What did you do to your Yamaha today?

put on the new smoked stainless steel brake lines today. man they are a smaller diameter, I like em. getting close to finishing

 

I have colortuned her carbs and as result I got her running as never before!
Checked fuel levels in carbs.

Made some nasty damage to fuel tank
Now I'm trying to repair it without painting it all..
Dork.

 

I rode my bike today for the first time in 2 weeks!

 

Put a set of V-Max mirror heads on my 650...nice!

 

Just received a new chrome fender to replace my painted one (the old one was painted when I received the bike). I've already replaced the rear. I'll put it on tomorrow.

Also received an 8-gang weatherproof fuse box. I have additional fuses for H4 headlight, Dual Hella horns & a 12V aux outlet that need a better home. I had problems with the headlight a few weeks ago and traced it down to a corroded fuse. I had to ride in the rain a few weeks ago and it had left its mark.

Next is looking for a very clean pair of black side covers...hint-hint.

 

I have a pair of 650 Maxim side covers. Not black, not clean. Structurally sound with all tabs in place. PM me if you're interested.

 

Put in a set of new plugs sync it again put 250mi on getting 50mpg gettin it an me ready for a big ride. did I say she 's running smoooooth

 

Cleaned chain with kerosene...
This topic is going to eternity and beyond...

 

My turn.

Hooked up the four pressure/vacuum gauges I got from Harbor Freight, and given enough RPMs to keep the needles from bouncing around (yes, I know, I need to make a set of <bleep>ing restrictors), got them more or less synchronized. Now maybe I can bolt everything back on and go for a spin.

Then, like Rick strongly suggests, (and not a bad suggestion at that) I pulled the alternator cover and checked the length of the brushes. I have plenty - nowhere close to needing replacement.

All in all, a productive day.

 

I took the passenger foot peg brackets off and used paint stripper to remove all the old urethane or what ever it is they spray on at the factory. Used a good metal polish and brought out a nice shine. I'd done the cases a couple years ago and it makes a big difference. A coat of wax and it looks 100% better.
Then I hooked a brake bleeder up to my pesky brakes. Discovered my biggest problem was not having thread tape on the bleeder screw which allowed air into the bleeder. Fixed that and now the brakes are as good as they're ever gonna get. Went for a ride. Stopped and talked to some sport bikers. My bike was older than all of them!

 

Yesterday my friends and I were testing accuracy of Do It Yourself carb synchronization.
First I did sync with my home made u-tube. Than we have tested it with Carbtune and that was it.

Accurate as some 100$ device.
There was debate on our domestically bike forum so we agreed to do some tests.

 

Worked on cleaning the carbs...again.

 

Finaly got the oil cooler off and engine loose ready for removal.

 

went to put highway bars on my engine guard would not fit around the guard so i drilled a hole in the guard an put the bolt thru it with some washers and tightened her down and it worked great looks like they came with the guard. went for a ride and stopped to see if my buddy wanted to ride but his 2003 harley was in the shop again i rode off while he was cussing. good day.

 

I got my bike out today an noticed that the tank badge on the right side was broken. I'm missing an A! %$$#^&** !!! Of course this will not do, so I got on the phone to Reproduction Decals and ordered a new tank badge. It will take about three weeks to come. I used a little double sided accessory tape to keep what's left of the badge on. Went for a short ride.

 

Put new brake pads on the front, got rid of the sqeak and they feel great! Bled the old fluid out of them while I was at it.

Installed a new front tire to match the rear, Bridgestone Spitfire S11...suhhweet tires.

Still haven't found the source of the chirping though. It's only on the left side of the bike and around the carb/alternator area. Took off the alternator cover and started the bike and couldn't tell if it was coming straight from that area. Didn't get any worse or better. The bike runs great tho.

