New caliper...

I realized a couple days ago that my caliper had been replaced, as there was chalk writing on it. I thought it was from an '85.

I now realize I misread it. It says "YAM XJ 850".

Did the 850 use the same caliper, or did I get an upgrade?

 

There is/was no such thing as an XJ850.

There was an XS850, but it used a completely different caliper, which won't mount on your fork.

 

Odd... I'll have to go take a picture I guess and have you guys let me know what you think.

 

Or, you could look in the fiche: http://www.yamahapartshouse.net/pages/O ... ibrand=YAM

If your bike has the caliper that "hangs" on a single, vertically-oriented pivot bolt, then you have an original style 650 Maxim caliper. As far as I know, they were pretty much unique to the 650 Maxims.

Yamahas of the period had a wide variety of styles of brake caliper, although that one was, as I said, pretty much unique to your series Max. (81~83.) The biggest variation is in how they all mount/slide/pivot; yours should be the "pivoting" type.

 

So, turns out my caliper actually says "XS", not XJ, and thus XS 850. (Another option is possibly XJ 85D? Does that make sense?)

Does that mean the forks had to have been replaced, or what?

Pics:


By lacklacklack at 2012-04-12


By lacklacklack at 2012-04-12

The forks:

By lacklacklack at 2012-04-12


By lacklacklack at 2012-04-12

What do you think?

 

I have same bike, same forks, same caliper. I think yours and mine are both stock. You should be able to order stock caliper rebuild kits and stock pads for an 82 XJ650 Maxim, worked for me. Looks like you have original rubber brake lines!
Here's some pics of mine that I zoomed in on. (caliper has since been rebuilt and SS brake line is on now)

 

Hate to point out the obvious but the writing is on the brake pad, not the caliper... The pad may be interchangable with the XS850

 

Haha! Thanks, I have bought new pads, am putting them on this weekend. Have never done motorcycle brakes yet, so it's all just 'the brakes' to me until I get my hands on them. Didn't realize that the pads were visible externally like that, assumed they were enclosed.

Looking at it now, it's obvious. I just hadn't ever taken them apart before.

D'oh.

Well, that's good to hear anyways.

 

Well, I do have a genuinely replaced Master Cylinder from some Honda that seems pretty solid... And aside from the mirror that attaches through it (it vibrates more than the stock mirror on the other side), it seems happy enough.

Now, since that comment pointing out it looks like I have the original brake line, I do intend to replace those. Decided to check out chacal's offerings, and realize... Oh; will it fit mine?

Have never messed with brakes before, like I said, and his listings refer to stock and non-stock MC, so... before I buy, what's the story here? Can I get normal brake lines?



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

Are brake lines generic parts that fit all MC's? That's the conclusion I seem to be coming to...

Speaking of... Are spark plug cables also likewise generic? Anything I need to know about buying new spark plug cables?

 

You have the proper caliper for your bike. As I explained previously, the pivoting caliper is pretty much unique to the 650 Max.

That caliper, however, is far from "new" and I strongly suggest you rebuild it. I also wouldn't trust MY life to the Honda M/C; you don't know its history either. I'd rebuild that too. Old brake parts are old brake parts, regardless of manufacturer. I first experienced shoe delamination on an '80s Honda car.

Brake lines are relatively generic, except that when you start talking about stainless steel replacement assemblies, "clocking" becomes an issue.

This refers to the rotational orientation of the banjo fittings on each end relative to each other, and is more important on stainless lines because they can't be "twisted" into position like rubber lines can.

That being said, since somebody swapped the master cylinder and successfully used the original line, I'm sure a "stock replacement" line would fit similarly and be fine, functionally anyway.

(That Honda M/C is fugly.)

Yes, there's very much something you need to know about buying new spark plug cables: You really can't. At least not without splicing (not recommended) hacking into your coils and then epoxying up the "damage" (I wouldn't do it but it can be done) or replacing the coils.

The stock spark plug wires are molded into the coils at the upper end.

Why do you think you need to replace your plug wires? The caps unscrew and can be replaced; lopping a short bit off the wires will provide a fresh "bite" for the caps.

 

Ok, so just replace caps. I am more familiar with cars on this one, and I've only ever replaced spark plug cables. One of the spark plug caps came off into my hand (even when handled gently) when I was handling it off the spark plug the other day.

(It was a cold day, was having a hard time figuring out where to put the choke since I've never before had this bike on a cold day, and I had flooded it... So I pulled out the spark plugs to check and air it out. Yup, soaking wet. *sigh* Lesson learned. Instinct to just try and 'help' the engine by pulling back on the throttle is just bad... Gotta stop.)

Anyways, I saw two exposed wires if I remember right. I just put it together for the time being, and it's been 800 miles and it's still fine. Would like to replace it, though, for peace of mind...

 

800 miles?

You're gonna get hurt if you keep riding on those brakes. You've got original lines and what is obviously a junkyard caliper and M/C.

Have you pulled the rear wheel to visually inspect the shoes for delamination? Or are you waiting for the rear wheel to lock on you unexpectedly, for a bit of unplanned excitement?

A popped line is always fun too. I hear hospital food is a lot better than it used to be.