My project: "Maxim Destruction"

I got this bike two months ago, and it was in quite a few pieces. The engine was out, the carbs were incomplete (missing float valves, couple main jets, etc) it had been laid down, the bars were bent... and the previous owner had no story, other than his son took it to vo-tech trying to fix a hard starting issue, and the result was a bike-in-a-box. His son passed away, so I am flying blind.

I got the bike for $200, and have put about $200 more in it so far. My intention is to leave it pretty rough looking because if I wanted a pretty bike, well, I would have kept saving :lol: . I will post up some pics.

 

This is what the bike looked like when I bought it. The wheels are acceptable, but the faux gold trim was a bit much for me. I'll take ugly flat black over ugly pitted/chipped gold any day.



I cleaned the carbs, only to find that they were missing enough internals that buying a whole set of rebuilt carbs on eBay was cheaper, so that's what I did. I ended up selling these on eBay and making back most of what I had spent. Pretty cool...and yes I did tell the winning bidder that they were missing those parts.


The engine had been pulled by the PO's son, and who knows what he did to it. I am pretty sure that he had the top end off of it, and I have neither the time or money to yank it apart and inspect it all, so..in it goes!

 

Ok, where to begin? I got the eBay carbs (with pre-installed DynoJet larger mains). I decided that the look and improved performance (hopefully) of pod filters was the way to go, so I figured the larger main jets would work out fine. Anyway, here's the bike with the engine in, and carbs on; bent buckhorn bars pulled.

 

great find, great price, great starting point to make it cherry

 

Got the wiring done, bought some cheap "Daytona" style handlebars on eBay. realized the original master cylinder assembly was a lost cause, and replaced it with one from a Suzuki TL1000R that I had. Besides, the curve of the bars tilted the original reservoir at an odd angle. Brakes work quite well--the action is linear and braking effort is reduced. I got rid of the nasty-looking gold headlight ring, and installed a new headlight. Also got some new exhaust gaskets and the headers connected. Would like to get a Kerker or Mac system eventually to really take advantage of the pods.

P.S. that's my oldest son, Caleb. I think he wants to hear the thing run more than me!

 

Well, I did a chemical rinse of the tank, bought a harley-style screw-in bung and cap, and got the tank on. I remedied some more of the nasty gold trim, bought a new battery, and naively hoped it would just fire right up! Well, at this point I know I probably need to pull the carbs again, sync and bench tune them and get them. I have a "help wanted" ad in the buy/sell/trade/wanted section, hoping to get some help with those. More to come.
Future plans include different signals and seat. Anyone know of a seat that is "plug and play" and isn't so bulbous and disproportionate? Thanks.

 

Like the filters.. Thinking about doing exactly that on my bike with a dynojet stage 3 kit...Were did you get them from?

 

i got a crappy stock seat off ebay and chopped it up and put my girlfriend to work with the sewing machine i bought her for christmas and had her make me a new cover. i'm going to make a thread about it when i get home from work so i can take some pics

 

I believe the eBay seller is sportingforless. Great price and I believe they are washable. Make sure they are the correct diameter. Mine were a couple mm big, but they tighten well enough onto the carb body. Good luck and let me know how the project turns out--good or bad.

 

I bought a solo springer seat with 2 inch springs from a local shop for under 60 bucks. Might look into something like that.

 

those filters look just like the EMGO ones I got for about $10 a pop. They're solid enough, you can use filter oil if you like (prolly should) They may be cheap chinese junk but I will say that they keep the bees out of the butterflies like velocity stacks never will.

 

Cool thanks. You don't happen to remember the diameter do you? Save me taking my boots off again.

 

caleb wants you to finish it so he can go pick up chicks! cute kid, im sure he keeps you busy!

looks like you are off to a good start with the bike.

check out harley sportster seats, a lot of people are running them on their chop'd bikes. i dont know how it will work with a stock framed/paneled bike, but it may fit up with minimal fab.

