Hello all,
As is the case with most here, I begin my first post with a love/hate situation...I'm about to set fire to my labour of love...! Ok not quite but I am very befuddled!
I began this xs 650 journey 2 winters ago- a buddy of mine had the bright idea and thought we could build a couple bikes for a few G's and have fun ripping around by summer. We all know how that theory plays out! I ended up driving 10 hours to Saskatchewan to pick up my ride. The guy said he was a mechanic....hmmm ok! The bike was running a bit rough but I figured with some new parts and TLC she'd be right as rain. I ended up buying the soft tail kit for this one, Pamco ignition, Banshee alternator system, and some Keihin carbs. I took my time and did everything as well as expected for a first timer and it turned out pretty good. My buddies bike was turned into a hardtail and he did everything minus the Banshee conversion. His bike ran like a dream, I was pretty impressed but the power that little enging could put out. Mine on the other hand ran about 75% of his. The charging system was awesome but I couldn't dial the engine in like his. When I removed the charging system, I didn't make any marks on the new flywheel where the old ones were- I simply followed the directions of the swap. My buddy says thats where my problem lies. I took a spark plug out, found TDC of one clylinder, and set my valves at 3 thou on intake and 6 thou on exhaust. I figured maybe these carbs that were supposed to be preset may not always be so I tweaked them too and now the bike only idles- it sputters and backfires when I try to rev it. I can't find any info on setting the carbs to original. It appears that someone might have had the engine apart once, is it possible that the cam chain is on the wrong link? So I guess the areas I need help in are 1; what is proper sequence to tuning an engine, 2;what should valves be set at (found 2 different opinions in the Haynes manual), 3; Any help with timing this Banshee alternator, 4; any help with tuning these Keihin carbs, 5; Pamco ignition hints, I have tried to adjust this alot of times, seems there's something else.
If anyone has suggestions for me, please remember that though I have tinkered with engines, I don't know the abbreviations/tech words so please keep it simple!
I can see that these are pretty tough engines and the maintenance may be minimal once all is in order...
Thanks a bunch!
As is the case with most here, I begin my first post with a love/hate situation...I'm about to set fire to my labour of love...! Ok not quite but I am very befuddled!
I began this xs 650 journey 2 winters ago- a buddy of mine had the bright idea and thought we could build a couple bikes for a few G's and have fun ripping around by summer. We all know how that theory plays out! I ended up driving 10 hours to Saskatchewan to pick up my ride. The guy said he was a mechanic....hmmm ok! The bike was running a bit rough but I figured with some new parts and TLC she'd be right as rain. I ended up buying the soft tail kit for this one, Pamco ignition, Banshee alternator system, and some Keihin carbs. I took my time and did everything as well as expected for a first timer and it turned out pretty good. My buddies bike was turned into a hardtail and he did everything minus the Banshee conversion. His bike ran like a dream, I was pretty impressed but the power that little enging could put out. Mine on the other hand ran about 75% of his. The charging system was awesome but I couldn't dial the engine in like his. When I removed the charging system, I didn't make any marks on the new flywheel where the old ones were- I simply followed the directions of the swap. My buddy says thats where my problem lies. I took a spark plug out, found TDC of one clylinder, and set my valves at 3 thou on intake and 6 thou on exhaust. I figured maybe these carbs that were supposed to be preset may not always be so I tweaked them too and now the bike only idles- it sputters and backfires when I try to rev it. I can't find any info on setting the carbs to original. It appears that someone might have had the engine apart once, is it possible that the cam chain is on the wrong link? So I guess the areas I need help in are 1; what is proper sequence to tuning an engine, 2;what should valves be set at (found 2 different opinions in the Haynes manual), 3; Any help with timing this Banshee alternator, 4; any help with tuning these Keihin carbs, 5; Pamco ignition hints, I have tried to adjust this alot of times, seems there's something else.
If anyone has suggestions for me, please remember that though I have tinkered with engines, I don't know the abbreviations/tech words so please keep it simple!
I can see that these are pretty tough engines and the maintenance may be minimal once all is in order...
Thanks a bunch!