a couple of newbie questions

I bought my bike for $1300 on Friday ('82 XJ650 maxim). Since the bike was registered and had a valid inspection sticker, and was being ridden until it was sold more-or-less, I figured that was a plus sign. No apparent issues other than cosmetics (a few rust spots here and there but mostly cosmetic) and dirt, so maybe I paid a bit too much, maybe not. The tires have a lot of tread, but seem like they might be a bit hard, is there a check for that or is it safest to replace? There's no signs of cracking anywhere.

Anyway, the first question is about the clutch. I adjusted the clutch cable and the brakes and I'm wondering what's appropriate. The clutch was set to take hold immediately, the friction zone was about 1 mm off the handgrip, so I adjusted it to have a couple of mm of travel before starting to bite, which seems better. Should I be able to spin the back wheel with the bike on the centerstand and the clutch disengaged with the bike in first gear? Currently I can't, or at least not freely. It also jerks slightly when put into first but it doesn't resist being put i gear and doesn't show any signs of being under power once it's in.

The second question is about the back brake. The pedal had a mile of play, so I adjusted the nut on the drum behind the arm up so the pedal brakes almost immediatey, maybe a cm from the top. If I spin the tire in neutral I don't see any signs of the brakes being applied, so I assume that's good enough of a check?

The other question is more random, but when the bike is coasting in gear like when there's slow traffic a ways up or when I'm coming to a light, I get this sort of whew-whew-whew-whew-whew sound. Other than that, the only thing off about the way it runs is that when it's started cold it takes a good couple of minutes of choke before you can run it without it dying when you take it off choke and give it some throttle.

Great bike. Starts right up, and once it's finally warm it's got a power band about a mile wide. I haven't redlined it much because I haven't been on the highway yet (no tags because the DMV hasn't been open since I got it), but it seems to love crusing around 3500-4000 RPM, and winding it out sounds and feels wonderful. Very easy to ride.

So far I've filled up with premium + seafoam, checked the tire PSI (2 lbs low in the front, about 10 in the back), changed the sparkplugs and bought all the stuff for oil, final drive, and brake fluid changes (ick on the plugs... #1 was very fouled, and all looked pretty old and rough. I'll pull the plugs after a tank or two and see if that was age or if it's still running rich.), and it seems more smooth and even now. This winter when it's not riding season I'll probably tear down all the carbs, and balance them.

Other than the oil/final drive oil/brake fluid/fork oil, any other maintenance I should do or things I should check? The previous owner only had the bike about a year before upgrading to a used v-star, and said that he didn't do anything maintenance-wise, but that the previous owner had supposedly done a full tuneup/maintenance before selling to him, so I'm skeptical.

 

These bikes don't need premium gas. They actually run better and produce more power on regular.

Also IMO, you've got the back brake adjusted to be too sensitive and run a risk of locking up the back tire in a stop. I'd recommend adjusting for a little more play.

 

I agree with Jim on the rear brake adjustment. Learned this first-hand. I thought mine seemed a little weak when I bought the bike, so I adjusted it and adjusted the brake light swithch so it was right on and went for a ride. Everytime I even slightly hit the rear brake - it would lock up! So - I went home - cleaned out my shorts, and backed that adjustment off..... :wink:

 

The factory service manual calls the brake pedal to be 20mm below the top of the foot peg (roughly 4/5 of an inch). It also calls for 20 - 30mm free play - about an inch. So, the top of the break pedal should be almost 2" below the top of the foot peg before the brake begins to engage.

I've got the light switch adjusted so it comes on in about the first 1/4".

 

I'd recommend you Overhaul the Rear Brakes.
100% Clean and fixed-up ~~> everything!

Get some new shoes in-there goin'-for-you.
New springs (14); too!

When you have everything open and apart ... spray it all clean and get the whole works cleaned-out of all the brake dusts and rust.

Pull-out the Cam (15) and clean the bearing-bushing with a ScothBrite Pad and lube the shaft and bushing before you put it all together.

Make your Pedal Adjustments after you have the rear-end all new and nice as can be.
.........

If you are clunking into gear, have red-light creep, or trouble finding Neutral ... adjust the clutch.
The fine adjustment is the Knurl and Thumb lock on the clutch perch.

 

Really thats not what i have heard its recommended to run premium through at least 92 octane from what it says in the manual and what others have told me!??? Although mine does seem to be running lean and hot so maybe your right.....

