Vansnxtweek
XS650 Addict
The black hubs/rims with stainless spokes is timeless for sure. Looks so clean.
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Hand me down Canadian XS650 build
- Thread starter Jaymichael
- Start date
truenorthmetal
XS650 Addict
Looks good....I have some cool retro sparkle grips....even have Rootbeer 
Discount code for 25% off if you have any interest: TNMHalloweenSale
I am in Maple Ridge BC.
keep up the good work !
Discount code for 25% off if you have any interest: TNMHalloweenSale
I am in Maple Ridge BC.
keep up the good work !
hotrdd
XS650 Junkie
Welcome to the site. There are a few guys from Calgary and Edmonton here. These are great bikes if you like to breath your personality into them.
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
This build is not dead! But has been in hibernation for a bit. New automotive teaching gig at my local college and the arrival of our first little one shelved this project for a number of months. Anyways, progress is happening so time for an update!
Got some parts back from powder coating, bit of a funny story there. Was told it would take about a month but after 3 or so I called and nobody knew anything about my bits. A couple days passed and finally they found them and they hadn't been sprayed yet. They rushed them through and when I arrived to pick them up I was told they were on the house, score! Figured that was a pretty stand up gesture so I dropped off my frame and a bunch more bits for coating.
Assembled my forks, lowered 2 inch's with the help of Hugh's units. New springs, seals, solid riser bushings and stainless hardware. Front end feeling pretty good.
Got some parts back from powder coating, bit of a funny story there. Was told it would take about a month but after 3 or so I called and nobody knew anything about my bits. A couple days passed and finally they found them and they hadn't been sprayed yet. They rushed them through and when I arrived to pick them up I was told they were on the house, score! Figured that was a pretty stand up gesture so I dropped off my frame and a bunch more bits for coating.
Assembled my forks, lowered 2 inch's with the help of Hugh's units. New springs, seals, solid riser bushings and stainless hardware. Front end feeling pretty good.
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Engine was soda blasted externally, scrubbed and scrubbed some more but I could never get the metal looking like I wanted it to. Reluctantly I decided to powder coat the cases, upper and lower cylinder head, didn't bother with the jugs, more on that later. The guy did an amazing job, considering the amount of tapping required there was little to no touch up required as far as over spray was concerned. Chasing threads and tapping holes however was almost a full day job. Should be a pretty slick looking lump when its back together.
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
The engine has had a few surprises. Bottom end is solid, all checked within spec and the rods are serviceable. Cylinder head however is needing some work. Exhaust guides were worn beyond spec, the intakes were on the margin of no good. Luckily at work I have access to some nice machining toys. Since I had the equipment at my disposal I sleeved the guides. Its a pretty simple process, machine them to a specific size, tap in the sleeves and then size them to the valves. Process went smoothly, the intakes came out mint but sadly the exhausts just didn't take to the sleeves properly. After machining the old guides the sleeves just didn't have the appropriate interference fit for the sleeves to feel fully secure in my mind. Could have been some funky wear or perhaps an issue with the machining process. Last thing a guy needs is one of these sleeves to walk out of the guide during operation. 2 new guides were fitted.
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Next problem discovered, two slightly bent exhaust valves. Ran them in our Sunnen gauge and found about 0.003" face run out on one, and 0.004" on the other. A quick lap and some prussian blue confirmed poor valve/seat contact. I had a tough time getting these valves out of the guides and the PO said after this engine sat for many years he tried kicking it over saying he was met with lots of resistance. Perhaps stuck valves were the culprit here? I took a shot at facing them to see if they would machine out straight but after the faces cleaned up fully the margins were under spec. 2 new valves ordered. Ports have been cleaned up slightly, only removing casting flaws and smoothly out some minor rough spots. Ill update the head progress once the guides are sized and the seats are matched to the valves.
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
A little bit of bottom end stuffs. 5th gear over drive installed, things are starting to come together. Oem seals will be used where available, the rest will be with the best that came recommended. A rephrase sure is tempting, but I think for this go round I will keep it the way Yamaha intended, besides it will leave me something to crave if I get restless for a future winter project.
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Not looking to bad for a 40 year old rotor, many thanks to you guys for the good info on this mod. 
And wheels.... haven't gone there yet, really having a hankering for matching black spokes, not sure where this is going yet. Thankfully my work hosts a motorcycle maintenance course so I have access to truing and balancing equipment.
Caliper has been rebuilt, new pads shoes, stainless lines, clutch lever all from from MMM. Also picked up from progressive shocks and odds and ends.
