Bobber 650

Started a xj650 bobber project as my first bike. I got the bike about a month ago and it looked like this:





I hate the color with a passion But there is so much fab work to be done I'm leaving paint for last.

After pulling all the parts I could off of it and installing some tc bro's drag bars I drove it to the shop.






Right now this is how it sits in the shop. Still waiting on some custom cables from barnett. Its stittng on harley sportster struts from burly and has a west eagle solo seat. The license plate mount and brake light are complete custom built.









Thanks for looking
-Grant

Ps the seat I pulled is awesome and newly reupholstered if anyone is interested.

 

Your work so far looks great. I am baffled by that paint job. Does it change colors by the light and angle you look at it? Your project here is the first one in a while that has caught my attention.

 

It sure looks like colorshift paint. Someone either knew what they were doing or paid a good bit of change to make it look like that.

 

Love the shocks. I might copy you.

 

The paint! Wow, it's just like my XS11...only mine shifts between a forest green and a dark purple/blue.

Quick question: for those of us with left-hand controls that have the choke lever built in (that make tank clearance on flatter bars a pain), what can be used instead?

Looks good Tegy!

 

Thanks everyone.

The paint House of Kolor KAMELEON® OPALS that the PO sprayed on himself. The stuff is like $250 for a 2oz can so I feel kind of bad sanding it off but gold and purple aren't my favorite colors by a long shot.

I pulled all the controls off and am currently rewiring a little box with the horn and high beam switch to go on the on the forward side of the bars. (I pulled the turn signals cause they aren't needed in my state and the switch to get them working again looked impossible to recreate). The choke on the underside of the control is being relocated to where the reflectors were on the neck. I'm building a little ratchet device that will work as the choke and mount it there but if that doesn't work I'm going to mount a push pull choke off of a john deere tractor there.

 

Well, grab the choke at night or have a fast escape route planned. Most tractor owners I know want to keep their chokes.

 

Well I've been sluggin away at the bike and this is what it looks like no





I still have a new exhaust to put on it and I have to sort out the wiring. I guess the fuse boxes are crap on these bikes or at least that's what I hear. In between stripping and painting the bike the headlight stopped working and I still have to find a way to get the new horn button and headlight switch mounted. I need like a small weather proof box that I can mount to the bars, but that is turning out to be hard to find.

Also the rear tire seems to leak air over time but I think its just a bad valve stem cause the ones on there now look cracked and rotted.

 

Looks great.

 

The seat seems high to me.

Have you had it running? Headlight won't come on until it runs.

Fuse box is easy to replace. Chacal has some.

 

The seat is going to sit high until I get forward controls cause I'm 6'3" with long legs and comfort is an issue lol.

I ran it around the storage shed today and no dice with the headlight. Idk if the fuse blew or the light bulb is out I haven't checked either yet.

 

I know what you mean. I'm 6'4 and have forwards and a tractor seat now.

Check the fuses/box first then.

 

Slick look! What paint did you use? Hoping for the same finish on mine against a flat black frame.

 

looks much better! did you paint it yourself? base/clear, single stage, or rattle can? looks too good for rattle can.

 

another brother from michigan, cool.

while you are doing the "norm" for an xj bobber, yous is really clean and sharp, I give you 1 internet.

im just trying to finish my bike, hope its a little different than the norm

 

Yeah the paint is rustolem x2 coverage base and then a clear with a wet sand after both. It really makes a difference. Like 3 coats of both though.

My bike is definitely within the norm of mods for this year at least and maybe next as it's my first bike. Assuming I don't move on to another bike for the 2012 season things will change drastically.

 

Had a big fffffuuuuuu moment today when I tried to check the fuse for the headlight. This is what I found.



I tried to test the voltage on the pigtail going to the bulb but I got nothing there. I'm electrictly retarded though. This is my first time using a volt meter.

I'm thinking the po probably rewired parts of the bike and now I'm at a bit of a loss as of what to do.

In other news the bike has started to make a cool noise in the front around the tach. Heres a short vid of the wining noise it makes under throttle.

http://flickr.com/gp/grantz/853y84

 

I think its your tach cable...

and i hear those unblowable fuses work good, never blow. but you need to replace that stock fuse panel

 

One thing I didnt think about is if there is live power going through the left hand controls that I cut out for the headlight. I assumed it was only to switch the high beam circuit on but maybe I'm wrong? The fact that this bike is hardwired in places makes me nervous who knows what's going to fry next.
None of the left hand controls are plugged in to anything right now they are just sitting until I figure out a small box to mount a switch and button in for the horn and high beam.

 

Anyone know if you have to have the high beam circuit connected to get the headlight to work?

