What did you do to your Yamaha today?

Thanks for the tip about the threads (already knew that ofcourse ;-) ).
Can't seem to get hold of adaptors here in Norway :-(

Will go for the separate clamps. That way the mirrors will also be further in on the handlebar and more easily adjustable.

The standard mounting (on the switch clusters on the bars) doesnt allow me to put the mirrors like I want them due to the changed angle created by the drabbars. Not entirely a straight bar it has some elevation. I have turned it upside down to get a lower riding pos. Thinking of switching to clubmans (also called TT bars i think) or clip-on, but they a really hard to get by at a nice price. Alternatively I have seen a nice set of bars that requires risers (they are 28mm compared to 22mm originals, cheap). Would get me low and would also possibly have the handlebar clear the tank. Will need to test...

Think I will try to do the instrument mod first and get a new tach and rpm gauge. The ones in the original instrument cluster is totally shot. Riding blindfolded in terms of speed (not nice with a lot of police around) ;-)
Don't really need a rpm, I feel when it's time to change good enough.

-Dev

 

i stripped the brakes down on me missis 700 xj,cleaned it up,and took her out for a nice long ride,
but am still in need of some parts,any help please?

 

Inbstalled new handlebars. Installed new taillight on side next to license plate. Removed front turn signals and cut off mounting posts. Installed carbs that I cleaned and bench sync'd.

Still awaiting the TCI. If anyone has one they can part with that will git a 81 xj650, let me know.

 

Dropped the needles a notch on the 750... got rid of a very annoying stumble.

Put about 60 miles on the 750. Also, put about 3 miles on the 550, so it didn't feel left out :-D

 

-New RPM cable installed
-Tins are painted and back on
-Finished wiring of indicators and other stuff

Stereomind: 60:3 (20:1), I don't know, I think the 550 is still being left out lol.

 

Rode it!!

First ride of the year!
Had a couple of flat spots (I assume from sitting so long) but I filled up the tank and blew out the dust!

Had a great little ride around downtown St. John's and up signal hill.

 

Put a couple of gallons of gas in it and now it runs fine. Suggests that the other day when it died that either I had vapor lock in the fuel line (there's air in the in-line filter), or there is gunk in the petcock filter. Will have to drain the gas and have a look at that filter.

I may also disassemble and repair or replace the gas cap. The lock is already completely broken anyway. There is a lot of rust in the tank as well, so it might be time for some Sea Foam. (Seafoam?)

Bike runs pretty well, but still has some other issues. There is something out of alignment in the steering; I always feel like I'm turning slightly to the right when riding straight. Will have to loosen up the triple tree and axle and see if I can't align it.

Spedometer needle doesn't jump around like it used to, but is very clearly not reading correctly. I know I was going 70-80 today on the highway (passing people in a 70 zone), but the spedo read 60.

So still kind of a project here, but at least she runs and stops. She'll stop a lot better when chacal has those new brake lines ready, though. Got a whole front end rebuild planned, including an almost entirely replaced front brake system. Can't wait!

Really going to have to tackle that steering thing, though. That affects the ride too much. Anyone have any words of caution or know a trick to getting the alignment just right? I had planned on the "loosen, straighten, and tighten" method.

 

I got to work replacing my cracked intake boots since I now have a set of shiny new ones from Chacal. The first bolt broke off in the head. Aaargh. (I knew there was a good reason that I had been putting off this job. I didn't cry though.) Got the next six out OK then broke the last one. At least both broken ones are on the very outboard positions so easiest to access. Spent the rest of the day doing broken-bolt dentistry with the Dremel tool. Got one of them out and threads cleaned up. Figured that was a good place to quit for the day.

 

Thanks peoples! Shes running great and finally got her fork seals done and had my first "real" ride this weekend and started my work commuting.
Also put a chrome strip along the lip of the tank...looks pretty sweet will get a photo up for a critique tommorow
Cheers

 

Opened the box containing the XJ luggage rack and sissy bar Twitchbiker sent to me. Thanks, Twitch! (He sold it and took it to the shipper for less than UPS charged. You sure gotta appreciate friends like that!)

Now I gotta figure out how to mount it on my 81 650. Anybody know of installation directions online?.

 

Sat on a really soft couch, before going out and cleaning and polishing my 81 750 Seca. I rode from Toronto to Lake Placid and back this past weekend. Great ride...many insects died on the front of my bike and helmet.

 

Successfully removed the second (and last) broken intake bolt from the head. Feels good to have that behind me (until the next time).

 

got mine running under its own power finally

 

Just finished fork seals on the Maxim, Installed New Brakes and rebuilt the Master Cylinder.

 

Replaced those horrible clip on apehanger bars with a nice set of superbike bars. Next on the list is tires and a front end rebuild.

 

Since last update...

Tank painted (Duplicolor truckbed liner, and yes, it does resist gas) and mounted, first ride taken care of ..

Last couple of days, mounted the front signals on the stems of the old...not happy with that yet (had to improvise a mount..looking for a better solution). New Mirrors mounted and a longer ride in as well heh.

Now yesterday... tried to loosen the clamp on the clutch lever side so I could rotate it on the bar a bit to allow for better adjustment of the mirror.... snap... bolt broke... noext project, drill out remaining bits.

MAC, We need to hookup and compare sometime soon


Will post pics later today...

 

took her to work this morning. 42 degrees ca ca cold

 

Swapped out the clubman bars for the sport bars, stripped the clutch lever clamp (d'oh), re-relocated the directionals to the headlight bracket, founf metric bolts to mount the bar-end mirrors, resoldered the contact for the left directional, put the fairing back on, received and returned new jacket (too small)... all in all a busy 2 days!

-c

 

Loosened up the forks and the steering head on the 650 to see if I could get it all straightened out. Discovered that the forks were mounted just a little too high, and not by the same amount. Fixed. Also straightened the guages, which added to the illusion of not being straight.

Also discovered that the left grip is a good inch or so longer than the right one. Need to get a shorter one, since it makes my stance all lopsided, which DEFINITELY makes it feel like I'm always turning right.

Started tearing into the 750. Pulled out the piece of junk wiring for the non-existent fog lamps and started testing the lights. Pulled the tank. Hoses are like wood and there's some small amount of liquid that probably used to be gasoline in the tank.

So far, this bike looks like it's made mostly of dirt and neglect. The plan is to get the electrics to the point where an ignition test will be possible. I'll run continuity and resistance tests on the wiring, regulator, diodes, and relays tomorrow and see about CLEANING this silly thing tomorrow. This is going to be a much longer project than the 650...

 

^^^May the Force be with you... Sounds like you're going to need it!