Pulled the trigger - Intro and Build Thread!

Illiniwek650

Illiniwek650

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I'm really excited for this project and you guys are one of the main reasons why. I have been browsing the forum for about three years wanting to get an XS650, and yesterday I finally pulled the trigger on one!
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A 1982 Heritage Special. Did my research, waited until winter, found some options, did my tests, and pulled the trigger. I won't be in town much this winter break, and have a decent semester coming up so this build won't be quick, but it should be fun, I'll try to update this thread every once in a while to keep it up to speed.

This is my first project so I'm sure there will be plenty of :banghead: and :doh: but I'm excited to learn a lot. This forum has already been immensely helpful in the purchasing of my bike, and I will attempt to give back what I can as I go (tutorials/etc, also will be ditching some of these parts so let me know if you're in need of anything)!

So lets get started (this will be mostly to keep my thoughts on track, but feel free to read/follow along! The more the merrier!)

The Steel Pony: Bike has great compression (~150psi) and at 3k RPM shows ~14V at the battery, so I think I have a good platform to start from. Exhaust was chopped by PO :shrug: so I am trying to decide what to do with that (buy a 2-1? weld on some extensions? try to just put a muffler on it?) I haven't browsed around here too much to find advice, but will be doing so today. I know it runs, but am going to go through it and clean it up before I try to fire it back up, might even wait until I figure out an exhaust plan before I try to tune anything; I'm under the assumption that it would be pointless to get it running decent with these chopped exhaust (would need to re-jet for that configuration which I don't plan on running?)? Any input on this area will be put to good use!

My end goal is..
http://lacoronamotorcycles.blogspot.com/2011/09/yamaha-xs-650-by-la-corona-motorcycles.html
..IMO, the best looking XS I've seen, love the tracker/cafe style.
That brings up my other issue, getting the special to look like that...new bars, needs all new lights, and then raising up the rear will be crucial to get this look I think. New rear shocks and a >16" rear do the trick? What would be recommended? I'll browse around here for some suggestions but would love to hear some veteran input on how to achieve this look!!

That's all I've got for now! Time to get my hands dirty on this thing and I'll check back later to hear from everyone. You guys are awesome, can't wait to be a part of this community.
-
Jason
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I will have a 2 to 1 as soon as I take it off for my rebuild and am in Chicago. Good looking bike to start with.
 
Welcome aboard!
That corona bike appears to be a Standard or an early style frame, your '82 almost lends itself to an easy bratstyle. On the exhaust-I'd pick up a couple of mufflers, 27" Dunstall replicas or something in that length since you have stock jetting..... give yourself a base/somewhat stock performance platform to work with.

Illiniwek eh?....good name.
 
2poler said:
I will have a 2 to 1 as soon as I take it off for my rebuild and am in Chicago. Good looking bike to start with.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'm also kind of leaning that way, and hello from the suburbs.

nj1639 said:
That corona bike appears to be a Standard or an early style frame, your '82 almost lends itself to an easy bratstyle. Illiniwek eh?....good name.
Click to expand...

I realize, but the tracker style is calling me! Aesthetically, would I be safe to assume that with some 13+" shocks, 18" rear, tracker seat, new bars, etc. I could get close to the look? Or would a shock remount be necessary?

Yes sir, long live the chief. Paleo-simplictic eh?...I like your style.
 
Appears to have had the rear seat loop removed.... may need to build a new one( or catch one of us chopper/bobber/brat guys before we hack off ours... mine is long gone...
Not too sure if there is an 18 inch rear with that spoke arrangement.. good luck there.
There are a couple people currently changing their Trackers to bobber/brat-style... check out the BUILD OFF BIKES thread, maybe one of them would make you a deal on their take-off parts....

WELCOME TO THE SICKNESS, there is no known cure, ENJOY.
 
