Getting her back on the road

Hi all! Took a while but it looks like I found a great site to keep an old girl on the road.
This looks like the right place for good assistance.

My sister has just purchased a 1980 650 Maxim with 70,000 km’s. It has sat for two years and we took it to my place so that I could get it ready for the Safety check. I pulled the plugs, squirted in some Sea Foam and changed the oil. The 2 right carbs would not fill so I assumed the floats were stuck. I unscrewed the drains a bit and inserted the spray tube from a can of Deep Creep (Sea Foam that comes as a spray). The forceful injection of Sea Foam had immediate effect and the bowls quickly filled.

The battery was dead of course so I had to jump it. I tried my boat battery but all that happened was a click from under the seat accompanied by a total loss of electrical power. All the idiot gauges went out. After a few minutes something reset so that when I attached the jumper cables to try it again they lit up. But the same thing happened again. Thinking that the boat battery either had too much amperes or was under voltage I then jumped it from my CB900F. I got it running and everything works except for the headlight. No high or low beam. From reading posts on this forum it looks like the light has been modified to accept an H4 bulb. I metered the bulb and get conductivity through all the leads so I assume the bulb is good. The fuse box under the seat looks good. By the way, which one of those fuses is for the light?

More reading on the net ( http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Speedway/7795/ ) has informed me that there is some sort of relay attached to the alternator that will not turn on the headlight until sufficient current is produced by the rotor. Anyone have a picture of it or know how to bypass it?

I have ordered an AGM battery for this machine but it is on back order so I find I have some time to learn about the wiring harness prior to some more trouble shooting.
I still have to change the oil in the shaft drive and the brake fluid. What fluids does it require? My guess is 90 wt oil and DOT3?
Any suggestions to solve this or to get this bike ready for the road would be appreciated.

Additional revelations:
The bike has a sissy bar and no grab bar. So that when I looked to see where the helmet lock was I could not find it. Was the helmet lock part of the grab bar? Also the seat lock lever is not locked to anything. What should be there?
The bike has two new tires on it complete with the blue factory stripe and has a new air cleaner installed.

The library does not have the manuals for this bike so I will need to buy it. If there is anyone in the Ottawa area that has one I would appreciate a peek. I live in Orleans.

I have also looked up FAQ’s in this Forum but have found it incomplete. Is this a relatively new site?

This headlight problem is pretty close to Lowlife’s post but I posted here as I could use overall suggestions on what else may require looking at for a safe ride.
Thanks for reading .....tom

 

You say you ordered an AGM battery for it?? How'd you manage this feat? What's the manufacturer and part #?? Inquiring minds need to know!!! Last I knew they had no AGM battery that would fit the 80-83 650 Maxims....

Brake fluid - DOT 3 or 4 will do the trick fine.

Rear drive - you got it - a good 90wt gear oil.

Both the helmet lock and the seat lock (actually the same unit) are part of the grab bar. Looks like someone used a "generic" aftermarket sissybar that required removing the grab rail in order to mount it.

You'll find the Haynes manual is slightly (SLIGHTLY) better than the Chilton's that's available. The best option is the XJCD set - it's got absolutely everything on it.

How to Order the XJCD

As for your headlight grief, unfortunately you're down to tracing the power back until you find where the break is.... probably a corroded connector, or possibly the relay... but you'll have to test the lot to be sure.

 

Welcome and best of luck to you, Altus has given you some great advice. We've been in existance for a little under two years with new members joining every day.
Your headlight could be a dirty/corroded contact on a relay or the fuse block tabs.
I'll put in a good word for my beloved Haynes manual (yes, it is not the perfect book, but it gets me all the info I need). Less expensive than the factory book and has DITY tools and proceedures. A great addition to the factory manual as well as the XJCD.

 

Thank you for your tips.

One more question comes to mind. How do you fill the rear drive? Is it like an outboard motor where you remove both plugs and fill it from the bottom until it flows out the top?

 

Place bike level on centre stand.
Drain out oil from plug at bottom of diff.
Filler hole is bolt behind axle and at the rear of diff.
Fill it to the edge of the filler hole like you would the diff of a car.
Cap at top of diff is a breather.
Be careful no to spill oil. Make sure no oil gets on your tyre.

 

I know it seems silly to point out, but since Tom asked about filling from the bottom, I wanted to point out that Kiwi left out the step after draining where you replace the drain bolt before filling with new oil.

BTW, I don't know if it does any good, but I like to drain this oil after a good ride when any crud or shavings ( eek! ) would be suspended in the oil (or clinging to the magnetic drain plug in the case of shavings).

 

Haha, yeah put the drain plug back in before you try to fill the diff!

I prefer to drain oils when they are hot too, gets rid of the floaties in the oil and drains off internal parts better.

 

It is recommended by the Haynes manual to change the oil after a quick ride to get everything up to temp and the materials suspended into the oil. Cleans out more of the crunchy stuff that way.

 

70,000 Km's / 1980 Bike

Replace Fuse Panel.
Inspect Alternator Brushes
Clean / Inspect / Replace Starter Brushes.
Manually Adjust Cam Chain Tensioner
Cam Chain replace: 94 - 96K
Inspect Valve Clearances