i want to build a custom xj 750 cafr racer.

OKAY GENTLEMEN, LET ME START OF BY INTRODUCING MY SELF. MY NAME IS OSCAR IM 22 AND I HAVE A 82SECA 750. IVE HAD IT SINCE 09 BUT I BEARLY HAVE THE FUNDS TO GET IT GOING, WITH THAT SAID I WANT TO BUILD A NICE CAFE RACER OUT OF IT. I WANT TO MAKE IT LOOK SORT OFA BOBBER/ STUBBY SEAT TYPE RACER, WELL I ALSO WANT TO CHANGE THE GAS TANK THE STOCK TANK IS TO BIG AND BULKY. MAYBE A GS 550 TANK OR A CB 750???? DOES ANY ONE HEAR KNOW IF ANY OF THESE WOULD FIT??? IM HANDY WITH A CUTTING WHEEL AND A WELDER JUST DONT WANNA BUY IT TO COME AND FIND OUT I HAVE TO DO MAJOR SURGERY ON MY BABY!!!! ANY TIPS OR SUGGESTIONS ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!

 

I can't help on the tank ideas, but if budget is restricted I would get the bike up to scratch maintenance wise first.

Nothing worse than spending every dollar making the bike look awesome and then finding it needs big $$$ to get it running properly and safe.

 

I picked up a cb 750 tank for my 550maxim. It will take som work to get it on. The underside of the tank has a much thinner channel than the xj's. In order to get it on, I'll have to cut the front mounts off my frame, weld on different mounts, dent in portions of the underside of the tank to clear parts of the frame & weld up new rear mount. I'm gonna make it work cause I don't like the maxim's tank.

 

Big +1 on what darkfibre said. Your best bet is to get it running by doing all the maintenance like, tune up, (carbs , valves etc.) brakes, lines, address any electrical issues, and so on.
If you start cutting and hacking and investing money to make the bike into something else you may end up with a bike that looks good, but can't ride and can't sell because it's been personalized to your specific needs.
2 cents.

 

Welcome to the site !!
I'd like to build this bike - it seems to have a '70's steel dirt bike gas tank - can anyone ID the tank ??
I think the number plate is a bit large, the seat a bit thin, and I'd add a fork brace, and that's it! This sold on E-Bay for $3,500

 

But velocity stacks are worse to tune than pods!

 

Velocity stacks on CV carbs= nightmare.

 

This scenario has played out more times than not on this forum. Don't put the cart before the horse, or you'll end up spinning your wheels with a bike you can't RIDE.

Get the valves in spec, the carbs cleaned and sync'ed, the brakes rebuilt; THEN start your "modding."

 

maybe if you could man up and work with some jets instead of type about how hard it is, you could have velocity stacks on your cafe racer.

Also, It's kind of hard to have a nice bike without a budget, flat black and $15 drag bars only go so far...

 

LOL Why bother with all that work when round slide carbs are so much easier and not that expensive.

 

that's even better.

 

the tank looks like the 77 or so yz80 tank that i just purchsed, never thought about actually using it for gas, its getting cut up and used as a tailsection

 

Haha my bike is stock besides flat black and drag bars haha

 

This coming from the man who's never shimmed a valve (or sync'ed CV carbs) in his life; he's selling that bike instead. (But in his defense, he's not the first.)

Build on, Schootums, build on. How many ROAD miles did you log this season? (Paved roads, that is.) Hmm?

 

This summer, between a couple of 300 hour months of work I've put on I have probably around 3K miles on my bikes.
2 trips to muskegon this summer on my bike for sale, as well as many 25 trips, 1 trip down to detroit, and various other rides.
shimmed a valve? nope.
tappets? of course.
I have brought 3 cb750's back to life, 1 cb550, 1 cb500, all of which I adjusted the tappets, points, filed/ sanded them. Replaced a top end on the cb550. had to adjust the valves on my friends xs650, got his CV carbs jetted for velocity stacks. I've rebuilt every set of round top carbs on those bikes and 1 set of key holes. I can do the round top mikuni slides in my sleep. I have an ultrasonic cleaner for this purpose; counless racks of carbs have been ran through my cleaner.
Who are you to say I've also never synched my carbs? I own a Got-Damn color tune plug, Yics block off tool, and the stainless steel carb tune pro from chacel.
I'm not the first what? Person to sell my bike because you think I cant get it running or something? bike runs fine, never skips a beat.
Why do you think i've been inactive on this forum? Because if I use a standard philips screwdriver instead of the Japanese-type screwdriver I'll have 3 posts scrutinizing that fact. Honda rebel shocks? how could you? those weren't ENGINEERED for a 1981 xj750. What's the ratio of zinc to copper in those carb jets? If it's .1% off your cfm will be off and you wont have maximum performance ALL the way through the powerband.
Perhaps I dont have the 120 mile round trip to detroit every day, my job is 1 mile away, I cant ride it to work either because I need to have a farm truck, I usually work from 8 until 6 at the least, during hay? forget about it, i wont get out until 10 or midnight. it's fall now, surgar beet haul, 6 am until midnight or later all week. I'm 20, how many of my friends can afford a bike? or how many are away at college? Where I live if you didn't go to college you'll probably end up living in a trailer park milking cows making minimum wage. I usually ride by myself around the thumb and have tourists and Hardly riders to deal with.
Sure, when I was 16 and had my 700 I was a pain, I go back and look at ym posts, they're painful to read, I cant believe how dumb I was, i've learned alot, and really learned what is important to know. I'm sticking to points and tappets, it's where I'm comfortable, changing a top end takes a couple hours, have fun with cv carbs, shaft drive, triple back bones, an intake system that does nothing but whistle, over complicated front ends that are also useless, a ticking time bomb 2nd gear, and yes, shimming your valves.