 

Pm Hogfiddles, he knows of other xj owners in the PA area that might be able to help. He has a carb clinic and theres a few guys from PA that show up that are pretty knowledgable on these bikes.

Cleaning these carbs isn't bad, but finding the right jet size for working with pod air filters can be a complete pain.

good luck.

 

The ones I got are labeled 52mm and if I had it to do over again I'd get the next size smaller (48mm I think but don't remember)
these ones fit fine but they slip on real easy and I really have to crank on the hose clamp. I'd rather they fit tight and just snug up the hose clamp a bit.
The box on these ones (and the book hanging from the shelf) said these 52mm fit my bike (a list of bikes on the filter box and a nice index of bikes in the parts book with part numbers of products that fit that bike)

bare in mind Emgo is some cheap chinese crap a lot of the time but they DO seem to be the cream of the crop when it comes to dirt cheap crap, if that's saying anything. I like to crash a lot, lol so that's where I get all my blinkers, mirrors, clutch and brake levers. I'd be a hypocrite if I told you not to buy 'em. I think the biggest reason I "go emgo" is that it's carried at a local store I can actually walk into, pick what I want off the shelf and hand the gal behind the counter some green folding money. A satisfying experience in this day and age.

 

Yeah, my pods are the bigger size (52mm) as well. I would do the size smaller as well if I had it all to do over again. Or maybe just stick with the ugly airbox, which everyone seems to be saying makes it run better. Anyway, I have the carbs off and am bench syncing them sometime tonight. Will keep ya updated.

 

I also have the 52mm's and would reccomend going down to the 48's if not 46's.

 

Update: My carbs don't seem to be passing fuel along to the intake (even with petcock set to "prime"), so back to the drawing board.

I have seen several posts regarding the avoidance of pod filters, and even high-flow and/or 4-into-1 exhausts with some of these bikes (perhaps only the smaller engines like mine?). At the same time, I have encountered many of you who are running them, but haven't really seen anyone refuting the anti-pod-er comments. Is it because they're just right; airboxes are better? On top of all of this, I have found a decent amount of bikes on YouTube with pods that sound like they're running pretty dang good. Any comment? Here are some links.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=he9LYO8bOws

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K23pNFxGWkE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sdyf4CDACdw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw6oX3gBrhE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6WDE4pZwWM

I mean, that last one is a 550, running completely open carbs (stupid, I know) and open exhaust, and it seems pretty healthy. What gives?

 

I know several people who upgraded their xjr to run pods, straight thru zorst and just put stage 3 jets in without a problem, but the XJR has a 1300 engine.

From what I read, the problem with pods is that the bike then runs lean, even with bigger jets. It's got something to do with the way the pilot jet introduces air into the system, I think there's a solution on here somewhere. Other people just run lean and deal with the flat spot I suppose.

 

Yeah, I am digging into this thread--> http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=25242/highlight=pod+filters.html <-- with great interest. It seems I joined this forum at the right time, eh? Now I just need to either create some velocity stacks (the original boots are long gone) or find a way to create a separate port coming out of each pod filter for the main air jet, so it can breathe un-sucked air (that's putting it scientifically). I already have larger jets in the carbs and should be running a Kerker 4-into-1 exhaust soon.

Of course, my carb issues run deeper than a lean condition at the moment. Right now the bike isn't running at all, and I think I will be pulling the carbs apart to see why. Got spark, more than enough air, and a great gas SMELL when I crank it, but dry pistons and plugs.

 

That other thread was great but still in the beginning stages, we will have to see if it works out....

 

i have pods on mine and the some brand i never heard of bought them for like 40 bucks for the lot on sporting for less.com my bike runs better than it did with the stock airbox i should add i bought also a stage 3 dyno jet kit and a rebuild kit for the float needle and bowl gaskets my jets are 122 mains and 40 pilots i might switch to 118 mains because when i throttle all the way up sometimes the engine will rev high but the power doesnt hit the ground it mostly does it when its cold though


one last thing to add to "my bike runs better with pods than the airbox" i have even tuned the carbs at all since the rebuild im positive it will get better

 

UPDATE:

First of all, I found out a couple weeks ago that the #1 carb body had been broken before I bought the set on eBay. One of the pillars that holds the float hinge pin had been epoxied into place and just fell apart when I slid the pin out to set the float level. Polock has generously offered to supply a replacement body, and that should be happening fairly soon.

