Why did you buy an XJ?

I pulled the spring out of my 920 virago. boom. No more coffee can rattles. Started perfectly every time after that

I wanted a cool looking old bike. The scalloped tank on the seca is what drew me in to the xj scene.

 

Was looking for a cheap ( have learned my lesson, don't worry) bike to learn to ride on. I found a 1982 XJ750J that fit the requirements and bought it. I liked the general look and easy to fix reviews. Loved it, till it did not start one day, but I am working on fixing that issue.

 

My dad found it, and it was cheap. And I like tinkering/ressurecting old bikes.

 

To make it my own, bought myself a completely stock xj750 seca in decent shape last year, and made it into a cafe brat that i am almost done with.
A lot of blood, sweat and money, but mostly money haha

 

Looks great, love the seat!

 

I'm usually not a fan changing a bike much...but that is pretty cool at least you did not hack off rear frame loop. Like how you did the tank too!!!

 

Thanks! Once I finish it this weekend (hopefully) I'll post up some more pics.

 

That look really nice-especially not cutting off the rear loop. Professionalism indeed

 

Just lucky I guess! Looking through Craigslist for a cheap older bike that needed minor work. The bike I bought was on there for a few weeks and looked like a good candidate and it was near by so I figured I'd take a look. PO seemd honest and gave me what turned out to be a really honest assessment of the bike. For $500 it was worth a chance. Very happy with it and to top it off found this forum for all the advice. Been lurking for a few weeks and reading up. I know have the bike running and stopping well.

 

Pretty!

 

Nice Bike Pattiwack !!!!

 

Got a spare engine off forum member Joe Elliff one of the great things about these bikes, there are still bikes and parts out there. There are bikes I'd love to own but only 2 things keeping me from that....$$$$$$ and WIFE ...well she does keep my grounded so I guess that is a good thing and she does not say a lot about me buying parts.

 

reminds me of a Johnny Cash song

 

traded a driveshaft for a Dakota for my XJ it had bushes growing up around it and through it

 

Yes tinkering with old bikes is brilliant. The XJ is a great machine I like this cafe racer.

 

I got my XJ550 because I knew it was a solid reliable machine. My brother bought one brand new exactly the same year and model as mine. He was always very generous with the keys and I would take it for weekends during the summer. Between the both of us, that bike was put through the gauntlet for six years before he sold it. I was impressed with what it offered.
Fast forward 25 years, I saw one on Craigslist and it was sold immediately. By chance a coworker had bought it and he was never satisfied with the "little bike" as he called it. Being the bike person I am, I offered suggestions on improving the machine to him. It started out just tuning the bike, then to modifying it for him and lastly talking him into selling it to me.
My brother came to visit me shortly after getting the bike about six months ago. When he saw the bike in my garage he immediately said "keys" then he was gone for a few hours on my new baby. He returned and he just had a look on his face of utter joy. The conversation for the next few hours was about my bike and the bike he had. He is now on the hunt to get one again.
Summing it up, I got my XJ because I know the model very well and can work on it, it's about as simple as they come with a bit of style from that era, it fits my body size and height perfectly and its an impressive bike as it sits stock. When I ride it I continually get bombarded with questions about it what it is. Occasionally, I run into someone who recognizes what it is then the conversation is on.
No regrets.

 

I allready had a 650 turbo engine and frame - bought to build my next trike. When I saw an ebay add for the 650 maxim, I thought, why not must be some bits I can use for the trike?
Having got it home, I kind of like the look and feel of it - small, neat, not top heavy, but most of all, for a 38 year old bike it's in amazing condition, even if some of the bits have been robbed.

 

I wish I'd known that trick 15 years ago! Grrr.

 

I also have a spare engine that I just acquired. It's a runner out of a 88 Radian with just under 10,000 miles. Spot on compression, carbs included along with the TCI. Interested to see how different it runs without YICs and a few extra ponies.
Definitely a plus on the availability and price of parts. They are very accommodating of other brand bike parts which I find as a bonus for modifications.
I have a couple other brand bikes and when they require parts I get ready to experience a little pain. I've came to terms with it finally and find the pain enjoyable in a sick way.