My rear brake has about a 1/8" of travel before its engaged i rode mine around and seemed fine at that setting. Rick has the right idea though if your concerned about them rebuild them just to be safe.

Have you bought a manual yet?

GL

 

If you want to learn more about the differences between regular and premium gas, check out the Chevron website. They have a pretty good write up about it.

The higher the octane the more resistant to burn the fuel will be. Low compression engines do not get a complete fuel burn using high octane fuel, therefore producing less power.

There are two types of octane measurement. research octane number and the pump number, (R+M)/2. In the US, the pumps display the (R+M)/2 number.

A research octane of 91 is equivalent to an (R+M)/2 number of 86.

Bottom line, the XJ is not a high compression engine so it doesn't need premium unless you get pinging with regular.

Due to the altitude here, regular is 85 octane. I've run regular in every XJ I've owned (this is my third) and never had a problem.

 

Jim:

Your dissertation is correct. You'd get an "A" on the paper, back in 1983.

Your recommendations, however, will not earn a passing grade, in 2007!

The days of XJ-Bikes running well on Regular Gas are over!
Gas Pumps across this land are putting small stickers "Someplace" on the Pump indicating that the Regular Gas is being supplemented with Ethanol.
Ten - to - 12 Percent!

The Ethanol causes a myriad of problems.
It attacks seals.
It makes the Mixture act as if you're adjusted to be running Lean.

Ethanol contributes to "Detonation" -- Pre-ignition Knock!
Liquid cooled, Cast Iron Blocks and Steel Pistons can handle the abuse.

All-aluminum, air cooled engines ... absolutely cannot be subjected to running like that for very long.

This engine of ours IS NOT DESIGNED to run on Gas supplemented with Ethanol.

There is NO OFFICIAL RECOMMENDATION for the Membership to use a particular Octane rating.

Personally, I'm avoiding using the Regular if there Moonshine in it!

 

Interesting. Thanks for all the comments.

Last night I went for a long ride, paying attention to the back brakes, and everything was fine. They don't lock up and seem to stop somewhat, althought could be crisper. I don't have the adjustment that far up, just compared to how it was. This winter I might look at doing a brake job, but it doesn't try and lock up and stops me reasonably well, so it's a lower priority.

The biggest immediate issue seems to be clutch. The bike jerks when put into first, but doesn't creep at all. But the problem is shifting. If I'm driving, ah, spiritedly, high-rpm shifts are ugly. I see the neutral light flash, and I hear the transmission CLUNK into gear when I do first to second near the redline, and the later gears are better but still clunky. Not as big a problem with more sedate driving, but that could just be because I'm able to rev match then and the clutch doesn't do much. I haven't put it on the centerstand to see if the wheel turns with the clutch disengaged, but I'm confortable putting it up, so I may try that next time I think of it. There's no sign of slipping, even at 8000+RPM pullling hard, so I imagine it's adustment not wear. I think I have the cable as tight as it'll go on both ends so maybe I need a new clutch cable? I have the friction point about halfway out.

But I may have a second problem as well. If I drive the hell out of it, or even just make it a point to stay above 2500-3000 RPM most of the time, the bike is fine, and idles and starts smoothly, but give it an extended stretch below 2500 RPM and it's not happy at all. I dropped it off for a state inspection yesterday and the mechanic said they had a hard time starting it and it wasn't running right, and the ride home I practically had to push it, or open the choke slightly, to get going, which sounds like "lean". It was coughing and backfiring the whole way (which sounds like "rich") But, I pulled the plugs and they were nasty black carbon all around, after only about 10 miles on the bike. Cleaned 'em and hit 'em with a points file, then figured I'd try and do the ol' Italian tune-up and get some revvs on and see if it cleared things up (which it did). Carbon fouling sounds like "rich". I wouldn't think it's timing or spark or else it would never run right. I checked, and I have spark on all 4 cylinders, and all 4 exhaust pipes were hot after the ride. Towards the end of my run last night, and the first ride after new plugs, it was running about as close to perfect, through the entire RPM range, as I can imagine. Maybe an ever-so-slight hesitation below 2000, but almost imaginary.

So I'm guessing first weekend I get a chance I need to clean & colortune & balance the carbs. If I start having problems again I'll make it sooner, but it may be a while before I have more than a couple of hours free to work on it and I have to aquire parts. Do I need a kit, or is just some gasket paper for the bowls, and a bunch of carb cleaner all I need?

