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What have you done to your XS today?
- Thread starter I am Carbon
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- maintenance
Thanks, TJ, but my buddy Marlin stopped by, today and he used the kit in his '72 and said he had no problems. He also used the springs included in the kit and those worked fine, too.
Yeah, and I hate to say it, but I gave away seven of my thirty or so bicycles, last week so I'd have a space in the garage for my '71 XS and my wife's Rav-4. But this was a day to remember. Two buddys from high school stopped by whom I haven't seen in a long time, Marlin, maybe six years ago when our riding buddy passed and Arnie whom I haven't seen since high school who, like Marlin, also owned a '72 XS. But before they stopped by I climbed on my bike for the first time in 28 years, kicked it to life and headed out for 25 miles. I wasn't about to admit to those guys that I hadn't ridden it yet after all the work I did. Last week, the exhaust went back on and then we had a doozie of a nor'easter come through this week, with tree limbs down and power outages After two blocks, I realized all my reflexes for shifting and panic stopping were still there (just like riding a bicycle, you don't forget how after riding a motorcycle for 20 years) and my clutch was working well, since it hasn't been mashed in so many years and it was cold out as it was slipping in hot weather. No sooner than my front wheel touched the highway off the entrance ramp, I was in a race with a beamer that sped up in an attempt to prevent me from merging ahead of him. And just like I remembered, the horns popped right through my helmet, I wasn't letting him cut me off and I punched it up to 80, or so, before he backed off. And I'll never know if he just wanted to see if either the bike, or I had any nut. And as I sailed along, that exiting nor'easter buffeted me and blew me around. That was exhilarating, no, (strike that), What a Rush!
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I have a correction to what I said:The Livewire is back in production again...not shocked.
I called my insurance carrier, a local agency that my father worked with and told them I had a conventional registration instead of a classic/collectors registration and they told me that the cost of the policy is exactly the same. My agent shopped around for the best rates from different companies and, just like Marlin told me, she came up with Haggterty Insurance Company as the lowest price with the same coverage as my auto, $250,000 bodily injury, no deductible, and a value for loss of my bike of $5,000.00. For my area of high density traffic, it is $230.00, but I saw that the actual bill from Haggerty was $199.00 and my agency took their cut, too. She also only gave me 1,000 miles, since I told them I was getting the QQ plates, so when I start reaching the limit, I'll tell them to raise that to the next increment and then the premium may rise due to that. At any rate, Haggerty is the lowest and you might get the insurance for less if you go direct and live in an area where MV insurance is cheaper.
I rode my XS to a party last night-- a homecoming gathering of the surviving members of the local MC I rode with when I was young. Some of the guys I'd not seen on over 30 years. Of course, being this is North Carolina somebody brought some Homebrew so I went ahead and pushed my bike inside the garage with the others before I started drinking. This morning my XS is sleeping in a garage full of Harleys and a bunch of old men are calling around making arrangements to get rides to go back and pick up our bikes later today after the rain clears up.
That's what I did to my XS yesterday.
That's what I did to my XS yesterday.
With age comes wisdom. I'll bet 40 years ago the decisions would have been different.
Congrats on getting together with old friends.
56lowrider
XS650 Member
Today I rode a '79 Heritage Special over to my son in law's house. I found this bike about 2 months ago. It had been "hibernating" since 1987. A lot of effort went into getting it running again but it sure sounds sweet. Now back to work on my '80 XS 650!
Just for fun today I decided to peek under the seat cover of this recently acquired touring seat found in a storage unit.I expected to find foam needing repair as that would be the normal. Surprisingly, the cover is glued to the seat foam on the top so further cover removal was not possible. However, all the foam is in quite good shape. I do not know the manufacturer of this seat which is like a “Russel day long” . Never did find this style visually appealing but I’m looking forward to having this as a optional two up seat for taking my gal (not that she needs a large seat at all lol) on country rides next spring.
I’ll straighten out the aluminum trim and button it all back up.
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56 lowrider it would great to see any pics of the 79
JAX71224
jax71224
Nice touring seat..........could it be a Corbin?
I expected to find foam needing repair as that would be the normal. Surprisingly, the cover is glued to the seat foam on the top so further cover removal was not possible. However, all the foam is in quite good shape. I do not know the manufacturer of this seat which is like a “Russel day long” . Never did find this style visually appealing but I’m looking forward to having this as a optional two up seat for taking my gal (not that she needs a large seat at all lol) on country rides next spring.
I’ll straighten out the aluminum trim and button it all back up.
View attachment 152363
Corbin ? no Corbin tagged those seats clearly. The pan does really seem to be Yamaha though. The trim piece, the fasteners, all Yamaha. No Yamaha logo.
Im just not familiar with the aftermarket seats.
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I expected to find foam needing repair as that would be the normal. Surprisingly, the cover is glued to the seat foam on the top so further cover removal was not possible. However, all the foam is in quite good shape. I do not know the manufacturer of this seat which is like a “Russel day long” . Never did find this style visually appealing but I’m looking forward to having this as a optional two up seat for taking my gal (not that she needs a large seat at all lol) on country rides next spring.
I’ll straighten out the aluminum trim and button it all back up.
View attachment 152363
It's a Saddlemen seat. I had one and I hated it. YMMV.
https://www.denniskirk.com/saddleme...Jk4ksIP7alr--_9irHOoVK11bFZ1lRZIaAjwvEALw_wcB
Sure could be an early version Saddleman. It is slightly different in stitching pattern. And whatever it is, it is OLD
How long has Saddleman been around? It’s a 75 ish seat pan.
Today I'm in process of converting an old aluminum cook pot into an air cleaner for the single Mukini 38 I'm running on my XS. "Why?" you ask. Because that red foam Uni Filter looks like a fat red dog dick poking out of my bike.
Question: Should I sand out the lettering that says, "Wear-Ever 1-1/2 quart Made in USA" ?
Question: Should I sand out the lettering that says, "Wear-Ever 1-1/2 quart Made in USA" ?
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I mentioned about a week ago that the neutral switch on my XS2 was leaking. I got some very helpful links from 2M guiding me to a repair that was pioneered by ( Pamco Pete ) , you can correct me if I’m wrong on that.
Pete stated that the leak is caused by the plastic insert in the center becomes loose over time and allows oil to seep by. And my center was indeed loose, I could easily spin it with my fingers. His fix involved taking a small punch and staking down the switch around the plastic center to tighten it up.
Here’s my switch prior to staking it.
It’s nice and snug now. I also carefully pried the sealing washer loose from the case. I had planned on sourcing a new washer, but it still looked to be in good condition. It is a hard fiber and it was soaked with oil. I spray cleaned it with electrical contact cleaner, then coated it with Hylomar and let it dry.
Then I reinstalled the switch. Will it hold? I’ll find out, maybe tomorrow.
This is just another example of what makes this forum so great. I would’ve never thought to do something like that. I would’ve replaced the washer and if it still leaked, bought a new switch. I’m hoping this fixes it.
Bob
Pete stated that the leak is caused by the plastic insert in the center becomes loose over time and allows oil to seep by. And my center was indeed loose, I could easily spin it with my fingers. His fix involved taking a small punch and staking down the switch around the plastic center to tighten it up.
Here’s my switch prior to staking it.
It’s nice and snug now. I also carefully pried the sealing washer loose from the case. I had planned on sourcing a new washer, but it still looked to be in good condition. It is a hard fiber and it was soaked with oil. I spray cleaned it with electrical contact cleaner, then coated it with Hylomar and let it dry.
Then I reinstalled the switch. Will it hold? I’ll find out, maybe tomorrow.
This is just another example of what makes this forum so great. I would’ve never thought to do something like that. I would’ve replaced the washer and if it still leaked, bought a new switch. I’m hoping this fixes it.
Bob
Sweet! and a good move to drag this up out of the dusty archives. I think many on here don't realize how involved Pete was back in the day. (before my time here)
I expected to find foam needing repair as that would be the normal. Surprisingly, the cover is glued to the seat foam on the top so further cover removal was not possible. However, all the foam is in quite good shape. I do not know the manufacturer of this seat which is like a “Russel day long” . Never did find this style visually appealing but I’m looking forward to having this as a optional two up seat for taking my gal (not that she needs a large seat at all lol) on country rides next spring.
I’ll straighten out the aluminum trim and button it all back
Nice seat.The foam dried out on my seat and had it recushioned. I took it for a ride, last week and realize that the upholstery shop put in foam that's too soft for a bike. Not happy... I'll call them and maybe look for another seat, too.
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Today!
I had all the basic checks done so I took "Lucky 77" outside for a first start. Had just completed a head and V/C swap to fix an "84" vintage "repair" that was seeping oil. Timing was just a hair off on #2 but within the range. No leaks but the low beam had burned out while I was working on it. Go figure! The bikes willing, so I'm riding! Fired it up, hit the high beam and off down the road for about 1/4 mile just tooling and, shit! Forgot to put the mirrors on!
Goes back gets the mirrors, quick leak check and back down the road. This time all goes well. Brake test...Rear brake needs tweaked. reached down and gave it a couple of twist, that's better. Clutch needs tweaked but too much for the perch adjuster. Mental note. ( That will last about 20 seconds) Out on the Hi-way doing a few punch-N-coast for the rings. Finally eased it up to 70, checked the tach and eased back down to 55. 4500 rpm @ 70? Really? Not used to so few mph for so many rpm. Took 5twins suggestion and got a 33T rear sprocket but I want to give this a try for a bit. I did three torque soaks on the head so I'll put a few miles on it before I pull the tank and retorque. Yeah, I can tell something is behind me but not a clue till it gets real close. So, take the wife to work, pick up a head light, put on the case guards and if I'm lucky another trip down memory lane! Hot damn!
Thu
I had all the basic checks done so I took "Lucky 77" outside for a first start. Had just completed a head and V/C swap to fix an "84" vintage "repair" that was seeping oil. Timing was just a hair off on #2 but within the range. No leaks but the low beam had burned out while I was working on it. Go figure! The bikes willing, so I'm riding! Fired it up, hit the high beam and off down the road for about 1/4 mile just tooling and, shit! Forgot to put the mirrors on!
Goes back gets the mirrors, quick leak check and back down the road. This time all goes well. Brake test...Rear brake needs tweaked. reached down and gave it a couple of twist, that's better. Clutch needs tweaked but too much for the perch adjuster. Mental note. ( That will last about 20 seconds) Out on the Hi-way doing a few punch-N-coast for the rings. Finally eased it up to 70, checked the tach and eased back down to 55. 4500 rpm @ 70? Really? Not used to so few mph for so many rpm. Took 5twins suggestion and got a 33T rear sprocket but I want to give this a try for a bit. I did three torque soaks on the head so I'll put a few miles on it before I pull the tank and retorque. Yeah, I can tell something is behind me but not a clue till it gets real close. So, take the wife to work, pick up a head light, put on the case guards and if I'm lucky another trip down memory lane! Hot damn!Thu
