YICs tools on ebay

Spotted an interesting item for sale on ebay.

I'll refrain from my opinion for now, other than to let anybody who may be interested know that these items need a minor modification to make them useful.

Have a look for yourself HERE. The missing piece has been discussed many times in this forum during discussions of homemade YICS tools.

Cheers
HG

 

Looks like a good tool. The guy seems to be a little hardcore about his rules. I've been burned on eBay before too though and I can understand most of his points.

Must be someone that's been here. Sounds like the clothes line thing he's describing is something I've read here before.

Price isn't too bad though you could certainly make one for far less.

Anxious to see if it sells.

Greg

 

Yep, He's a member here.

 

Missing piece?

 

The Clothes line suggestion is MINE.
Clothes line, ripped t-shirt, twine, cotton balls, hose, wooden dowel and small chunks of old baby-doll head will all work just fine.

All you have to do is isolate the four carbs for a few moment by interrupting air flow within a solid aluminum cylinder.

Anybody who buys less than 5-Dollars worth of standard hardware for 30-Dollars plus shipping ... and what they buy seems to be missing a CRITICAL component ....

How absolutely ridiculous are you going to feel when the TOOL you bought on eBay for 40-Bucks or more ... don't work.

You could have ripped-up a T-shirt and stuffed it in there ... for free!

 

Hey Rick, I tried the t-shirt and olive oil method. The place smelled like a burger king. Also, the shirt ripped when pulling it out. Me thinks there was a little fibre that was left in the gallery. So, to those reading this, be careful.

But here's a question: Isn't it difficult to tune one's carbs when the engine is burning olive oil? This may not have anything to do with the olive oil, but my bike ran like crap when I had the t-shirt in the gallery.

I tried the t-shirt method, cuz I'm not sure the rubber tubing on my yics tool is big enough. But when I had it in, there was very little difference in engine operation.

Anyway, here's some food for thought regarding the t-shirt method.

 

I hope you have nothing to do with the eBay deal.

Olive oil was a substitute for MARVEL MYSTERY OIL ...
My first (and ONLY recommendation) when the idea was born.

The YICS Passage OPENS at BOTH ENDS.
The passage needs to be cleaned-out, occasionally.
It's cleaned by forcing Carb Cleaner soaked patches completely through the Passage. In one side and out the other.
Singularly, THE easiest bit of maintenance to perform on the bike.

If the passage is stuffed ... such that the vacuum will not draw between the intakes ... the soaking medium will not be drawn into the engine and burned.

Marvel Mystery Oil ... (My ONLY OFFICIAL recommendation ... could do nothing but GOOD if it WERE drawn into the engine. It's the worlds Leading Top Cylinder Lubricant.)

I gave the XJBike.com Community an ingenious method of blocking-off the YICS passage for tuning their bikes ... for free!

Those who are engaged in attempting to sell to the XJ-Bike Owning Community, a colorful and absolutely useless YICS Tool, claiming to be not interested in making a profit, at the others expense ... are perpetrating a fraud upon the buyers.

Try it again. Use Marvel Mystery Oil.
Maybe you'll do it right and get your bike tuned-up.

If not ... and there's a stinking mess for you to complain about ... I'm sorry.

But, I didn't fraudulently rip you off of close to 40 or 50 Dollars, now ... did I???

 

Rick, I take exception to to your comments regarding $40.00 "rip-off" YICS tools. Here's why;
I built a couple of really nice YICS tools, one for myself, another for my brother, and later yet another for a forum member who asked me to build him one. (his comments regarding the finished product were quite favorable)
I didn't charge him $40.00 bucks, but I spent well over an hour building it...closer to two. When I work on bikes I charge my customers $40.00 /hour. That's the cost of sacrificing my free time (which I could be spending with my family, riding, or earning time-and-a-half working overtime).
Most of the materials you buy for a YICS tool are purchased in bulk. (6 or 12 feet of tubing, 6 feet of high temp hose, 100 pack of nuts and grommets, etc). You don't get a return on your purchase until you've sold the entire lot.
You are correct in assuming anybody can stuff a rag soaked in MMoil in a YICS port.....for free. And that person can also build his own YICS tool fairly cheap, if he's not too concerned with the quality/durability. You don't charge yourself for your own "sweat-equity" labor. But if someone chooses to build tools and sell them to others without considering his own time investment, he is either an idiot or a philanthropist.
Just my two cents!

