Hello from Michigan

Hello all.....
New to the forums, so please let me know if i'm not posting this correctly.
Just picked up a '82 Seca 550 for my first bike.
Bike is in good shape, just needs some TLC
I have questions and I'm eager to learn.

 

Welcome from another mitt-er. There's a good number of us here.

Lots of good info here, this page shows lots:

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewforum/f=23.html

and can keep you busy for weeks / months. Information overload is good, and the carb clean and pictures is real helpful.

Have fun.

 

Thanks pjk!
I have a lot of questions, like why am I using so much gas? I was given the bike by my brother (org. owner). Bike only has 5,400 miles on it, and has not had much ride time in the past several years. About two years ago my brother put new rubber on it, had the electrical gone thru, and a "once over" on the carbs. When I picked it up a couple weeks ago I put a new battery in and cleaned the carbs. The bike is tricky to get started, you have to fully choke it and throttle it 5-10 times. I can shut the choke down after a couple minutes and get the bike to idle at 1100. I have only put about 70 miles on the bike and it has already used a 1/2 tank of gas!!?? I did notice the petcock leaks when switched from on to pri or on to reserve. I don't have any gas on the floor after the bike sits overnight. Any ideas on why I would be using so much gas? I really don't think I'm riding the bike that hard.

 

Check your oil level to be sure your carbs aren't overflowing and filling the case up with gas.

 

Welcome to the forum. Glad you are here. Lots of knowledge on this site. Ask away on anything and you will get a response.

 

And that's just a start. After that much sitting time you'll need to:
Clean the carbs/bench sync/vac sync/colortune - this is the reason for the crappy gas mileage
Check rear brakes for delamination
Rebuild (probably) front brakes and replace lines
Replace tires if more than six years old


That's just the short "must do" list.

 

My 700 is not as nice: 103 miles usually till reserve. So 70 miles on 1/2 tank isn't so out of sorts.

But, I would check the oil to see you're not leaking past the float. Just take a whiff when the oil cap is off, to see if it smells like gas. If so, then you have leaky carbs. The needle valves, I'd think.

But, as the bikes usually need maintenance after being so aged, all the items tskaz ( another MI rider ) mentioned are valid for checking / replacing.

Also, to add, valves need to be checked / adjusted before tuning the carbs. I think 5000 miles is the time to check. Man, that bike must be minty. Post up a pic or two, so we can oogle =).

 

I knew I was forgetting something in my sleep-deprived state

 

Thanks for the help so far!
The bike is in pretty good condition. I'll post pics as soon as I get a chance.
Any suggestions on how to remove a little rust from downpipes?

 

I used steel wool on my friends 79 GS1000 and it worked great. I've also heard aluminum foil and water, as the water makes a very fine aluminum paste that gets into the chrome.

ymmv, imho, etc. Don't get mad if steel wool doesn't work right. i felt nervous but it worked OK for me.

 

What's the easiest way to place a pic in a post/reply?

 

Many use photobucket to store pix, then paste the link.

 

Thanks for the info :!:

 

I did get a pic in my gallery.

 

Yep, that works too. Nice. I like the red, seems faster =).

 

Thanks, I'm taking the bike to our local guru this weekend for a good look-over/ tune-up. I can't wait to get out and ride more than 20 minutes.

 

Well I took the good advice from this site and took the Seca to someone with the experience and tools to properly go through the bike, and do it right the first time. He has checked the valves, sync'd the carbs, replaced some gaskets/seals, and rebuilt the petcock. The only problem is that he works full time and really only gets to work on the bike over the weekends, but hey, I can wait for properly inspected/repaired bike. Just want to say thanks for everyone's great advice on this site!!!

 

Grats on finding someone who can work on the old bike. Those people are rare (present forum excluded of course).