A ripp'n hardtail bobber build from a seized, desert rat: CALLING ALL DESTROYERS

nice read, looking forward to seeing this completed, are you still planning on running 21" front and back?
 
Buc1 said:
nice read, looking forward to seeing this completed, are you still planning on running 21" front and back?
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thanks and yes still planning on running 21's front and back! they have been soda blasted and powdered flat black. just waiting on hubs to get painted then will have them laced.
 
so before i get into the trany, just wanted mentioned that when positioning the cam correctly, cylinder #1 needs to be tdc and the notch found on the cam needs to be tdc as well. doing this positions the lobes correctly. once tdc is found on cylinder #1 and the cam, the cam chain can get locked in:
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my notch is a little off for the pic but dont worry it was locked into the correct position...
 
trany!

so with things getting closer to a finished the engine build, it was decided to go through and inspect things just in case...
good thing this took place because there was a problem with the transmission and shifting through the gears. personally, ive never had the chance to ride an xs650 and being that i bought this bike seized and caked in layers and layers of southern california desert sand i didnt know much about this bike before i started building it. i have learned since that xs650's are notorious for having a tough transmission. ive also discovered that neutral is difficult to find.

so i was having problems shifting through the gears. i know for a fact everything internally was put together correctly so what could be causing my issue???
reading through the manual more than i care to admit, i first checked with the star shifter and learned that mine wasnt adjusted properly:

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grrrr not only did i find that i needed to adjust my star shifter but also realized that i put a circlip on in the wrong order. http://www.xs650.com/forum/showpost.php?p=7379&postcount=10 once that was moved to its correct location, things got a little better but still having difficulty finding neutral...

UGH!!!!!
after a few days and a couple emails to some pros the problem was discovered!!!!!
the neutral detent was missing.
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mine got misplaced during tear down and i had no idea its purpose. now with it in its proper place things are shifting very smoothly!
 
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now with the top end all together it was time to move to the clutch and the stator.
my clutch was put together with new clutch plates, longer pushrod and heavy duty springs.

a good thread on the clutch: http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=143

i decided not to do the 8 plate clutch mod: http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9147 as im running the stock 650. (ill probably do this mod on my next build which will be an xs650 mono shock cafe racer bored out to a 750-cant wait)

i did upgrade the clutch spring bolts similar to this mod: http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3408

since i am running heavier duty springs ive started working out my grip in preparation :)

and when buttoning up the clutch basket make sure to align the pressure plate properly:http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7366
 
with the pma, clutch and kickstarter all installed, it took some time to get the side covers ready for powder. i filled in the yamaha's by welding them, grinding/sanding them down then filling in any dimples with high temp jb weld.

i didnt think it would work but it did, perfectly! ( i dont have a photo of them as i would like to unveil the engine complete) but trust me the side covers look great with the jb weld as a filler. i wonder how it will hold up over time...
 
oil coolers:
obviously it makes sense to bring additional cooling to the oil, but some of the cooler options for this motor are incredibly ugly. i do understand that best functioning doesnt always look pretty but i come from a school of thought where form and function can work together....

with that said here are some links to various coolers. you be the judge
http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9448&highlight=install+kick+starter
http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?t=580

i went with the cooler from mikes xs but decided it needed some bling
heres my step by step from hot/bland to COOOOOOL:

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a gold oil cooler???? say what?!?!?! all i do is
 
there was a time where the engine looked like this:
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now im happy to say that the motor looks like this:
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i tried to mix the brough superior motor with a little bit of gold... all bolts were replaced with stainless steel cap screws and all the nuts were replaced with stainless steel nuts or stainless steel acorn nuts

finally its time to move on....
 
in the time it took me to finish this motor, ive accomplished some things i never thought i would:

ive taken a ride in a helicopter:
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ive not only flown in a private jet but got to sit in the cockpit while landing which was beyond awesome:
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got pulled over for an illegally placed license plate on my cafe which turned into a ticket for not having a motorcycle license:
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saw a dog balance treats on its snout:
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got my motorcycle permit:
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but during the build ive called the dmv at least three times including talking to someone in person about the steps to take to get a title and registration, which lead me to the chp.
ive spent the past 8 days trying to get a hold of someone at the chp that can help direct me down a path of attaining a title and registration for this bike. supposedly tomorrow i will be able to speak with the SOMEONE. fingers crossed for all our sakes i will have more information on what needs to be done to get a title....who knew getting a title would be more work than building a bike from the ground up
 
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so on my way to pick up these:

(a set of stainless steel socket cap screws for all the motor mounts (the long ones needed to be special ordered))
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i finally got a hold of the SOMEONE at the chp office that helped answer a few questions about attaining a title for a title-less motorcycle.

i was told i can take the motor and engine into the chp and verify that its not stolen or hot. once the build is done i need to take the bike into the dmv. there are three forms that must be filled out and i must have the bill of sale. after these forms are filled, processed and payed for, the dmv will inspect the bike making sure things are kosher. i will then be certified and then need to take it back to the chp and they will run a vin verification on it and process a title.

it sounds easy but im sure its going to be a major pain.

tomorrow i have a date with a chp officer at 8am to verify that the frame and motor arent hot.
the dmv told me its not in the system but ive gathered that doesnt necessarily mean much. fingers crossed things are cool!
 
I'm in CA too. Instead of trucking the bike to the CHP and the DMV I called a title service. Guy came to me and looked at the bike, made sure numbers matched, then gave me a form to take to the DMV. Walked out of there with my plates. My bike would never have passed inspection at the DMV (no turn signals, no brake light, no speedo... etc.)

Cost me $50.
 
what??????

poofish said:
I'm in CA too. Instead of trucking the bike to the CHP and the DMV I called a title service. Guy came to me and looked at the bike, made sure numbers matched, then gave me a form to take to the DMV. Walked out of there with my plates. My bike would never have passed inspection at the DMV (no turn signals, no brake light, no speedo... etc.)

Cost me $50.
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RpNSht said:
so on my way to pick up these:

(a set of stainless steel socket cap screws for all the motor mounts (the long ones needed to be special ordered))
photo5-4.jpg
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Can you post of list of what hardware you bought there? I'm trying to keep of list of all the hardware I'm going to need when I place my order from boltdepot.com
 
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