 

Nothing

Wife has me fitting a new radiator in the bathroom.............Im a sparky not a plumber

 

Pulled the garage door open to take my daily look at the beast, she has her carbs out and in a box next to her. I stop to take a look daily so I can make sure I don't forget what I'm saving for. I'm trying to get the money together to mail out my carbs to Rick, but when I send them out I need to purchase a Jet Kit for it online and have it mailed to the same address to get them worked and me back on the road.

 

I have to fess-up and admit that my XJ has been put on the side burner for now. I purchased a 1984 Honda XL600R that is taking all my spare time from the XJ. My reasoning was to buy this bike to kick around on and keep the mileage off the XJ and keep it for special rides on Sunday and such. The only major thing I have left is to clean the carbs that are sitting on the bench for this weekend. They are Keihin carbs, primary and secondary, that are worlds apart from the Mikuni. The secondary carb aids the primary to kick in at higher speeds and supplement the air/fuel mixture and synchronizing the carbs is done in the linkage. The bike's valve clearance can be adjusted and doesn't use shims...like that! Anyway....I do have my $200 professional colortune kit and vacuum gage in my possession ready to go. All I have to do is to take the valve cover back off and do my valve clearance measurements to get the gasket and shim order off so I can get back to work. Once that happens, I can sync and tune the bike and I will feel better about riding it again. I guess cleaning the XL's carbs will be practice for when I tear into the XJ's carbs this winter. Well, at least I'm still reading threads here and learning more about my bike for the future.

 

Engine removed from frame today. Still to remove wiring harness, forks, rear wheel and suspension, before painting the frame

 

Got my carbs synchronized to the best of my abilities last night and rode her around the block for the first time now that she runs at least half way decent.

 

Installed a fuel filter and a new screw in my master cylinder cover. Checked to see that the new clutch and throttle cables I bought would fit. They are spares for when I head out on an adventure. Pulled the bolts on the YICS passage and ran a gun cleaning rod through it. Tried a length of 11.5 mm propane hose to see if it would work to seal the passages when I sync the carbs. It was too big. Would a length of 3/8" gas line not work if you stuffed it in and compressed it with the end bolts?
Went for a ride.

 

Started polishing out the aluminum on the bike. It has some oxidation and it's starting to look nicer but what a PITA to clean it up. I'm using a Dremel with some the buffing attachments along with mothers polish. It's a slow process, but I think it will be worth it in the end.

I do ride the bike every day to work. It's been cooler the last couple of days which makes the ride so much nicer here in St. Louis.

 

Earl-R, did you use any paint stripper on the parts. The factory sprays a clear coating on and over time it dulls. I found if I stripped the parts that they cleaned up very easily. I have gotten lots of compliments on my cases and brackets since doing this. Just be careful not to slop on the frame and the painted letters on the case covers will come off too.

 

What did I do today?

After putting some miles on the beast, I'd noticed there was a tapping sound coming from the left side of the engine. Not coincidentally, that was the side where I'd put in a smaller valve shim than my measurements and the chart called for. Why did I do this? When rechecking the measurements afterward, the feeler gauge wouldn't fit. The original shim was a 280, the replacement was a 285, and all I had left over was another 285 and a 270. So, in went the 270.

Today, I pull the valve cover to triple-check the measurements, and see if I maybe need a 275. Nope, the chart's insisting I need a 285. Okay, fine. Grab the 285, put it in, insert the feeler gauges... motherf*%!#@... what do you mean, "It fits perfectly"??? Why the hell didn't you do this the first time? 8O

Bolt down the valve cover, fire the bike up... she purrs. More or less. I must be getting good at this.

 

I've been using a wire wheel on the dremel along with mothers polish alomg with a rubbing compound and it's been doing the job but it's been very slow. I think I'll try the stripper tomorrow and see how that works. Thanks for the idea.

 

I'll put my money where my mouth is! These cases cleaned up with only hand polishing after stripping.

 

Today I jimmied my fuse problem, found out that the fuel in the tank is bad, then covered 'er up with a nice cover until the rain stops.

