Hello From Georgia - XJ550 Maxim Owner

XJ Folks,
This is my first post to your forums as I just found the site doing a search for XJ ignition system info.

When I was in High School in the early '80's I worked as a Mechanic for a Yamaha dealer in Blakeslee, PA. I was honestly not normally allowed to touch the street bikes, other than to assemble them from the crates, and was primarily responsible for repairing dirt bikes (YZ's & IT's) enduros (DTs), snowmobiles, lawnmowers and various other small stuff. When we were a little overwhelmed I got a few opportunities to work on the Specials and loved every minute.

I owned more than 30 motorcycles in my life but the majority have been Yamaha's as I have loved them since I was a kid (DT100, DT175, RD350, YZ250, YZ465, XS400, SR500, XJ650, SECA 650, XS1100, XJ550, Excel5 (Snowmobile).

Last year I purchased a Black '81 XJ550 in pretty decent shape for $500. It didn't run and looked like crap. I repaired and rebuilt the carbs, welded the leaky tank, bought a handful of replacement parts from Evil-Bay, used the YICS tool to sync the carbs, repainted the bike and have it running pretty good (but not great). I hope to look through the forums to get the information needed to get it running 100%properly.



I've also acquired an old childhood memory (although not a Yamaha) it's a great reminder of childhood. This bike was purchased for a mere $300 and with the addition of a few hundred bucks in parts and some paint looks pretty decent as well. Starts on the FIRST kick EVERY TIME!


My final toy is not a motorcycle but just another childhood memory.......


Those with a keen eye will notice all the same paint color . Leftovers from the car have made the bikes look good.....

Thanks for the forum. Looks like a great place to learn and share information.
Kurt
Peachtree City, GA

 

Very nice x 3 !

 

nice looking stable. that Honda takes me back. my cousins had two of those and I had a mini trail 50. what fun they were to ride.

CN

 

Welcome to the club. Good looking stable.

Gary H.

 

Nice toys welcome to the board! Like you, I have my XJ and a few others, among them, an F-body. Mine is a '73 Camaro and not nearly as pretty as your TA

 

+1 for the XJ in the house!

You are either single or married to your dream girl!

 

LOL - Well.... after nearly 30 years, the bride is use to my B.S. - LOL Actually, the bike is in an area that was converted from a garage to living space. Now that the last kid is in College it's been re-converted back to a "Man Cave". The bike was "allowed" in the house just prior to the re-conversion when the photo was taken.


Kurt

 

Here ya go Buddy! Tell her you have a friend that has 3 bikes in his house! This is in our family room or Den, where we spend most of the time ( big screen TV is in here)


Here's a pic of my F-body

 

Stump lifter "+1 for the XJ in the house!

You are either single or married to your dream girl!"
Stumplifter, you have to take a proactive stance early on!
New house purchase, starts the negotiation process. Make what ever concessions she wants, paint, furniture, decor, art, floor coverings, but negotiate for what you want! In my case, I got the entire 2 car garage AND a 625sq ft shop in the backyard AND,,,,,,
ONE Bike in the house. But hey, these two BELONG together! Mutual Combatants locked in an eternal struggle! You can't split them up!
Why THIS is the Bike the Italians built to beat the Japanese domination in WSB! And they did!
And THIS? Well this is the Bike the Japanese built solely to defeat the Ducati! And they did! Hehehe! And just like that! Poof! Two Bikes in the house! Sadly, the little Yamaha got kicked out to the shop, but never fear! I have a Suzuki RaceBike coming in in the near future, and I've already started the negotiation process on that!
Come on guys! Fight for one measly little thing of your own! She has the whole house! All you want is one small area to decorate as you see fit! There you go laid the ground work for you guys!

 

Nice little huffer on the red car. Took the whole police force to catch up with you, huh? Split bumper RS model, too. Too bad you lost the hood.......

 

From one PA boy to another, Welcome. My nephew lives in Griffin. The next time I'm down there, I'll drop you a PM and maybe we'll get together and swap some stories and lies. You like Yuengling?