What did you do to your Yamaha today?

Colortune performed on my 82 650. Holy cow what a difference! Now all that's left is to re-synch and I'm good to go for our ride to Dubuque end of the week!

 

Just great first 80 degree day and drum roll 35 mile an hour wind gusts actually feel like 50 so cleaned up left muffler had some scuff marks from my shoe putting bike on center stand . Getting late got to go to bed soon maybe tomorrow I can ride .

 

Rode to work this morning and was still amazed at the difference the colortune made. Needed/wanted very little enrichment to start cold and was idling happy in just a short time. This thing is a rocket ship just like it was designed to be!

 

Broken intake manifold stud on my Xj750rl....&;$;&/&:&.
Right tool for the job!
Success

 

Today is a frustrating day, the more I'm going through the bike, the more problems I'm finding. It looks like I'm going to have to change to a round headlight, the stock one is destroyed. The cost of a replacement is just too expensive.

Is this with the stock airbox?

 

Yes, I left that in place. Depending on how things go next winter I may be removing the stock airbox for one of my own design since the plan is to (at some point) further modify the rear of the frame but I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I need to do a final synch on it but that likely won't happen until the weekend

 

I'll have to get myself a colourtune.

 

Some have reported troubles with them, arcing, not being able to see the flame real well, etc. I did find it easier to use it in a less than well lit area. I'd recommend it. Hit up Len at XJ4ever, that's where I got mine.

 

There should be plenty of extra stock buckets around I have a couple here and have seen many swapped for round ones

 

There are a few used damaged ones on eBay UK and nos buckets in Germany however they are from £80-£100.... I'm not paying that for a piece of plastic. My partner has offered to get one 3d printed for me.

I'll most likely find a round headlight though, something big enough to hide the wiring loom. If anyone knows of a direct replacement I'd be grateful. From what I've seen the maxim will swap over, however, UK availability is limited.

 

Yesterday I removed the carbs, exhaust, cams, head, and cylinder jugs and inspected everything. Measured what I could with digital calipers, but I don't really consider them accurate enough for engine stuff, and I don't have the proper micrometers to measure the pistons and the cylinder bores. I did measure end gap on a couple of the rings just out of curiosity, it was a little high but still within the service limit. These will all get remeasured and replaced as needed later.

Today I am dropping my cylinder jugs and head at the machine shop to have the bores properly measured, get it all hot tanked, and a valve job done. Pretty sure the cylinders are not too far worn, though there is practically no cross-hatch left in the bores. So it will need a hone at the least. I know the valve stem seal on one cylinder is completely shot, and it's neighbor is starting to go - lots of carbon and residue in those two cylinders' valve area and exhaust port. Thinking this may be one of the causes of my low compression on that cylinder, I'm guessing the valve seat is in poor shape, but I'll be the first to admit I'm no expert. We'll see what the shop says...

Tonight I plan to clean up the piston rings and the crankcase gasket surface, as well as remove the corrosion on the head studs. I also need to see about dropping the oil pan, and flushing out the crankcase directly below the pistons, as I'm positive some debris from the studs fell into the crankcase and I don't really want any of that in there when I'm putting it all back together (I am not separating the crankcase halves). Any input on the best fluid to use to spray through the crank/conrod area is appreciated.

Aaron

 

Have you looked into a spare engine

 

I observed "Take your XJ to Work" Day. It's a not-so-well-known holiday. It happens from time to time throughout the year, weather permitting. Truth be told, I celebrated it yesterday as well.

 

I don't have room for a second motor in my garage, and I'm afraid that I'll get one with sub-par compression and still have to go through an overhaul, be out a few hundred bucks, and it may still leak oil if the gaskets are old... I'd rather just fix this motor the right way even if it costs a little more.

I did find out that XJ4EVER has aftermarket oversize piston and ring kits (I only saw super expensive OEM ones in the catalog previously) so that will make this whole project much easier, and just a plain vanilla bore and oversize piston job which is quicker and will cost less in machine shop labor. So, valve job, bore, and fitting oversize pistons, and all new gaskets. Should run like a top when I'm done with it.

 

maybe the po drilled them out or just lost one and put what he had in it

 

every day is take your xj to work day rain or shine

 

You could do a leak down test on the engine before you bought it to ensure the compression was good.

