Found this in a barn yesterday

[avenue]

never mind if these things are rare and/desirable, yet.

the bike you found and in that original/clean condition is a pretty rare find.

if you want to build a tracker, I'd guess you could put a few hours into your current find, sell it for a handsome penny, make the new 'oldtimer' owner very happy, and fund your new project bike with enough cash left over to fill the beer fridge a few times over.

 

[Yamaha_chop]

You may notice that when the newby asks the usual "I haven't done ANY research" questions, it's the old riding around on "stock" bikes guys that carry a lot of the load in helping them?

you're right about that. You guys always do a great job informing the uninformed

I know all sites dealing with somewhat "vintage" bikes will have those who are biased towards stock, and others (like me) who'll suggest chopping up anything, and I've got no problem with that as it's variety that makes this industry work. I suppose what I was frustrated about is that it seemed like there was a groundswell support group comprised of newbies who knew absolutely nothing about the XS650 two weeks ago who joined the site, saw all the "Keep it stock!" comments, and are now jumping on the KIS bandwagon. Probably a misconception on my part.

Anyway, carry on. I appreciate all the wealth of information on this site as we all need help from time to time. My drive has just always been that regardless of what anyone else thinks you should do with it, you bought it and if you want to cut it into 20 pieces and make a planter out of it you shouldn't feel guilty for doing so. Although I would probably recommend against that

 

[650Skull]

I know all sites dealing with somewhat "vintage" bikes will have those who are biased towards stock, and others (like me) who'll suggest chopping up anything, and I've got no problem with that as it's variety that makes this industry work. I suppose what I was frustrated about is that it seemed like there was a groundswell support group comprised of newbies who knew absolutely nothing about the XS650 two weeks ago who joined the site, saw all the "Keep it stock!" comments, and are now jumping on the KIS bandwagon. Probably a misconception on my part.

Your skills are to be envied, (by me anyhow), you think out of the box and can carry it through.
A lot of newbies ask for advice and 9 out of 10 times people advise them to get it running, (while stock), before cutting it up. I don't think they are advising not to cut it up, more to help them but 9 out of 10 of these guys don't listen and need more help later

keep building those off the wall bikes, love your builds

 

[lawrgj]

I dont know if there is a keep it stock band wagon, and if there is those people are daft. I know that I had a 100% unmolested stock bike with every original part not one thing missing or messed with. 1977 sitting in a garage since 1979, 1963 miles...
the bandwagon would grind to a halt if any bandwagoners were serious or even comprehended what keep it stock means. now, I also think this bike should be restored however it is tough to say that there is a bandwagon when anyone looking to restore see's that they will soon be 3-5 thousand into a restoration of a bike worth half that.
then comes the comments of " you don't restore to sell" agree with that too, however there is currently no way to see into the future. look at pregrids amazing street tracker he would never sell, not built to sell, and buried in, sitting on ebay right now.
point is, dont think there is a bandwagon for keep it stock, its just a good idea for anyone who is actually willing to do it, 1st hand experience of a complete restoration, ( which is and never could be 100% accurate) costs soooooooooo much damn money. the real question is or should be " do I keep it stock or make it something i love and ride daily?"

 

[lawrgj]

P.S> keep it stock!

 

[jetmechmarty]

This is my stock XS11 Special. It has an upgraded fuse box, a Sargent seat, Traxxion Dynamics springs, RaceTech emulators, Tkat fork brace, Progressive Suspension shocks, and the list goes on. It's far better than the stock bike ever was, but it maintains its original appearance. I wouldn't want to go back to original. I have a Heritage Special that I bought new. I'll give it the same treatment.

I like this stock Special as well. I think it's very nicely done.

 

[essexboydave]

I don't know what the price of original bikes is like in the USA but if it's anything like the UK I'd clean the stocker up, sell it for alot of money, then buy a cheap one and use the rest of the profits to do that up how you want it

 

[Scrambled]

P.S> keep it stock!

I am more inclined to do a resto-mod . Keep the mostly stock look but improve the bikes performance and ride it .

 

[retiredgentleman]

I think we can differentiate between "pure stock" and "stock appearance".

My 78 SE has "stock appearance", but it definitely is not "pure stock". There are tons of "stock appearance" but very few "pure stock" for all years. For my type of riding, "pure stock" is likely to leave me stranded on the side of the road.

A few examples:
Purists would use the original type spring clip fuse holders..........reliability requires replacement.

Buckhorn handlebars.................ugly and uncomfortable.

OEM rectifiers and regulators.............OK when new but technology has moved on, and I want full reliable voltage.

Purists would stay with the points...............yes points do work, but they require weaker ignition coils, and they need to much "fiddling". Pamco is wonderful.

OEM Tail/brake lights are wattage hungry.................LED uses only tiny amount of wattage.

