My wife prefers Kroil.
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What have you done to your XS today?
- Thread starter I am Carbon
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Kroil does indeed have a great smell to it...if you can afford it. 
I use Aerokroil and it does have a unique smell. I was given a box of it when I retired and I have more than enough to last the rest of my life. Glad I don't have to buy it.
I just bought a Gallon @$116. I restore Old cars for a living and it's worth every penny to me. As an example, '56 MGA exhaust studs, put a little Kroil in a spray bottle, hit the nuts, let it sit over night, came right off. It's about $1 per ounce if you shop carefully. P-B is very good, I just think Kroil is a better product.I use Aerokroil and it does have a unique smell. I was given a box of it when I retired and I have more than enough to last the rest of my life. Glad I don't have to buy it.
Didn't see any Kroll in my local stores, guess lots online.
Actually ran out of PBBlaster and got some SeaFoam Deep Creep which seemed equally effective, but less odiferous.
(not that there's anything wrong with being a bit smelly)
Actually ran out of PBBlaster and got some SeaFoam Deep Creep which seemed equally effective, but less odiferous.
(not that there's anything wrong with being a bit smelly)
As much as I hate buying online, that's where I found Kroil in gallon size. Smaller indi suppliers around here do carry the aerosol.
Aligned the headlight on the 78 XS650 as well as my 82 XJ650 both being project bikes from this winter. I have a coroplast sheet with alignment marks that measures to where the bike is at the end of my garage. I just measure the height to the center of the headlight, then tape or pin it to my work bench on the other end of the garage and make the adjustments. I rarely ride at night and have yet to take either out at night but good to know if its good. I do need to take both bikes out for a short ride at night soon to verify my work though. When I got my Scout, It was used and the PO had an LED headlight put in. It was noticeably too high and silly me did not check before taking it out on a ride where I was coming back after last light. (#professionallyinstalled)
Bob Wegman
XS650 Enthusiast
Today I painted the swingarm of my disassembled 80 XS650. Seventy degree weather in March made it possible. Hoping and planning for complete assembly of bike in late spring. Not a show winner. Actually, off season(winter) rider.
Figured I'd service the starter motor and replace the seals while I waiting for the replacement pinion gear to arrive.After riding home from work today I drained the oil to replace the starter motor to crankcase seal and found what I think is part of the gear selector drum stuck to the drain plug bolt.
Might explain why it's been jumping out of the high gears lately
I have everything removed and got it ready to lift the engine out and plan to leave the top end intact, turn it upside down to split the cases, find the broken part and hopefully buy a replacement.
Just to make it an even better day the clutch basket tool slipped off and snapped off one of the "fingers" so I also need to get a replacement for that.View attachment 262733View attachment 262734View attachment 262736
Lots of gunk that I cleaned out with a can of contact cleaner and spruced up the commutator surfaces with a brass wire brush. The two thrust washers and the bakerlite shim were still ok but I managed to strip the two long screws that hold the body together and had to find replacement m5x110mm screws, after lots of searching i found some socket head screws and replaced the short screws as well.
on the subject of Kroil, Pb blaster, ATF/Acetone etc
I always used kroil on old guns I was cleaning the rust off of.
I've had stuff siezed that I cycled heat with either a heat gun or torch depending on what was around it or if I was replacing it.
If there are 2 different metals, where you place the heat can make a difference.
I always used kroil on old guns I was cleaning the rust off of.
I've had stuff siezed that I cycled heat with either a heat gun or torch depending on what was around it or if I was replacing it.
If there are 2 different metals, where you place the heat can make a difference.
007
XS650 Member
My best luck is Kroil, heat when you can.
Installed the new rear brake shoes, installed the rear wheel and adjusted the chain, rear brake, put the mufflers back on (they are right in the way of removing the axle) and finally took the old girl out for her 50th birthday inaugural run! So happy to have this motorbike back riding. She hadn't turned a wheel since October!!!
Don't recall... your bike ever make the calendar? 
Yeah... we'll hafta fix that.No sir. ......
I have received the replacement pinion gear and a refurbished clutch basket and also replaced the countershaft seal, the clutch push rod seal and the gear selector shaft seal even though none of them were leaking.After riding home from work today I drained the oil to replace the starter motor to crankcase seal and found what I think is part of the gear selector drum stuck to the drain plug bolt.
Might explain why it's been jumping out of the high gears lately
I have everything removed and got it ready to lift the engine out and plan to leave the top end intact, turn it upside down to split the cases, find the broken part and hopefully buy a replacement.
Just to make it an even better day the clutch basket tool slipped off and snapped off one of the "fingers" so I also need to get a replacement for that.View attachment 262733View attachment 262734View attachment 262736
After assembling the countershaft with all the gears, spacers and circuits everything works great except the first gear cog is rather firm and does not spin freely.
I took plenty of pics during disassembly and have everything installed in the correct order so after stripping it back down three times i figured it was ok and closed up the cases.
Now it no longer jumps out of 4th gear, so that's good but it jumps out of 1st gear after a couple of feet so it looks like I've got to remove the engine and split the cases again to try and find the issue.
The new pinion gear is not putting pressure on 1st gear but I also replaced the transmission bearings and maybe the countershaft needle roller bearing is a thou or two wider than the old one or the spacers and circlips between the gears are not identical and I have a thicker one next to 1st gear making firm to turn.
I recall reading here years ago someone had issues with jumping out of 1st gear because of too much lateral play with 1st.
I know what I'm doing after work today but welcome any ideas.
Level 1 Tidy Complete
The '78 Standard is whole lot cleaner after a couple days of varsol squirting followed by SOS pads.
Next is to see if the harness that came with it is usable. Had to use Blaster on the point cover screws, but they came off.
