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angus67
Welder's penetrate deeper!!
those ohlins look tighter than a piano wire! Nice build!
yeah that's pretty. Some details? What rear rim?
Oooooooooooo, me LIKEY!
scabber
XS650 Guru
Ten years time well spent. Time to ride and throw some dirt or look at and admire. Show time. Nice bike. 
Thanks for the comments 
)
Rear wheel is a XS650 front hub with custom spokes laced into a 70's XS650 rear wheel hoop so I could do the rear disk brake upgrade
Front end is a 2001 GSXR 750 / upside-down forks & triple trees into custom steering head
Rear shocks are off a snow mobile that I sent to Ohlins and had them re-valved for a motorcycle
Top end punched out to 750 by 650 Central in CA with Boyer-Bransden ignition and new carbs
Front rotors are FZR 1000 / Calipers are from a Suzuki TL1000
Swing arm is off Yamaha YX600 that has needle barrings
Supertrapp pipes are all custom / girl who used to work a NASA did the welding
Hydraulic clutch mod / HD Sportster headlight / 1970 Yamaha DT250 Speedo & Tach
Countless custom bits / wheel carriers / brake brackets / kickstand batterybox, wiring harness etc.........
)Rear wheel is a XS650 front hub with custom spokes laced into a 70's XS650 rear wheel hoop so I could do the rear disk brake upgrade
Front end is a 2001 GSXR 750 / upside-down forks & triple trees into custom steering head
Rear shocks are off a snow mobile that I sent to Ohlins and had them re-valved for a motorcycle
Top end punched out to 750 by 650 Central in CA with Boyer-Bransden ignition and new carbs
Front rotors are FZR 1000 / Calipers are from a Suzuki TL1000
Swing arm is off Yamaha YX600 that has needle barrings
Supertrapp pipes are all custom / girl who used to work a NASA did the welding
Hydraulic clutch mod / HD Sportster headlight / 1970 Yamaha DT250 Speedo & Tach
Countless custom bits / wheel carriers / brake brackets / kickstand batterybox, wiring harness etc.........
CDNTX650
XS650 Guru
That's toight! Modern in handling but old in spirit. Real nice work.
Mike Stenseth
XS650 Enthusiast
That bike build is Awesome! Can I ride it? Wow. Thanks for the inspiration this forum offers! Mike
Congrats, flex; it's great to see a "build" that's actually BUILT as opposed to disabled. That thing should flick, stay hooked up, and do what a capable rider wants done!
The needle bearing swingarm may cause a little grief; in the XS650 frame the swingarm axle serves as a pinch bolt, and the sleeve around it ("inner bushing" in Yamaspeak) extends a few thou' past the swingarm pivot ends and butts against the thrust covers to provide thrust relief, allowing ~45 ftlbs of torque to be applied to the swingarm axle, tightening up the frame. If your setup has needle thrust washers, most of those won't take more than ~25 ftlbs. before they get unhappy (please don't ask how I found this out), and that leaves things a bit squirmy.
One cure (thanks, Dwayne Burge!) is to weld a piece of bar stock across the frame over the pivot. Being lazy, I went back to bronze plain bushings.
The needle bearing swingarm may cause a little grief; in the XS650 frame the swingarm axle serves as a pinch bolt, and the sleeve around it ("inner bushing" in Yamaspeak) extends a few thou' past the swingarm pivot ends and butts against the thrust covers to provide thrust relief, allowing ~45 ftlbs of torque to be applied to the swingarm axle, tightening up the frame. If your setup has needle thrust washers, most of those won't take more than ~25 ftlbs. before they get unhappy (please don't ask how I found this out), and that leaves things a bit squirmy.
One cure (thanks, Dwayne Burge!) is to weld a piece of bar stock across the frame over the pivot. Being lazy, I went back to bronze plain bushings.
