$200 Special

$200, what a steal! It's even worth more in parts I guess. How does one let a bike get in such a state? Blasphemy! I got an '82, 5V4 were the fenders, blinkers and fork legs were indeed black. Apart from the valve cover, the engine seems dry. I'll bet your hands are itching to get going with the bike :)
 
The tach is broken, but I think I have a spare in the parts stash. I use Rain Dance wax, which is a cleaner/wax. Use it with a white rag and rub hard enough, and you'll see some of the paint color transferred onto the rag. A couple "hard" wax jobs should bring the paint back then after that, every normal wax job will have it looking better and better. If we decide to keep the thing, it will get all the usual "fix-up" mods - steering bearings, swingarm bushings, Euro bars, stainless brake line, better rear shocks. If I swap master cylinders, I think I'm going to try a 1/2" one (12.7mm). I think this might be a good compromise, better "feel" than the stock 14mm but not as much lever travel before something happens like on the 11mm. There happens to be a perfect candidate for this, the MC from the XT600. Since it's also a Yamaha item, it will have the reverse thread mirror mount, same brake light switch, and take a 650 brake lever.
Another 1/2" "plug and play" OEM m/c is the one used on XV250's, the difference from the XT600 m/c being the angle between the bore axis and the axis of the handlebar clamp. The XV250 m/c looks like it has the same angle as the stock 14mm unit. On the XT600 m/c, the two axes are parallel, so between these, people can pick the one that puts the m/c more nearly level when mounted on the handlebars of their choice. I don't think it makes much difference functionally; more a matter of how it looks on the bike.
 
Thanks for the tip on the 1/2" MC. An angled one will work OK on the Euro bars I like because they droop down on the ends slightly. Those XV250 ones seem to be better priced and more readily available too. I won't be doing a resto here, more a resto-mod. I'm afraid some aspects of the Special models (like those silly bars) just don't sit right with me and will need to be changed. This being a very late model, I'd like to do away with all those added safety relays and switches too. I'm even considering retro-fitting an older right side switch housing so I could gain the headlight on-off switch back.

There will be several things I'll need to deal with on this later model, mostly wiring related, that I didn't run into on my '78. This will be new territory for me but I'll be sure to document any changes I make. I'm sure it will be of interest to other late model owners. From preliminary wiring diagram studies, the changes I plan don't look too difficult, basically just involving a few rerouted and/or jumpered wires.

It will also be nice to have my very own set of BS34s to tinker with. I've only tuned them on other people's bikes and didn't have to live with them on a daily basis. The bike will be kept pretty much stock to start with, but an exhaust change and air filter mods would probably happen sometime down the road.

It's gotten to the point with my '78 that I've done just about everything to it I need or want to. I really do need another to "have my way with", lol. A late model Special like this wouldn't be my 1st choice, but you can't look a gift horse in the mouth, right? I can deal with this thing and it will get me into working on areas I haven't needed to before. No doubt, I'll learn a few new things along the way.
 
Thanks for the tip on the 1/2" MC. An angled one will work OK on the Euro bars I like because they droop down on the ends slightly. Those XV250 ones seem to be better priced and more readily available too. I won't be doing a resto here, more a resto-mod. I'm afraid some aspects of the Special models (like those silly bars) just don't sit right with me and will need to be changed. This being a very late model, I'd like to do away with all those added safety relays and switches too. I'm even considering retro-fitting an older right side switch housing so I could gain the headlight on-off switch back.

There will be several things I'll need to deal with on this later model, mostly wiring related, that I didn't run into on my '78. This will be new territory for me but I'll be sure to document any changes I make. I'm sure it will be of interest to other late model owners. From preliminary wiring diagram studies, the changes I plan don't look too difficult, basically just involving a few rerouted and/or jumpered wires.

It will also be nice to have my very own set of BS34s to tinker with. I've only tuned them on other people's bikes and didn't have to live with them on a daily basis. The bike will be kept pretty much stock to start with, but an exhaust change and air filter mods would probably happen sometime down the road.

It's gotten to the point with my '78 that I've done just about everything to it I need or want to. I really do need another to "have my way with", lol. A late model Special like this wouldn't be my 1st choice, but you can't look a gift horse in the mouth, right? I can deal with this thing and it will get me into working on areas I haven't needed to before. No doubt, I'll learn a few new things along the way.
Mine started with a 99% stock '82 Heritage Special with a bit less than 12K on the odometer - only things missing were the brushes, which some PO had surgically removed for some unknown reason, and everything else worked. A lot of what I've done over the years that I've had it are shown in pic's on Redleg 44's photo album. Thinking back, probably the smoothest "look" was with the change to Standard handlebars and "café" style seat, removing the side reflectors (altho I had Virago reflectors on the front forks for awhile) and replacing the rear rim with an 18" one. The attached pic shows the XV250 m/c on a Standard handlebar; I'm guessing it would look about the same on Euro bars.
 

