pregrid
XS650 Guru
Excelent! Could you post old tank/new tank pics?
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osteoderm
out of the box
pregrid
XS650 Guru
Shit, I like 'em both. The first tank looks more old timey.
osteoderm
out of the box
Yeah, I like the old tank. Not so "cafe-racery", and that's okay by me. But... I like the new one too. The real clincher for me is the increase in fuel capacity: the new tank holds 3.5 gallons, while the old tank holds 1.6 gallons. Besides the obvious external size/shape difference, the old tank has a deceptively high/wide tunnel, while the new tank barely fits over the frame!
I figure I get around 55mpg, but the reserve on the old tank was awful small, and I was getting tired of having to watch the trip odometer like a hawk and stressing for a gas station whenever it hit 80 miles. The new tank will give me the range to screw off for a day trip without really having to worry about range (at least based on what I usually lay down on any given summer Sunday).
pregrid
XS650 Guru
10-4.........................
osteoderm
out of the box
My bike is off the lift this week to make way for this beast:
A friend just took this bike from Vancouver, BC to Ushuaia, Argentina and back up through Brazil, with a quick flight to NYC. Now, after 6 months and 20000 miles, we have the bike tore down for a little well-deserved maintenance (and a new radiator)! In a couple more days he's heading cross-country back Vancouver.
We did manage to get the tank strap started...
I'd like to change the strap slightly to include a ring around the fuel filler (so I can gas up without releasing the strap). I'd also like to experiment with a few different ways of lining or wrapping the stainless strap with leather.
In the meantime, with a cork gasket liner, it's secure enough to get the bike rolling, so today I finally got out for my first ride of the season!
A friend just took this bike from Vancouver, BC to Ushuaia, Argentina and back up through Brazil, with a quick flight to NYC. Now, after 6 months and 20000 miles, we have the bike tore down for a little well-deserved maintenance (and a new radiator)! In a couple more days he's heading cross-country back Vancouver.
We did manage to get the tank strap started...
I'd like to change the strap slightly to include a ring around the fuel filler (so I can gas up without releasing the strap). I'd also like to experiment with a few different ways of lining or wrapping the stainless strap with leather.
In the meantime, with a cork gasket liner, it's secure enough to get the bike rolling, so today I finally got out for my first ride of the season!
racerdave
^ Gone not forgotten ^
My bike is off the lift this week to make way for this beast:
A friend just took this bike from Vancouver, BC to Ushuaia, Argentina and back up through Brazil, with a quick flight to NYC. Now, after 6 months and 20000 miles, we have the bike tore down for a little well-deserved maintenance (and a new radiator)! In a couple more days he's heading cross-country back Vancouver.
We did manage to get the tank strap started...
I'd like to change the strap slightly to include a ring around the fuel filler (so I can gas up without releasing the strap). I'd also like to experiment with a few different ways of lining or wrapping the stainless strap with leather.
In the meantime, with a cork gasket liner, it's secure enough to get the bike rolling, so today I finally got out for my first ride of the season!
Haven't seen anything like that in a while. I remember belt/buckle type straps.
osteoderm
out of the box
The clasp is a spring-tension double-action unit in stainless; $12 from McMaster-Carr.
osteoderm
out of the box
Just put my out-of-towner friend on my bike for his first cafe ride... sent off with vague directions and a few butterflies on my part. Is this how dads feel when they see their daughters off on their first date? 
racerdave
^ Gone not forgotten ^
Just put my out-of-towner friend on my bike for his first cafe ride... sent off with vague directions and a few butterflies on my part. Is this how dads feel when they see their daughters off on their first date?
Were you cleaning your gun as you gave him the keys
osteoderm
out of the box
Back in one piece!
The loopy grin says it all; he's hooked! Sounds like he's gonna start building a cafe just as soon as he gets home... just 3800 miles to go!
The loopy grin says it all; he's hooked! Sounds like he's gonna start building a cafe just as soon as he gets home... just 3800 miles to go!
Tron
Bearded Sheep Whisperer
I actually love the look of the new tank, but maybe cause I like practicality and not stopping all the time.
Thats one hell of a trip your friend just took. The ride back to van will be a breeze after all of those km's!
Thats one hell of a trip your friend just took. The ride back to van will be a breeze after all of those km's!
