes off on its own hub and uses bushings. I matted thus to a cbr300 rim by reducing the diameter and trimming the prongs that go into the hub/bushings. if I get this to work then I just need to buy a rear disc, caliper mc and bracket from the cbr300 or just go brembo.

 

would love to see photos

 

So you have r1 front wheel on the back, what do you have up front?
I'm contemplating using x900s wheels front and back, with brakes on my 900f frame project, any pitfalls you see? Sorry for the hijack...