How do you tell if you have a stock fusebox? My electrical system, except the right tail-light bulb (which is on-and-off, need to take it apart and check connections and stuff) seems okay.

 

Rick,

Around here we've been running gas with 10% ethanol for at least 20 years. That's in every grade: premium, mid-grade, and regular.

From October through March, that's all you can get here. During the other months it's getting harder to find real gas around here each year. Sometimes I get lucky and find a station that's selling real gas. It becomes my fillup spot until they switch.

I've learned to be good friends with a bottle of Stabil over the years. I add some to both bikes and my car every other tank (I never let my fuel levels get below 1/3 of a tank before I fill up, been stranded one time too many). So far, the Stabil seems to help.

During the winter months, when there's a potential for the bikes to sit for awhile, I add the recommended long term storage dose.

I learned this trick from the mechanic that rebuilt my brother's '82 750 Virago after he just parked it for the winter without any prep and the pistons froze in the block. What a mess that was.

After my brother's fiasco, I started using a fuel stabilizer in my '82 650 Maxim (which would smoke my bro's Virago every time ) and never had the problems he had.

Unfortunately, I think we're going to be seeing more ethanol use every year. Thankfully, there's products that will provide some help. My bikes run the best with real gas, but 10% ethanol regular with Stabil added is second best for me.

I just checked my V Star's owner's manual and it states that gas with 10% ethanol is OK in that bike. Maybe it's partially because the cylinders are ceramic lined.

 

I have to side with Jim on this one. Here in Ohio, our gas has 10% Ethanol year round in all grades. Our bottom grade is 87 and I use it in all my vehicles with no issues. 10% Ethanol content won't lean a mixture enough to cause any heat related problems in our engines. If you are experiencing or suspecting any moisture related issues with your fuel then you can add some Dri-Gas or Stabil to the fuel tank. Long term use of too high octane WILL cause preignition as carbon builds and fouls the combustion chamber. As far as the construction of our engines, I believe the cylinders have a steel or iron liner and pistons have been aluminum since the late fifties/early sixties. Heck, the pistons in top fuel drag cars are forged aluminum and these engines have a flame front approaching 7,000 degrees!!!

 

so what should we use regular or octane my bike is running high octane and seems to be running a little hot maybe even lean....???

 

You'll have to address the LEAN issue by Tweaking the Lean out-of-it.

Gas wise ... If you can hear a difference between the way your bike runs on the different blends ...

~~> "In my own personal opinion" <~~

I go with the blend that doesn't cause any knocking or pinging.
The consensus says that ought to be REGULAR.

 

The "which grade of gas should I use" topic appears to open the same can of worms the "which oil should I use" topic does. :wink:

 

Here is Iowa I've been lucky enough to find a couple stations that offer real gas and the ethanol "polluted" kind as well. The I mainly visit is called Conoco and I always fill up with 93 octane non-ethanol. My '80 xj650 seems to love it, but I may back it down to 91, or even 89. I feel bad for you guys that can't even get real gas.

 

It's my understanding that the leaner the mixture and advancing the timing will get more HP from a four stroke motor. We can't do anything about the timing and running too lean can burn a hole in a piston.
Question: Will running our motors lean do any damage as long as they are not too lean?

I run my motors lean and mix a little synthetic two stroke oil to the gas. This is a trick I learned from my Dad. He has never had a piston melt down, his bikes haul ass and are very dependable, plus he has never blown one up. He claims the synthetic lubricates the valave stems and evens out the compression.....Jim

 

<He claims the synthetic lubricates the valave stems>

That would be, 'lubricates the valve stems." My bad...Jim

 

That's an old trick we used back in the late-'60's. On Sunday's, when we weren't plannin' on goin' much further than a quarter-mile or so.

We used Marvel Mystery Oil instead of 2-Stroke. The ratio was lean on the oil; too.

Nobody ran like that on-the street.
Lean is hot.
Hot burns Valves.

 

This says it all and to attain it means perfection..although I dont think you will ever attain it 100%


"complete fuel burn" :wink:

 

Forgive my ignorance, this one may be for Aussies only. I've only got my '82 XJ750 recently. In Australia until around 2000 we had leaded and unleaded fuel (I have no idea of octane levels), now we have unleaded and premium. I have a car of the same vintage as the bike and it was reccommended by a mechanic to run the unleaded with a fuel supplement (flashlube). Would it be wise to do the same with the bike? Let me know if this has been covered before.