What have you done to your XS today?

lakeview said:
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New Tire - Old Wheel
I thought I was being thrifty when I changed my mind about what wheel to put the new tire on, so after install ( I supported my local mom and pop shop by buying the tire there and having them install it) I went to put it on bike and noticed that the bearings were shot.
Read up on the how to and a couple whacks with the medium hammer and out they came. Will put in an order for new ones tomorrow.
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Spent an hour or so mounting the all purpose wheel chock in my freshly boarded trailer plus a couple tie downs so I can take the '77 cafe in for its certification this week and then down the way to the appraiser so I can get the vintage insurance.
After me trying for a week to get the front brakes bled to no success, MaxPete had stopped by last week and laid his hands on the brake lever and presto, after a couple nights of it sitting on the side stand, the dual front calipers were operational. I am giving him all the credit.
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No no no - it was all Lakeview and his skill, hard work and determination.

All I did was stop by, give it a couple of squeezes and say “Hmmmm - yup, the lever certainly does seem a bit soft. Why don’t you just leave it and let the bubbles come up.”
 
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This morning I filled the tank with petrol. Wouldn’t start on the electric start but kicked over. Got about 2 miles max and she died. Wouldn’t restart. Pushed her home. Nearly spewing pushing her up hill and I was leaking like a sieve (it’s a warm day). Eventually pushed the bike home and I tried her and she started I then discovered I’d locked myself out the house.
 
Fawksey said:
This morning I filled the tank with petrol. Wouldn’t start on the electric start but kicked over. Got about 2 miles max and she died. Wouldn’t restart. Pushed her home. Nearly spewing pushing her up hill and I was leaking like a sieve (it’s a warm day). Eventually pushed the bike home and I tried her and she started I then discovered I’d locked myself out the house.
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Its a wonderful day to be alive isn't it Fawksey!

Now, as to why your bike wouldn't start on the button and then died, here is my list of common issues that can cause that sort of behaviour (and I've had lots of experience with all of them)...
  • Battery: LOW? (a weak battery is the cause of many, many problems of all kinds)
  • Charging system: INOPERATIVE? (XS650 charging systems can work very well, but they can also be troublesome and this leaves you vulnerable to a chronically weak battery - even if the battery is new).
  • KILL switch: ON? (any chance you might have inadvertently knocked the switch in a fit of passion?)
  • Petcocks: ON? (I've found I can get juuusst out of sight from home before my bike dies if the petcocks are "OFF")
  • Coils: WEAK? (the 1970's era coils on our XS650s were not all that wonderful when new and now, many of them are quite dodgey. Having a bike start cold and then die after warming up a little is a common symptom of a weak ignition coil (particularly on a hot day) and this can be compounded by a weak battery and/or a poorly performing charging system or dodgey ignition wires and plug caps.
The key thing is that if everything is well sorted out, the XS650 electric starter works quite well and the bike starts easily and idles steadily (in fact, on my '76, I often hardly hear the engine crank before it is running). There is lots of troubleshooting advice on the forum so just be methodical and thorough and you will find the problem(s) and soon, this will all be a distant memory.

Anyhow, you and the bike are home and safe and you didn't puke all over your street so that is all positive - and you can once again join the rest of us in our collective quest for a safe, sweet running and reliable 40+ year old motorcycle.

Pete
 
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Pete, thanks for the detailed reply. Can rule out the petcocks and the kill switch however the battery is definitely a possibility. First time I charged it bike starts on the button immediately but is flattening again after only a couple of days.

F. (Yes it is good to be alive!)
 
Fawksey said:
Wouldn’t start on the electric start but kicked over. Got about 2 miles max and she died. Wouldn’t restart. .....
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There's a reason I have 6 or 7 digital voltmeters/VOMs of all sorts kicking around my shop.

Put the spoke front wheel on period piece scrubbed behind her ears and took her out for 50 miles.
She's also been failing to E start but fires first kick. It has been mostly sitting.
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Going to have to figure out what to do about the seat sidecover mismatch/gap. grab bar turnsignal thing needs help too.
 
Fawksey said:
Pete, thanks for the detailed reply. Can rule out the petcocks and the kill switch however the battery is definitely a possibility. First time I charged it bike starts on the button immediately but is flattening again after only a couple of days.
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I just had to put brushes in my '80. Wear was strangely uneven, but both were definitely worn. Bad charging could absolutely cause the issue.