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Man how the hell do you guys score bikes like that for so cheap. Over here, $200 would probably buy you one part. Literally one part. There is a guy selling a rear hub on our eBay / Craigslist equivalent for $400. A pile of parts will usually run a few grand. A working road legal bike in average condition will be 4k-5K plus.
 
Well, I actually had nothing to do with finding this one, it was all my buddy. He works at a pretty big plant and has, in fact, bought most of his used bikes from fellow workers there, and some at very good prices. I think that may be their 1st shot at selling before going to something like Craigslist. Honestly, deals like this don't come around much here either, lol. I always watch the local Craigslist ads and the last few years, 650s are few and prices have gone up. But, you never know when a deal will pop up.

My current '78 was like this. I had always liked and wanted a 650 but was never really actively searching. The occasional ones I'd notice in local classifieds always seemed too expensive ($1200-$1500). Being that they weren't much more than that new, I felt it was too much for a used one. Then, out of the blue, a guy I knew and hadn't seen in years called me and asked if I wanted a bike. He said it had been sitting in his garage for several years and he felt that if it sat much longer, it would just turn to junk. So, I went over and took a look. It was a titled 650, a bit rough, but it was free so I took it, lol. The rest, I guess you could say, is history. I got it running, found these forums, and proceeded to refine, tweak, and mod it into a very nice, dependable old bike. It's given me nearly a dozen years of good service and taught me much more about motorcycle mechanics than I already knew. I learned things like how to spoke wheels, drill discs, tune carbs (better), do valve jobs, and a ton more about motorcycle electrics. Not only did I get the enjoyment of riding it, I got an education too, lol.
 
I got it running, found these forums, and proceeded to refine, tweak, and mod it into a very nice, dependable old bike. It's given me nearly a dozen years of good service and taught me much more about motorcycle mechanics than I already knew. I learned things like how to spoke wheels, drill discs, tune carbs (better), do valve jobs, and a ton more about motorcycle electrics. Not only did I get the enjoyment of riding it, I got an education too, lol.
And that in a nutshell is the attraction to these old gals.
 
Well, temps were up into the mid 30's today so I got out in the garage for a bit. Pulled the battery which was mostly empty with a bulging case, lol. Luckily it hadn't split and belched acid all over everything. Started the preliminary checks into the charging system problem. When I pulled the left cover, I could see a potential issue right off the bat. The alternator wiring loom wasn't routed correctly and trapped under the shift shaft protector as it should be .....

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Pulling the chain up with a Bungee and doing a closer inspection revealed the chain was indeed sawing into the wiring, lol. Not sure if it cut any of the wires completely but it did get part way through a few .....

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So, that could be the whole charging issue right there. I'm sure the chain would be shorting those bare wires together. That can't be good for charging, lol. Other than that, it was relatively clean under the cover. The oil leak appears to be the clutch pushrod seal, which is, of course, quite common. The case is washed pretty clean under the seal. The pushrod wiggles quite a lot so I'll bet the bushing is shot too.

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I have yet to test the other electrical components like the rotor and reg/rec. Hopefully those wires shorting didn't damage any of them. If just repairing the wires fixes this thing, that would be great. The guy had taken it to a shop to have the charging issue looked at. They put new brushes in but that didn't fix it. They said they could start replacing other electrical components but the guy didn't want to get into that. I can't believe a shop wouldn't know enough to look for rubbed bare wires, lol. Hard to get good help these days, isn't it.
 
Nice! You should feel Special now.
The outside-o-meter says it's been inside or at least under a good cover all this time, The red paint fade-o-meter on the gauges. It's very sensitive.
 
Yes, thankfully it was stored inside. The last inspection sticker is dated 9/05 and the mileage recorded on it is only 46 less than what shows on the speedo now. That's a good 12 year "slumber", lol. I tested the rotor and at first wasn't getting a very good reading (15 or 16 ohms). But the slip rings were very dirty, so I tried testing at the outer clean edges and then got a good reading of 5.5 or 5.6 ohms. I'll test again after I clean the rings but I'm thinking (hoping) the rotor is good.

I pulled the carbs too. I decided to open the drain screws first but didn't expect anything to come out after sitting so long. But, stuff did, not that it resembled gas anymore though, lol. It looked more like maple syrup.

So, I may order up a battery here soon because once I repair the alternator wires and clean the carbs, I think she'll be ready for a test fire. Once I know it runs and charges, that'll be a good incentive to carry on with the rest of the clean-up. I'll need to go through all the wiring, brakes, forks, etc. But the nice thing is, once you get the bike up and running, it can be a "ride and wrench" scenario from there. It will probably take a couple seasons to get through everything but that's fine.
 
What's that old saying, when it rains, it pours? Look what popped up on my local Craigslist the other day .....

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Of course I went to look at them, and of course I bought them, lol. Genuine Krauser bags AND mounts for $45? Wow, what a deal. So the $200 Special is now officially "the $245 Special", lol.
 
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