 

I'm going to ride home in bumper to bumper traffic for 20 minutes and then if my wife hasn't made any plans for me I am going to try and finish pulling the carbs from my Virago.

 

Had a good day rode 40 miles bike ran great , looked at some new bikes not impressed . Cut yard , looked at ice maker on fridge , bless You Tube lol . Took a break fell asleep for an hour after grilling some steaks , went out in garage and worked on bike cleaned up some parts and painted some parts . Did a plug chop number 2 cylinder was lean turned mixture screw out a half turn going to check it after I ride a ways . A colortune would be nice BUT been abusing paypal so got to get it paid down first. The other thing I did started cleaning up spare engine so far it looks okay .

 

Well I am a newbie at doing stuff on my bike but I am doing it none the less. Lots of pics with the phone as I take things apart so I can remember how it goes back together and put all the screws and bolts in their spots so I do not lose them. Took off the master brake cylinder and replaced it. I am learning lots about my bike rebuilding it. Had to take the Rifle fairing off to find out where the wire attached to the assembly went (can tell I have never done this before LOL). Discovered it vanished into the back of the headlight along with 8 million other wires.

 

My sister is making a Tank Cover for me out of an old coat, it's going to look great once it is finished.

 

Added almost 500 miles to the odometer in the last 3 days

 

Pulled the wire out of the coil for cylinder 4 while changing a plug!
Doofus!

 

not much today - degreased barrels for painting, wheels ready from powder coat on Friday! - must get forks rebuilt and buy some tyres

 

Smushed a lot of bugs with it.

 

Put a couple miles on running around town, may or may not have left some rubber in the parking lot at work. Second set of clutch plates are soaking in oil, should hopefully start on that later this week as they're calling for rain, hopefully this set lasts much, much longer. People sure look at you funny when you have a gas can for the lawn mower strapped on going one way in town and then have a 12 pack strapped on going back home...

 

Dropped off pistons and valve stem seals at the machine shop yesterday. They'll be getting my cylinders bored out to match the 63.50mm pistons (THANK YOU XJ4EVER!) and doing a valve job.

Removed, fully cleaned, and reinstalled the oil pan with a new gasket, cleaned the oil level sensor, replaced the tach drive oil seal, and installed a voltmeter/USB charger on the handlebars.

 

Man, that's clean!

 

I sorta wanted to fry an egg in the center of it just to prove to myself that it's "clean enough to eat off"... but then I'd have to just clean it again!

 

I really wanted to ask how it was cleaned to nicely. Soda blasted??

 

dont know if they will fit but from OE the shockers are incorrectly mounted - gas canister should be towards front at least that is what my xj900 shows

 

well it finally happened, I wrecked my bike on the 8th of May
Short story truck in foront of me hand signaled to make a left turn when instead they turned right. causing me to play ping pong with the side of his truck and then a fence.
would like to blam the other driver yet I should have waited for him to make turn instead or trying to go by him.
Broke bone that contols little finger on right hand Very Lucky.
Waiting for insurance sompanyto see what they say hopefully they will total bike and I will buy it back as you can see not really alot of damage maybe 2-3 for repairs aat the most.
Ride Safe My Friends

 

Just carb cleaner and a nylon brush, and some elbow grease... The center screw on the removable rear baffle was super corroded for some reason, while the other two were just very snug. I had to use a manual impact driver (with a non JIS bit ) to get it out, which deformed the head a little, but I don't plan on removing it again for a long time!

 

Sorry to hear it, that sucks. I'm glad the damage to you (or your bike) wasn't worse. How long will the hand take to heal? Is it just splinted? This is definitely a good reminder to all of us to just slow down and "see what happens" rather than assume the cagers around us are going to do what it appears they are going to do!

 

Hi dowski glad you are ok (how is your hand) same thing happened to me last year and I bought my bike back. Fortunately I was uninjured.

 

Again, I'm glad you're okay. The damage looks light, mostly bars and blinker although I see a small dent in the tank and a chip in the speedo case. Over here in Australia, if you insure your bike as a historic vehicle (ie over 30 years old) the two main insurance companies pay you out AND give you the wreck. Pretty cool I think .

 

So sorry... hopes for a speedy recovery.

 

The tank dent was from previous owner and yes damage is light and I am glad that I a okay bumps and bruises showed up the next day lol.
Speedometer is okay except for the manual turn knob is broken off.

