Miss November XS2 tribute

The front brake started to squeal on my '78 a few hundred miles after I installed new aftermarket pads. It seems Yamaha was aware of the squeal issue because they took a couple steps to eliminate it. First was an anti-squeal caliper clip. This is nothing more than the original type clip with little squares of rubber glued inside .....

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I don't think these are available from Yamaha anymore but would be simple enough to make. Just glue some little rubber squares cut from an old inner tube or something inside the clip you have. But, pull both your clips and inspect them. Note that the one with the rubber, the "anti-squeal" clip, should be installed in the forward spot. Maybe you have one but it was incorrectly placed in the rear spot.

The second step Yamaha took was to install shims behind the pads, #12 and #13 in the drawing below .....

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On mine, doing the first step, installing the rubber padded clip, didn't help, but it's so simple to do, I would try it. Doing the second step, installing the shims behind the pads, is what fixed mine. As far as I know, none of these parts are available anymore. I scrounged mine from spare later calipers I had.
 
As I parked the Orange Peril outside the house I was visiting in Lanark, a passing postman shouted something at me. Now, the accent in Lanark is broad but he seemed to say 'My (brother? father? mother??) had that bike, that exact bike, in that exact colour - ay loved that bike!'

So I think that was a statement of approval.
 
No span adjustment on the brake lever, but I adjusted this wee screw:


Brake adj.jpg


Wound it out 1½ turns so the brake doesn't actuate till the lever has moved further. This has moved the crucial range to a better place for me and improved feel somewhat.


/2
 
I have wondered, but not looked, if there is enough space at the perch to drill, tap and insert a grub screw to adjust the span? But this is only feasible if the brake switch does not turn permanently on. At present I have mine set like Raymondo did above.
 
Oh the Horror!

My beautiful XS has sprung an oil leak. I mean, I could have bought an old Triumph. BTDT

It's coming from the tacho drive:


PICT2345.JPG


First step will be look at an exploded diagram and check what is in there. I think there's an O-ring and an oil seal but I can't remember what you can get at externally. From inspection, the oil seems to be coming from the top of the adapter/knurled end of the tacho cable. But it might be coming from the lower end of the adapter. Or both, of course.

Any comments before I embark on exploratory surgery?
 
tach drive.png

Note seal retainer part #4 is threaded and slotted, I made a special tool to remove it. The seal underneath, #3 is often really stuck in place, various digging tools used to remove. If you remove the gear shaft #7 the washer #8 will likely fall out of place meaning you get to remove the clutch side engine cover.
 
Taking off the RH side case cover is not a big deal - although if you do not drain the oil - you must lean the bike waaaayy over to the left.

Just be sure of two things:
  • keep track of the little copper crush washers on the bottom six socket-head cap screws (SHCS - aka Allen bolts);
  • push the kick-starter shaft IN while pulling the cover OFF - to avoid disengaging to the complex kicker mechanism inside the RH side case-cover (a little engine oil on the shaft to help the seal slide more easily would be a good idea).
There would be no harm in having crush washers on all of the SHCS - but the bottom six fasteners really do require them to prevent oil leaks.

Pete
 
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Thanks, Bob, I will take a look.

Hunting about on this compendious forum, I found this posting from 2012:

http://www.xs650.com/threads/tach-drive-o-ring-replacement.21252/

which warns about the danger of losing the washer off the bottom of the tacho drive if it moves as you dismantle the sleeve, oil seal and O-ring. So glad I didn't just dive in there . . .
 
Thank you, Pete. We crossed. Yes, I suppose it might be just as well to face up to possibly needing to pull the side-cover off. Could do the job when I perform the next oil change - after all, what's a little oil mist?

Do these often end up leaking? Is it usually the oil seal or the O-ring that has failed?
 
I have never had one leak - but others may....

But again - getting that RH cover off is not a big job.

Just be gentle torquing the 6mm SHCS back on as those covers have likely been on and off a fair number of times over 40+ years and that aluminium is fairly soft.
 
Thank you, Pete. We crossed. Yes, I suppose it might be just as well to face up to possibly needing to pull the side-cover off. Could do the job when I perform the next oil change - after all, what's a little oil mist?

