XJ650 Maxim to SECA Turbo double wheel conversion

Okay, if I've done my homework right then the rear wheel should be a direct swap from the ebay turbo wheel to my maxim 650 swingarm and final drive unit. (Please correct me if im wrong)

Im less sure about the matching front wheel. What I KNOW is that the rotors will not interchange (turbo wheel isn't coming with one) so new rotor at the minimum. What part will I need to get to make this setup work. Currently I have stock maxim forks and caliper. My master cylinder is too small so that will need an upgrade so any suggestions are welcom for that.

Also I've order a rear brake drum from a turbo model for the rear wheel since I read on an old post the shoes are wider but if for some reason that fails I bought a XZ550 rear wheel that apparently is a direct swap (?) Just in case. Any and all advice is welcome.

Below is my bike, affectionately called The Bastard because of the Frankensteinian monster it has become. I got it as a stock XJ650 Maxim in peices in a guys shed, put it back together in his yard and hotwired it to get it started by some miracle (title in hand, not stolen just a broken ignition). I then rode it 30 minutes to my friends house where i worked on it until i layed it down and discovered how badly the frame was rotted. Had to be replaced so 6 months later it had a replacement frame from an XJ750 Maxim (not on purpose we really thought we bought a 650 frame). Fast forward another year and i wreck the bike in a minor accident (luckily very little damage mechanically) and ive since re uilt that basically stock bike into what you see here, to include left and right controls from a xvz1300 and a seca. Now i want the wheels swapped for a multitude of resons but mainly i want better tire selection and visually equal wheel sizes for the aesthetics. Not to mention the honda tank swap lol CB400 btw. Seat is WIP the one you see is only so it has something soft to sit on. Its literally taped together and shrink wrapped

 

So I did the conversion with fitting flat bars on a 650 maxim, single disc. I tried a 650 seca mcyl, it was too big. Next one was a 250 or 350 LC, it was close enough to be acceptable. Yamahas are good like this, bikes of a certain era shared certain components, and what you want is a mcyl that has a similar diameter to the Maxims (assuming one disc). If you are going to 2 discs you need a Seca mcyl. If I recall the maxim is imperial and the LC is metric, but it matters not.

 

So while the turbo front wheel does have provisions on both sides for a dual disk setup, i dont really want to do the forks swap that would require due to the relocation of the axel. I'd prefer to keep the geometry as close to stock as possible considering the amount of change the bike is undergoing with the cafe racer job. My worry is the offset between the maxim rotor to the caliper and the turbo rotor to the maxim caliper. If they're slightly off I might be able to shim the rotor out a little with a spacer. My other concern is retaining the mechanical speedo drive. Looking at the maxim and turbo wheels side by side in the photos, they both look like they'll work with the drive unit. Im pretty sure the rotor diameter is the same but if not I'll find out which ones from other bikes are the same that fit the turbo style wheel

 

I recieved my turbo wheel and my xz650 wheel. Still waiting on a brake drum for the turbo wheel so I can't do anything with that yet.

I can now say with 100 percent certainty that if you buy a used xz650 rear wheel you can direct swap it for an xj650 rear maxim wheel. I used my oem final drive, brake drum and axle with no modification. It is a teeny tiny smidgen different in terms of axle fitment. My axle now sits about 5 mm further towords the threaded end for some reason. I've included a photo

In terms of tire to swingarm fitment, the old and cracked 120/90-18 tire that it came to me with fits with miles of room. It does however rub on my electrics pan (photo also included.

In conclusion, if you can find an xz650 rear wheel and want some marginal benefits for little to no effort, it will very easily swap into your xj650 maxim. I will update this post again once my turbo drum arrives because A) that is a much more expensive and rare wheel and I payed good money for it so if I can use it im going to dammit, and B) it has a larger brake drum and after the two wrecks ive been in this year I would like more brake power.

 

1. You means XZ550….. there’s no XZ650
2. If your rear wheel is not in line with your front wheel, you’re asking for trouble. Make a longer spacer to keep the rear wheel centered.
3. If you’re talking about JUST turbo rims, then neither the incorrect-to-begin-with xz650 OR
The xz550 would be correct. The 650 Turbo is an XJ650 Turbo. It’s NOT the same rim assembly as the xz550. While the outside TIRE measurements may be the same, the BRAKES are NOT. THE BRAKES/BRAKE COVER are NOT interchangeable. The brake drum area is integral to the rim. That is, unless you’re planning to cut the mag/steel rim and try to re-weld a different size brake drum into the rim somehow……..good luck and best wishes on safety there, if that’s what you’re angling to do——-

Here’s some past forum reading for you…….

https://xjbikes.com/forums/threads/alternative-rear-wheels-for-shafties.131193/

dfox

 

Yes i understood all of that. I mistakenly said xz650, it was in fact an xz550 rear wheel.

As for the turbo wheel, yes I understand the tire dimensions are the same. I was speaking to the diameter of the brake drum being different between the xz, and xj turbo. The turbo apparently shares the same drum as the normal seca xj650.

And finally, the xz550 rear wheel is not off center in my maxim 650 swingarm. If it makes any difference my frame is a 750 maxim, my swingarm is 650 maxim, and the wheel is now xz550. It is centered and working as it should with both the final drive and brake drum. The only difference is that my axle seats a little farther towards the threads

 

Ok, I misunderstood some of your post then.as far as the axle… it’s fine if it’s drawn in a bit farther….. the important thing is that the rim/tire are centered.

qustion— is the thick spacer on the outside of the brake cover present? The pic I see doesn’t show that area.

 

Just an interesting factoid for any random soul out there doing the same Frankensteinian nonsense as me: if you happen to have an XJ650 Maxim, and you also happen to have replaced your front wheel with that of an XJ650 SECA Turbo, then you will have a 10.5" front rotor which is the only part of the swap that doesn't fit like it came from the factory that way. The oem Maxim has a 300mm rotor. Fun fact, all of these motorcycles have front rotors that have the SECA Turbo bolt pattern, bolt hole size and spacing, and inner diameter, but are 300mm diameter and fit the Maxim 650 caliper;

-99'-06' XVS 1100 Dragstar (Yamaha)

-00'-09' XVS 1100 Dragstar Classic (Yamaha)

-06'-14' XV ROADLINER 1900 (Yamaha)

-13'-16' XV A MIDNIGHT STAR 1900 (Yamaha)

-02'-03' YZF R1 (Yamaha)

-99'-02' YZF R6 (Yamaha)

-02'-07' XV 1700 Road Star Warrior (Yamaha)

I did this brain work so you don't have to. These all come 5mm thick, 4mm min. And are interchangeable.

My double wheel swap with the XZ550 Rear and XJ650 SECA Turbo front wheel (with XVS1100 front rotor 300mm dia.) Has been a complete success and technically a bolt on replacement. I made no changes to readily available parts to execute this swap. I haven't test fit the Seca Turbo rear wheel yet but I plan to do so before I have my new tires mounted and paint these new wheels.