Next weekend it'll be fuel, oil, filter, and fuse-box change time!

 

Pre-flight Checks!

Got the bike ready to leave Boston and ride through the White Mountains, The Green Mountains, The Adirondack Mountains and down to Saratoga Springs, NY.

Re-shimmed all four of my Intake Valves for 4-Thou across the board.
Distilled watered-up the Battery.
Eyeballed all the front brakes.
Oil and Filter.
Tire pressures.
Took-off the Rear Shocks and swapped them so I can get a quick Preload Adjustment.
Dipped a good-fit drift-pin in some Plasti-Dip for a pocket pre-load tool.
Added additional horns.
Road-tested.

Panel is showing all Green and the Countdown is:

"T" Minus 93 Hours 23 Minutes 45 Seconds

And counting ....

 

Today I removed the ignition and soldered up a broken wire to get my park/tail lights working again.... Yesterday I got my mufflers back and put them on.

The 900 is soooo much nicer to ride than the 250

 

I painted the engine today a nice satin black and sanded off the cooling fins to expose a nice polished aluminum. I was going to work more on polishing out the aluminum but I was working on a stone retaining wall today and just didn't have the energy after the engine work.

 

Hot. So very hot. I love how everything is black except the tips of the fins, very sexy.

 

Thanks Lefty, I saw a few bikes that way and liked it so I did the same. I have a oil cooler coming to mount on the front of the frame for highway traffic, not that I run into much of it, just so when I do. Can't wait to get that installed.

 

RangerG,

Very nice work on the aluminum, I hope mine turns out as good.

 

Earl:

You're going to like having a cooler. I put the big one that's standard on 900 on my 750 and it cooled her out; nice.

I had to move the horns to get it on there. Stuck the horns in back just ahead of the turn signals.

The braze-on is going to need an inner shock mount. I couldn't find one so stacked O-rings on the cooler pedestal. Works fine.

 

Replaced a header bolt today

 

Over the weekend I rebuilt my muffler which was completely broken in half thanks to it being mistaken as a foot peg by the PO. Had to buy some 22awg sheet metal to make a band to wrap around the muffler and patch a 2" hole on the bottom of the muffler. I also replaced the fuse box with the 4 fuse terminal from Radio Shack and soldered the wires on instead of using crimp terminals.

Oh and rode the bike enjoying the now smooth sounding exhuast.

 

I had to pull an "All-nighter" because I wanted to have all my Intake Valves be at 4-thousandths and failed, miserably, doing "The Shortcut."

As is the case with most Shortcuts; if it goes bad ... you're Shortcut just became the Scenic Route.

On my Max with 16,000 Miles ... I had an Official "Worry about it" tight Intake.
Time to shim it. I got plenty of the wrong shims. So, I went to get a few that I did need.

I should have put the Cam back in the Journals and finger-tighted a Cam cap. I didn't. It moved.

Not out of timing ... but enough to have "Mr. Automatic Tensioner take-up ALL that slack. Esse-eighce-aye-tee! Fog me!

My fat hands don't get in there all too well. I used my handi-dandi full-flex extensions to get it off.

I ripped the gasket.
Cleaned the Tensioner ... taped it up ... trimmed the tape ... got a template made ... made a gasket ... did my shims ... torqued the Caps ... and then began a fight to a death with reinstalling the Cam Chain Tensioner.

Did anyone out there hear me swearing???

The book doesn't say: "If you're a fat bastard with chubby hands you're in for a ride!"

I finally got the thing back on before the Rooster Crowed thrice!

What really pee-pee'ed me off was that I have the freaking Tool and know how to use it.
But ...

The Tool is good on XS-Everything, XV-Everything, XJ-Everything except 750. Effe-you-see-kay!!!!!!!

I know it's Anal needing the same clearance on the valves. But, that's me!

When I hit the road at the end of this week ... I'll forget I ever struggled and scratched-up my wrists and knuckles.

I'll just be smiling!