Do these often end up leaking? Is it usually the oil seal or the O-ring that has failed?
Sneaky bastids they often/usually leak but disguise it as a lower seam/case leak. Dirt gets in, wears a groove on the shaft, a new seal usually covers up for the wear if you polish the shaft smooth at the wear area. The seal is what takes a beating as the shaft rotates against it, the o-ring is stationary. If you are replacing the seal you'll do the o-ring anyways.
 
Sneaky bastids they often/usually leak but disguise it as a lower seam/case leak. Dirt gets in, wears a groove on the shaft, a new seal usually covers up for the wear if you polish the shaft smooth at the wear area. The seal is what takes a beating as the shaft rotates against it, the o-ring is stationary. If you are replacing the seal you'll do the o-ring anyways.

Yeah the seal was all wallowed out on my XS2.
 
Gentlemen, thank you All!

I think I know what I have to do. Plan an oil change fairly soon. Obtain a tacho oil seal. On some other threads, people (5T I think?) have mentioned that the necessary 11x1.5 mm O-ring can be a bit elusive. I have a box of assorted O-rings and if there's nothing in there, will have to broaden the hunt.

Pull the r/h cover, inspect & polish the wear area on the drive shaft. Renew oil seal and O-ring. Assemble the side cover paying attention to not over-tighten the screws.

Actually, Pete, they might not have had quite so many ins & outs as Miss November's vintage suggests - the replacement engine had allegedly done less than 500 miles when fitted. Though I have a vague suspicion that some parts - including the side-covers - might have been involved in a bit of partner swapping at some point over the years. Just little things like slightly more minor dings and scratches than the crankcases.

A bit like when astronomers compare the size and distribution of craters on different moons to gauge their relative ages.

Bit annoyed when I saw the oil leak but feeling a lot more positive now.
 
Gentlemen, thank you All!

I think I know what I have to do. Plan an oil change fairly soon. Obtain a tacho oil seal. On some other threads, people (5T I think?) have mentioned that the necessary 11x1.5 mm O-ring can be a bit elusive. I have a box of assorted O-rings and if there's nothing in there, will have to broaden the hunt.

Pull the r/h cover, inspect & polish the wear area on the drive shaft. Renew oil seal and O-ring. Assemble the side cover paying attention to not over-tighten the screws.

Actually, Pete, they might not have had quite so many ins & outs as Miss November's vintage suggests - the replacement engine had allegedly done less than 500 miles when fitted. Though I have a vague suspicion that some parts - including the side-covers - might have been involved in a bit of partner swapping at some point over the years. Just little things like slightly more minor dings and scratches than the crankcases.

A bit like when astronomers compare the size and distribution of craters on different moons to gauge their relative ages.

Bit annoyed when I saw the oil leak but feeling a lot more positive now.
on the o ring you could just copy the OEM number and start your internet search that way
Although going to Ebay the shipping and time to get it might make you want to hunt else where
 
on the o ring you could just copy the OEM number and start your internet search that way
Although going to Ebay the shipping and time to get it might make you want to hunt else where
A quick search turned up these O-rings. Might even be driving distance for you Raymond.
 
Raymond have a look in here, I did that job and photographed it. It’s a little ways down in the post.

Post #1059
http://www.xs650.com/threads/mailman’s-xs2-a-full-on-restoration.51520/page-53#post-557930

Thank you, Bob, very helpful photos and description. Know what I'm gonna find and what I have to do before I go in. Your oil seal is marked E 35 SO 7 13 4 HS - does that mean the seal is 7x13x4 mm for inner, outer, thickness? Yambits have an oil seal for the tacho drive, but postage will be expensive so I thought about looking on ebay or a bearing supplier.

Jim, thank you, still to look through my box of O-rings but have found a few on-line sources for 11x1.5 O-rings. Might be cheaper to buy 10 off - anybody want a tacho drive O-ring?

With all these things, the postage always cost more than the part. But the big saving is not paying somebody to do the job.

EDIT

Jim, I think the firm you found is in Kirkaldy - long way to go for an O-ring unfortunately.
 
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