I am the new guy.

Hello all, I'm new. My name is Mark and I'm from MN. I'm a relatively new rider (only been riding a year) though I'm on the older side (mid 50's) and have never considered myself particularly mechanically inclined though I learn fairly quickly. I just picked up my 2nd bike, an 82 XJ750J Maxim. My first bike is a Suzuki GZ250 and while I love the gas mileage I get with it, it's way too underpowered to take on the freeway for trips up north. Hence the XJ750.

I knew when I bought it that it would need work but thought it would be an interesting challenge. The guy I bought it from used it as his daily driver to work and back until the day the throttle cable broke. (about a month before I bought it) He did drive it for me to show that it worked shifting through all the gears (one handed with a finger wrapped around the broken cable to give it gas) and it sounded fine though I still want to go through it all to make sure it's safe.

It'll need new tires and a new throttle cable and some electrical work (seems to be a short in the headlight) What are some other things I want to check/replace and what would be their priority?

I've picked up an owners manual and a repair manual on E-bay as well as picking up the Haynes manual. Any other reading material that would be helpful?

1st thing, the manual says that the front tire should be a 3.25 X 19, the tire that is currently on it is a 110/90 X 19 Should I stick with that or go with the manual? What is the difference between these two tires?

Thank you
Mark

 

Mark,
New tires is wise (don't put a car tire on it).
Check your rear brake for de lamination of the shoe.
http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=15874.html

Replacing/ rebuilding both front and rear brake systems (old brake lines are dangerous) will make you stop with confidence!

Ask all your questions here and the XJ Guru's here will guide you through any task.

 

Checking the valve clearances is important, as per BigFitz, the valves get tight and can eventually burn up.
Here's a good how to I used: http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic ... +pics.html

Also, many members suggest checking the date codes on the front brake lines, as they age they can deteriorate internally and become a safety hazard. They cause spongy brakes as well.


Welcome to the site!

 

To answer your front tire question: The 110/90 is a tag large. The equivalent to the stock 3.25 would be a 90/90; most folks go to a 100/90 though. (All 19" of course.) The "inch" sizing dates to a time before motorcycle tire dimensions became all metric and include the aspect ratio (the "/90") like they do now.

To do list?

-Valve clearances
-Carb service and adjust including float levels, bench and vacuum sync
-Petcock will need attention
-Install inline fuel filter
-Rebuild the brakes completely, no shortcuts here
-Rebuild or replace the fusebox
-Depending on the mileage on the bike you may need alternator brushes
-Depending on the mileage on the bike you'll probably need new rear shocks
-Front forks will need rebuilding sooner or later unless leaking, then right now
-And tires over 6 ~ 8 years old MAX gotta go.

The first chapter in the FSM is called "Periodic Inspections and Adjustments." That's the best blueprint/check list for the process. Go through that entire section, step by step, starting with the first procedure right through to the last; and along the way clean, refurbish, repair or replace any unserviceable part you find. Don't skip over anything or leave anything out. When you're done you'll have a fully recommissioned and reliable bike to ride.

Welcome aboard. You've got a bit of work ahead of you; but the end result is well worth it.

 

Don't forget to check or probably replace the wheel bearings
a 40 dollar fix that is worth it
replace clutch springs and plates
new brake line on the front, as well as rebuild or replace the master
cylinder

 

Thanks for all the ideas. I'll probably start with the valves and then go to the brakes and then see what happens from there.

Also thanks for the tire explanation, that opens up a lot more possibilities for me, not much of a selection with looking at the 3.25 tires.

 

Congrats on the bike! Ditto on what was said about tires. Have fun wit hthe bike. I too am looking into picking up a fixer upper ~

 

Welcome, Mark. You'll find a lot of MN XJers here. Where "up north" do you want to be taking this baby? I-35 suxxors on my XJ, I take alternate routes when I head to the Cities.

 

Duluth huh? I lived in Duluth for a few years, but my old home town is Esko and I still have friends and family living up there. I'm not sure I'd want to tackle I-35 but I figure Highway 61 will take me most of the way. Nice to meet you.

 

I wish you luck MarkS. You're are opening a can of worms. Just browse the articles and you will see a bunch of people on the site that are 5th gear. And they're have problems with the carbs. They show you how to to clean the carbs. I have used 6 cans alone. I had the cleaner coming out of every hole there is. And my bike has gotten worse. It won't even start now even though it has great compression. 150 psi for each cylinder using Mac tools tester.

 

On the to do list. The first item should be take out a big loan for all the stuff you have to do. Hence the low price of the bike and the high prices for the parts.

 

Sounds like the whine of someone stuck in 1st gear! :lol:

Altlandf - don't be a wet rag because your having a hard go of it, the majority of users and riders here have had GREAT success from the advice given by fellow members.

 

Esko grad myself, 1983. Go Eskomos!

Not sure where you are in the Cities but I highly suggest taking 23 north, at least from Banning. Great ride and turns into Grand in West Duluth (tho you can cut off at 61 and go into Esko.

People here will give you a good hand, just don't let the couple of bittermeisters bring you down, so people just like to beat the proverbial dead horse when they can't work something out. This is basic mechanical stuff, occasionally challenging (old bikes afterall, and Previous Owners can really bone you), but the more fastidious you are the better your results. As I mentioned, in the Cities you have people who can help if you get stuck.

 

Maybe is because carbs is only one piece to the puzzle. Recommissioning a bike is like weight watchers, if you kinda do it right it kinda work, If you do everything right everything will work.

Cheers

 

if you truly achieved "zestfully clean' as per you saying you had cleaner coming out of every hole, then the problems you have are due to you not making the proper adjustments in the proper order. these bikes are extremely well engineered and require proper tuning to make it all work right. I wish you all the luck in the world at having a bike that works for you.

ps. did you replace all the 30+ year old rubber parts that are required for these bikes to function properly? just washing out the carbs is not "rebuilding" them and you cannot expect them to function properly if you didn't.

CN

 

Like the good gentlemen say, carb's require time and a few parts..

brakes and tires, you life depends on them,
they are what hold your hide off the pavement and
stop you when a car doesn't see you,
Never be cheap with them, and they will treat you well.

don't be afraid to ask if your not sure of something.

Please search the question, just to see if maybe it has popped up before.
it will save you time waiting for a response.

all else fails, send me a PM , i'll see if i can swing over to give you a hand if your within range

snow is a bummer, and winter is the wasteland of 4 wheel cages.

 

LOL, what are the odds? I'm class of 77 myself.

Thank you all for the welcome, I know I've got a lot of work ahead of me but at least it's the winter so I can't ride anyway. Might as well fix stuff up.