 

So my dad rides a 97 Honda Goldwing looks brand new it is the 2nd goldwing he has owned . So now he wants a Slingshot he was at a steeler ship my mom was discussing a possible trade....and salesman (use that term loosly) laughed and said my dad bike was vintage and NO one wants an OLD bike...so he lost a sale. It amazes me that unless it is a sport bike dealers don't want to talk to you. I love my OLD MAN bike , I enjoy working on it it has it quirks may not turn heads , may not be a 150 mph bike ( at my age I don't need one either) one reason I do not like dealers it usually a young kid who only rides sport bikes that is all they want to sell even cruisers are not highly thought of. That is another reason I prefer the XJ if yamaha ever brought it back I'd buy one wishful thinking I know. Just read that HD is in bad shape that millenials are not buying bikes and folks are not riding like they used to ....but HD problems boil down to high price and technology that is quite old. Before you think I'm bashing them I had a Buell ....they should have never killed the brand off , they should bring out an off road model and dare I say it a sport model. Okay that was my rant.

 

WHAT you don't want to stand on the seat and ride a wheelie down the road for 4 or 5 miles?
My neighbor rolled his HD out into the drive way after a half hour he pushed his bike back into the garage couldn't get it started

 

Something that i've noticed over the years is that when someone invented something that WORKS GREAT with in a short period of time it is discontinued. i guess making things out of inferior products for less cost and the more they can charge you and that will up the service calls to repair it. MONEY MONEY MONEY.

 

Finally rode about 40 miles ( got work to do at home) so nice to ride again . Stopped by a dealership drooled over some new bikes love the new Indian scout only thing keeping me from it 13k and sat on a 2014 Honda 1100 6900$ only thing I was on tip toes and seat was rock hard. I don't think I would have liked it. I sat on a new Yamaha Bolt 6800$ i really liked it BUT after I left got on my xj and took off hit 6k and smiled it is mine it is comfortable runs great is as close to stock as it was in 82 . I noticed sitting on some of the new bikes i really don't care for the forward controls prefer the controls on my xj .

 

Yeah, even on more cruiserish bikes, I strongly prefer midset controls. I mean, having a second set forward is great for when you want to kick back, but I find having your feet forwards prevents your offloading your body weight to your feet too, so your butt gets sore over time. This is particularly significant if you live somewhere where roads aren't always great - potholes smashing your spine suck. I had both on my sportster, standard midset controls and forward controls with linkages - really liked that. Just having forwards, though... eh.

Or maybe I'm just too fat. That's a possibility too!

 

I'm vertically challenged (5'6") and a little oh okay I'm fat so I have a pillow built in it is a 6 pack ab carrying case so sport bikes are not real comfortable to ride and yes I have rode them and even owned a 92 xj600 seca 2 for a few days bought it without wife's knowledge , dealer took it back and got my Kawasaki 550 Ltd back . My first brand new bike was an 02 Buel Blast 500 my first thumper put over 11000k tought a coworker how to ride in parking lot he loved it and bought it off of me he rode it another 6k and traded it it in on a new Honda shadow. I personally am not real comfortable with the full forward controls . Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki and Kawasaki all at one time had 350,400,500,550,650,750,900,1000,1100 4 cylinder bikes the universal Japanese bikes as they were known were the rage , British bikes were by the 80' s done in by the bikes from the orient . The Japanese bikes did not leak oil, vibrate , would run forever with a little maintenance. Meanwhile HD was still trying to recover from AMF ownership they leaked oil, vibrated worse than a paint shaker , were little removed from 1920's technology ( still using 45 degree V twin ) they were not real reliable either ( they have come a long way since the 80's ) dont get me wrong I found a 1200 sportster I liked today but at 7600$ with 1200 miles on it was more than I want to pay. As long as we have xj4ever and eBay I can keep improving and doing small upgrades to my bike and I'm happy I bought it my plan at first was to do a little work and flip this bike , but after awhile I was hooked happy motoring

 

For ultra-high mileage on an XJ engine, I refer you to my mate Jamie's XJ900F. Back in the early 90s he bought it used, as a relatively high miles machine - the wrinkle was, everybody thought 30K miles was 'high' for a bike. So, he got it cheap.
Over the next three or four years he put about 200K on it - that's miles, not kms.
He then traded it to a dealer, who in turn punted it out cheap as a 'high mileage' bike - the wrinkle there was, Jamie had really looked after the cosmetics and the odometer had only recently turned over again, so although it showed 30K , it was actually on about 230K.
A couple of years later he happened to meet the new owner, another courier, who said he was pleased as Punch with the way it just carried on running, and he'd put about another 60 or 70K on it.
Sooo.... that bike, at last time of seeing it, had done, we reckoned 300 Thousand Miles.
The only mechanical work that ever needed doing was the Achilles Heel of these engines, the starter chain. That got done at around 90K and never got done again, as far as we know.
My own XJ900F had 100K on it when I bought it, cheap. I had no hesitation in buying it, as I knew this engine will carry on going for a good many years yet.

