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85 XJ700 Carb Help

Discussion in 'XJ Technical Chat' started by Michael Garland, Feb 26, 2017.

  1. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Hello Internet! First post and it is due to my inexperience... I traded a vehicle for this bike and I received it slightly disassembled. The previous owner had taken the carbs and airbox out and gave me "new" carbs from eBay. So I have this box with some screws, the airbox and the carb body. By the way this is my first ever motorcycle.

    I tried to put the carbs back on for hours and said F*** it, it can wait. My question is: how the heck do you put these carbs back on?! I keep hitting a part of the engine with the bottom right of the carbs and I can't get these suckers seated in the boots. I've heard if it's warmer they'll slip right in but I'm in Indiana and it's kinda cold. Also I can figure out where the clutch cable and throttle cable go but I'm not sure about the vacuum hoses. I know there's 4 for each cylinder and the line with the filter goes to the tank but what about the other hose?

    I can't for the life of me get the airbox back in, either, but I have found people saying to put little air filters on the end of the carbs - which personally - I think looks much better than the big 'o box. Is this not advised?
     
  2. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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  3. Medici

    Medici Member

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    First off, welcome to the forum! Lucky for you I just did the exact procedure on my '85 xj700 maxim x. To be honest I didn't really run into any problems and I put my whole rack back in with the airbox + boots all still on the bike with little clearance issues. I had to do some finagling to get them in but they went in fine. Are the carbs the guy gave you the ones that originally come with the bike? Can you tell what brand they are on the side of the carb bodies?

    This is very ill-advised. Many of those far wiser than you or I on this forum will tell you it is next to impossible to keep the bike consistent when running (what I think you are referring to) pod filters. The process to maintain a good synchronization is already tough enough on me although I haven't got a clue what I'm doing, and will be next to impossible to maintain when using individual pods. If there is a short answer or a "tl:dr" to take away from this; no it is not advised.

    Cheers,

    Medici
     
  4. k-moe

    k-moe Pie, Bacon, Bourbon. Moderator Premium Member

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    To get the airbox back in, take the starter off.
     
  5. hogfiddles

    hogfiddles XJ-Wizard, Host-Central NY Carb Clinic Moderator Premium Member

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    Since h0u have a MaximX, y0u sh0uld have Mikuni Carbs for it. You're also missing the small grab bar at the back. I have a couple extras if you're interested---start a conversation with me.

    Dave f
     
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  6. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Thank you both for the insight! I'll take the starter off tomorrow and try to slip everything back in. As for the second hose (long hose on the left of the carb body) where does that guy go? Also I do not know the brand, I'll have to look tomorrow and I'll snap a picture. From what I seen online they look spot on.
     
  7. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    I'm not sure what a grab bar is but I have the backrest if that's what you're referring to. If it's not necessary I'm probably not going to buy one to be completely honest. The seat and gas tank are just sitting on there for the picture.
     
  8. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Good morning from Indiana! This is the only mark I see on the carbs, Medici.
     

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  9. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    IMG_0166.JPG
    Just 1 o'clock of the oil cap, to the right of the serial number, is the thing I keep hitting when trying to put the carbs back in the boots. Little bastard. Any tips or tricks?
     
  10. MattiThundrrr

    MattiThundrrr Not a guru

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    Those are Hitachi carbs. I'm not a expert on the 750x, but I'd bet those carbs are for the air cooled version of this bike. In your first post, it was unclear whether you have 2 sets of carbs. The correct ones would say mikuni where the ones you showed us have that little Hitachi logo.
     
  11. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    I only have this one set. My bike is water cooled so must I buy the Mikuni carbs? Also it's a XJ700, not 750. Don't know if that's crucial info or not.
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2017
  12. MattiThundrrr

    MattiThundrrr Not a guru

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    Make sure that you search for 700x as opposed to just the 700. (In my previous post, in error I referred to displacement as 750. This is the Canadian model.) The water cooled engine is a very special beast, 5 valves per cylinder, more at home in a sport bike than a cruiser. I am jealous.
     
  13. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Haha you can be jealous once it runs, but for now it's just deconstructed artwork. So will the Hitachi carbs not work for the 700X?
     
  14. MattiThundrrr

    MattiThundrrr Not a guru

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    Hey, my air-cooled 82 is garage art too, not running, so I'm OK to be jealous. Yours looks better, and has more potential! Theoretically, you could run any carbs, but you'd have to experiment with jets in order to get the tune right. Easier to get the right carbs. Not cheaper, but much easier.
     
  15. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Haha well be jealous all you want then. Mine is rusty and dusty but I can't tell you how to live your life. :D

    I've been looking on CraigsList for a parts bike but no one has one. I may get some rubber hose and make an extension to put the carbs on the manifold boots and see how that works.
     
  16. hogfiddles

    hogfiddles XJ-Wizard, Host-Central NY Carb Clinic Moderator Premium Member

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    Wrong carbs..... Those are for the airhead.
     
  17. chacal

    chacal Moderator Moderator Supporting Vendor Premium Member

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    That is correct. In theory, you can use any carbs in the world; in practice, you'd have to be a masochist to do so.

    It's also another reason why you are having such difficulties installing the carbs back into the intakes....
     
  18. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Well I finally got the airbox in place with the removal of the starter (thanks k-moe!) and have an idea on which I'd like some info.

    Firstly is there any major difference in the two carb body brands? If not I'm going to grind down the rack which is preventing me from pushing the carbs in. I can visibly discern that the carbs line up with the manifold and once the bracket is shaved I'll be able to slide them in.

    Secondly there are two slots in my gas tank. One obviously houses the petcock, but what about the second slot?
     

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  19. chacal

    chacal Moderator Moderator Supporting Vendor Premium Member

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    Low fuel warning sender.

    Not recommended, then you'll have a messed-up set of Hitachi carbs, and will still need to acquire the proper Mikuni carbs!! The 5-valve X engines are as close to a "race-tuned" engine as you're going to find. It is a precisely tuned "system", meaning all components are optimized to work with each other. When they run right, they absolutely scream, and rival bikes with a few hundred more cc's in power and performance. Messing around with such a system is a sure way to:

    a) decrease performance
    b) drive yourself crazy trying to get it to run properly.

    This "system precision" is why everyone tries to warn people off from removing the airbox and using individual air filters on these engines especially.
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2017
  20. Michael Garland

    Michael Garland New Member

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    Well, I guess that's that.
     

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