1 part away from riding, lessons learned :-)

hey folks. My XJ-550 is just one master cylinder away from being ridable. I cannot wait!! Damn eBay. I wish it didn't take so long to get the parts

Anyway, I did the POR-15 liner treatment on my gas tank a couple of nights ago. As far as I can tell, this stuff rocks! It's impervious to any chemical I could find in my garage (MEK, chemtool, gas, whatever...). It took me about 5 hours to get it done right from start to finish. It's still curing, but that won't take long in our humid climate. I would strongly recommend either masking off the outside paint or plan on re-painting afterwards, cause this stuff does not come off without grinding or scraping. I was kind of expecting a thicker coat, but it actually went on pretty thin - no thicker than 1/16". I damn near got carpal tunnel from sitting there tumbling the tank in my hands.

anyway....

My only concern so far:

When the bike idles in neutral, I hear a very faint rattle on the left side of the motor, it's quiet, but still audible. Once the bike is in gear, it completely goes away. Is this something I should be concerned about? I cannot tell whether it has any effect on performance -- the bike starts with half a turn cold, revs up to redline inside of a second, drops back to idle almost as fast.


I cannot wait to get my brakes done so I can get this granny on the road!! :x

 

same little rattle in neutral on my 550. Very faint, and I don't worry about it.

 

Phew. Thanks :-D

 

Just for fun ... see if your Shift Lever is on tight.

 

Yup, the shifter lever is on good and tight... Do these bikes have a timing chain?

 

Yes.
Timing Chain Tensioner on block under 2 & 3 Carb.
Two types
Manual 80's bikes.
Auto: '81 - On

Both are easily reset to take-up Cam Chain Slack.
Search: Can Chain Slack
Should be tons of stuff.

 

My 82 550 rattles in neutral also. Pull in the clutch and the noise goes away. It seems to get a little louder when warm but is still quiet.