My 60th birthday present

[mrtwowheel]

I think this is a relevant question to ask at this point in this thread, for anyone that knows.

Are the sump filters available at 650 Central and the ones from MikesXS from the same manufacturer and of the same quality? If not, which one is better? Before shipping they are about the same price.

Scott

 

[Mailman]

Thanks guys! I appreciate that.

 

[Mailman]

I think this is a relevant question to ask at this point in this thread, for anyone that knows.

Are the sump filters available at 650 Central and the ones from MikesXS from the same manufacturer and of the same quality? If not, which one is better? Before shipping they are about the same price.

Scott

Scott, I held back answering this because I really don't know, I have never seen what they sell from 650 Central.
All I can tell you is that the ones I received from Mikes were made in Japan. The screen material is not as fine as OEM, however they seem well made and have a perforated metal liner on the inside of the screen which will hopefully make it more resistant to tearing. I hope this helps, Bob

 

[mrtwowheel]

Thanks for the answer Bob. I'll ask the same question to 650 Central, he's a good guy to deal with.

Scott

 

[Mailman]

Today was time for some periodic maintenance. A number of things have loosened up since they were new and it was starting to feel a little sloppy.
I put it up on the bike lift, got it securely strapped in and got started.

First up my steering head bearings were settling in and I could feel the steering had gotten a little loose so I snugged them up, then I broke out the grease gun and pumped a whole cartridge of grease into the steering head. When I first put the new bearings in they were already packed with grease so I didn't do this right away. I'm hoping this stuff doesn't start oozing out for the next two months! Haha!

Next up my drive chain. It also had not been adjusted since it was new and I had a bit of drive train slop that was getting annoying. I started by lubing the chain ,then I loosened all the bolts and got my slack adjusted.

Then I adjusted my rear brake. After some initial wear in I wanted to reposition my rear brake actuating arm so that it had more of a 90 degree angle relative to the brake drum, I did that then adjusted the free play.

I aired up the tires and took up a little free play in my throttle cable which was also new.

I then pulled the front brake caliper off and wiped off the old brake grease and carefully re applied some new. This last thing is getting to be a pain, the brake grease cures my front brake howl, but it slowly comes back.
I'm about ready to go with a perforated disc and different pads. I'm running sintered pads now and they are super hard, they also stop really well. Maybe something with a softer compound?

Between my steering being loose, too much drive line snatch, and too much free play in my throttle cable it was getting hard to be smooth. Hopefully it'll feel much nicer when I take it out in the morning.

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

I've used a couple of the reinforced sump screens from Mikes, and I agree that they seem to be well made. However, I read here somewhere, perhaps a tech thread, that some of the reinforced screens have been found to be blown out. Perhaps from revving too high before the oil gets warm. Therefore, I reinforced the new Mikes screens with JB Weld in the critical area.

 

[5twins]

I'm thinking they're probably the same filter. 3M does sell some of the same stuff Mike's does and I don't think there's many sources for these filters.

Do take care even with these new filters. They can and will tear too. If you examine it closely, you will see the perforated metal backing everywhere EXCEPT where it's needed, in the area that normally blows out just to the right of the magnet, lol. And to add insult to injury on mine, besides blowing out (it was shot at the first oil change), one of my magnets fell out too, lol. That's why I don't buy new ones too much any more, I just patch torn old ones. But now I finally had one of my patched ones blow out again. It wasn't the patch, that held up fine, it blew out in another spot. It seems when you patch them, you shift the stress or weak point to the backside now, directly opposite of the original weak spot. It's obviously a design flaw. That whole end of the filter around the oil feed hole should be more reinforced or solid even.

Yes, you need to take it easy for the first few miles or minutes of running until the oil warms and thins or you'll routinely blow filters. That was my problem when I first got the bike. The road at the end of my street is medium speed (40 to 45 mph) and usually quite busy. I'd be pulling out on that just after starting the bike and winding it out pretty hard to merge and blend with the traffic. Several blown filters were the result.

 

[mrtwowheel]

Thanks for the full review 5t. It will be hard or impossible to break old habits of starting the bike with choke and warm up happening on the road, almost a half century of the same starting procedure on every bike. I still usually keep the revs under 3,500 for about 2 miles.

