550 Cam Swap

Hi All,

I'm considering swapping out the cams in my Maxim 550 for the hotter Seca cams as well as adjusting the carbs accordingly. Any insight as to the overall effect of this change? Will I be compromising low-mid power for top end performance? If so, to what degree and is it worth it???

I love my Maxim, I sometimes feel thought as if it's grunting a little too hard for what it's putting out in terms of speed and overall performance. The sprocket set up is standard as well, although I have free flowing dual exhaust. Other performance ideas are welcome... Thanks in advance for your feedback.

 

We would need more info on your bike. When were the valve clearances last checked and adjusted? Have the carbs been properly cleaned and synched? These will have an effect on your bike's performance. As for the cam change, I think the difference in performance would be negligible. BigFitz would probably have a better opinion on this. He is our resident 550 guru. If he doesn't respond here, send him a pm with your question. He is always happy to help out. He is a great guy and his knowledge of the 550's is outstanding.

 

I'm starting from scratch here as I've let the bike sit for a number of years (while cheating on it with a Suzuki). I'll be adjusting the valve clearances and thoroughly clearing the carbs soon. Assuming the bike is perfectly tuned, I just want more information on the performance differences between the Seca and the Maxim. I expect more performance in the higher rpm range, I'm just curious what happens to the bottom and middle. What about top speed?

 

Here is an explanation to your cam swap question from another thread.

http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=3 ... +cams.html

 

I think I'm gonna throw caution to the wind and move forward with the swap, unless of course I see a big red flag along the way. I'll inspect the current head for wear. Thanks for the warning. I found a set of super clean Seca cams on Ebay for $25 I'll get some bigger pilot air jets, which are cheap. I need to rebuild the carbs anyway as I'm sure after 32 years, new O-rings are in order. I'll opt for shimming the needles instead of dropping the cash for the 4GZ11 needles. The bike never ran right anyway due to the modified exhaust and possibly messed with carbs, so this is an opportunity to start from scratch and tune up a super performing bike. I'm going to tune it up first using the existing cams and see which set-up is the most fun. I can always put it back the way it was. I'll let you know how it goes! Thank you for your feedback. I appreciate it.

 

Good luck. Definitely let us know how the swap goes. You aren't the first person to inquire about it.