BTW- I had nothing to do with the eBay thing either!

 

Life goes on ... for all of us.
If you have the need for a YICS Tool ... now you have several options.

You can make one yourself ... with standard hardware items for under 20-Bucks.

You can buy one, from one person, who makes them having used used the Official YAMAHA YICS Tool as a template for the ones he manufacturers and wait until his back-orders are filled.

You can buy one, at Auction, on eBay, from another person who manufacturers them, using a variation of the plans for the YICS Tool which have been in the Public Domain, posted on the Internet, for some time.

The description for the YICS Tools available on the popular auction site, includes the following text:

"I've also seen a guy that said he used cloth,clothe's line soaked in oil. it may work,but that'll be the day I stuff my motor full of cloth's line."

I've re-read my initial Post -- several times!
I can't find, in my text, where I said: "Stuff the motor full of clothes line."
Stuffing the motor full of clothes line is NOT anything I suggested.

As a writer, I hope you will understand how terribly offended I am at being deliberately misquoted. The resulting anger manifested with some venom in my ink.

I resent being misquoted; always!
I try not to ever let my hands get near the keyboard when I'm angry!

There goes my perfect game ... huh?

 

Ok, Now my 2 cents worth.

CaptainKirk, I don't think anyone takes issue with the tool listed on ebay. It's a fair enough price for a good tool. The problem is, this is not a good tool.

This tool is missing an important piece that judging by his description would be hard to fix.

The other issue is the description associated with the tool. Jamescomp has had a fair go at bagging quite a few peoples opinions on this forum, not just Ricks. This from someone who first came here asking for help and gleaning from our ideas.

The offence should be taken at the bad manners of the seller. Biting the hand that fed him.

This forum is for exactly that, learning and improving our knowledge to make our bikes better and safer than they were. To bag others while trying to recover costs of homemade tools is just bad form.

BTW, It's not hard to work out the link. Ebay name matches xjbikes forum name. :wink:

As I said earlier, this tool is incomplete. Rick knows the missing part, surely someone else must have picked it.?

 

I didn't mean to start a stir. And no, I don't have anything to do with the ebay auction. I'm not trying to place blame either. I just wanted to mention my problems so that others could take heed when trying both the olive oil and the t-shirt method. I'm sure the marvel mystery oil is much better. My problem is that I couldn't find any at my local auto parts store. So I thought to myself, hey self, I read that Rick closed off the yics gallery with a t-shirt soaked in olive oil, perhaps that might work.

If there are risks associated with the olive oil and/or t-shirt method, then xj folks ought to know, no?

Thanks for all the help.

 

So being a new guy to the intricacies of the XJ world, if I were to build something according to the plans linked to on the e-bay page would I still be missing a piece or are they complete? I can't tell with the pic provided what could possibly be missing.

Rick, so you have to clean the passage like the barrel of a weapon, only going one way huh?

 

Yep. Even the plans have it missing. Chamber must be sealed. these tools don't seal completely. :wink:

 

No.
You can do it any way you like.
The YICS Passage is just one, long, straight, hole that goes from one side to the other.

You can fabricate a tool from coat hanger or metal rod to clean-out the small YICS Ports at the top of the the long cylinder. Just keep in mind that they are sealed with rubber O-rings.

I bought a surplus Army gun barrel cleaning tool that fits together in sections. It seems like the Army saw us coming and designed a rifle barrel tool made to order for the job.

Come is a nice green nylon pouch; too!