And wheels.... haven't gone there yet, really having a hankering for matching black spokes, not sure where this is going yet. Thankfully my work hosts a motorcycle maintenance course so I have access to truing and balancing equipment.
Caliper has been rebuilt, new pads shoes, stainless lines, clutch lever all from from MMM. Also picked up from progressive shocks and odds and ends.
Attachments
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Last engine issue to deal with. It seems the left side cylinder had some corrosion in it where the piston lay silent for all those years. They measured up real clean, less than 0.001" wear and about 0.0005" taper but after a light deglazing with a ball hone the corroded spots showed some trouble. What initially looked like just some staining was actual corrosion in the cylinder wall, a spot roughly the size of a large bean and a couple smaller ones as well, the finger nail can really feel these spots. Getting a bore gauge in the suspect area confirmed that sadly these spots are about 0.0015" deep, not going to be ideal for oil sealing me thinks. Cylinder boring and some oversize pistons are looking to be the fix for this one.
Coincidence had it that my tax return just showed up and it was more than I was expecting
After a couple nights of reading and weighing cost options the Heiden tuning big bore kit is on its way. The Hoos kit sounds real nice but with the added cost, machining effort and that damn Canadian/US border thing tipped the scale towards the Heiden kit for me.
If anyone is interested in a stock sized factory jug shoot me a pm, keep in mind it will need some machining
Coincidence had it that my tax return just showed up and it was more than I was expecting
After a couple nights of reading and weighing cost options the Heiden tuning big bore kit is on its way. The Hoos kit sounds real nice but with the added cost, machining effort and that damn Canadian/US border thing tipped the scale towards the Heiden kit for me. If anyone is interested in a stock sized factory jug shoot me a pm, keep in mind it will need some machining
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Last noodling for the night... Looking at exhaust options, my factory units are toast. I am having a tough time identifying which head pipes are the ones to order. With all things, personal taste comes into play and the pipes I am looking for have a specific bend profile that seems just right in my mind. The head pipes I am looking for are the ones in this picture, the final kick up bend occurs right below the brake pedal pad, others seem to have the final kick up a bit further back towards the rear of the engine but I am not feeling those ones. I am assuming this is one of the 1.5" od commando style headers mike sells (unless I'm mistaken) but his pictures are not quite at the right angle for me to be sure. This specific shaped head pipe seem to look very much like the 1.75" stainless ones he sells (in the picture on the website anyway) but I'm not sure about going that big, even with the big bore kit I am going to use. It seems he sells 2 different commando head pipes in 1.5" , one for the standard and one for the special, can anyone please confirm which is which for me? Again I'm looking for a pair with the same bends that is shown in this picture.
I would also welcome any thoughts on using the 1.75" stainless ones with the 750 kit, seems there is some varying opinions on this from what I've read. Leaning towards the 1.5's but I'm open to all options
Many thanks!
I would also welcome any thoughts on using the 1.75" stainless ones with the 750 kit, seems there is some varying opinions on this from what I've read. Leaning towards the 1.5's but I'm open to all options
Many thanks!
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Got the frame, hubs and wheels back from the powder coasters today, turned out really nice. Finally have the missing pieces to start getting this thing into a rolling chassis again. Engine build is on the back burner for a couple weeks as a finally broke down and decided to send the crank off to Hugh for his rephrase treatment.
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Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Looking fantastic! I like the subtle choices you've made.
What kind of bars are you going to use?
Personally, I would lower the headlight about an inch to keep it in-line with the tank/seat. Regardless, it looks good all around!
What kind of bars are you going to use?
Personally, I would lower the headlight about an inch to keep it in-line with the tank/seat. Regardless, it looks good all around!
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
I'm not sure on the bars yet, waiting to get the wheels and pegs mounted up to get a feel for what's comfortable. Been leaning towards low rise tracker bars or even drag bars maybe. I agree with the light, everything's just loose for now will adjust when it's more together
Jaymichael
XS650 Addict
Making some headway now, finally able to roll this thing out of my shed
Got a call from Hugh today, crank and cam looking good but he did recommend replacing the rods as one was showing some wear. Hopefully have the rephased crank back in a couple weeks. Starting to see the where this project is heading, and I'm liking it
Got a call from Hugh today, crank and cam looking good but he did recommend replacing the rods as one was showing some wear. Hopefully have the rephased crank back in a couple weeks. Starting to see the where this project is heading, and I'm liking it