As for my other bikes, I have a pair of Suzuki GS850s, one of which has nearly 200K and the other is getting up towards 300K now.

So, if you're looking for a secret to high mileage on any of the Big Four four-stroke engines - change the oil every 2 or 3K and don't thrash them too much. Look after the routine maintenance and it will just carry on running.

 

It is amazing the mileages these bikes do someone once called the XJ's the Volvo's of motorcycles, meaning longevity not boring.

 

Got my 82 XJ650 for $100. Only mod was the aftermarket exhaust. Guy had rung off five of the intake bolts. Best riding bike I have ever owned.

 

Yes l liked the 650 too l always liked the XJ range of bikes.

 

I Yamaha would make an updated XJ with a 4 cylinder and keep price around 6 to 8 K price range they would sell !!! I know I'd buy one .

 

The spiritual successor to the XJ line still currently in production, is the FJR1300 model.
Too rich for me, but I'll have a serious look at the older FJRs sometime in the next year or two, as I always fancied an 1100+. Given that the first FJR13 is now 17 years old, it might be cheap enough.
http://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/yamaha/Yamaha_FJR_1300_ES_18.htm

 

My Triumph was stolen and then totaled so I needed a bike to keep me happy. FB market place search of project and I saw a beautiful 82 650 Seca pictured and had to have it. I truly love these older Yamaha’s and can’t wait to get mine looking great again.

 

I have wanted one since I first laid eyes on one in the little Yamaha dealers shop when they first came out. I watch the local CL and shortly after picking up a 96 FZR600 I planed to fix up and turn. (I just retired and thought this is what I needed to keep me busy.) This XJ650LJ showed up. Now I had to borrow the money for the XJ. But I was successful in finding the owner and making the purchase. It only had 9100 miles on it so it didn't need much. It runs great! Brought it home and started in. I have done a few of the required updates (rear brake shoes and new fuse box) so far and have been putting a few miles on it with short rides to build up my confidence in it. It let me down the other day, but it was just the vacuum line had come off the petcock. The riding position is perfect! It shifts so smooth. I couldn't believe I could find one in this condition after so many years. For now it sits with my 01FZ1 and my FZR. I just have a couple of things to do and I think I could take this thing cross country. I appreciate all the information in this thread. It has helped me to avoid some serious hazards that would have plagued me if I hadn't known about them first.

 

I always wanted an XJ too RCHER and my brother bought me a 900f for my birthday otherwise I could not have got one. I am a lucky man.

 

mine was in a friends shed, unmoved for ten years. I always liked the seca style, my uk xj650 is getting full engine stripdown with straight bars, single seat, cusom made 4 into 4 exhaust, gps speedo led tail/indicators.

 

I love my XJ 900f always wanted one. It just ticks all the boxes for me. Best present l ever got.

 

Wife's dad had a Maxim 650 before he died. While visiting a long-lost uncle, noticed an old bike on the lawn, growing grass out of the seat and mouse nests in the headlight bucket. Turns out it was the wife's dad's and had been sitting there for about 30 years. Motor was (is) seized and anything that could rot or rust, did. Swapped the title over, and brought it home in parts.

Was looking for a parts bike to try and frankenstein one working bike and came across a very low mileage running xj650 for $1000. (around here, parts bikes are going for $900) Scooped it up and honestly, I'm loving it. It's so damn comfortable. I hated the big seat, the buckhorn handlebars and huge mirrors, until I rode it and realized how perfectly everything worked.

So now, the plan is to try and refurb BOTH bikes. Once I started getting into it, I noticed the problems with the original non-running bike might be more solvable than I originally thought. I might end up with two 83's with less than 20K on them.

