Oddjob
adsgads
So about a month ago I came across this “Barn Yard” find locally on craigslist… it’s a 73 TX650. It was bought as a parts bike, without papers, and with some assembly required… 
Over the last month or so, I’ve gone through the process of successfully obtaining registration papers for the bike.
Clubman bars, and shorty shocks removed…
Chrome issues…
It is a mostly complete bike, and is missing only the rear fender and air box. It will however, require a bit of TLC to get back on the road, so I am treating this as a fall/winter project.
As evidenced by the extra head and the used cam chain that was included in the parts bin it appears that the PO has replaced the cam chain and head. At some point it looks like a 2 into 1 exhaust was fitted on to the bike but never fired. The exhaust is actually rusting and the chrome delaminating, despite having never been used… It also appears that at some point the compression starter hardware was deleted, with the only remnants being the starter lever under the throttle. The carburetors appear to be a later model BS38’s with only single throttle wire actuation, despite the TX containing two throttle wires to control the carbs individually.
As far as the fender and air box are concerned, I am wondering if these items are compatible with other early XS650 years… and if so what years?
As per the VIN threads posted in the Tech section, is there a distinction between the US/CDN TX650 VIN’s?
As far as getting it started, I am thinking that I should do the following:
Have I missed anything? I am very much a newbie to the XS650’s so any comments suggestions are appreciated.
Over the last month or so, I’ve gone through the process of successfully obtaining registration papers for the bike.Clubman bars, and shorty shocks removed…
Chrome issues…
It is a mostly complete bike, and is missing only the rear fender and air box. It will however, require a bit of TLC to get back on the road, so I am treating this as a fall/winter project.
As evidenced by the extra head and the used cam chain that was included in the parts bin it appears that the PO has replaced the cam chain and head. At some point it looks like a 2 into 1 exhaust was fitted on to the bike but never fired. The exhaust is actually rusting and the chrome delaminating, despite having never been used… It also appears that at some point the compression starter hardware was deleted, with the only remnants being the starter lever under the throttle. The carburetors appear to be a later model BS38’s with only single throttle wire actuation, despite the TX containing two throttle wires to control the carbs individually.
As far as the fender and air box are concerned, I am wondering if these items are compatible with other early XS650 years… and if so what years?
As per the VIN threads posted in the Tech section, is there a distinction between the US/CDN TX650 VIN’s?
As far as getting it started, I am thinking that I should do the following:
- Check/verify the head bolt torque
- Verify the cam chain tension
- Check the valve clearances. (I’ve already noted that these were not set properly)
- Static timing
- Sort out exhaust, my preference being 2 into 2
- Carburetor rebuild/jetting
- Dynamic timing w/timing light
- Seals: clutch pushrod, sprocket, kick starter
- New chain/sprockets
- Charging system check
Have I missed anything? I am very much a newbie to the XS650’s so any comments suggestions are appreciated.
