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Yammy did an excellent job in recreating the Brit bike in the XS650! They even copied the oil leak ;). I'm going to replace the sump gasket and filter along with the oil filter in the right side cover. I also believe there is a bit of leakage coming from the countershaft seal. Any tricks or...

Kinda sorta off topic since it pertains to my son's '78 Honda Hawk II. Does anyone have a source to rebuild speedos and tachs? The speedo is now on the fritz and based upon the performance of the tach it looks like it is headed south shortly. I found a guy in Philly who does Jap gauges but he...

My '79 XS still has the OE points ignition system. I am having no problems with the way it runs but down the road, I am considering some ~500 mile trips to attend VJMC events and I am concerned about reliability. I am toying with the idea of replacing the points with an electronic system to...

I have a '79 XS650 Special that I am goin to replace the clutch cable on. I was looking at the bike to see what was required and in looking at the fuel tank removal I'm somewhat stymied. What type of bolt is used on the rear mounting bracket? I would have assumed that Yamaha would have used a...

My '79 XS Special still has the OE headlamp assy. The current sealed beam bulb is rather <ahem!>, anemic. I would like to replace the bulb with an LED or at least a brighter halogen bulb. I do not however want to change the headlamp housing from OE. What are your recommendations? Mike

After 42 years and 14K miles the clutch cable on my Yammy bit the dust yesterday. I'm assuming that with only 14K miles it was the OE cable... geez.... ain't nuthin' built to last anymore ;^). Amazingly, the cable is still available from Yamaha so one was promptly ordered and is on its way...

I have a '78 Special with the king/queen bilevel seat. My tush and the king's position sadly do not coincide. I have tried adjusting the handlebars every which way and I still find that my butt needs to be about 2-3" farther back than the queen position allows. Will the flat seat on a...

I purchased a set of Progressive rear shocks and springs from Michael Morse last year and got around to installing them over the winter. Michael recommended going to a 13-1/2" shock which he indicated would make the bike handle better so that's what I ordered. When I tried to install them I...

Just got a set of new rear shocks from Mike at 650 Central. He recommended one that were about an inch longer and said that I "may" have to lengthen the side stand as it may lean over to far. Has anyone experienced this? Also, it has been ages (1960's) since I replaced shocks on a bike and...

My '78 Special has the king/queen seat where the pillion is raised up slightly vs the driver. I find that the drivers portion and my tush do not coincide therefore to be comfortable for any distance I have to slide my butt back slightly onto the "queen" portion of the seat. I'm going to try to...

I am planning on replacing my sidestand on my 78 XS650 Special with a Mikes XS replacement today. It appears to be a straightforward swap, but I have been bitten by the snake of assumption many times in the past so I figured I would ask the experts. Any pitfalls I should be aware of? Mike

My new scoot needed to have the clutch adjusted so I adjusted the slack screw on the perch all the way in, popped off the inspection cover and attempted to loosen the 12mm lock nut that secures the adjustment screw. I exerted as much force as I dared but the nut wouldn't break loose. I did...

My '78 XSE is completely stock and I want to keep as stock as practicable. The suspension is like riding on a spring/sprung rocking horse. Any damping in the shocks or forks is forever gone. What shocks do y'all recommend and what about rebuilding the forks? In reviewing the many posts in...

I have had a chance to put about 100 miles on my new (to me) '78 XS650 and I am impressed with how closely Yamaha was able to duplicate the Brit bikes. When I was a pup I bought a new '67 Triumph Bonneville at the dealer where I worked. The Yammy feels very much like the Triumph. The engine...

I have a 78 Special that I just purchased and I can't see the side stand tang when I park. I can feel it with my toe but when I try to deploy it, my leg his the footpeg and the side stand snaps back into the parked position. Anyone else deal with this issue? The pipes appear to be stock as...