Second, I bought a well-used Kerker 4-into-1 exhaust from luvmy40 for a great price, and it will be blasted (blaster just called to say it's done), painted and on the bike before Polock gets here. Here are the "before" shots:




Also got a new battery, and am stripping the tank, re-welding the bung that I did a terrible job on the first time, and painting it better. New grips on the way as well. I smell victory.... Hopefully we'll have a running bike by this time next week.

 

Also, on the subject of carb issues, I mentioned above that my carbs didn't seem to be passing fuel into the cylinders. There may be combined issues at work here (you never know with these things) but before I discovered the break in #1 carb, I first realized that the float levels were all low. One was a few mm low, and some were WAY low-like an INCH, which helps explain the dry pistons and plugs.
As you may be able to tell, I had no clue about rebuilding/tuning when I bought this bike, and I still have a long way to go, but I'm willing to learn.
However, I am patiently waiting for the learning to end and for the riding to begin. This isn't my first bike by any means, but I definitely will be more aware of every piece of it than any other bike I've owned.

 

As I understand CV carb operation there is a port on the airbox side that needs to see a certain amount of vacuum (resistance to airflow from the filter) to properly lift the slides. I run a (big) needle shim and find it works well. I'm following the thread about porting and ducting this tracts closely but am still puzzling over the specifics of where and how the various ports inside the carbs act. How and why, in what proportions... before modding my carbs any further.

 

After getting the header back from sandblasting, I noticed that two (formerly) very small holes near the collector had grown a bit large, so I did a rough patch job. Yes, I know one of the pipes has a decent dent in it, but it's not in my power to fix right now, and it doesn't impede flow enough to make it a concern for me.


...then the ol' high-temp rattle can paint job:



Then took a Brillo pad to the Kerker canister to get rid of the built-up grime and some surface cancer.
I got it all mounted (except a bracket for the canister, which is kind of hanging for now), and pics are on the way, as well as the story of trying to get it running with Polock.

 

So, Polock (Tim) came over to my place yesterday evening on his (very nice) Seca 750 bearing a carburetor body, some tools, o-rings and knowledge; all of which came in handy. After we swapped all the innards from the broken carb into the new one, bench synced them, and set float levels, we popped them on, and viola! NOTHING. The same nothing that had plagued me thus far; namely that the engine was cranking, with good spark, but no fire in the holes. Tim popped the vacuum caps off the intake tubes and noticed that the air puffing out of them while cranking was particularly strong. He strolled over to his bike and popped one of his off, and verified that mine were indeed WAY too strong. We also noticed a distinct "chuffing" sound coming from my carbs, all of which seemed to indicate a timing issue. Tim recommended pulling the cam cover, which I readily agreed to, as I recalled that it was loose when I bought it (making me easily suspicious of the prior owner).
Long story short: Both cams were about an inch off from the mark at top-dead-center, and under those circumstances, there was NO WAY a fuel/air mixture stood any chance of making it into the combustion chamber. Instead it was getting blown backward through the carbs.
Anyway, Tim called it a night as I began adjusting the second cam (as to not hit a deer in the dark). I also had a prior obligation to meet a couple friends, so I buttoned up the cam cover, and came back later to reinstall the carbs and hear the verdict. Here's the crappy cell phone video of the result:



WOOOOOOOOOO--HOOOOOOOOOO!

More to come, with better video quality.

 

yea ! but don't celebrate too hard just yet. first carbs synced like i did those will need a little more idle, basically their all set to 0, then i'am only hearing 3 at the most cylinders, maybe 4 sometimes but with the cams 2 or 3 teeth off a compression check is in order( sit down, take a deep breath) there may be a bent valve in there. find a compression gauge

 

that exhaust came out nice for a rattlecan job.