I also removed the Reserve Lighting Unit from mine and did the conversion that makes the HEADLAMP indicator into a charging indicator (light on = not charging). Info found here: http://xs650temp.proboards.com/thread/9140 Relevant part of my refit thread starts around here: http://www.xs650.com/threads/80-special-refit.52662/page-9
 
Solomoriah said:
I just had to put brushes in my '80. Wear was strangely uneven, but both were definitely worn. Bad charging could absolutely cause the issue.

I also removed the Reserve Lighting Unit from mine and did the conversion that makes the HEADLAMP indicator into a charging indicator (light on = not charging). Info found here: http://xs650temp.proboards.com/thread/9140 Relevant part of my refit thread starts around here: http://www.xs650.com/threads/80-special-refit.52662/page-9
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In my experience, the outer brush wears more rapidly than the inner brush simply because the speed of the rotor is higher the further away you get from the centreline of the crankshaft. I like that indicator light - it would give you a chance to turn for home before running out of power...in the middle of nowhere, in the rain, at night, with a lady on the back.

DAMHIK.
 
Solomoriah said:
Okay, that DOES look cool. Too bad it's only degrees Celsius... I've managed to adopt most metric measurements, but I'm just too American for that.
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I know whatcha mean. We made the same adjustment in the late 1970's but I still think in Fahrenheit, feet, inches and do stress analysis in ksi.

Here is the conversion: degrees F = (degrees C x 1.8) + 32

So, 20C would become: 20 x 1.8 = 36 + 32 = 68 deg. F

Anyhow, here are some guidelines for temperatures:
  • -20C is bloody cold - get a cup of cocoa and watch the birds try to stay warm on the telephone wires (-4 deg. F)
  • -10C is pretty chilly - too cold for doing anything other than skiing, skating or playing hockey (14 deg. F)
  • 0C is freezing - OK for some activities, but too cold for swimming and watch for icy roads in shady spots (32 deg. F);
  • 10C is a nice spring day - need a sweater but OK for a walk (50 deg. F);
  • 20C is room temperature for most people (68 deg. F)
  • 25C is a nice summer day (77 deg. F)
  • 30C is a warm summer day - great for a swim! (86 deg. F)
  • 40C is a bloody hot day - Mailman would like it just fine but the rest of us would be hiding inside (104 deg. F)
  • 50C is nasty hot - even Mailman would stay inside (122 deg. F)
  • 60C is much too hot for people to be outside (140 deg. F)
  • 85C is the temperature of a really hot cup of coffee (about 185 deg. F)
 
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Made a Japanese sword shifter lol, works fine. Probably going to put the clutch on the handle in the near future. I also did some pinstripe work on my helmet with only several hours of practice over a few days :D
 

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Gary, luv that patina! What are the brackets on the grab bar for? Assuming it's a transplant from an earlier model, were they the mounting points for rear signal stalks on it? If so, an easy "fix" might be to mount your rear signals there. Then screw on a tie-down bung (see pic) where your signals were originally, with another set on the top shock mounts. Next, strip that black paint off the caliper. After that, swap those signal light lenses for Virago lenses and trim rings (see other pic), maybe on shortened stalks.
 

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Cafetools, the lights might be better in the corners where the walls meet the roof, if you still have time to change things and diffusers will help the glare. Looks like just the right size for working on a bike though, if space does get an issue put workbenches and cabinets on casters. You have more space than me :D, I am in 8 x 14 and it gets a bit tight.
 
MaxPete said:
OK - battery solved, but now you've got to check your charging system and that isn't too hard to do....
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Ok I’ve put the brand new battery on. Measured 11.96v out the box. Ok I should have charged it to 12.4 but I’d already got giddy and put it on the bike. I don’t know why but the bike is now ticking over at roughly 1200rpm since the new battery went on. If I increase the throttle to 2000rpm the volt meter reading climbs to around 12.15v the more I increase the revs the reading climbs to 12.4v. I’ve alread ordered some replacement alternator bushes. Not as cheap or as easy to get hold of here in the UK as in the US. Non on eBay. Ordered them from Yambits.
F.
 

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