Good news everyone!
There is one more dude that is gonna be askin' a lot of questions here on the board...namely me. I've been a lurker here for a while now and after lots of research I pulled the trigger and picked up a '77 xs650 off CL a couple weeks ago. Its a non runner but it seems to be all original. It came with new tires and a bunch of extras, Clymer manual, front fender, side cover, rear light assy and a tank & 2 alloy wheels from the later heritage model i gather...All for $500.00! It has typical cosmetic issues for a 35 year old bike from Connecticut and a few obvious mechanical issues. The PO said he had it on the road a few years ago...I find that hard to believe after seeing condition of the tank and pulling the petcocks off the tank , finding the intake tubes rotted down to nubs and jammed with sludge... My plan is to keep her stock ,no bobbing, chopping or cafe-ing for me . I'm slowly taking care of the issues like de-rusting the tank , cleaning the carbs, cleaning and addressing the non working front brake, and getting a new battery before trying to start this old broad. I am going to try the electrolysis method to de-rust the tank and most likely use the por-15 to line it. New petcock, just one for now. The carb is going to just get a preliminary cleaning and I'll do the new fuel line with a filter set up. I've already cleaned and freed up the front master cylinder and will be filling/bleeding the line tomorrow. And the battery will probably be a cheapo job for now just to serve its purpose. I don't have any questions just yet, but any feedback is welcome. I have been riding for 15 years with 2 japanese bikes under my belt but this is my first bike thats going to need serious TLC to get running and road worthy. I chose this bike not only for its beauty , simplicity and size but also for the seemingly huge online availability of parts and resources. I thank you all in advance and I'll post some pix soon!
Much respect,
Rick
There is one more dude that is gonna be askin' a lot of questions here on the board...namely me. I've been a lurker here for a while now and after lots of research I pulled the trigger and picked up a '77 xs650 off CL a couple weeks ago. Its a non runner but it seems to be all original. It came with new tires and a bunch of extras, Clymer manual, front fender, side cover, rear light assy and a tank & 2 alloy wheels from the later heritage model i gather...All for $500.00! It has typical cosmetic issues for a 35 year old bike from Connecticut and a few obvious mechanical issues. The PO said he had it on the road a few years ago...I find that hard to believe after seeing condition of the tank and pulling the petcocks off the tank , finding the intake tubes rotted down to nubs and jammed with sludge... My plan is to keep her stock ,no bobbing, chopping or cafe-ing for me . I'm slowly taking care of the issues like de-rusting the tank , cleaning the carbs, cleaning and addressing the non working front brake, and getting a new battery before trying to start this old broad. I am going to try the electrolysis method to de-rust the tank and most likely use the por-15 to line it. New petcock, just one for now. The carb is going to just get a preliminary cleaning and I'll do the new fuel line with a filter set up. I've already cleaned and freed up the front master cylinder and will be filling/bleeding the line tomorrow. And the battery will probably be a cheapo job for now just to serve its purpose. I don't have any questions just yet, but any feedback is welcome. I have been riding for 15 years with 2 japanese bikes under my belt but this is my first bike thats going to need serious TLC to get running and road worthy. I chose this bike not only for its beauty , simplicity and size but also for the seemingly huge online availability of parts and resources. I thank you all in advance and I'll post some pix soon!
Much respect,
Rick