 

Yeah, it was pretty rough the first time. It was a bit smoother the next day, but you're right Polock; it needs a bit more tinkering for sure. Thanks for the help. Onward and upward. I'm out of town now, but I'll be getting back into it here in the next couple of weeks.

 

So, after neglecting the bike for a couple weeks (had to rebuild my truck's engine) I am back at it.

I am having similar issues to the guys in this thread: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=26656/postdays=0/postorder=asc/highlight=float+levels/start=0.html

Engine runs very rough below a few thousand RPMs and will not idle at all, even with adjustment rod cranked in all the way. Engine seems to be running very rich. Had pilot jets 3.5 turns out... now adjusted down to 2.5 with no change in how it runs.

I have 120 Main Jets installed (up 10 from stock 650 jets) and carbs are bench synced, with float levels bench adjusted as well. It's hard to believe that the 120 jet size is the culprit, because I'm running pods (or no filtration at all while doing rough tuning) and a decent aftermarket exhaust. This should allow enough extra air to make it in and out of the cylinders to compensate, no? Yes, I know that the combustion chamber remains the same size without machining, but high-flow exhausts wouldn't exist if they didn't offer any improvement in combustion, right?

Anyway, hot or cold, no idle. Choke is not needed, but then again it's been in the high 70s and 80s here every time I've started it. Using a gravity fed gas source, with the loose vac. line plugged. Should idle with this setup, right? I am pulling the carbs again tonight. I need some feedback before they go back on, thanks.

 

Well, I'm back. This past few months were a no-go as far as bike progress as I was student teaching and finishing my degree. Along the way, I've found more issues in the carbs. Having priced all of the replacement parts I'll need (several valves are the wrong size) I have to ask: Does anyone have a full set (rack) of XJ650 carbs for sale? They must be complete and known to work. I can tune, but I am sick of hunting down problems caused by unknown modifications. Thanks.

...and yes, I'll be watching on fleabay, but I'd rather deal here.

 

Got the bike running, and it runs REALLY well. I am actually surprised by how much power it has. The 4-into-1 exhaust sounds awesome, and I can't wait to get it repainted and on the road. Pics and video coming next.

 

Here are some updated pics. First of all, I changed to a larger and more attractive (and more importantly SEALED) Seca tank, sourced from Polock this past fall. Secondly, I've started taking things off of the bike that aren't to my taste (large bulbous seat, and signals) and replacing them with a more streamlined set of parts. Signals are forthcoming from fleaBay, and I chopped a seat from a late 80s BMW 750. All I have are crappy cellphone shots now, and I didn't get a video of it running before I removed the tank for paint, but that will be coming soon. I'd like to have it out on the road by the end of May.

 

So I left off a while ago, and have been busy since then. Here are the updated pics:

Fabbing the seat:



Starting to paint the bodywork:



Fabbing new fender mount:



Fabbed new signal mounts and mounted smaller signals:



Covered seat:



Installed smaller rear signals, new tail light from Lowbrow Customs, and bar end mirror from Commando Specialties:



Then I gave the bike its first real bath in about a decade (it was in storage for a long time before I took it home in pieces). Here's the finished product:







AND just for comparison, here it is the day I brought it home:


I have tried ten billion combinations of links and html to get a video of it running here, but I'll put it in a separate post in a minute.

 

Well, I give up trying to embed the video. Here's a link--enjoy: Maxim Start and Rev

 

Hats of to you my friend, that’s one cool looking XJ well done!

 

Thanks. There are a few cosmetic things I would want to tweak if I had the chance to keep it (gotta sell), but once it's out on the road, it's pretty easy to forget that stuff. It's a lot of fun.

 

Shame you have to sell it.

 

Well, here is the parting shot of it, on the trailer of the new owner:



Hey, who knows--maybe the new owner will feel inclined to become a member here. It was fun while it lasted. On to planning the next project, haha.