How do I check and change oil on an XS650? Oil recommendations?

What makes the clutches slip are the "energy conserving" additives put in many car oils. But ..... and this is a very big "But"..... those additives are only put in the lighter car oils, generally 30wt. and lighter. They don't bother putting them in the 40 and 50 wts. I'm guessing they don't help an oil that thick be any more "energy efficient". I've used car oils (thick ones) in all my bikes for decades and never had a wear or clutch slippage problem. I can think of far better things to waste my money on than fancy oil, lol.
 
Alright guys, sorry to resurrect this thread but it seems like there are a lot of opinions regarding what oils to use.

It seems like the 20w-50 is the most recommended but would it be a good choice for someone in the Northeast who would likely be riding on some cool 50-60 degree mornings?
 
It works for me. When temps gets to the 40-50 you might let it warm up a little longer before taking off. In the 30's you might warm the crankcases with an incandescent bulb before firing it up. Or switch to a lighter oil.
 
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Shell Rotella T6. Full synthetic 5W30. JASO MA certified (Japanese equivalent of SAE) to be good for motorcycles with wet clutches-no friction modifiers. Designed for diesels and their very harsh operational parameters, so don't worry about viscosity being lower than 20W50. I use it in all my bikes. Available at Walmart for low 20's a gallon. Note: most studies show that most wear occurs at startup, where you want low viscosity to get the oil flowing immediately. My $.02
 
Since the topic is checking and changing oil. I think it's best to remove the rear drain plug first so hopefully the gush of oil from it will help clean the area it's in, where a lot of sludge can accumulate. For checking, if you want to check on the side stand instead of the center, with my '81 on the side stand the place on the stick where the flat stops and the round begins corresponds to midway between the two marks on the center stand. ymmv.
 
Watch out for the seasonal variations.

PumpkinSpiceOil01.jpg PumpkinSpiceOil03.jpg PumpkinSpiceOil02.jpg
 
Hey guys I know this is an old thread, but I have a question.

I just picked up an '83 XS650 and changed the oil for the first time. It went pretty smoothly, other than having to remove the custom exhaust the PO put on the bike due to extremely low bolt clearance. There was no way around it, a crescent wouldn't fit and I don't really want to buy a 27 mm wrench since I already had the socket (I don't even believe that would fit in that tight space).

I'm wondering if anyone has had any luck installing a quick-drain type plug. I put a Fumoto one on my car and it makes oil changes super fast and I never have to worry about over torquing/leaks with its locking technology. I looked on their website and this is what they recommended for the bike:

http://fumotousa.com/parts.php?partname=B106SX&partnumber=119

I should have put some calipers on the threads when I had it out, but forgot. Does anyone know if that 14mm thread is correct? Seems pretty small to me...
 
Unfortunately, no I don't have the original toolkit. That would definitely work, but I'm worried about not being able to put the proper torque on the bolts each time.
 
The drain plug thread diameter is quite large, something like 30mm. Also, there's two, and you should remove both to get all the oil out. Most of the oil will come out the first plug you remove but a little more will come out the second plug.
 
Well if you plan to keep the bike you need to buy a metric dual open/closed wrench set. Searching for a rear spring wrench might be another matter.
 
Does anyone use Lucas oil Additive when changing oil? I would think 1/2 suggested mix, but then again I have seen motor test runs with and without emptying all the oil out the Lucas motor lasted somewhere around 10 minutes, the regular oil motor seized up in 4 or 5 minutes. These were both brand new briggs lawn mower motors, run for the suggested break-in oil time.
 
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