Revived 1983 heritage special need some help

brianmac

brianmac

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I just got a 1982 Xs XS Heritage special spoke wheel single front brake appears to only have 4000 semi miles on it oil is clean . PO said he had it for 10 years started up once in awhile the inside of the tank is clean it has Mikuni 36vm carburetors with a 190 jet main jet I clean the green and yellow out of the carbs but I need to soak the jets in vinegar it has a brand new battery Deka AGM it charges up to 14 volts . It shakes so bad it will run across my garage floor the right side was too lean and Poppin iItweaked that out . so now
image.jpg
I'm cleaning the carburetor Jets with vinegar and and c check float level 18 mm please advise if possible
 
Ck the vin .. with the listings found on Mike's XS.... I thought all 82' Specials were black.. black fenders, lights.... chainguard..etc etc.
get'n the carbs dail'd it will take time....The XS is a pant shaker.. I read that Vetter used one as a test bed for all faring designs. True.. ? Give 650 Central a call... explain the issues.. have the jets you have written down and he'll help with the jetting.
 
The sticker on the steering head says it it was manufactured 10/1982 whatwhat do I do about the caliper do I just order a new one from mikes or do I get pads Shins and piston? Or chance a used one?
 
Oh good call man the seller said it was a 1982 but it says 1983 on the title I did check the VIN when I when I bought it last weekend
 
As for the caliper.. used..? you have used now... the next used one may have more issues then yours. Rebuild'n a caliper is easy.

….. is it sticking... ?.. the caliper slide is known to become stuck.... once the caliper is off.. push the slide out of the rubber boot.... clean it.. insert with brake grease.. not bearing grease. The rubber.. there's a technical term for this... is affected by .. fork oil.. brake fluid....bearing grease.. just about any petroleum product....and it will swell.. distort …. bind up....
I'd order a new slide boot.. piston rebuild kit.... service the unit and it's done for many years and peace of mind.

I think 83's came in blk and red... My 82' (photo) is a nice bike.. Special's have'n got the following the Standards have.. yet. I took mine on a toad trip yrs ago... Yellowstone, Black Hills. Bought it new in 83' as a model left over… $1604.25. It was stolen.. got it back 2 weeks later but it was never the same.. think they flogged it. My current 82' was a ebay find (Chicago) with electrical issues ($600.oo).
 

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caliper piston has nasty pitting in the zone of where it is needed. it holds well with 1/4 ply pieces used for pads. firm brake sqqueeze. all it really needs is a piston and piston seal , pads, and shims.
soaked right side carb brass in hot HDepot cleaning vinegar for 40 min, rinsed, quick dip in muriatic acid 1N, float level was perfect. fired right up , idled at 650 rpm if i wanted to, but i know its supposed to be 1000-1100. it doesnt walk across the garage now, unless crack her open. it comes back to idle slow, so well see if left brass cleaning fixes that. cable is stiff, but slides return to home when released.
the starter makes that horrible sounds, ill have to get to that. hope its fixable, saw it in tech section. do i have to pull a side cover and get new gasket first?
 
Clutch pack-basket has to come off.... gasket..oil change required... it's important to keep the order of steel and fiber plates in order.... once clutch is off.. you'll see the " noise ".... a weak Bendix spring... note photo, old and new......I look'd around for a better spring.. even the one in the kit is weak.. be aware.. as you remove the clutch cover.. hold your thumb on the kick start boss as you pull the cover off...... if the kick gear pop's out... it's a pain in the kister to pre load and insert.. also… there's a thrust washer over the kick start boss... it sometimes sticks to the inside of the clutch cover....
we usually clean and service the face of the fibers and media blast the steels.. don't forget the little ball bearing.... !
 

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Last edited:
Yes, the right side cover will need to come off. Sometimes you can re-use the gasket if you don't damage it during removal but I usually replace an old one so I'm starting fresh. If you plan on keeping the bike, it would probably be best to invest in a complete engine gasket set. Cheaper in the long run than buying all the gaskets individually and you will end up using/needing most of them eventually.

