I'm new, and I was lucky enough to find

a 1985 XJ700 Maxim on CL for 340 bucks. It wasn't a basket case, but had sat outside for 3 years until the guy decided to sell it. He lost the keys and the title. 2 immediate strikes. Luckily, he decided to drive the hour to the state office and get it. Sweet. title in hand the next day.
Not so lucky on the keys. He popped the ignition and the seat lock. ugh. he put in fresh gas, a new battery and it fired right up. He pulled the carbs, cleaned them and it would idle. barely.
So, I gave him the 340, smiled, signed and loaded it up.
I got it home and immediately started tinkering. Had to use a screwdriver to jump the relay. dammit. picked up 2 tires, and had them put on.
I sync'ed the carbs, but no. 4 was very low on the meter. So, I shut it down, checked for leaks, and found the boots to the motor were loose. snugged the allen bolts and fired it back up. carbs looked good. shut it down, put the tank back on, replaced the caps and took it around the block. Wife is shaking her head, but I proceed anyway. great power through first and second. I run out of room, hit the front brakes, and she stops smooth as silk. hit the long part of the block and hit third this time and it pulls like a dream. nice and smooth acceleration. I start to hear a pop from one side of the engine coming out the exhaust. I get back to the house, pull in to the drive and I pull the clutch and it goes straight to 4k RPM. not good. I shut it down and let it cool. I checked the throttle cable, the choke, etc and they are in good working order. nothing sticks that I can see. check for leaks again. no leaks.

So, the to-do list is:
go through the carbs. clean them top to bottom- re-sync
new fork seals
new rear shoes
new speedo gear
clutch work (replace if needed)
new key/ignition and starter relay
recover the seats
paint next year

whew. I think I just typed a novel.
oh, I am helmet. I like slow walks on the beach, a picnic and my XJ. A friend had an 85 X model 17 years ago, and I have loved them ever since. I probably fell in love with it more when he raced a ZX7 ninja and toasted it. dunno if it was the driver of the ninja or the power and speed of the X, but I was hooked. I passed on a honda shadow 1100 and a suzuki marauder 800 to wait for the perfect bike. Luckily, I found it and I hope my summer involves long rides and no speeding tickets.

edit: I have added a pic of the bike. garage is a mess, and she isnt pretty... yet.

 

Congrats!

Make sure to check your throttle shaft seals. Chances are that they need to be replaced.

For a seat cover, check out B&H Specialities. They make nice stock looking seat covers.

 

I know I'm beginning to sound like a walking ad for these guys, but they've done two seats for me now, really reasonable prices and impeccable work: http://www.sargentcycle.com/custserv.htm

+1 on rear brake shoes, delamination is a common failure and can lock the rear unexpectedly.

Welcome aboard; make sure you get a service manual if you don't already have one (but it sounds like you might.)

 

I dont have the manual... yet. I plan to drop by the local shop to pick one up in the next week or so.
As for the carbs, I will tear them down tomorrow since it will be raining for the next week or so and highs in the 50's here. Global warming???? pfffft.

I have put a pic of her up as well.

 

Wow, sounds like a great find! I hope you'll have it up and running in no time!

 

it runs, but the carbs need work. I am going to tear them down and clean them right and drive it and fix the rest slowly.
I'm in no hurry to have the odds and ends done.

 

Before you go to the local Yamaha shop and purchase a manual, they're gonna cost extra bucks there! There is only one book for the XJ700N and, its the Yamaha Shop manual. Sounds like it would be the ultimate book for the bike but, guess again. The Official book leaves so much to be desired when it comes to explaining how to do stuff. You still need that book but, I would suggest getting the Yamaha XJ650 XJ750 Maxim Seca XJ 650 750 REPAIR MANUAL by Haynes as well. There are alot more pictures and clearer explinations on how to do stuff. You can bounce between the two books to get a better understanding of what you are trying to fix. The XJ700 book can give you all of the proper torques and spec sizes ect. I even have a Clymers manual for the 79-81 Honda CB 750 that helps me to get a better understanding of some things that are not really clear. You can get all of the Yamaha books from "chacal" our local parts Guru on this forum. He is also amazing with, what seems like an endless supply of parts that can't be found anywhere else!! Oh yeah, BTW Welcome to the forum! There's so much here to learn, you should stay busy for quite some time.
Cheers
Ken

 

thanks for the nice welcome! I have never been a fan of haynes manuals because they seem to omit quite a bit of info/steps. i have found this to be the case on my jeeps and chevy's.
i will get with chacal and see if he has a few things I could use.
thanks again!

