For Sale - 1975 XS650 - free to good home

Hickdawg

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Hello all!

First let me say thank you to all the members of this forum for sharing your motorcycles. While this is, I think, my first post I have been a member for several years and have learned a great deal here.

So here’s the story. Several years ago my youngest daughter, about seven at the time, decided that she and I needed to restore an old car. In the interest of supporting her interest in machines I was inclined to oblige her. However, I do not really have the garage space to support a car restoration project so we decided that a motorcycle would fit the bill. I’ve been a fan of the vertical twin for a long time and we thought that perhaps a hard tail bobber project would be neat. We settled on an XS650 and I located one in a motorcycle salvage yard that was scheduled to be parted out. I bought it, brought it home and we began to plan. Once we got the bike in the garage we realized that while it had been wrecked, the damage was largely superficial and perhaps a restoration rather than a chop job was a better path. It was at this point that the project ground to a halt while we considered various levels of restoration and approaches. Then work got busy, the kids got busy, and my partner the seven year old grew up a bit and discovered robotics and computers. The bike sat untouched. So now it is time to move it along. While I hate to see it go as I have considered keeping to fool with in a few years when I retire, It did fulfill its original intention which was to let my kid wrench on something a bit. I think the experience of partial disassembly, compression testing, welding up a motor stand, etc. fostered her interest in mechanical things and has led, at least partially, to her interest in robotics.

And here’s the deal: You can have this 1975 XS650 if -

1) You come get it in southeast Texas
2) You have demonstrable experience with restoration of similar bike
3) You will restore to running/driving condition


It is essentially complete. There is a half egg sized dent in fuel tank and tank does not appear to have ever been internally coated. I don’t remember specific numbers but compression was low end of acceptable in one cylinder and well below lower limit in the other. I never cracked the motor case so don’t know any other internal details. One tail light attachment point appears to have been repaired (poorly) and the handlebars are a bit wonky. Here is a picture:

IMAGE_30F3581B-71F4-47D6-9A84-2DDB14D788A4.JPG


I have the air box side covers and a clean title also.
PM me here if qualified and interested.
 
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Please put another proviso on the deal that it will be restored to original condition.

Those bikes are just too nice to chop IMO.
 
This is awesome! I’m in Amarillo and have been looking for a XS650 project. One of my team mates wanted a Harley but I’ve been talking him into a XS650. I have been restoring USMC dirt bikes (we are both USMC veterans) and I bought a XS650 from a member here. I made some changes to the bike but I have been wanting to do a full XS650 restoration. Where in South East Texas are you located?
 
How hard could it be to give away a free 1975 XS650??:umm:
Supposed owner hasn`t posted since July 28th. Kinda makes you wonder??
 
I'm sitting on the edge of my seat and holding my breath.

Perhaps the owner is having second thoughts? Remorse? Maybe the bike is already gone?

Hopefully he'll post soon and give an update, a yay or a nay would suffice.

halfmile, you know the old saying. If it sounds too good to be true...
 
Hey interested if you still have I'm getting back in town tonight I'm in the Pearland area just south of Houston.
 
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