 

I dont understand Fitz why we have a falling out, I'm jsut stating the obvious that people are too afraid to try things on their own, so when they come on here with an idea about pods, sure over and over again, they're shot down and that little spark inside is gone, sure, 4 sets of jets cost around 12-16 per set, having a friend with a whole set helps, they also shouldn't be afraid to play with their mixture screws, needle clips, etc. If you fail at first, try, try and try again, eventually it will work. it just takes some time and patience. Pods or any other aftermarket filter will make taking carbs on and off 1000% easier. I'm not saying I like PODS, any trailer trash honkie will toss those on as well as drag bars, flat black kyrlon, and cut off their rear end. I'm just plain tired of everything about 80's jab bikes. Besides the cbx, xs650, and gs1000, they all can go in a trash heap.

 

I was wondering about you the other day, good to hear from you. Guess you left college to work on the farm. Oh well, scool ain't for everyone.

Sorry Fitz whizzed in your Cheerios.

Loren

 

Don't want to get in the middle here, but I have to disagree. No advice I get here shoots me down or puts out my spark. Just the opposite as I learn from this site that anything can be done. Knowledge gained from experience is always useful and it's how we progress. If someone wants to try something new-no T&T advice is going to stop them anyway. People who are afraid to try things don't come here, they go to a mechanic and shell out their $$$. All work and no play...

EDIT (on the thread topic)
Oscar- You could try local salvage and see what tanks they have available. Make some measurements and draw a diagram then compare to what you find in the JY.

 

Even got accepted into Michigan State for Agri Biz, though I've decided not to.

 

You're right, people here are awesome at answering the same, redundant questions over and over again, after awhile, this website became the same to me, the same question everyday, the same fight over pods, the same flat black "bobbers," and so on. Now that I can actually spend the money I make, I've having fun going back to simple bikes and making them mine.

 

You should check out "My seca II headlamp conversion." I wouldn't say it's the most radical or different thing, but it's not as redundant as you say. But I see your point this site is restricted to XJ's and so there will inevitably be repeats. No doubt having fun is what bikes have always been about so more power to ya.

I left school at 19 because it was too expensive, but now I'm back in to finish because not having my degree became too expensive - as in work up the ladder, the economy tanks and so does your job so you have to start back at the bottom (no degree). If you do get the chance to go back someday, I would do it. Don't believe the hype that a degree is worthless, because that's only true if you don't apply it and yourself. Now go build an 1949 Ariel Square Four to the nines and post pictures!

 

Dude, I wouldn't have jumped on your case if you hadn't told the guy to "man up and deal with the jetting" or somesuch nonesense.

That's why my text began "this from the man who..."

My point being, you don't have a leg to stand on telling somebody to "man up" about a particular aspect of tuning that YOU YOURSELF haven't mastered. And since you've given up on XJs, you can't give such advice.

It's not a "falling out." I'm just out of patience with people talking out their butts... You, of all people, the former engineering student, should know what I'm talking about. Don't start playing dumb to be cool.

 

ok then

 

Hey guys you know better then to hijack a thread, take it to PMs!

I'm not sure I can help you with the bobber aspect of your build; however; there are some gems hidden in here of finished and unfinished cafe racers with great lines. Just off the top of my head:

SgtHollywood's XJ750 Maxim reincarnation
Dean's XJ650 Cafe Project
Phenomenal's Project 1982 Maxim

You can also check out my signature for my YamaGPZ project - although admittedly it's going slow as molasses. I blame school.