 

True story...
Just started riding on the road three years ago, running a 1978 Yamaha dt175 2-stroke enduro. (I'm very throttle happy figured id start small to reduce tickets). Anyhow...
I get a call from my brother, he asks me if I'm still into bow hunting and motorcycles... YES!
He tells me his neighbours brother has a mint compound bow, and a Yamaha motorcycle for sale, either one has to be worth 1000-1200 buck easy and if I show up in the next 30 minutes with $300 I can take my pick!
I show up and the bike is outside, running, and my bro is frapping it off 6000 rpm with an open header, his neighbour is afraid he's pissing people off n yelling at him cause it's so loud... (I had a chubby)
I look it over and it literally needs a seat and rear turn signals for a safety, albeit the grab bars, badging etc are missing, it has stupid Z bars that hit the tank...
I drove it.... It scared me...
I made dude write me a receipt right there on a piece of cardboard, I went home grabbed my helmet and other bike plate and drove it home.
Put in 800 bucks to make it stock looking, (badges, hanlebars, signals seat etc. )oils + filters etc for maintenance
I'm on year three and it just runs, hard, every day.... Love this bike

 

Haha, never did even look at the bow come to think of it.....

 

^^^^^ the 800 included registration, taxes and licensing.... Hehe (not insurance of course )

 

I would buy one too. Great engineering from Yamaha.

 

I could envision myself on a new seca touring edition bike. Though I don’t believe it’d be in that 6-8k range.
For my personal tastes it’d be very similar to the super tenere yet have a much better front fairing and not so off road capable
For now tho, I’ll stick with my xj750rj touring

 

I've been trying to get my carbs synched , I can't leave well enough alone . Rode it on my 3 miles circuit cranked it up to 6k before I knew it I was at 60 ...may not be in superbike territory BUT was cheap to buy ,and cheap to insure and is all mine , maybe one day I might sell it on and buy something else , but for now I work to do subtle improvements and enjoy riding .

 

The sound man, that sound way cool...

 

There are not many XJ range motorcycles on the road where I live, in fact I have only seen one for sale a few miles from me and they are for sale at times on E Bay. But the reason I like the XJ 900f is the look of the bike, shaft drive, maintenance especially the eight valve head. Yamaha made a brilliant engine which is so reliable and so well engineered and when I look at a motorcycle I like to see the engine rather than have it hidden behind fairings like some of the machines on the road. A friend of mine was talking the other day about poor quality Chinese motorcycles and I told him they called Japanese machines Jap Crap when I was young. How wrong they were, Yamaha and the other Japanese manufacturers have proved that. Anyway back to the XJ range a friend had an XJ 550 which I liked, but I prefered the 650 because of the shaft drive. The reason I got my XJ is because I always wanted one. I went to get a tyre for the car and the XJ was parked at a motorcycle dealer nearby. Actually my brother bought it for me, I am very lucky. It is the best bike I have ever owned and I will keep it until I am too old to use it. Then it will go to my nephew.

 

I grew up in a small town with only one motorcycle dealer (Yamaha), so that's what the majority of the bikes in the area were. I raced motocross for a few years, and then in 1984 when I was ready to move to a street bike, I stopped in to see they had. I had intended to find a used bike, but they had a brand new leftover 1982 Seca 750 in the showroom. The deal was good, and I couldn't resist. It was a great bike with all the power I could handle, good on the highway and a sharp looking bike.



I only kept it a couple of years because I went away to become a ski bum and couldn't take it with me. I always missed it and I've kept an eye on Craigslist in case something popped up. Well, about a month ago one surfaced, and the time was right. A member here had one he had partially disassembled and wanted to move since he had two. Short version, it's back together and on the road. I blew it back apart last weekend and will be painting it in a few days. I should probably start a build thread since it's almost done .

 

@twerth your garage is so clean! Did you just move in? Nice looking bike. I need one.

 

Ha! That's not my garage. It's the PO's.

 

This^^^

I bought my dad's '82 XJ750 finally last week. He bought it new and would always take me for rides when I was younger. You could always hear him as he pulled up to the house because of the one of a kind sound these bikes have. He put 13k miles on it between new and '90 and only 3k miles since then. I finally talked him into selling it to me.

The bike has plenty of power, is incredibly nimble, and I'm finding out not too horrible to work on. I plan on this bike being the last I'll ever buy.