Thinking about purchasing a bike with more power

Hey all, thanks to everyone here I got my Maxim 550 running fairly well. Did the carbs and valves, rebuilt the forks, replaced the brakes, tires, fuse box, battery, ect... Overall I really like the little bike, I'll never get rid of it. But lately I was thinking I'd like something with more power at times.

I'm looking at a 1982 seca 750 tonight. How much faster will it be compated to my 550? If the compression is good on all the cylinders I may pick it up if the price is right. I know I'll have to do a lot to it like I did with the 550.

Do you think the 750's will be fast enough for someone used to the 550 to not need a bigger bike? Of should I hold out for the 900 or 1100?

 

Bikes are like boats, never fast enough or big enough....

I can't comment on your Maxim, but I had a 650 Kawasaki LTD prior to the XJ 900, and the 900 has much more power, especially noticable at highway speeds. The 900 never seems to run out of breath.

Dave

 

Man, I just looked that up... same weight as the 750 but 15 more hp... I started looking around but I don't see any anywhere around for sale...

 

900's are hard to come by.

My 750 seems to be plenty quick, and you will for sure notice the gain over your 550.

Take the 750 for a spin.

If I were you, I'd buy the 750, and if you just do happen to be lucky enough to find a 900 pop up for sale in the next few years, snag that one too.

 

well, the 750 im looking at isn't a runner so I can't test drive it. It's a complete bike but still a project.

see: http://www.ebay.com/itm/110991497496?ss ... 1423.l2649

I talked to the guy and he just wants to et rid of it... And he's local to me so that is def helpful

Now don't go outbidding me though guys! Whaddya think about this one though?

Edit: I'm from DePere, WI man lol!

 

I just bought a 1982 XJ1100 and the difference between the 650 and the 1100 is large. The 1100 seems much more like riding on a rail at highway speeds. It feels more stable.

I have ridden my 650 on back roads and highways quite a bit and do not like being on it more than 30 minutes at a time.

I bought the 1100 for long distance riding. Hope to do some multi-day road trips in the coming year.

I have owned my 650 for 4 years and was ready for the upgrade.

 

for 200 bucks its a drop in the bucket, much more there in parts alone -

good luck on winning it!!

And DePere, eh?! Crazy!! I'm from Allouez, off of libal/baird, one street away from gb. Its a small world!!

 

Some random thoughts: The ad doesn't mention how many miles are on it; do you know? Will the owner let you do a compression check prior to committing to buy? The anti-dive units on those bikes add an additional challenge and expense to sorting out the front brakes. I just put about $1000 into an 82 Seca 750 getting it back in service, but it is like a new bike now, better than new in some ways. Adding $1000 to whatever the purchase price is may be a good baseline for real cost of the bike. Will you have any trouble registering it in your state without a title?

 

Well I called the DMV with the vin and they said it shouldn't be an issue. It was previously salvaged and then junked at one point but as long as they inspect it once I've finished it a new clean title can be issued. It was last registered in ca in early 2009 but then titled and registered out of state (they don't know where).

Quite a story huh? And yeah, I put almost 1000 extra into my 550 so I figured. I see an 83 750 for $1000 in good running shape 2 hours north of me but then I wouldn't know how much $ on top of that I would be spending u know? If I can get this one I at least know how much I'm gonna spend and have new parts on it. And if I can get a clear title like the DMV said its just fine with me

Wish I could find a 900 though! I was looking at the 1100's and there are a few around to. It's just that I looked up the specs and there to heavy so the extra power only makes it the same speed as the 750... :roll:

 

Speed is not everything. That said, the 1100 accelerates like a team of scalded mules.

The extra size and weight of the 1100 makes it a better long haul vehicle as well as for 2-up riding. Freeway riding on the 1100 is much more sure-footed than the 650.

My gf does not like to ride 2-up on the 650 even though there is plenty of power. Cornering at low speeds on the 650 does not instill confidence.

I would not buy an eBay 750. If you are sold on the 750 wait for a clean one that runs in your neighborhood. There are tons of these bikes for sale all over the country. I waited a couple of years to find an XJ1100 a few miles from me that runs with no issues and could be immediately registered.

Just my 2 cents worth.