Square Circle
XS650 Addict
that tank does look good.. Unstrapping to fuel seems like a pain and a risk to the new paint.. the access hole sounds like a good idea. Your pic looks good on Gordon Scotts website.. does that 2 into one have any clearance issues?
osteoderm
out of the box
Yeah, I'm still wanting to finish the strap off properly with clearance for the filler and proper leathering, but so far, so good. The strap is way less hassle to deal with than it looks (unclip the clasp and the strap slides just far enough over that the gas nozzle goes right past); it just looks unfinished to me. As for the paint, well... it's only paint.
Oh wow!
I told him to use the pic if he wanted, but hadn't seen the website in a bit... Is he suggesting that I'm among "The best XS650 builders in the world "? 
I doubt that, but the pipes do look great!I have clearance issues, but not on account of the 2-1 pipes; the whole bike is simply seriously low. I've dragged the kickstand turning into curb-cuts and touched my toes a couple times, but the exhaust itself hasn't been an issue so far. On GordonScott there's other pictures of the same pipes on less-slammed bikes, and the clearance looks much more reasonable.
osteoderm
out of the box
With a heap of long-awaited maintenance completed (oil change, filter change, coolant change, fork oil change, new tires, new radiator, air filter change, epic throttle-body de-gunking), my buddy's bike was back to idling correctly, not overheating, and ready for the next/last leg of his trip.
With just a couple burns around the block to make sure everything still works, and a quick'n'dirty pad glued to the new seatpan, I set out to ride with him north to the state line.
I usually try to avoid highways, but this time I just sucked it up, jumped on 95, and hauled back home. After an hour of ~5000rpm, all my apprehension was gone. The "antique" bike holds it own on the highway no problem. Thought I heard a quick rattle at a tollbooth, and when I got into town and checked the bike over, I found this:
The rear fairing mount had snapped off on both sides!
I also found a little oil had spit out around the valve covers and the ends of the cam. Well, I've ordered new seals and gaskets, and a solution for the broken mounts is underway... I remain as impressed as ever that a 39-yr-old bike with original stock internals can still jump on the freeway for afternoons of 75mph+ with such ease and aplomb.
With just a couple burns around the block to make sure everything still works, and a quick'n'dirty pad glued to the new seatpan, I set out to ride with him north to the state line.
I usually try to avoid highways, but this time I just sucked it up, jumped on 95, and hauled back home. After an hour of ~5000rpm, all my apprehension was gone. The "antique" bike holds it own on the highway no problem. Thought I heard a quick rattle at a tollbooth, and when I got into town and checked the bike over, I found this:
The rear fairing mount had snapped off on both sides!
I also found a little oil had spit out around the valve covers and the ends of the cam. Well, I've ordered new seals and gaskets, and a solution for the broken mounts is underway... I remain as impressed as ever that a 39-yr-old bike with original stock internals can still jump on the freeway for afternoons of 75mph+ with such ease and aplomb.
osteoderm
out of the box
Well, four days in and he's only made it to Sudbury... freezing his ass off! He was trying to stay on the TransCanada from Montreal, but he's heading back south now to try and get out of the snow.
Johnt3
Still learning...
osteoderm, it's good to hear your bike ran out good on the freeway at 75+ with little to no problems. I'm always glad to hear that a members 30 something year old bike can still get it done. Hell of a bike.
osteoderm
out of the box
While I wait for the rubber post mounts to come from McMaster, here's another jury-rig to get back on the road for the Sunday sun!
I cut and re-threaded the broken mounts, leaving 5/8" for the new rubber damper. This short length of threaded rod will keep me going until then.
Another product of the weekend is the new seat! Very similar construction overall as the previous seat, just much smaller and lighter...
The blue suede was a fairly random off-the-wall addition to the overall scheme... the bike was starting to look too serious; I had to lighten things up a bit!
I cut and re-threaded the broken mounts, leaving 5/8" for the new rubber damper. This short length of threaded rod will keep me going until then.
Another product of the weekend is the new seat! Very similar construction overall as the previous seat, just much smaller and lighter...
The blue suede was a fairly random off-the-wall addition to the overall scheme... the bike was starting to look too serious; I had to lighten things up a bit!
jdizon
XS650 Guru
A brown leather seat would look sweet