 

sligh

Bone that controls pinkie finger slight crack luckily that is all.
Thank You

 

The shocks on my XJ550 are the sketchy aftermarket ebay units that have been modified to function correctly. They are shit, as delivered,out of the box and are a source for enflamed hemeroids if your into that. Theres a guy I found on line that can actually turn RFY shocks from garbage to perfect street dampers for older bikes like our XJs. One of the wisest modifications anyone should do on an older machine is address the suspension and install newer stuff.
They aren't OEM which is unfortunate and blessing depending on how you look at it. Ill take the newer technology stuff for a better ride anyday. Im not a purist.
I attempted to mount the shocks with the reservoir forward and ran into clearance issues plus adjusting the charge pressure is easier as they sit.
The shocks and swingarm will be up for sale after this riding season as I am gathering stuff up to monoshock the rear suspension (and keep the airbox).

 

Did some deliveries...again ( you can take the courier out of Manchester, etc, etc, lol) on the Seca to Connecticut.....had some rain, bright sunshine, bike was a wee bit buzzy, at 5-6 thou?, other than that, and my slightly rapid filtering ( I forgot just how GOOD the slim XJ is at this...and why I chose it, and it's derivatives (Seca 650, Maxim 750) for the majority of my courier work in the uk, oh so many lifetimes ago!!!), it was a fantastic run....even hitting 90, on occasions, she purred ( and vibrated....just a little, lol) and STILL averaged 52MPG, on my ( unscientific) Tank Fill/Trip meter calculation!!

I wish Yamaha still made these things, !! PS WHY, they never gave the Seca's a 6th gear/overdrive, is beyond me, also ....if ANY bike needed it, it's the Seca!!!

 

Blimey......glad you are relatively ok !! ...poor XJ!!!

 

[QUOTE="I wish Yamaha still made these things, !! PS WHY, they never gave the Seca's a 6th gear/overdrive, is beyond me, also ....if ANY bike needed it, it's the Seca!!![/QUOTE]

Been riding mine a year and a half now and still keep reaching for 6th just about every ride... I must think it might someday magically appear...

 

You should try an 80's or 90's Kawasaki.....you'll search for 7th, and 8th those things can be so....buzzy!!!!

 

Try a Honda Rebel, you will search for more gears, more cylinders, more leg room, more seat padding...

 

I just contacted a salvage yard here in Oregon and he still has the 85 xj700x in his yard. 500.00 and its mine-Yeah
Only missing the rear shocks, carbs and the instrument cluster. A deal really as I have looked for replacements parts and those are almost the same price of the parts bike.

Ok just back from the bone docs and she said only a stone bruise on my right hand (just bruised real bad).
Now I just waiting for the insurance company to pay up. Then I will go and get the other bike for parts that I need.
I hopefully will be back on the road within 2 weeks.

Overall I would like to thank the XJ community for all there well wishes !

A very quick reminder to NEVER assume anything when on the road with CAGERS!

Ride Safe my Friends.

 

Didn't do as much as I wanted to ...poured down rain most of the day ....went with wide to casino , won some money and deposited it back in before we left noticed my clutch lever had slop in the bracket. Dug thru my washer bin and found an extra thin washer it really took slop out of lever.

 

I have a 1982 XJ750 maxim. My first motorcycle ever xD. I got it for 200 got it running by watching carb cleaning video's on youtube. Also how I found this forum lol. So today I am gonna set the new spark plugs to there proper gap positioning with my new tool. AND see what the "shivs" or "shim"? spacing is at? lol. Despite my tutorial level knowledge. I have a good conception of mechanical things and the bike seems to run better and better the more I do as instructed from informative resources from forums inspired by cool fans of this bike. I am really having a good time riding it, its getting so fast XD. Carb syncing is the most complex goal to get right. Bet its getting good fuel to air ratio so I think its going great and I am enjoying myself.

 

Welcome JP

You are off to a good start. When I started, the great people here have taught me to: (in this order)

1. Safety Items, break shoes, front brake lines, etc.
2. Valve clearances and spark plugs
3. Carb rebuild including throttle shaft seals, includes bowl fuel level setting dry and wet
4. Synchronization (I got a four gauge set up on line for about $45)
5. Colortune for fuel air mix, which has sync. in it as well.
6. Synchronization again

Or you could wing it like I did for almost a year and do everything three times

 

used some aircraft stripper to strip my gas tank the stuff is great