Cafe' build from Oklahoma

Gentlemen, how we doing. I'm the proud owner of a 82 JX650 (well half of one). I decided to join this forum more so for convo and sharing the build. I may need a little help along the way but not currently. So no worries, I don't come to you with a open hand out of no where. Anyways, Here's the bike.

 

Welcome to the Club. What's your plan for the build?

Gary H.

 

This is a good place for seeking answers.
One very important question that can help determine your probability of having a successful rebuild. . .

Do you have the factory airbox?

 

Welcome to the party, solid engines these bikes have, Factory air box is key, the rest is gravy and look forward to seeing your build.

 

I do have the stock box. Are these like CB750s that have idling and power issues without the airbox?
I plan on a cafe look with very minimal everything.

 

Yes, these are like the CB750's; both have CV carbs, which don't play nice with pods.

Good luck with the build!

 

hello all i have 2 yes i said 2 82 xj750j one WAS red and a black one

 

Welcome. Please start your own build thread.

Gary H.

 

Cognito motors makes a giant pod filter that connects all 4 carbs in a much cleaner way then the airbox. It is also quite a bit of money. The way I got around it on my CB750 was the K&N pods that link 2 carbs to one filter. Then had it tuned by a local shop.

Ritchie, What part of Oklahoma you from? I'll be up and running in about a month.. we should ride.

 

Carb rebuild time...

 

They look pretty clean on the outside. Hope they're just as nice inside.

 

They werent..

Can you guess which one is rebuilt? lol

 

So I've ran into a serious head scratcher. Maybe it's just something simple. My starter spins backwards. I thought that maybe through all this wiring rat's nest that I've been cleaning, something got messes up. But, I direct wired the battery to the starter and it spins backwards if hooked up properly. The starter is not the original starter But I rebuilt it myself. I triple checked my work and it should be built correct. Anyone have any ideas?

 

Check the brushes for the correct orientation, if they are clocked off by 90 degrees the starter will reverse direction.

Pics in this post on page 2 where other members had the same issue, covers a 550 and a 650:

http://www.xjbikes.com/forums/threa...fter-starter-rebuild.57854/page-2#post-456393

 

Thanks for the info, I'll check it out tonight after work.

 

SHE'S ALIVE! I realigned the starter brushes and we're in business. Worked on the rest of the wiring and got it running yesterday.

 

Son of a mother! Who ever owned the bike before me had put inch+ thick bondo over rust holes. The tank was complete garbage. Looks like I'll be buying a Seca tank sooner than I planned. That was supposed to be phase 2.

 

That looks like a '82 maxim. The Seca
tank will have to be modified to fit. The 750 maxim tank is a direct swap and is larger.

Gary H.

 

You sure? I could of swore I read a thread where the guy said he personally test fitting tanks and the seca fits a maxim without mod. Well it required seat mod but not tank mod.

What's the difference between a Seca and Seca RJ? He says the RJ fits.. This is becoming a headache.

 

Nothing. RJ is the suffix that denotes the sub-model. R for Seca, J for the year of manufacture (1982).

The fitment guide: http://www.xjbikes.com/forums/threads/yamaha-seca-xj750-tank-alternative.62135/#post-455749

So you can fit a 650 Seca tank if you also change to a 650 Seca triple tree to maintain fork tube clearance. You can fit a 750 Maxim tank woth no modifications needed. You can fit a 750 Seca tank, but will need to modify the seat.

 

650 Seca tank would be smallest of that lot right? I want a much smaller tank.

 

Good info by the way, thanks.

 

Smaller, but not much smaller. Sounds like you want to adapt or build a tank.
I wonder why you want to stop for gas more often though. You've only got about a 100 miles until you hit reserve with the stock tank.

 

I'm not going on treks across the country with the bike. I will stay in the city just cruising around. I want to balance the form and function, but with it leaning a little more towards form. I bought a 650 seca tank last night so it looks like I'll be adapting my triple

 

It also has a XS - Special rim on the front

 

I'm actually swapping the wheel out for the original XJ wheel. So if anyone want's to trade, let me know.
Little update, the wiring is all done, the bike runs now. Having a custom cafe seat built right now. Then off to the local shop to have the carbs balanced and a battery tray built.