Scott

 

[5twins]

It's fine to warm it up on the road, just keep the revs down.

 

[David Toll]

Another excellent and informative post Mailman. You know, you could print out the "60th Birthday" thread from day one and publish it, complete with the learned responses of the experts in the Forum, as an easy to follow text on how to restore your XS. Illustrations are invaluable and the humorous banter is always engaging. I have suffered a few disappointing interruptions to my own restoration but it is always encouraging to open the Garage and find that you have yet another project underway and in the process of being meticulously addressed. It never fails to send me looking for my spanners and emailing Geoff's XS here in Oz. Well done Bob! Off to the workshop.........

 

[Mailman]

David! Good to see you again! I've been thinking about you. Hope you are doing well. As I get closer to installing brass swing arm bushings , I am reminded of you recently tackling that job. I'm a little nervous about that one project. Not that installing the bushings will be so hard, but then getting the proper clearances set. The whole shim, no shim, where can I get a shim dilemma! Haha!
Thanks for checking in and don't be a stranger!
Bob

 

[David Toll]

Ah! The shim dilemma! Had forgotten about that one in my fixation on a rear master cylinder rebuild and some oil pump screw ups. You're correct, Mailman, in thinking that the removal of the old bushings and their subsequent replacement is not too difficult. The threads, on the task, here on the forum are comprehensive. As for shims, I picked mine up from Heiden Tuning in Holland. Postage cost more than the parts but, c'est la vie. I put one on each side which seemed to leave the required couple of thou of the inner tube exposed to tighten down on. Haven't run it yet but hopefully it will be fine.
Not too much to say of late Bob but I am certainly following your posts with interest and appreciation.
Cheers

 

[gentlemanjim]

Well this all happened pretty fast. Just six days ago I posted in the lounge that I was in search of a clean survivor. Today, five days short of my 60th birthday, I pulled the trigger on a 1977. I found it at a dealership in Colorado. After a flurry of phone calls and going back and forth with emails I was satisfied with the bike and a deal was struck. This is the third bike I have bought from a dealer out of state, the upside is, that you can pretty much rely on the information they give you and this dealership specializes in classic motorcycles and they sell clean roadworthy bikes. The downside is its in ANOTHER STATE and getting it transported , while not difficult to arrange is time consuming. These companies book up weeks out and it could take as long as 6 weeks to get my bike. In the mid to late 70's I was on a serious Yamaha binge. I had (at different times) a '73 RD350, a '75 XT500, a '76 XS650, and a '78 XS750. They were all great bikes but the one that always haunts my memories is the 650. So without further ado here are some photos as it sits on the dealers showroom. Yeah yeah I know the paint is wrong, but it's just paint. The bike is clean and complete and ( so they tell me) it runs nice. I plan to keep this one. If there are problems I will fix them. The wait however is killer, probably be early December before I get it. Wish me luck, Bob
View attachment 103533
View attachment 103534
View attachment 103535
View attachment 103536

You did good

 

[Mailman]

Today is my 61st birthday! A year ago my new to me bike was arriving to me fresh from Colorado. And so began the trail of tears and the draining of my bank account. Thanks to all who coached, encouraged, and befriended me along the way. Some have told me it's time to start a new project, my 61st birthday present, but this one is far from finished, in my mind anyway. I’ve still got lots to do!

 

[YamadudeXS650C]

Happy Birthday, Bob !
You don't look a day over 50 !

 

[Mailman]

Happy Birthday, Bob !
You don't look a day over 50 !

Hahaha! Yeah, in dog years! Thanks!

 

[Michaelo]

Happy Birthday Bob, missing you guys but trying to keep in touch, hope you have a great day

 

[Jim]

Happy birthday Bob!
Haven't see this thread before. Excuse me while I click on page 1...

 

[TimeMachine]

 

[Mailman]

Thanks guys, your friendships mean a lot to me!

Happy birthday Bob!
Haven't see this thread before. Excuse me while I click on page 1...

Haha, better pack a lunch Jim, it’s a long one!