No need to alter the shock mounts, Jason. On a Standard, a minimum eye-to eye length of 13-1/4" is needed to clean up the handling; on your Special, go to something between 13-1/2" and 14". Avoid bargain basement shocks--they're a waste of money. The 18" rear is a good idea; the fat 16" slows steering, increases weight, and doesn't buy you anything. Off-the-shelf 2-1 systems will give you a helluva top-end kick, but at the cost of a midrange flat spot and restricted cornering on the right side--the pipe will grind asphalt long before you touch a footpeg. A set of 1-1/2" 2-2 pipes will give you what you need, with fewer headaches.

I'm a U of I alum but I haven't been up that way in years, so I have to ask--has Alma Mater sat down yet?
 
Welcome to the site. Nice bike to start with. The bike example is more flat seat bobber cafe style than tracker style. :agree: with grizld1 on the 2 into 1 pipe. More trouble than what they are worth for street performance. Gordon scott makes a 2into 1 that would work better or design your own he can make them for you. I like the classic look of the 2 into 2 for XS for a street bike. Have fun with it. :thumbsup:
 
AceofSpades, yea I plan on fabbing one up for the flat seat, and you're right, that spoke arrangement is a unique one..could suck finding an 18" that works, tips on finding a rear?

Thanks for the advice grizld1, I plan on going that exact route (13.5-14 shocks, 2-2, and 18", probably throw on some mufflers). Alma Mater is away for the semester for cleaning!

Lots of fun so far olddude13! Flat seat bobber cafe style is quite the mouthful, I'll have to think of something once it gets a little more character, scabber.

Todays progress: Stripped down some cosmetic stuff and got some ideas flowing, and just got familiar with the bike. Will be changing the fuel and oil, cleaning out the tank, carbs, etc. tomorrow and hopefully will be attempting to tune. Right now she runs on choke but starts to get sketchy when you try to do anything else but let her hover around 2k w the choke. Any tips/tricks or helpful links you know of for this "PO had it kind of running but I want it to run like a champ" tune-up would be great to get me started (and I'll of course browse around to find everything else I need to know!)

Appreciate the welcome, and all the advice!
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grizld1 said:
No need to alter the shock mounts, Jason. On a Standard, a minimum eye-to eye length of 13-1/4" is needed to clean up the handling; on your Special, go to something between 13-1/2" and 14". Avoid bargain basement shocks--they're a waste of money. The 18" rear is a good idea; the fat 16" slows steering, increases weight, and doesn't buy you anything. Off-the-shelf 2-1 systems will give you a helluva top-end kick, but at the cost of a midrange flat spot and restricted cornering on the right side--the pipe will grind asphalt long before you touch a footpeg. A set of 1-1/2" 2-2 pipes will give you what you need, with fewer headaches.

I'm a U of I alum but I haven't been up that way in years, so I have to ask--has Alma Mater sat down yet?
Click to expand...

what are your thoughts on the front end? is a gsxr front end a good idea i know they sure look nice.:thumbsup:
 
Jason, go to the Tech section and hit the link for the Carb Guide. Broc, that's a complex question that's full of ifs. Nothing is lighter or damps better than a modern inverted cartridge fork assembly, but you have to think about wheel selection (modern sport bike wheels will force a change of swingarm), steering geometry (rake and trail appropriate for the wheels), ride height (you don't want to be digging your case covers into the asphalt), and bracing (tighten everything else up and all the loads will converge on the swingarm pivots, so you'll need to weld a brace across them). If it's a question of performance, you can get very good results out of the stock 35 mm. fork by adding a tweak bar, emulator valves, and appropriate straight-rate springs.
 
Alright, so I'm looking to get things moving again after a 17 day trip to Europe and a week to get adjusted back to the time zone/school.

First order of business is getting it road worthy. Planning to change the oil, check to make sure the other half of my dipstick isn't sitting in my engine (realized it was broke after purchase and PO doesn't know if it fell in or not..), figure out why my clutch isn't engaging, and clean the carb before attempting to tune everything out..should be fun!