 

If one is so inclined I have a drawing in my gallery of a tool (the idea for which I swiped from another well known diagram so take your pick) that I use to sync my YICS. No problems with it yet and it cost about $15 in parts to make. You can use a variety of methods to accomplish the task, just some thought needs to go into the construction of any tool. Good luck and may the force be with you.

 

Here's a link from a previous post that I made with a picture of the passage without the cylinder head on. Have a look it may make it easier for you to understand the ports.

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic ... =yics.html

The tool has to seal off the gallery, between the ports that are at each carb location, and the tool has to seal itself at the insertion point.

 

Thank you guys (hired, rick, robert and nick especially) for helping me understand this small but vital part of my xj maintenance! I want to start implementing phase one of my motorcycle experience very soon. (that is clean, clean, replace...then clean some more and it should be just about right)

 

In an attempt to set the record straight:

A properly fitting YICS Tool -- DOES NOT need a seal at the OUTSIDE end to prevent air from entering the Passage.

The 3 expanding rubber dividers are all that is needed.

The furthermost expanding rubber seal blocks the small port between 3 -&- 4.
The middle seal blocks the port between 2 -&- 3.
The closest seal blocks the port between 1 -&- 2.

When the port blocking 1 -&- 2 is sealed ... there's NO Vacuum present.
Hence, the need to Seal-off the Outside of the Passage IS NOT necessary.

 

Rick, when intake port for cyl #1 opens, there is a vacuum present on the #1 YICS port also! If you don't seal the tool to the block you will get a vacuum leak at this location.

 

Thanks for clarifying that, Rick. The eBay thing WAS a direct shot at you IMHO and I am totally on-board with what you are trying to offer our members....a low/no-cost alternative for a YICS tool that does the job on a one-time basis.
The only item I took issue with was the COST of producing a high quality YICS tool, and as usual in this U.S. of A., the Lion's Share goes to the Man Behind The Curtain....Labor, in other words. Which, of course, has NOTHING to do with the home-brewed apparatus, and EVERYTHING to do with the for-sale item. "nuff said.

 

This depends a bit on the dimensions of the tool Nick. If built correctly, then technically Rick is right.

The three rubber seals are used to directly block the yics gallery on cylinder 2,3 and 4. (tool inserted from the right) which effectively leaves cylinder 1 sealed as well. But, if the tool is manufactured to seal BETWEEN each gallery then yes, an air leak will occur at the insertion hole. I don't think the design of the original tammy tool is to seal anything other than each gallery, rather than between them.

It all depends on the accuracy in which the tool is made as to where it seals.

 

Something like this:

Three sealing points do ALL the work!

 

Yes if built like Rick's sketch you don't need a seal at the end of the tool. The tool listed in Yamaha's service manual is closer to the tool shown on the ebay link in this thread and that's what I was basing my comment on.

 

Your a lucky bugger Rick, you got coloured crayons!!!! :lol:


To be honest Nick, I've never seen an original Yamaha tool so I haven't had the chance to compare. I can only go by my measurements from poking a bent bit of wire in the gallery to find the ports.

But, this begs the question. My 550 has the first port roughly where the first rubber is. Are the ports on the 650 head the same spacing as the 550 therefore one tool fits all.

650 has bigger pistons and bigger intake ports so I would guess the carbs (and Yics ports) would be spaced differently. Anyone got one of each to check??

 

YICS tools (factory and aftermarket) do NOT seal the actual passages in the top of the chamber, only "in-between" the passages within the chamber, thus isolating all the ports from each other. That is why the factory and the aftermarket tools have a seal at the end of the tool, to prevent an air (vacuum) leak into the "nearest" YICS passage (nearest to whatever end the tool is inserted into the YICS chamber).

Rick's colored diagram would actually work, and perhaps even work better than the factory design, but it would require that the tool be very precisely inserted to a set depth (which could be accomplished in a variety of ways) in order to make sure that the expanding sections were absolutely centered under all three (of the four total) YICS passages. I think Yamaha might have taken into considertaion the level of precision that is typically brought to bear upon issues within their retail service shops, and then decided it would be better to have a more "fail-safe" approach, and hence, the design that we all know (and sometimes love). It's simply an easier way to insure no cross-passage leakage while being simpler to use and less extravagent to engineer.