 

im no expert in things electrical,but i wouldnt have thought so.the bulb makes up part of the circuit,so in my mind,if you had to have the high beam rigged up,you would loose your lights if the high beam filament blew.but dipped beam still works so i would say they are seperate circuits.

 

Just checked the bike I found what I believe is the headlight wire hardwired and live with voltage but I still get no voltage at the light which makes me think the bulb is still good. Now I'm really confused as to what has gone wrong with this &$&@ headlight! I won't get to try the high beam circuit until I find an inclosure that will fit onto the bars so I can wire the switch. (I'm not tearing apart that wire bundle for nothing lol)

 

That's what I thought too. I just have like no clue now.

 

Have you removed the head light and checked the connections inside the housing? Every wire has a plug behind that thing. Maybe a bad connection there? Idk, but you should replace that old fuse box with a new one. Those things suck. ALSO, what camera are you shooting with? I was snooping on your flickr a bit.

 

Just my iPhone and a canon 7D.

 

We have about 20 cameras. The oldest is from the 30s or 40s. I would trade them all for a 7d. We currently shoot with our 50d witch we just got back from cannon for the 2nd time.

Take the head light off the bucket... Hold your breath and check out the rats nest behinde it.

 

Yeah when I pulled the sealed bulb off for the first time I was like WTF! But I've checked the 2 connections behind there unless there is more.

 

The switch is probably bad. Replace the bulb then take the switch apart. for the head light you have three wires off the switch. I belive It is, yellow, blue, and green. Yellow and green go to the head light, and blue should be power. I have the same bike, but different year so they could be different. I just finished my head light switch. There is nothing to it. The head light should have a ground coming off of it, Maybe black. Take the switch apart and check the inside of it. They get pretty crappy inside there after 30years. then just trace it all down. Putting a new fuse box on that bike should halp out ALOT to. The fuse box in it now sucks so bad. They are crap. It is all really hard to say if the po had wired it up different though.

 

Turns out the problem was the high beam switch not being wired. Although the high beam itself still doesn't come on, but at least I have a light and a horn now. I had a final at 2pm so it was a bit of a rush (still not attached and unpainted) but Heres a vid of what I put together so far.

http://flickr.com/gp/grantz/Cd74Gw

 

That 4 into 1 sounds nice. I wish I had it.

 

I swear you took that pic from my garage. My PO did the same except I only had one fuse left and the rest were pigtailed together. What was the PO thinking?

 

That must have been the "hot" mod back in the day...the "fuses" on my '81 when I first got it:

 

Got some new tires mounted



Put the rear on today but I dont have a jack for the front yet so that may have to wait.

 

a jack? just weigh down the ass end and the front will be airborne...

 

What size and type is the tire?

 

Stick a milk crate under the engine cradle. Works for me. I like those whitewalls.

 

The tires are shinko 777 white walls 130 90 16" in the rear and 130 90 16" up front.

 

I ended up using a car jack on the exhaust while it was on the center stand to lift the front end. I don't really care about the exhaust cause I have a wrapped new mac 4 to 1 going on so ignore the rusty pipes lol.

I think it turned out pretty good. I have about 1/16 inch clearance on either side of the forks. The disc was a pita to get in the caliper though.

 

If you get a chance can you post closer pics of the front of the seat mount? I like how high it is. That might help my long legs.

 

I will soon for sure but if you look at:

http://www.tcbroschoppers.com/store/ind ... nhg2tntih0

Its the same piece just bent 2 inches after the pivot to give it about a 3inch rise over all with the posts and springs. When I get my forward controls done I'm going to drop it back down cause I think the seat looks funny. Being 6' 3" is no fun sometimes.

 

That front tire set up would look killer on a hard tail bobber. :wink:

 

You need to do something with those frame rail sticking out the back. I found some chrome caps (they sell black plastic ones too) at the hardware store to cap off the ends of the frame rails on mine.
Then I got a pair of license plate chrome LED lights and drilled out the caps to fit the small LEDs in them. They really dressed up the rails and keep moisture and dirt out of the frame to prevent rust.

 

Nice bike dude!!! Tires look good...

 

Like the mounting hardware from your link! I've got you by an inch (6'4") and what makes it worse, I really prefer the controls under me. Just don't feel comfortable with forwards ...

 

Shotgun shells fit nice, too. 10 gauge if I remember correctly. Ever get that noise(squeel) fixed. Mine started doing the same thing but only when I start er up. Mighy fine looking scoot you got there.

 

That turned up lip on the rear of the seat pan helps to keep you from sliding off when you open up the throttle! Some peoples seats I have seen actually slant backward.... Seams like a backward slanting seat would leave you sitting on the rear fender , and be hard on your family jewels too!

How does it handle with that fat tire up front? Any issues with it yet?