 

Not sure if any of you would have interest in this but I needed a bracket to cap the end of my frame and house my rear tail light. I have a chopped rear for a cafe build I am doing. So I pulled up my Solidworks and whipped out a basic housing. I have send it to 3D printing. If all fits well I will shell the design from the back and have it CNC lathed out of steel so I can permanently weld the housing to the frame. Here are a few pics. Any suggestions or questions, hit me.

 

Cool. I have that same taillight on my trailer.

 

that would cost a small fortune to get CNC'd from a block. it's kind of impossible to make unless the cylinders are separate pieces.

 

The plastic pieces could be used for sand cast mold and be made of aluminum.

 

I think he means "CNC mill". I would just turn a couple of plugs on the lathe and weld in a cross bracket.

 

I did mean mill, sorry. Is not very expensive to have it milled. If I had it CNC'd I would lose the plugs for obvious reasons. Kind of what I meant when I said I would shell the design from the back. I will post up what it looks like once I get it installed.

 

*update*
3D printed bracket came in. The tolerances between the light housing and bracket was about .5mm too tight. Easily sanded out, but I will take the .5mm out of the design before sending out for CNC. Also felt it would look cleaner if the outer edges of the tail light aligned with the bracket instead of the center. So i added 12mm of spacing on the back mounting point of the light. I think I'm going to add another 10mm or so then mass fillet the outer edges of the bracket to match.

 

maybe you could work directionals into the tabs

 

If that's the same unit I have, the directionals are integrated.
If not, then there are some nice surface-mount directionals that would look good on the tube covers.

 

I like the ingenuity but my state does not require blinkers so i did not wire for them.

 

Would one of the mods move this over to my build thread... http://www.xjbikes.com/forums/threads/new-guy-from-oklahoma.89799/page-2#post-531553

Thanks in advance

 

Built a front 'number plate' to house the headlights. Finally getting back on this project.. moved houses and forgot about it.

 

Done.

 

I have been looking at my options for intake. I know everyone says go with the stock air box but wow is that thing huge. I have looked into the dual oval pods from K&N that make two carbs pull from the same pod. I have also seen the 'bread box' style air boxes that people fashion for their bikes. Anyone have input on these options?

 

It's not huge (when compared to modern air boxes), and it's that size for good reason (intake resonance).
If you want to do something different go with a custom airbox rather than pods (even the doubles). A Google search with site:xjbikes.com after your keywords will bring up all of the relevant threads.

 

thanks

 

Got my front plate thrown together. The bike is down to bones cause I am working on the wiring. I need to paint the plate. Thinking matt black or silver to match my new tank. Also ditched the stock battery set up, too cumbersome. I have a new 'battery' I'm putting together for it. I'll show you when it's all finished.

 

Can a Mod rename this thread to "Cafe build from Oklahoma"
Don't think I'm still considered a 'new guy'
Thanks

 

I was going to compromise and rename it "New guy from Oklahoma Cafe Build," but thought it might be too snarky of me .

 

Lol, thanks.
Random side question, Anyone know the minimum CCA for a XJ650?

 

So this is where she sits as of this morning...
I have made a lot of progress (wiring is done, unless I want to put my headlights on a switch) but still have a laundry list of to-dos;
-Brake pads
-tires
-oil
-intake box
-battery mount
-custom seat
-carb tune
-exhaust
-foot pegs
-speedo
-paint


Speaking of paint, Any suggestions on the color scheme of the 'number plate' head light mount?

 

I would not want to go lower than 160.

 

Cleaned out the Seca tank this weekend with distilled water and sand. Pretty good method if you are ok with shaking a tank for about a hour. also I would suggest washing the sand before using it. A lot more dirt hiding in a bag of play sand than you would think.
Also I have ordered quite a few things from XJ4ever that would be arriving this week... The build is moving along.

 

I'm very worried that you aren't ever going to get all of the sand out. The seams are great traps for tiny objects. You really need to run with an inline fuel filter to make sure none of the sand gets into the carbs.