 

First off (and I've pointed this out before) if you're only getting 41.7mpg from your 550, it's NOT in a proper state of tune, unless it's modified.

Get it properly tuned, you might be surprised.

That being said, keep in mind that any of the shaft-driven XJs, despite the larger displacement, have at least 100lbs more weight to get moving, and a couple of 90-degree turns in the drivetrain to do it with.

It all really comes down to what you do with, or want to do with the bike.

For two-up riding, or any serious distances on the freeway, then by all means, step up to a 650/750.

If you're a purely solo rider, don't take very many long distance freeway trips, and appreciate the (potential, in your case) economy plus bang-zoom acceleration of the chain-driven 6-speed, then get your 550 properly tuned and ride it.

I have to agree that eBay bikes are a crapshoot, stacked against you. Despite a couple of rude surprises, mine turned out (more than) OK, but in hindsight I'd never do it again.

And you're gonna spend close to that $1000 on any bike this old unless you get it from a genuine enthusiast AND pay top dollar. It's pretty much a "given."

 

Another consideration which hasn't been mentioned is the size of the rider as a factor. If you aren't at least 175lbs and like to ride hard you probably won't like a 'Liter' or bigger bike. An 1100 can be hard to hold down in a turn if you are average or smaller, and if that is the case a properly tuned 750 is WAY plenty fast and stable-even a 900 is a bit of challenge for anyone smaller than average. If gas mileage is a consideration at all bigger isn't better. Plus if you drop your +L bike I hope you can dead lift really well or you will need help to get it upright.

If you ever watch top line MC racing like the Grand Prix circuit the guys that race the 250cc's are always around 145lbs or so and the guys that race the biggest bikes 800cc-1000cc are around 175lbs or so. But of course they also really have A+ tech (ultra light bikes) and know how to throw their weight to the 'ideal' positions.

Agree with previous assessments that it is mostly about how you plan to ride, for how long, how hard, with 2 or no, gas mileage, highway mostly? All very important factors.

 

Agreed on millage. My well-tuned 650 gets 50+ mpg and it screams. Your 550 should get way better than 41.7 unless you are riding 100 mph or you are drag racing it constantly.

 

I have a friend who loaned me his mint XS1100 Special this spring for a valve adjustment and carb sync. This bike "feels" faster than my 900 but I found it very uncomfortable, the seat has one position, there is no room to slide around and the handlebars seem to put my wrists at an uncomfortable angle.

Certainly it has more grunt, but it feels heavy, and the transmission seems more "clunky".

Change the seat and the bars, I could live with it though....

 

Huh, didn't know that. I tuned it as best as I could but I never took the head off to investigate my number 2 cylinder compression issue(only 114psi). I plan on doing a full up restore on that bike anyway.

And just for refrance I'm 6ft, 215lbs. I would like to do more 2 up riding but ever since I tried it on the 550 for a day I kind of shy away from it since it wasn't very easy...

I ended up winning the bike for 200$ though, woo! Now I'm working on getting it running so I can take it and the bill of sale that I gotta get signed still down to the DMV and get a clear title issued like they said I was supposed to be able to do. Hopefully no issues there.

Something that really chapps my behind on this deal though is that when I got there he was like, ohh... it's not rolling to well... I can barely get it to roll without breaking a sweat! It took 3 of it just to push it forward onto my trailer. The front brakes are semi locked/dragging... and he was going on and on about how he's a carburator mechanic for verago's and he's done 100's of them. And he's telling me how he rebuilt the carbs on this bike very well. I asked him if he replaced the throttle shaft seals (like I did when I fully rebuilt my 550's from the instructions here) and he said they didn't need it. I can hardly believe rubber seals from 1982 are still good! The carb to motor boots are severy cracked up as well. Not to mention the carb bowl screws are all stripped out. He was also going on and on about how he had to buy a battery side plastic cover and how expensive it was. I get it home, remove it and see 2 of the three tabs are broken off and gone.

But hey it was only 200$ right? How did he expect to explain this stuff to the guy he was doing this work for originally?

Edit: Thanks for everyone's advice on this issue here, it was all very helpfull . Looks like I have another long term project here that I'll eventually have to post up. Wish I had more time to work on my bikes!! :roll: