Johnny: your work on a mill is remarkable. You've got talent sir!
Pete
Pete
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New member starting a project 650
- Thread starter johnnyc14
- Start date
Some serious money in your shop.
That Kurt vice alone is worth more than many used XSs...
That Kurt vice alone is worth more than many used XSs...
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
The new vise was a Christmas gift from my wife. I guess I whined about my crappy old Chinese vise enough times to get her attention. I didn't want to tell her I could have bought a pretty good used bike for the same money. She is a good shopper though, she got a great deal on it. The mill and lathe were both bought used and rebuilt by me. I am gearing up for retirement in 3 years, there won't be money for major purchases after that.
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
I finally got my engine back together. I had the cylinders bored and fitted with .5mm OS pistons and rings from XS650 Direct and also installed a new cam chain and guides from them. I had to install a new head oil feed pipe and even though I was warned that the aftermarket ones from XS650 Direct are not very good, the one I got fits perfectly and looks just like the original. For $100 it should be!!
In my youth I lifted lots of bike engines into the frame by hand but the years have made me more cautious about preserving the health of my back. I used some steel from my scraps box and made up a lifting bracket that bolts to the head from the right side and curves around the frame above. I have an electric winch in the attic of my garage that I use to lift our kayaks to the ceiling for storage. Once the boats are at the ceiling they are supported by some metal brackets which allows me to use the winch for other purposes. It has a 400lb capacity so it's perfect for a job like this. When I was making the engine lift bracket I was guestimating where the balance point would be so it would hang level and I got it pretty much perfect. I winched the engine to about the right height then rolled my bike lift under it and used the jack on the lift for fine height adjustments. I found the best method is to swing the bottom of the engine into the frame and get the bottom engine mount bolt lugs inside the frame and then when I raised the lift the engine just about fell in the rest of the way by itself. The best part is my back feels great afterward!
In my youth I lifted lots of bike engines into the frame by hand but the years have made me more cautious about preserving the health of my back. I used some steel from my scraps box and made up a lifting bracket that bolts to the head from the right side and curves around the frame above. I have an electric winch in the attic of my garage that I use to lift our kayaks to the ceiling for storage. Once the boats are at the ceiling they are supported by some metal brackets which allows me to use the winch for other purposes. It has a 400lb capacity so it's perfect for a job like this. When I was making the engine lift bracket I was guestimating where the balance point would be so it would hang level and I got it pretty much perfect. I winched the engine to about the right height then rolled my bike lift under it and used the jack on the lift for fine height adjustments. I found the best method is to swing the bottom of the engine into the frame and get the bottom engine mount bolt lugs inside the frame and then when I raised the lift the engine just about fell in the rest of the way by itself. The best part is my back feels great afterward!
Satch39
XS650 Addict
Amazing work! How have I not seen this thread before??
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
Yesterday I worked on the charging system. I found that my rectifier has 1 open diode so I ordered a 50 amp bridge rectifier on eBay and a VR115 regulator on Amazon. There was a big chunk of plastic conduit covering the harness to the stator and after I cut all that off I found that the wires had been spliced in the middle for some reason. They were solder but only covered with tape so there was oily mung between the insulation and core of the wires. I cut out all the contaminated wire and used metal splice clips and solder to insert new wires in their place. All the splices are staggered and covered in sealed heat shrink tubing then the whole harness is covered in non-glued heat shrink so it is still flexible.
Something weird I noticed after cleaning up the rotor and stator is that the insulated brush metal holder sticks up a bit above the Bakelite holder. I think these must be cheap aftermarket brushes but it seems like it will work ok.
Something weird I noticed after cleaning up the rotor and stator is that the insulated brush metal holder sticks up a bit above the Bakelite holder. I think these must be cheap aftermarket brushes but it seems like it will work ok.
You're doing first class work and your bike should turn out to be super! Everyone should have a a lathe and a milling machine.
Yes the wiring that POs do is just horrible at times. You have done a fine job on the wiring repair. Your brushes will be OK, just check that they are long enough. I replace my brushes when they get down to 0.4 inches.
50 amp bridge rectifier........................I hope you mean 50 amp 3 phase rectifier. If using bridge rectifiers you would need to buy 2 of them. 50 amp size is more than required, as 25 amp is all that is needed. The VR115 is a very good choice.
You're a wise man to use a hoist to lift the engine. I don't like to see threads where a single guy installs or removes an engine by himself. Very important to protect your back.
Yes the wiring that POs do is just horrible at times. You have done a fine job on the wiring repair. Your brushes will be OK, just check that they are long enough. I replace my brushes when they get down to 0.4 inches.
50 amp bridge rectifier........................I hope you mean 50 amp 3 phase rectifier. If using bridge rectifiers you would need to buy 2 of them. 50 amp size is more than required, as 25 amp is all that is needed. The VR115 is a very good choice.
You're a wise man to use a hoist to lift the engine. I don't like to see threads where a single guy installs or removes an engine by himself. Very important to protect your back.
Looks fabulous Johnny! Hmmmm, I wonder why the wiring was spliced....odd eh?
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
Thanks guys. Yes I meant 3 phase rectifier. I was going to use one from an old GM Delcotron alternator but it's kind of large and oddly shaped for this.
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
I started work on my hydraulic clutch conversion today. My original worm gear clutch actuator is broken and I didn't want to spend a lot of money to replace it with a sub-standard aftermarket one. I picked a used clutch master and slave cylinder on eBay for $40 plus $15 for shipping. They are from a 95 Kawasaki ZX9R and very similar to the ones on my Concours 1400. They will both need new seals but all the parts from Kawasaki come to less than $100 and it will be all genuine factory parts, not aftermarket stuff.