 

helmet,

Instead of buying the manual, invest $10.00 and get the XJCD (set of 3 actually). It's got the service manual, the parts manual, etc. for your bike and many others. Plus a database of cross referenced parts numbers.

You can get it here,

http://www.xjcd.org/

 

I might like this more
I would like to find a relay that would work w/out spending an arm and a leg
the local shops here charge 80 for it.

 

Welcome aboard. Lucky find.

What relay do you need?

Check ebay as there are lots of xj700 parts there. You might find what you need.

 

starter relay. mine just clicks when you hit the button. so, I start it with a screwdriver to jump the posts right now. not very efficient or convenient. in fact, a screwdriver is my key too. if I'm on a hill, it's nice to roll start it so I dont have to pull the seat, etc.

there is a cycle salvage about 40 minutes from here that has all the parts I need. they have the relay for 25, gas cap for 25, and the ignition key/switch for 60.
i am going to hit ebay for the fork seals and clutch, though. I did look for a seat on there, but those prices are a bit much just for a place to park my butt :lol:

 

Just be aware that the XJ700 starter solenoid/relay and ignition switches are NOT the same as used on almost all other XJ-series bikes.......

 

thank you for clarifying. when I was looking up the parts, etc. I was running into that. I thought 85 and 86 were very isolated from their predecessors in regards to parts, and it turns out my thoughts were correct.

it's 10pm.... what to do? i think I am going to pull the carbs off the bike

 

If the tank has been open and rusted, check-out the electrolysis method for removing rust. That may be a good shot if it is a problem.

From the pic, looks like you got a pretty good deal. Headers look a little rusted, so you may want to start with a clean-up there to see if there are any places where it rusted through. Stock headers are hard to come by, so you will need to start looking sooner rather than later for a set if that is a problem.

 

Helmet, buy the CD, I have had a manual on order since 4/6
Hanes needs to print some, before they ship.

 

will do.
when I clicked ordering info, it would only take me back to the homepage. it wouldnt take to a page to order and pay

 

I did check the headers over, and they are not rusted through. No. 2 seems to have a little more rust than the others, though. I am going to get some steel wool and clean them up eventually. I am more concerned about the mechanical issues now and will focus on cosmetics this winter.

 

update on my progress with going through the carbs.
I pulled the diaphram and slides out. there were some marks on the slides so I could see where grit or something was causing them to catch. none passed the clunk test. using some scotch pads, I was able to clean them and the passages up to where they all passed the test. cool.
I took the bowls off to check the jets. the jets came undone really easily. this worried me. I inspect the jets on number 1, and they are clean. I clean thoroughly there and put the jets back in. get them snug and replace the bowl.
number 2 had concerned me since I bought it. again, cleaned the slides, etc.
pulled the bowl. no main jet?!?!?!??!?!?! it's gone. I mean missing in action. the copper gasket is there. I pull the float out and there is the jet. I cuss, nearly call the guy I bought it from, but decide against it. it would ruin the only good karma I have had lately. I put the jets back in.
long story short, 3 and 4 were the same. loose jets. I put the bike back together and go for a spin. fires right up. very little choke. I am feeling very very good at this point. I shuffle the kids in, kiss the wife, sneer at the dog and grab my shades. time for a quick trip to test it out. I pull on to my street, give it a little gas and she wakes up like a rocket had gone off. I ease off a bit and shift to second. nice and smooth I get back into it. hit a stop sign and sit for second. idle is dancing about 1100. I can live with it. let off the clutch, but forgot to give it throttle. she dies. frick. anyone that has read my first post knows I have to take the seat off and jump the relay. I get it fired back up, let the car behind me go around. I take off and decide to see what it can do. I lay in the throttle at about 3k and before I can blink I am shifting to second then third.
Way more power than I remember, and more than it has had for a very long time.
sadly, I noticed the rpm wasnt dropping. frick again. I stop and it immediately climbs to 2500. I take off to come back home and I hit another light. idle is normal. next stop sign, its back up again.

i am making progress... a few more hours of tinkering and I think I will get it figured out.
any tips to look at?
I checked the boots and they are good. no leaks from the exhaust side of the carb to the engine.
the rubber boots in the intake side may be another story. but I dont see those causing an issue like I am seeing.

