1982 XJ650 stock to bobber project - on a budget

About 50 miles north east of Minneapolis/St. Paul

 

what size rear tire is that?

 

It's a 130/90 16. I am pretty sure it is the stock size. The newer tire looks a lot wider, but is sized only 130

 

Yeah it's about right, it looks wider than that in the photo. I think stock was a 120, but mine is an 81 Seca with an 18". So I'm thinking that Dunlop has a wider footprint.

 

I just bought a 1982 xj650, shaft driven that I am going to build a bobber out of. I laughed when you told your story about how you got yours before your buddy could get to it! This will be my first bobber build and I'm going to use the hardtail frame set up that you showed here. I will get some before pictures of it and take them as I go. I am curious if welding the swing arm to the frame at the pivit points was truly neccessary? I guess I'll have to get to mine to see what the advantage is of doing that.

One other question... your frame modification looks fairly simple; cut, weld, bolt and paint. How long did it take you to do the modfication in hours, and was it as simple as it looks? Oh, lastly, did you need to do any bending of your 1 inch OD tube to work around the drive shaft?

 

Glad the thread can help!

The modification to the frame is as easy as it looks, yes. Doing the frame itself only took me about three hours. I spent more time on the seat mount than I did the frame rails. That's what ends up taking the most time. Things like fender mounts, tail light mounts, battery mounts, changing the rear tank mount, wiring harness modifications, license plate mount, mounts for relays and modules, modifying fenders, etc. plus, I did some body work on the frame and all the joints to smooth things out. But you got it basically right, cut, weld, bolt, and paint. Its all the fit and finish that really makes the difference in the long run. Lots of guys just try to do a quick job with these bikes and the final product shows it. Take your time, take pride in what you do, dont do anything too extreme, and will come out right.

I did not have to bend any of the frame railes around the driveshaft. I did have the pie cut and bend in the stock frame rails that slant at about a 45 degree and towards the rear. I think I posted pictures of this. This is so those frame rails will line up with the aftermarket rails that I put in between the rear tank area and the back of the swing arm.

All in all, I spend about 1 month to build the bike, a total of about 80-100 hours. Lots of time in paint and prep and fine tuning (wiring, carb work and what not).

 

Be cautious, I've read several reports here of the stock frame welds cracking when these bikes are hardtailed or the shocks are replaced with struts.

 

I can see that happening, the frame will have more vibration and shock since converting to hardtail. Combine the age of the frame and frame welds into the equation, something is going to give.

 

not to mention the stock welds look like roughly smeared black rtv sealant.
Who welded these things, Hellen Keller?

 

Mine look like seagulls were practicing their aim.

 

well good, at least i'm not the only one with a Monday bike.

 

Have you considered 11" sportster shocks? They're only $100 a pair at JCWhitney and they claim they'll fit. that'll rake the front out a taste but not so much as to upset the balance.

 

hello folks,
i JUST bought an '82 XJ 650 and came home to find info on the net about these bikes and ran across this particular thread so i registered for the site.

i have been wanting to build a bobber for quite some time now but could never find quite what i wanted....and in particular that would have been a chain drive unit.....but after running across so many XJs with the shaft drive i took it as a sign of fate and so here i am.

looking forward to getting to know some of you and learning anything you are willing to impart.

Ronny G

 

Good luck with the build buddy! You will have a lot of fun with it for very little money!

 

Great build. just read all 18 pages - hope all is well man, back riding at all?

updates on the truck or other bikes?

love seeing your work

Chris

 

Chris,

Hey sorry I never replied!

I don't have any more bikes right now. I've been going through four wheelers lately. I went through a couple old traditional hot rods too. I'm more into that now.

But I gotta tell you, nothing has been the same as my 1982 Yamaha bobber was. I have been flirting with the idea of getting another stock one this winter and doing another build... We shall see

 

I just finished my 82 and I left the suspension on did the whole build for $60 and looks incredibly amazing.

 

Ok... so after being away from riding road bikes for a year or so, I have decided to get back in to it.

I stored my neighbors Harley all winter long (I don't like Harleys at all) and rode it a few times in the past few weeks. It's getting nice out here in central IL, and it's all just pushed me over the edge. Some of the motorcycle accidents my friends were involved in over the past 3 years are getting a little foggy in my memory, so that is helping too.

I went out and picked up two Yamaha Maxims in the past few days. The plan was to buy ONE, and bob it out.



Here's the bikes:

The first bike, a black 1982 Maxim 650 that I found locally. Mostly stock, aftermarkets slip on exhaust and forward controls. I forget how many miles are on it, 30k or so. Missing the rear grab bar, came with an extra set of drag bars. I got this from a former co worker who bought it about 3 or 4 years ago. I know the bike's history pretty well. Running, driving bike, just needs a battery and a mild carb cleaning. New tires, well taken care of, always garaged. I got it for $650... a real deal.

The second bike, I ran across locally on craigslist a day later while looking for parts. I never intended to buy a second bike, but now I have it. A 1981 Maxim 650 with 18,000 miles. All stock, no title, didn't run, needs tires, a battery, a seat, and some TLC. Everything works on it as it should. I brought it home and got it started with the two year old gas that was in the tank, just by choking the engine!! I should be able to work with the previous owner (a great guy) and apply for a lost IL title. I brought it home for only $250





I bought both the bikes on April 25th and 26th, just a few days ago. I haven't had a chance to work on them yet. I left the next day for Colorado on a business trip (where I am right now). I really wish I was at home in the garage, tearing these bikes down.

At this time, I have a "plan" for both bikes (all subject to change, of course).

I want to bob out the black 1982 EXACTLY like my previous 1982 from 2008. I have already spent time online buying parts and composing "shopping lists" for the local hardware stores. I even got the same seat and tail lights ordered for it. I "plan" to make it exactly the same, but who knows. I really miss my old "AHA" (short for Yamaha, as I called it). It was given this name because when I bought it, only the "A", "H", and "A" were left on the tank logo.

As for the red 1981. I plan to keep it all stock. I want to take the best stock parts between the two bikes and put them on the 1981. So it will probably get the black tank and side covers from the 1982. I would love to just bob them both out, but my fiance would like to have a bike she can ride on.

I just wanted to share this with those who are interested.

I will probably get back to work as soon as I return home on May 6th.

Enjoy,....









I am going to be selling off some of the stock parts. I will keep everyone updated

 

sweet iam using ur old build as a guid for mine badazz work man

 

Nice! I'm also using your old build as a model for mine so I'll be glad to see it on an other angle!

 

It must be nice being the inspiration for so many different builds. I'm a big fan of the first bike and just recently got an '82 650 Maxim. Once I get it running correctly I plan on bobbing it.

Keep up the good work!

Yep I brought this thread back from the grave. /shrug

 

Edit-- I'm crazy jealous of your lathe.[/quote]


ditto. want it.
awesome bike..

 

Thanks for all the kind comments guys, I really appreciate it.. Coming from a fellow garage builder. We have a great platform here to work from. Keep it clean and simple is how I see it. Nothing too dramatic. If there isn't something about the bike that people will pick, everyone will love it

 

Well done, dude. Inspirational.

 

ever coming back???

 

Hey man I seen where you gutted the exhaust on the first build. How did it sound and also ow bad was it to take apart?