The hairpin spring or drag clip on the #4 starter gear was upgraded by Yamaha to a heavier one in the mid '70s but is still often too weak, even new. The "fix" is to squeeze/bend it tighter again in a vice. Details are here .....

http://www.xs650.com/threads/starter-gear-fix.18060/

This is a recurring issue and will need re-doing every 5 or 6 years. I've done mine a couple of times in the last dozen years or so. The teeth on the gear will probably be chewed up some like in Mike's pic, but that doesn't usually necessitate replacement. They still work fine like that. The cause of the issue is the weak spring, not the worn teeth.
 
ok, she runs nice now, i noticed 2 different intake manifold/boot assemblies, one is 1/2" longer than the other so carbs are a little offset, irregular idle caused by throttle cable hitting petcock, resolved. wow, plywood brake pads work ok! went thru all the gears, clutch OK, on to cleaNing, front brake, neutral is a bitch on these girls I know. with really old tiresany ideas here for good deal on tires? , it still drives nicely. would like wider handlebars, any ideas? still need caliper, or just piston, pads, shims, any ideas? shes a keeper FOSHO! gonna see a guy that hard-tailed one, may i kin gesumparts from him?
 
brianmac said:
ok, she runs nice now, i noticed 2 different intake manifold/boot assemblies, one is 1/2" longer than the other so carbs are a little offset, irregular idle caused by throttle cable hitting petcock, resolved. wow, plywood brake pads work ok! went thru all the gears, clutch OK, on to cleaNing, front brake, neutral is a bitch on these girls I know. with really old tiresany ideas here for good deal on tires? , it still drives nicely. would like wider handlebars, any ideas? still need caliper, or just piston, pads, shims, any ideas? shes a keeper FOSHO! gonna see a guy that hard-tailed one, may i kin gesumparts from him?
Click to expand...

Hi brian,
yeah, lose the rototiller bars, that bar shape ain't compatible with the way a person's wrists bend.
I ended up with an XS11 Standard bar on my Heritage Special but bars is like shoes, you gotta try 'em on first.
Any modern tire will have far better rubber than the tires the bike came with new so just get what you fancy.
XS650 clutch is admittedly heavy but careful cable run and adjustment should let you find neutral OK.
Unless you are really unlucky all your brake caliper will need is a new piston and seals.
Improve your brake feel by replacing the lever with one that has about half the piston area
and replace the time-expired fabric brake hoses with stainless ones.
 
Most tires today are rated for tubeless use but can be used with tubes as well. Many of us have been running the bargain priced Shinko tires on our 650s with few complaints. The Shinko 712 seems to be one of the most popular .....

https://www.bikebandit.com/tires-tu...MItJTUlYKQ3QIViISzCh29SgPTEAQYAiABEgJ6L_D_BwE

I have no complaints about the 712 rear and have used a couple so far, but I'm not crazy about the 712 front. I will be trying something different up front when the current one wears out. On my bike anyway, it has a rather vague feeling in the 25 to 35 MPH range. I know it's the tire because I've swapped on my spare wheel with a different tire and the feeling disappears.
 
I had shinkos on my Roadstars and although they are good performing sticky Tire excellent in wet they seem to fade to Gray and lose their blackness very quickly and and they do not seem to be a high mileage Tire and they seem like they cup in spite of daily ridingg I think I'm going with Michelin to Commanders II you spend a bit more but don't have to replace them as often also I got the caliper fixed with some parts I got from a local xs guy
 
Okay I found out the spark plugs work under gapped startsstarts up beautiful now and a I got the mag wheel on the front mag wheel coming for rear I got a pair of handlebars in my XS650 box from that guy and a used the tried-and-true method of ficus tree and 6 foot Steel pipe toto get the handlebars at at proper angle hardest part was getting the left handa grip off
IMG_20180902_125529430_HDR.jpg
 
brianmac said:
Okay I found out the spark plugs work under gapped startsstarts up beautiful now and a I got the mag wheel on the front mag wheel coming for rear I got a pair of handlebars in my XS650 box from that guy and a used the tried-and-true method of ficus tree and 6 foot Steel pipe toto get the handlebars at at proper angle hardest part was getting the left handa grip offView attachment 125254
Click to expand...

Hi brian,
1,000 & 1st use for WD40, removing & replacing 'bar grips,
Slacken & slide the leftside controls & slide 'em inwards to make room.
Shove a skinny screwdriver between the grip & the bar to make a gap.
Poke a WD40 can stinger down the gap & give her a squirt.
Make like wringing a chicken's neck to get the grip off.
A squirt of WD40 on the bar puts it back on easy, too.
The grip will squirm around at first but it'll be stuck on good a day later.
 
I'm telling you this one was glued in hair spray and Bubblegum I I used 91% isopropyl but I could not get screwdrivers in there evenp long skinny small Craftsman ground down for jets wouldn't go in usually they blow right off withw compressor but this one was stubborn we don't use WD-40 in the south it evaporates before it reaches the target need that has a good residual oil I guess it might be okay for this purpose
 

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