The OEM ignition coils are just plain weak................A new (modern) ignition coil gives that nice fat blue spark.

OEM brakes give acceptable braking................but again technology has moved on, and newer 4 piston calipers are just a big improvement.

I take my hat off to someone who wants to ride a "pure stock" bike that is 30 or more years old. They would be OK for short rides around town, but I don't think they would be going on 2000 km trips. Please correct me if there are any "pure stock" bikes that are driven on a regular basis over longer distances.

Obviously, I'm a big fan of "stock appearance"...............good looking with reliability and safety.

 

[Royboy]

I am more inclined to do a resto-mod . Keep the mostly stock look but improve the bikes performance and ride it .

EXACTLY! I've been thinking about Yamaha chop's comments and the general subject of restoration all morning. And here is what I think I think.

Few if any of us are doing restorations. These are resto mods. Better brakes, suspension, ignitions, induction, tires, lighting, etc., etc. I really respect what RG has accomplished with his Special. It looks great, runs right and pleases him. But look at his signature, that's not a restoration it's a resto-mod. So I guess I'm saying we are pretty much all modifying our 650's to some degree and how far we go is where personal style and choice come in. It's all good. I'm doing a subtle but hopefully successful resto-mod

(RG types faster than I do)

 

[jetmechmarty]

You might call this a restoration, but Yamaha did not build a motorcycle this nice in 1972.

 

[nj1639]

EXACTLY! I've been thinking about Yamaha chop's comments and the general subject of restoration all morning. And here is what I think I think.

Few if any of us are doing restorations. These are resto mods. Better brakes, suspension, ignitions, induction, tires, lighting, etc., etc. I really respect what RG has accomplished with his Special. It looks great, runs right and pleases him. But look at his signature, that's not a restoration it's a resto-mod. So I guess I'm saying we are pretty much all modifying our 650's to some degree and how far we go is where personal style and choice come in. It's all good. I'm doing a subtle but hopefully successful resto-mod

(RG types faster than I do)

Very good! I concur......

 

[5twins]

Yes, a resto-mod, that's what I do with all my bikes. Keep them looking mostly original but upgrade and fix their short comings. I DO NOT take the freaking sawzall to them. What bothers me are all the half finished, cut up "wet dreams" these guys think they can build then find out they can't. They never should have outlawed flogging, lol.

 

[CDNTX650]

Yup, mine is a restomod too...my KZ is kind of that way now also.. Some of the shit that is floating around out there because of backyard hacks is unreal.

 

[littlebill31]

I've got a couple frames from said backyard mechanics. All are chopped, all have no titles and all are useless to me. One frame had a very nice bike built around it. It didn't run and was unable to be tagged, but it looked nice. At least the former owner was able to recoup 1/10 of his investment.

 

[ReycleBill]

Ride it like you found it. Amazing find.

 

[gggGary]

Yup you'se guys pegged it, "in the spirit of" RIDER is my normal goal. even the 70 is going to get a few "upgrades". Hard to resist using a well hidden Pamco on a kick only bike..... There are much better than stock brake linings available now. Who wants to ride around on rock hard, low friction tires?

 

[weekendrider]

I take my hat off to someone who wants to ride a "pure stock" bike that is 30 or more years old. They would be OK for short rides around town, but I don't think they would be going on 2000 km trips. Please correct me if there are any "pure stock" bikes that are driven on a regular basis over longer distances.

That F model sitting at the state line sign in the XSOTM thread goes home every year.
750 miles round trip not counting the extra miles to different cemeteries.
Same trip, different year when the pic of it and the sons 83 was taken in his driveway.
375 miles one way takes around 7 hrs. + requires 3 fill ups but I have done it in 6.
It's doable.

 

[Scrambled]

I put tons of miles on stock bikes 30 years ago . In fact, most bikes I owned were already over 10 years old when I bought them , so in the 80's I was riding stuff from the late 60's to late 70's . Never had a problem with a Honda , Kawasaki or the Yamahas ( only had 2 SR 500s and one TT 500 )

The only bikes I ever owned that were unreliable were British and Harleys , I never did like riding those things farther than I could push them. .

So, when I finish upgrading my XS it will be more reliable than a stock XS was 30 years ago . I won't be afraid to ride it on long trips.

 

[Royboy]

Just a quick update. Got the bike back from Schmalenberg Racing today. My buddy Dave found the compression at 168 left and 170 right. Carbs cleaned, valves adjusted, cam chain same, when I changed the oil there was nothing in the screens. It sounds great running w/o any worrysome noise. Tonite she goes up on the lift for whatever I'm gonna do. Total disassembly followed by a slow (hell, I've got all winter) rebuild.

I'll start a new thread once reassembly is underway.

roy