Other question I have: when looking at the rear wheel, there is not much room available back there between the tire and frame, but I realize I will need to put an 18" (as opposed to the current 16") to achieve the look I want. Does anyone have any $0.02 on fitting this. I also am planning on putting ~14" rear shocks, not sure that matters in terms of clearance.

Thanks for your help and here's to hoping for a smooth weekend coming up!
 
Jason, given the steering geometry of the stock XS650 frame and front end, you'll be best served by a 110/90/18 rear tire and a 100/90/19 front. You'll have no clearance issues with the 18" rear; the 130/90/16 Special tire that's stock on your bike is just about as tall, it's just too fat for good handling and a lot heavier than it needs to be. Tip: Shinko 712's are great tires at a bargain price.
 
Hey Jason, I was in the same boat as you this last summer. As i'm sure you know, this forum is an incredible source for both information and inspiration so keep us posted. If you are looking for exhaust, I have some very clean mufflers off my 77' that I ditched when I built my bobber. They look like this.

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=1977...dsp=53&ved=1t:429,r:19,s:0,i:141&tx=118&ty=54

Might be a bit big for what you're going for, but if your interested shoot me a PM and i'm sure we can work something out.

Keep wrenchin.
 
To get an 18 rear wheel you can swap in an earlier 73 to 78 or 79 Standard wheel but the spoke pattern will be different. Your's have 48 spoke rear and 64 spoke front. The earlier wheels were 36 spokes.
You can swap both wheels for earlier or get an 18 rear rim and spokes from Mike's and lace them to the rear hub you have.
Leo
 
Street Tracker said:
Illiniwek650 welcome to the forum man...
may answer some of your questions and give you some ideas FWIW.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the welcome, I'll check out the thread!

grizld1 said:
Jason, given the steering geometry of the stock XS650 frame and front end, you'll be best served by a 110/90/18 rear tire and a 100/90/19 front. You'll have no clearance issues with the 18" rear; the 130/90/16 Special tire that's stock on your bike is just about as tall, it's just too fat for good handling and a lot heavier than it needs to be. Tip: Shinko 712's are great tires at a bargain price.
Click to expand...

Awesome advice, thanks a lot grizld1. I like the knobbier look (Shinko 244, Bridgestone TW42/39, Kenda K761) and have been mocking up tire geometries to make sure they'll fit (now that I know how it works).

XSLeo said:
To get an 18 rear wheel you can swap in an earlier 73 to 78 or 79 Standard wheel but the spoke pattern will be different. Your's have 48 spoke rear and 64 spoke front. The earlier wheels were 36 spokes.
You can swap both wheels for earlier or get an 18 rear rim and spokes from Mike's and lace them to the rear hub you have.
Leo
Click to expand...

Yea, so I've read, still not entirely sure what to do on this front..what do you think the best route is? Looks like for $59 I can get a 48 spoke 18" from Mike's (the 2.15 rather than the 2.5, should be fine since I'm thinking thinner rear tire?).

Oh and 2 more quick things:
- PO cut one of the exhaust 2-3" shorter than the other, I was planning on just putting a short muffler on each for now (probably will be a fairly rough mount considering where he chopped them), but what should I do about the differing lengths? Leave it? Chop the other? Weld on some? Should I get the exhaust set before I attempt to tune anything else?
- And a bit of good news, found a garage & shed that I can use for the build down at school, heading home this weekend to bring the bike down!!
 
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Yep, the 2.15/18 rim is what you want. Re. the exhaust, consider this: to make good power, length of the primaries should be tuned to the rpm at which you expect to make peak power--on the stock motor, ~7K rpm. You don't want pipes tuned for a rpm range you'll never hit. You don't have to be real picky about it, but I'd recommend a minimum header length of 30", with 34" to 36" being about ideal.
 
Hey all,

As you can tell, not much progress has been made, turns out college takes up a lot of your free time. It is also quite difficult to transport a bike to California and then Hong Kong, and therefore, I've decided to sell it.

If you know anyone in the Chicagoland area looking for a good project bike, I'd appreciate the pass along!

http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/mcy/3921379156.html
 

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