What your bike can look like if you do it right....

Yes, but I would rather not think about it. I look at it this way... A brand new bike around this cc would start in the $6000 range these days and I didn't spend near that. Plus, when these bikes first came out I can remember them being a big deal. I really wanted one but it wasn't in the cards back then, so now I have a bike that I wanted for a long time, spent half of what a new one would run me, I got to learn a lot about these bikes maintenance, it now runs and looks like new and I got the gratification of doing most of the restore myself, so for me, it was worth every penny.

 

Plus it's really cool having a "Brand New" 30-year old bike to ride around on; not to mention that it should now be nearly as reliable as stock, if not moreso.

Good work. You missed ONE thing; but I won't delve into it here (plus I haven't finished the article yet.)

 

front brake line?

 

It's a 550-specific thing; that's not it and guessing will do no good, honest.

 

Thanks Fitz. I may or may not have missed it. When putting the list together I went by memory so I may have forgotten to write it down. I know of a couple things that are not finished yet but that I will get to in the near future. Hope you share the miss with me on a PM.

 

No worries; and there is an article on it in the works.

(I just couldn't resist.)

 

i was just curious that's all, i never kept track of what i spent on mine

 

30 year old brake lines didn't make the list? LOL

 

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice.

Dave

 

Brake line and master cylinder are on the to do list but haven't done them yet. The front brake is in perfect working order and this bike only has 12,000 miles on it. I plan on doing the line, master cylinder even the rotor eventually. I also plan on changing out the entire exhaust. I did all this work in 2 1/2 months. This is enough for this year. The weather is getting better and it is time to have fun!

 

Thanks Dave!

 

wow, that is awesome! They are timeless classic bikes aren't they?? Still look good today and I think a great ride. Nice windshield too, is that the Hellfire?

Mike

 

The Windshield is a S-06 SPITFIRE.....
http://www.slipstreamer.com/Product/Sport/sport.html

 

That's awesome. I'd love to get my bike to look like that. I'll settle with half as good. Good work!

 

Old thread but still worth the kudos that is great job and money well spent.

 

Beautiful machine these ... absolute credit to you, looks amazing ... nice touch spray painting your dog a matching shade of black

 

I bought an 82 XJ550 little more than a month ago. 7800 miles. The problem is that it was sitting in a garage for 9 years.

Your list of changes is daunting. My bike is in decent running shape. I took it to a mechanic who specializes in older bikes. He gave it a 15 minute look over and didn't find anything that needed urgent attention.

I plan to get it back to him for front brake work ASAP.

After that, I'm going to begin to get many of the changes you list done on my bike. It won't happen all at once or maybe even in the same year. But, I love this bike and want it to be safe and reliable.

I also have a honda 599 which is a great street bike. I've only ridden it a couple of times since getting the XJ.

 

You need to be very careful. These bikes are 30 years old and you can't go by just mileage. It wouldn't matter if it had only 2 miles on it; things are going to be worn out or dirty, etc.... For example..... My bike only had 11,000 miles on it but when I went in to check the rear and front bearings I found them to be rusty pebbles. I got real lucky that I didn't have an accident because those bearings were gone.
Anyway, take your time but note that you need to visually check everything yourself. You can't always trust a mechanic today to check out a 30 year old bike. A lot of changes have been made over the years.
Best of luck....
Old Biker Dude!

My bike needed more work than I thought. Glad I did everything.

 

Cosmetically, my bike is in like-new condition. But I understand that things need to get checked, replaced, etc.

What is the priority of things to check or get replaced?

Front brake is 1st on my list because it's soft. Gonna have a braided line installed.

It has new tires, new battery. New plugs, plug wires. I just changed the oil/filter today.

Would these items be next in priority?
Front pads while braided line is installed
Rear brake shoes
Replaced front wheel bearings and axle parts
Replaced rear wheel bearings and axle parts
Check front forks, change oil

What next or what should be done before the items above?

Carbs were supposedly cleaned and tuned before I bought it. But, I still think they need to at least be re-sync'd maybe even re-cleaned, sync'd. Don't know when the valves were last adjusted.

Anyway, thanks for the words of caution. I'm have a hoot riding the thing, but I do need to get some of this work done soon.

 

What you listed is pretty much it.
You need to do all of the things you listed and also do the valves before any sync or colortune work.
Once you get these things taken care of you are probably safe from any really bad things happening. Do make sure your tires are still good tread wise.