FANTASTIC!!! Love it
Paulrxs650
XS650 Enthusiast
Excellent work and attention to detail. Well done!
racerdave
^ Gone not forgotten ^
Beautiful bike. Excellent work. you should be proud.
racerdave
^ Gone not forgotten ^
Griz, I am a little confused and need some clarification. I did the rad swingarm on my tracker. I don't remember it having needle bearings. I thought it had bronze, same as the xs arm. Is this correct? If so then are you saying you replaced the bronze with needles, and then went back to bronze after you felt flex issues or a tight swingarm? My mounting seem to be fine with no side play when I did it. I know it was torqued to XS specs. It moved up and down freely with no shocks mounted. If it did have needles maybe it only shows true flex in spirited riding? Please if you would clarify as it could help others. The link I posted shows the Radian swingarm in it's original use. Looks like bronze bushings in the fiche but hard to be sure. It has been 3+ years since I did the swap and my memory, ............ what was I saying?
http://www.portyamaha.com/fiche_sec...Motorcycles&make=Yamaha&year=1986&fveh=177150
http://www.portyamaha.com/fiche_sec...Motorcycles&make=Yamaha&year=1986&fveh=177150
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Dave, the fiche shows a plain bearing (bushing) setup similar to the XS650, so as long as the inner bushing (sleeve) is long enough to provide a little thrust relief, you'll be able to apply spec torque without putting drag on the swingarm. Since outer bushing flanges vary in thickness, the drill I follow is to add flange thickness of both bushings to the width of the swingarm pivot and compare the total to the length of the sleeve (a good 12" caliper is your friend here). I like to see the sleeve length about .006" greater. If the different is less than that, I take a flat file to the ends of the swingarm pivot; it's soft material, so it doesn't take many strokes to make a difference.
racerdave
^ Gone not forgotten ^
Makes more sense now. I must have got lucky with the clearances. I remember having several almost fender type thin washers with the arm that I may or may not have used along with the end cap seals. I hope this helps someone else. Maybe I need to keep my non xs owning big nose out of here. Nah thats not me!
Dave, please keep asking questions that might help other owners, and keep putting your nose in! You may not own an XS650 right now, but you have valuable experience.
Those thin washers are shims. If there's too much side play (the manual specifies .020" max for the XS650), the shims are used to reduce it. If the difference between sleeve length and total width of bushing flanges plus swingarm is too great or close to the max, the shims are used to take up the slack. To check sideplay on an assembled swingarm, unbolt the lower shock mounts, push the swingarm all the way to one side, and on the other side, measure the gap between the thrust plate (AKA "grease seal" or ("end cap seal") and bushing with a feeler gauge.
Those thin washers are shims. If there's too much side play (the manual specifies .020" max for the XS650), the shims are used to reduce it. If the difference between sleeve length and total width of bushing flanges plus swingarm is too great or close to the max, the shims are used to take up the slack. To check sideplay on an assembled swingarm, unbolt the lower shock mounts, push the swingarm all the way to one side, and on the other side, measure the gap between the thrust plate (AKA "grease seal" or ("end cap seal") and bushing with a feeler gauge.
All...thanks again for the kind words and complements. Griz..... appreciate your insight regarding the swingarm axle issue. I purchased the refurbished arm and setup from a guy I believe in CO who worked them up for XS650 project bikes. To be honest (10 years) I do not recall if that issue was addressed in his kit.....but I will investigate!
Keep building....!
Keep building....!
It may not be an issue for you, just something to keep an eye on. If needed, the fix is simple, just be sure to have the brace welded on with a torch and not an arc welder, unless you want to pull all the electrics off the frame first.
That's one truly beautiful ride; hope you'll consider showing us what it can do at one of the Yamaha 650 Society or XS Southeast Smoky Mountain rallies!
That's one truly beautiful ride; hope you'll consider showing us what it can do at one of the Yamaha 650 Society or XS Southeast Smoky Mountain rallies!