 

Hey Helmet,

I sent an email to the xjcd website at www.xjcd.org. The ordering info link is working now.

 

Check your throttle shaft seals to see if they are leaking. They can create some funky idle symptoms sometimes. Also while you are at it, check your intake boots. Unlit propane torch is the most common method.

After you check that, sync your carbs and see if that helps.

The normal path is to check the valves first, then sync though.

 

Helmet - just to clarify what Joe was saying about the torch.

Get the bike idling.
Get a propane torch, open the gas valve but don't light it.
Move the torch all around your carbs, intake boots, manifolds, vac caps, throttle area (you'll prob get a leak right there!)

If the idle moves at all (assuming it is steady otherwise) then you have a leak. Pinpoint it!

 

Or heck, go ahead and light it first, that would be fun! :lol:

 

CHACAL! Light it!?

What are you DOING...

Have you been reading those damn Yamma Manuals again?

 

thanks guys!
this weekend I will find my torch and go through it. On Wed. I replaced the boot clamps because some of mine were bent up from the PO working on it. It starts a little smoother and uses less choke to start now, but now it has a slight pop through the exhaust at idle. it still raps up to 3 or 4k when it is warm, but if I come to a stop and downshift to 1st and let the brakes drag the engine to 1500 or so, it will idle normal until I touch the throttle.
just for posterity, I am going to pull the carbs one more time and make sure I covered all my bases, and inspect the the throttle shaft seals, etc.
I am going to call around to get prices on having the valves done since I dont have enough knowledge (yet) on clearances, shims, etc.

fork seals are next.. yay!

 

Helmet, where do you live. There might be someone close who can give you a hand. Have you checked with Chacal to see if he has the correct factory manual? I got the one for my 650 and I love it!

 

a valve shim job isn't terribly hard to do. there are a few write-ups on it that make it very easy. A valve job involves pulling the cams and head out. a little bigger of a job, but still not terribly difficult IMO.

Your idle issue sounds like either an air leak, or a sticky diaphragm bore.

SEARCH: clunk test

 

in my earlier post, I tore the carbs down and none passed the clunk test. I cleaned up the slides and the passage for them and now they clunk. I am going to see what I can do to find a leak and then tear into them again.
I am going to feel like crap if it is something easy.


I am going to get the XJ CD's so I can have all the handy parts info. I will especially need it this winter since I am going to dismantle the bike and spend 5 months cleaning it up, new paint on the fenders and tank and also repaint the frame.
engine will probably get re-done if time/money allows. It's more that the wife has to allow me to do it :lol:

 

Nice find, Helmet. I paid a bit more for mine, and it was a bit worse off than what you got. (Actually, a year into it, I've determined a lot worse off.) I had to replace my throttle shaft seals, because I was having the same goofy idle issue. I also replaced those manifold boots. One thing I can't complain about is seized bolts, I haven't broke anything off into this bike, which is surprising as all get out. How are your Manifolds? Mine appeared OK, but it was really the cracks close to the clamps that were causing problems. The temporary fixes did not work for me. She idles like a dream now though Keep us posted, and good luck!

P.S. If you do the propane test, get the bike nice and warm... I was doing it at chilly idle, and those manifold boots hadn't warmed up enough to let the cracks open. I never actually did a propane test to figure that out; Once warm, I could see little micro cracks pulsing open in time with the carburetor.

 

I did the leak test and it came back with flying colors. I am going to tear back into the carbs this week and give it one more go with them
I am going to pull the carbs completely apart and dip them for a couple hours and blow through them with some air and carb spray.

we'll see how it goes.

 

helmet, FYI: our bikes are supposed to idle around 1100 rpm, my bike idles at around 900, a tid bit low... but in the manual it says 1100, jsut to let u know

 

Make sure not to dip the rubber parts in carb dip. They will melt. Another user reported success with no damage to rubber by using a diluted solution of simple green and an ultrasonic cleaner. However, he did break the rack to put each carb in separately.