 

pulled more stuff off it so i can get at the dirt and grime underneath...

under things like the headlight and behind the battery box...

david

 

I pulled the Battery and topped it up with distilled water.
Put the Battery on the charger.
Cleaned-out the Battery Box.
Masked-off the whole area surrounding the battery box.
Sprayed the Battery Box with adhesive spray.
Blew-in some Crushed Velvet.
I know ... I'm sick!
Put-on the nice set of soft bags my twin daughters got me for Father's Day.
Lubed the Enrichment Valves with some Marvel Mystery Oil.
Adjusted the Clutch.
Ended the day with an Armoral Festival.

 

Nothing special today, Just rode to and from work. This weekend polish the aluminum, a definate must on my list.

I found out today that my saddle bags weren't big enough for some of the crap I had to bring home from work. I had to put my jacket on and stuff some things inside it. Wasn't comfortable at all.

 

My bike just sits on the carport under its cover.

It's monsoon season here now.
and I'm too busy to mess with it on short rides now.

Do you hear that?.......................



That would be my bike calling me.

 

Project goes on. Did some more polishing on motor parts. 3 hours work. More to do.

 

Put my ignition back in, pulled the carbs, getting ready to clean them tonight and replace the boots. Hopefully be back on the road tommorow. Oh yeah and i replaced the battery cause i screwed up the last one.

 

i thought i updated my post last night but i dont see it now so here it is again...


heres my bike. is what im doing blasphemous?




david

 

Geeze, Elle-Tee:

You putting it together or taking it apart?
Looks like there's a few parts off getting made pretty!

You hope to be riding before the end of August??

 

I replaced two rusty Carb Hats.
Oiled everything that gets oiled.
Checked the suspension fasteners.
Finished-up installing the saddle bags, nice. Had to add a couple flat washers on the seat locking clips attached to the seat so I don't have to fight getting the seat clipped-in.

 

Well, since you asked. We did 200+ miles round trip to the "Fire and Ice" rally in Gallup, NM. Total Harley fest, got all the looks, only XJ there oh yes!

Harley rally reminds me of a t-shirt I saw, "15 thousand dollars and 15 miles doesn't make you a biker".

 

yes. taking it apart and putting it back together...

it has sat for 13 years and the chrome was all hazy with dirt/dust/whatever...

the aluminum is pretty blah looking from oxidation so im doing some polishing of it with 180 mesh, 400 paper, 800 paper, 1500 paper and then 2000 paper. its tiring...

the clutch cover was broken when i bought it and plugged with JB weld. i knocked it out (14 years ago) and had it welded. well the welder plugged the hole but didnt fill the entire divot so its at work to be FINISH welded then ill file and polish it all up...

the fenders needed to be polished along with the shocks and everything on the bottom side needed to be de-crudded...

August? yeah i would like to be running it by the end of the month but it depends on how busy my daughter keeps me and whether or not i send out the carbs or attempt them myself...

david

 

Changed the oil from the 10W30 automotive oil the PO had in there (yuck and gross) to 15W50. Would have used 20W50, but the mechanic I talked to who deals with a lot of older Yamahas said "oh god your bike needs an oil change right away! 10W30 will destroy your bike!" so I wanted to get it out and changed as soon as humanly possible, and the bike shops around here don't seem to carry 20W50. Wasn't too black coming out, so that's good

Runs a lot nicer now, and the clutch is much grabbier at low speed. Had waaay too much slip before. Tomorrow we go for a quick blast to visit my uncle and aunt who love to ride as well!

Got a quote from the Yamaha dealer for carb work - they said "oh, well, older bike, we might not be able to get parts, blah blah, at least $1000 plus parts to strip, clean, and sync those carbs." Phoned a local guy who specializes in carbs, $400 + parts. I'll be taking it to him next paycheque

Then, roadtrips! 100km for the first one, 250km for the second one, and 1150km for the third if the first two give me no issues. Can't wait!