Also, remember that the amount of tubing "swell" when the tool is actuated by flipping the lever isn't very much----not very much at all. And the longer that each of the pieces of insulating tubing are (the pieces that swell up), the less expansion that each piece will have. When you have one of these in front of you, and see how little actual swelling occurs when the tool is actuated, you might be surprised. The design causes the swelling to be a minimal amount----but since it's already a tight fit within the YICS passage, just a little is all it takes.......

BTW, I have very nice (shop made, not homemade) repro's of the factory YICS tool available for sale in my ad in the PARTS FOR SALE forum, and I try to keep 10+ tools IN STOCK at all times and can ship immediately (24 hours) upon payment.

Just for comparison (and honesty!) purposes, I have to admit that the tool made by XJMonster looks a bit nicer, more hi-tech and professional than the one that I offer----they use a carbon-fiber material for the division tubes----whereas mine uses a coated, smooth aluminum tubing. Same function, less attractive, but they do the job properly, and you can get mine immediately!

 

yeah, I have been waiting for about 10 months now for the XJMonster one. He keeps saying he will ship in 1-2 weeks, but he still hasn't. Oh and he rarely replies to emails.

 

Chacal, can´t find the ad (or the PARTS FOR SALE Forum for that matter)?


- on a sidenote (to Ricks sketch a.o.):


Isn´t the problem with an end-seal that the Yics-channel ends (outside port #1 and # 4) are threaded and therefore can´t be sealed with the tube swelling?


(If it could, you could just use 4 pieces of tube: 3 between the ports and one in the "open" end of the Yics channel).

 

Hey Finno.....yes, you are right about the threaded ends of the YICS chamber, although you could PROBABLY find some material that would swell enough to block off those threads, too......but again, why complicate matters more than necessary?----I think that was the Yamaha thinking on the tool.

The ad in the parts for sale forum is at:

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic ... rt=45.html

and you can use the "search this page" function on your browser to look for part number HCP93, which is the YICS tool:

- Reproduction YICS Port Blanking "Block-Off" Tool---this is the tool you'll need to perform a proper carb synchronization on any YICS motor......without it, you're just wasting time. This block-off tool is used to isolate each cylinder from the others while perfoming a carb synch. Updated version of the factory #90890-04068-00 tool. Some people claim that this tool is NOT needed to perform a proper synch; we disagree, and so do the Yamaha engineers who designed the YICS system. Quality aluminum tool features a snap-open/shut trunnion handle design like the original. This is NOT a cheap home-made tool and has all the proper seals, dimensions, and high-temp insulators as an original factory tool. IN STOCK!

HCP93 reproduction YICS port blanking tool, each:
$ 37.00


PghXJ, I'll be glad to ship one out to you tomorrow or Monday!

 

Hi Chacal - thanks for the link - you´ve got to be the master of the XJ-spare parts division 8)

As to complicating matters: It´s just that I have a piece of silicone tubing in the right dimension and rated to 200C - but I wouldn´t know how to make an end seal sealing from outside the chamber..

- maybe the solution is to seal the actual port nearest to the insertion end and then in between the remaining 3?

 

That would work, too---just like Rick's diagram. But even an unexpanded YICS tool is almost a friction-fit within the YICS chamber, even without it being actuated (and the division tubes swollen)....so just "pushing" the YICS tool into the chamber, and using hand pressure to seal off the end of the chamber from the outside with the big, soft washer, and then "locking" the tool in place with flip-handle (which swells up those division tubes) probably seals off the end of the YICS chamber from any meaningful amount of vacuum leakage.

I think.

I think that's what Yamaha engineers were thinking, too!

 

Well I made one with all the seals to hold me over and it works well enough, but thanks chacal.