XJ newbie looking for engine rebuild kits

Well, I've just spent the last 2 days sucking all the info I could out of these forums for my new purchase. I just bought me a 1986 XJ700 Maxim project bike. Right now it runs pretty well, needs a new seatcover and tires etc.

I was planning on rebuilding the engine for the fun and experience of it, and also just to make sure everything is kosher inside, but I can't seem to find a gasket kit for this engine. I did some forums searches, and some of the vintage bike sites have kits for the older XJ's but no one seems to have a kit for my bike. Any ideas?

I'm a engineer by trade, but I have almost no automotive/engine experience, so I'm sure I'll be on these forums begging for help plenty of times over the next few weeks.

 

Stupid question, perhaps, but why fix what isn't broke? Or do you subscribe to the philosophy of "If it ain't broke, fix it 'till it is"?

 

What you're asking for is a thousand dollar lesson that could be better learned in other ways.

If you want to "rebuild the engine for the fun and experience of it", why not get a newer engine that has parts more readily available instead?. There's a good chance the XJ's engine is fine inside, so why kill a healthy patient simply to satisfy your curiosity?.

Better yet, why not just give it a full tuneup, fix the seat, buy some tires, and just ride it instead?.

***********************************

No question should be called stupid. The OP asked for information, not ridicule.

 

Boso:

I think Schmuck was saying HIS question might be stupid, not Wombat's.

 

...and you would be correct, sir. I might have phrased that better, such as "Pardon me for asking a stupid question, but..."

 

Well, in spite of the fact that it's running fine now, it seems to have damp spots on the outside of the engine around just about every seal, so I'm thinking it has some gaskets going bad at the minimum.

I'd like to be able to ride this bike for a commuter, and I'd like to be somewhat certain that it isn't just going to die in the middle of nowhere. when some old moldy gasket finally gives up the ghost.

The engine is 25 years old, how can it possibly NOT need a good rebuild.

And I'm a sucker for pain. Those are my stupid answers to your stupid question. :-D

 

Seems a good idea to forget stripping a perfectly good engine when it's not needed.Wish I could do the same but hopefully my XJ will be on the road for the beginning of JuneThis is my first correspondence with people out there I hope it won't be the last.Good Luck All.

 

Facile words... indeed.
Price.. the parts FIRST then think about a 'rebuild'
IF this helps Bob's World of Motorcycles (google) has the Best OEM prices in North America.. good service too!.
Their Yama online fiche has prices for the parts.. read and weep.

 

Engines are a fine work of art when finished in factory, Why not let them be

Although, Gaskets do tend to develop spots after a certain amount of time, i noticed a few 2 years later i had completed a valve/piston job on my honda 200 (Valve broke hence creating a hole in piston as well as damaging the head) however the spots happened to be grease marks considering i had used grease during installation, Cleared them with a damp cloth & havent really seen them since. So i'd suggest try the same & observe if spots do occur again.

 

Hello Superwombat,

I agree with the other xjbikers not to rebuild an engine as you mentioned of a fine running bike.
Why don’t you start just with maintenance and checking up first? Replace, repair and adjust the things which are necessary. With this you will have fun and experience as well. A bad electrical system or bad carbs also could be the cause of a bike dying in the middle of nowhere. :wink:

 

Alright, y'all win, no rebuilding the engine for me.

There are some very good points here, I've also been please over the last couple of days at how well the bike seems to be starting and idling, so perhaps there aren't any serious issues in there after all. I'm still a bit concerned about the "wet" spots, but I'll try the suggestion of cleaning them off and see if they come back.

Thanks for all the advice.

 

As a long-time Yamaha wrench friend of mine would say, just wipe the "wet" spots with a clean shop towel and go ride it.

Quarter-century old engine are like middle-aged human bodies: they're no longer perfect, and will ooze a bit of fluid at times. The best cure for both riders and bikes is more exercise, not fretting about unplanned moist moments. :lol:

 

I have a 85 xj700 with a little oil seepage at the forward outer driver side head stud, valve cover and clutch cover. It has been very minor except the clutch cover. I run this bike day in and day out about 40 miles a day rain,cold or sunshine with almost 43,000 on the odometer. I would ride the bike anywhere. I trust this bike. It has been the most reliable model I have owned. Enough said.

 

I also have an XJ700 ('85), seems to me the more I ride it, the less "wet spots" are observed.

 

"How the hell should I know?"

"Well, then, I don't want to work for you." -- Steven Wright

 

If you really need to do a project on the bike ...

Warm it up ... pop-off the Cam Cover ... break-loose a Cylinder Head Nut ... one at a time ... and re-torque the Nut to spec's.

Do the whole Cylinder Head ... one at a time ... following the Torque-down Pattern ... until you have the Cylinder Head torqued ... Perfectly!

 

Ahhh..........a fellow Wright fan!! I'm impressed! :lol:

 

Aluminum expands and contracts with temperature change at about twice the rate that steel does...

What you suggest will result in less torque on the head bolts after the engine cools off. Mr Head Gasket will not like it. :x

The torque spec called for by Yamaha is for a cold engine, not a hot one...if you want to get creative with critical fasteners, try it on your own bike first before suggesting it to someone who may not know any better.

PS- with XJs, none of the fasteners that secure the head to the cylinder block are under the valve cover. :roll:






If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate.
-- Steven Wright

 

I've written WARM re-torque up a few times too.

You run it and let it cool down until you can hold your wrist to the head without burning yourself.

That and removing the Nut ... lubing the stud and fastener ... is an Old School re-torque method that will sometimes stop a tiny leak.

I did not write ~~> "HOT" ... so, please -- DON'T write-in HOT for me ... like I meant something other than just what I wrote.

Warm ... able to hold your hand or wrist on the head ... warm ...
Or,
"Cool enough" to work on.

What can we do with the cover off?
Anything useful?

 

In my neighborhood, this process makes the engine get hot. It's not "warmed up" until the entire engine is at operating temperature.

There is absolutely no gain in "warming up" an an engine for the express purpose of breaking loose the head fasteners for re-torquing.

The valve cover only hides the valve gear in XJ engines. There are many engines that have cylinder head bolts hidden in there, but our engines are not among them. The only thing under the valve cover that holds the head on is the camchain.