Information overload

Hiya Folks,

How on earth do you folks manage to sift through all this information?

I'm very new to this mechanical/technical thing and find it a bit frustrating trying pull out what I require.

I'm trying to work on my bike myself (with some help in the garage) and find the information here almost intimidating.

Just sayin'

Enjoy your weekend!
H.

 

Start by looking in "XJ FAQ Suggestions."

 

it is hard to track down old posts, having a list of posts you have "saved" or "marked" for your account would be nice.

 

google what you're working for - with this site as a search string -

So put " site:xjbikes.com " before what you're looking for:

for example: want info on valve adjustment

Put into the google search " site:xjbikes.com valve adjustment "

and you will get the results:

http://www.google.com/search?client=saf ... 56&bih=680

Works way better than any forum search. Which goes for any other forums you may also be looking for information on.

Good Luck!

 

I also have a bookmarks folder for good tech fixes and threads that i feel that may come in handy sometime in the future - and label them with keywords as you can search your bookmarks. or at least i can in safari.

 

You see, last night, I wanted to change my spark plugs myself. I had got as far as finding the socket but had to run out to pick up stuff with my daughter for her school project. When I returned my seat was gone, the gas tank was gone the intake manifolds were gone the carbs were sitting on the workbench and one of the guys was apologizing profusely for breaking one of the bolts that holds the carb down.

Now, I was planning on trying to replace the valve cover gasket myself in the near future when I got my parts from Chacal. It is obviously leaking and has been since before I owned the bike.

So, I took the valve cover off. And I stripped a hex bolt.

*&%^#@%^&&* Whatever MacGuyver worked on it last used clear silicone (tub and bath I'm guessing) on a 30 year old plus gasket.......the bolts were coming out with plugs of clear silicone on them.

My new spark plugs are still in the box.

 

so more than 1 person is working on this bike at the same time? thats no good.

 

Sounds like you need to take things one step at a time -

First issue:

where did all those parts go? somebody stole them?

If they are stolen, you can look for replacements in the "for sale" section on this site as well as on ebay. This is an insance where you just have to search through the forsale threads from newest to oldest as finding a 3 year old fs thread on google wont do you much good.

Second issue:
What bolts holding the carbs down? one of the intake boot bolts? There are multiple threads on instances here people have snapped off intake manifold bolts. search "broke intake boot bolts"

http://www.google.com/search?client=saf ... 56&bih=680

Valve cover gasket replacement is covered under a few topics, both valve cover restoration and valve adjustment:

http://www.google.com/search?client=saf ... 56&bih=680

heres the thread specifically: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=1 ... art=0.html

you NEED to replace the rubber donuts as well. do the shim adj. while you're at it.

as for the stripped bolt, you could drill the head out and then use a vice grips on the remaining bit + kroil, as well as search once again:

http://www.google.com/search?client=saf ... 8&oe=UTF-8

you can do it, we're here for ya, but a little quality searching can go a long way, and in the end if you still have questions, just post a new thread and ask, and we'll try our best to point you in the right direction

Good luck!!

Chris

 

Thanks for the links.

No, parts not stolen. LOL. Over zealous friends.

Got some PB Blaster. Seems that Kroil stuff is pretty hard to find. Easyouts.

Yes more than one person is working on the bike. If I was alone doing it I'd be lost.

Anywhoo....we'll get her done.

Hope to pull on my chaps soon and get ridin'.

 

Sorry to hijack, but I like the Zappa quote in your signature. Was it a dig at people bothered about sex/violence/drugs in music?

 

Yes, Mr. Zappa and spoke to the Senate about the PMRC Rock Lyrics. Zappa really surprised them, I'm thinking they figured he was a crack pot but held himself beautifully. Many musicians spoke. Dee Snider was great also. If you have a few minutes to spare its a good watch.

I believe it may have been fueled by a kid that was listening to Ozzy and committed suicide.

 

Kroil is only sold by the manufacturer.... (as far as i know) http://www.kanolabs.com/

It's worth it.

 

50/50 acetone and atf will get most anything unstuck

 

Don't mind him/her/it, it's a troll. Sad fact of life online these sad small people exist

You'll get it fixed, don't worry.

 

Also little things like just taking teardown pics helps alot. And putting parts in labeled baggie's I do this alot cause I am usually working on 2 or 3 customers at a time.

 

+10 on the pics, especially if you have to have more than one person working on the bike. That way if the person who dismantled "X" part isn't around you at least have a reference to help with it.

I tend to use either coffee jars or egg boxes for smaller parts, and plastic crates for larger stuff...

 

Well, I hope her project went well

 

Just a thought on the stripped allen bolt head, if you can cut a screwdriver slot in the head carefully with a dremel you could then use a handheld impact wrench to make it loosen off. As these bolts aren't torqued especially high (since the "donut" applies the pressure to the valve cover) just one whack should make it free up & then you can back it out with a screwdriver...

 

Also - heat.

If you are replacing the rubber bits anyhow, go ahead and heat it up. Ain't nothing that a little gas won't free up.

 

I got the stripped hex out. I gave it a little tap.