Seeking advice on making mods to an 81 XJ750 Seca

I bought an 81 XJ750 Seca a couple months ago that had only been ridden 7 miles after it was purchased new from the dealership, and was never ridden again. A friend of the family bought it from the original owner, swapped the forks, tank, and a few other components from another wrecked 81 with 14k mi on it, put a couple other after-market components on it, and sold it to me for $2300.

I'm going to make a number of modifications to it, starting with some cosmetic changes. It still has the large / stock seat, and I'd like to go with something closer to a cafe look with it, but I don 't know where the best place to find a cafe seat that fits the bike, a shorter rear fender, tail light, license plate mount, etc would be. I live near Minot, ND, and speed shops are pretty far and few between up here...

The link below is an image of a 2000 Yamaha XJ 600 N - Scrambler, and is similar to the look I'm shooting for. I also attached a pic of my bike. Any advice as to where I should look for these components, or any other words to the wise would be greatly appreciated!

 

Welcome and good luck.
As awesome as it may sound to have a "survivor" with so few miles, in case you weren't aware, any machine that is run so little, such as your 7 miles in the course of its lifetime, will need some serious attention paid to its engine. Machines decay more when they are not used, than when they are. Oil seals dry out, piston rings stick on cylinder walls, bearing sieze, you've got a lot of work to do before you start worrying about modifications.

 

I think this is the picture you were trying to show us?

 

A good mod to start with is Stainless Steel Brake lines
Since you'll be needing to replace those lines anyway
New brake shoes and pads are a must.
New Iridium Spark plugs wouldnt hurt
New tires! Bridgestone S11s are wonderful
Fresh carb kit in the carbs,
Valve adjust
New higher flow air filter!
Remove the snorkel
Those are some good starts!

 

I have to respectfully disgree with this statement. Even if it's set out out in the middle of a corn field, fewer bad things are happening to it versus the daily grind. And if it's stored properly it could last hundreds of years, versus the 20 yrs maximum that you would get if you, "kept her lubed".

That said, some of the seals probably are shot, the tires absolutetly should be replaced, the brake fluid should be completely changed if it hasn't turned to jelly, change the oil, drain and replace the gas and CHANGE THE REAR BRAKE SHOES!, all before even riding it around the block.

I would wait and see on any seals myself, unless you feel like tearing it down to the frame.

p.s. IMHO your bike should be returned to it's original configuration and trailered to shows. Or sold to someone willing to "let it go to ruination" by putting it in a museum. 8)

7 miles!?!? WOW!!!!

 

If it only has 7 mi on it, there is absolutely no reason to check the valve clearances. You have several thousand to go before getting to that point.

Also, if the bike is in that new of a condition, DON'T modify that one......Keep that as as beauty queen, and get another one to chop up.......

Dave F

 

If the bike was mint, why was your friend swapping components in from an older bike? I am puzzled.

There are no commercially made parts like that specific to these bikes. You either make them or modify from parts for some other bike.

Partially this has to do with the fact that a fairly heavy shaft-driven bike isn't the usual basis for a cafe racer. Cafe racers are supposed to be light.

 

"from another wrecked '81 "
Somebody wrecked it in 7 mikes ??
My TURBO bike was hopelessly, cosmetically ruined in 2,400 miles,
My Suzuki 250 was lightly wrecked in 295 miles, the shifter bent against the case, locking it in first. A pair of Vice-Grips fixed that in a minute.

+1 the bike should be made into a 100 point "show bike" and sold on E-Bay to the highest bidder.

Or built into a sensible driver, where you will get the whole 60,000 miles of fun out of the bike.

 

You need to store your photos somewhere (like Photobucket) and then insert the storage site URL in your post for us to see your bike.
I have played around with MS Paint and found that you might be able to modify your existing seat by cutting off the rear section, getting the remains recovered, and moving the tail section closer to the solo seat (need to modify either the tail section extensions, the side panels or both). Cut back the rear fender and relocate the license plate mount/light to under the tail light. This would give you the shortened tail, solo/cafe seat you are looking for w/o a huge amount of work (relatively speaking). Replace the OEM gauges/front master cylinder/headlight/handlebars with more "classic" units (check out what other 750 Seca owners have done) and you should be good to go.

 

Thanks to all who replied! I meant to say that the bike was WRECKED after only having been ridden 7 miles, which is why parts had to be taken from another bike. I've uploaded a pic of my bike from photobucket.

@Bigshankhank: Yes, that's the pic. Apparently, someone sat it up to sit for as long as it did because the guy that put the bike back together went through it thoroughly, and the seals, rings, bearings, carbs, etc are in great shape! It has brand new tires, breaks, filters, fluids, etc. The only thing it really needs are the rubbers going into the intake, and the seals on the forks, neither of which are in that bad of shape, but will need replaced soon.

@JPaganel: what you're saying makes sense. I've read that Secas aren't the best platform for a cafe conversion due to the weight of the bike. I'm mainly interested in altering the appearance by getting a different seat and a shorter rear fender to resemble a cafe bike because I like that look a lot better than the huge stock seat the bike has on it currently. I do plan to make SOME performance improvements eventually, but as for now I'm gonna start with cosmetic mods and go from there.

I was hoping to find someone who's made similar alterations to their bike and could recommend a good place to look for a universal seat that would fit my bike. I've seen sites like the one posted below, which gives me reason to hope there's someone out there who can recommend a particular seat that will work.

http://www.dimecitycycles.com/motorcycl ... seats.html
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Where's the original exhaust?

 

@peganit2: The original exhaust has been replaced. The only original part I have that was replaced with aftermarket components is the original handlebar, which was replaced with a Zbar. I like the Zbar, but I'm gonna have to get some risers because the it hits the tank. I'm also gonna replace the tachometer and speedometer, grips, rewire the horn and turn signals, and get new mirrors.

 

So now I'm confused: maybe I got it straight now?

This bike was wrecked with only 7 mi on it, and the parts that were put on we're from another one that was also wrecked with only 14k miles on it?

If that's the case, do whatever you want with it........

It's not a showstopper now.

Dave

 

The problem with universal seats is that they all rely on a horizontal, obstruction-free frame assembly underneath - which the 750 Seca does not have. So if you try to mount a universal seat on the Seca so that it angles up to clear the rear fender, or high enough to be horizontal above the fender it looks kind of dumb. If you do not use side panels, then the tail ends of the tank look kind of dumb.

The OEM seat base is the kind of plastic that staples (and un-staples) easily so using it for a custom seat makes the most sense since it is already bolt-on. Also a great time to engineer a seat that fits your anatomy better (width, height, front taper, etc.). Decide what your tail/side panels will be to fit the new seat (i.e., plan it all out in advance). Decide how you want the finished seat to look, cut/modify/add "side wings" to the OEM pan to give it the rough shape to support the foam, glue-up closed-cell foam (or trim your OEM foam to fit), staple a new cover on (or take it to an upholsterer).

 

Haha...yeah, sorry for the confusion Dave. The bike has been frankensteined. I only with it was mint!

 

Thanks for the input...saves me from finding out the hard way! I'll have to explore options for my tail, side panels, etc. I'll post a pic of the finished product!