The slave cylinder nose is just about the same size as the opening for the chrome cap that fits in the cover on stock bikes at 37mm. I bored the original hole to fit the slave with .004" clearance.
No going back to stock now!
To allow the slave to sit as flat as possible I mounted it on my rotary table and milled off the protruding flange area on one side.
The surface of the cover is not flat and the bolt hole ears of the slave were elevated from the surface so I milled a flat area large enough for the slave to fit flush and flat. It required removing .060" of material but the cover is quite thick in this area. I used a transfer punch to locate the bolt holes and drilled and tapped them to 6mm. I oriented the slave to give a good angle for the hose to run forward and up the left frame tube.
The I did some measuring to figure out the length of the pushrod. I bought a 3' length of 5/16" tool steel rod for this and I came up with 10.5" as the correct length. After I'm sure it's right length I will harden the ends to prevent wear.
Good thing I took the slave apart as the seal was split in half.
I did a little more work on the mill to make the slave look better and also removed the 2 lugs that prevent hose rotation. I mocked it up with the hose from the Buell front brake and it will work well with a straight end on that end of the hose. The hose needs to be 50" long, I'll get that and the Kawasaki parts ordered tomorrow.
The slave cylinder nose is just about the same size as the opening for the chrome cap that fits in the cover on stock bikes at 37mm. I bored the original hole to fit the slave with .004" clearance.
No going back to stock now!
To allow the slave to sit as flat as possible I mounted it on my rotary table and milled off the protruding flange area on one side.
The surface of the cover is not flat and the bolt hole ears of the slave were elevated from the surface so I milled a flat area large enough for the slave to fit flush and flat. It required removing .060" of material but the cover is quite thick in this area. I used a transfer punch to locate the bolt holes and drilled and tapped them to 6mm. I oriented the slave to give a good angle for the hose to run forward and up the left frame tube.
The I did some measuring to figure out the length of the pushrod. I bought a 3' length of 5/16" tool steel rod for this and I came up with 10.5" as the correct length. After I'm sure it's right length I will harden the ends to prevent wear.
Good thing I took the slave apart as the seal was split in half.
I did a little more work on the mill to make the slave look better and also removed the 2 lugs that prevent hose rotation. I mocked it up with the hose from the Buell front brake and it will work well with a straight end on that end of the hose. The hose needs to be 50" long, I'll get that and the Kawasaki parts ordered tomorrow.
BobbedSled
XS650 Addict
Wow I am digging that. Well done looking forward to seeing it done.
I was going to mention that you can't count on the sidecover's clutch worm hole to be concentric with the mainshaft and pushrod. But, it probably doesn't matter since your hydraulic plunger/piston doesn't have to rotate, or have a screw-type adjuster, which would cause any ball-caused dimples to orbit about a different center...
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
Thanks guys, I used a felt marker to darken the end of the pushrod and installed the cylinder into the bore and the witness mark from the ball in the piston is dead center on the end of the pushrod so I guess I got lucky.
Yeah, good deal. Mine is off center by several thousandths...
Oddjob
adsgads
JC14 - very nice nice!
2M - Would the two piece shaft help in this case? What slave cylinder did you use.
2M - Would the two piece shaft help in this case? What slave cylinder did you use.
Oddjob, I'm not using a hydraulic clutch. Using modified worm actuator with 1-piece rod. The off-center rod-to-wormdrive is mentioned here:
http://www.xs650.com/threads/xs650-clutch-worm-actuator-experiment-tidbits.31554/page-5#post-323154
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
I got a couple of little detail jobs done today. The lever on the Kawasaki master cylinder I bought was pretty sloppy with loose pivots. It is an adjustable handle like the one on my Concours so I felt it was worthwhile repairing it. I made up 2 new brass bushings, one for the lever pivot and the other for the plunger pivot.
I'm still waiting for the new master cylinder piston, slave cylinder seal and hydraulic line before I can finish the hydraulic clutch conversion.
I needed to relocate my voltage regulator and starter solenoid as my new side covers leave no room for them on the outside of the battery box. I removed the block off plate on one end of the tools box area and made the VR115 regulator fit inside that area and moved the solenoid to the top of the battery box. I can't believe how much time I spent on this but I'm happy with the result. There is about 3/4" of clearance from the top of the solenoid to the bottom of the seat. I'm still waiting for my new rectifier but I plan to mount that in the stock location under the battery.
I'm still waiting for the new master cylinder piston, slave cylinder seal and hydraulic line before I can finish the hydraulic clutch conversion.
I needed to relocate my voltage regulator and starter solenoid as my new side covers leave no room for them on the outside of the battery box. I removed the block off plate on one end of the tools box area and made the VR115 regulator fit inside that area and moved the solenoid to the top of the battery box. I can't believe how much time I spent on this but I'm happy with the result. There is about 3/4" of clearance from the top of the solenoid to the bottom of the seat. I'm still waiting for my new rectifier but I plan to mount that in the stock location under the battery.
Dang Johnny - this is looking very nice!
You'd better get it done before bug season sets in.
Pete
You'd better get it done before bug season sets in.
Pete
johnnyc14
XS650 Addict
Thanks Pete, all these little details are taking a lot of time but I want to get them all sorted before sending the frame and tins for paint. My plan is to be riding it by summer.
Real fine craftmanship
