Dax 650
XS650 Member
Two things to state first up before we go any further:
1. This site and the members here are awesome. Without the collated knowledge and the willingness of others to provide guidance, help and the odd sarcastic comment I wouldn't have the confidence to tackle such a comprehensive rebuild. Kudos to you all!
2. Do not expect regular updates, regular progress, or anything to really happen in a hurry. I go through fits and starts of motivation and already it took me about 2 years just to get around to stripping the thing down. I do have a little more motivation lately as I've just bought another bike that needs a restoration but I better finish at least one before I start on another!
So, here we are at the start:
She's an Australian model '79 XS650 and I have a vision for her. Just as well cause right now she looks rough. Hopefully it's just old age and some minor neglect and nothing too serious. On the down side she wasn't running when I bought her but on the plus side, the engine turns freely. So after a couple of years sitting idle in my possession it's finally time to start swinging spanners!
Stop. Actually, the first thing was to take stock, work out what I wanted to do, what I was capable of doing and come up with a plan. That involved lots and lots of reading here and other places before doing anything. I have taken the sage advice of others, I have a manual, I've read it a number of times and keep referring aback to it, this site, You tube, etc. Now we start swinging spanners!
Part way through the strip down, engine out, most parts removed and we're starting to get serious. Lots of other detailed photos taken to remind me what parts go where (what did we do before mobile phone cameras?). The engine is now in a stand my Dad built for me waiting its turn.
Thanks to this site for the plans and measurements and thanks to my Dad for his hard work.
During this phase I'm learning a lot about the bike. I don't mean in general, I mean specifically. Thinks that aren't right like the home made chain guard bolted on in the most ridiculous way so you have to take the wheel off to remove the guard. Mismatching of screws, some with flat heads and some with phillips. A bent bolt here, damaged screw heads, etc. Obviously one or more previous owners were more of the backyard bodgie mechanic using parts to hand and often doing it poorly. These are good warning signs that there may be trouble down the track and if I wasn't already planning a full tear down I would be thinking of it now.
So the frame is completely stripped now (sorry, forgot to take a photo of that) and almost ready to be shipped off for a strip and paint. Nothing fancy to happen here, just remove some surface rust, straighten a tab or two and paint her black again. The only thing holding me back right now is getting those damn old bushings out of the swing arm! As soon as I find my hacksaw I'll fix that problem! Incidentally, any Aussies here that can recommend a good panel beater / auto painter in Melbourne that could handle a basic job like this?
As part of the strip down I will disassemble the forks to replace the springs and also make it easier to polish the lowers. Once again, lots of reading completed and then follow the simple steps of removing the forks from the triple tree. Yeah. One hour later of cursing, struggling and hammering and I finally get them loose. Before anyone asks, yes the triple tree was loosened properly to allow the forks to 'slide' out but there was no sliding, they were very, very tight and nothing I did would loosen them further. It was just a long slow process of hammering away.
I even tried loosening the cap on a fork and almost took my head off as the damn thing shot itself at me! I then tried to get it back on but I just couldn't compress the spring and turn the cap enough times to engage the thread. Is there a trick to this, do I have a weird problem with the spring strength or do I just need to HTFU? Anyway, that's now a problem for another day
So, time to get into the engine now because I want to send the cam and crank to Hugh for a rephase and that can be happening while I'm concentrating on other areas. So following the manual I'm starting the engine disassembly and... err.... I'm a novice but I'm sure there should have been something under this cover.
No matter, I was going to need a new ignition anyway for the rephase so no big loss but again, another good indication of the lack of care the bike has had.
Made good progress lately with the head now off and the plan was to remove the cam chain with my chain breaker, remove the cam shaft and then work my way down to the crank shaft. OK, just gotta find that master link in the chain (turn, turn, turn), uh OK, there's no master link. More reading on the forum and I'll see if I can take the bearings off and remove the cam shaft without breaking the chain. I'll let you know how that goes.
While the exterior or the engine is filthy the interior (what I can see so far) is not bad. Everything moves smoothly and the oil is doing its job properly. A bit too early to tell if I have any major wear issues till I break the components down a bit further but at least no bits of valves are banging around.
The cam chain does appear to have some wear on the rounded tips of the links but I'm not sure if this is normal wear or otherwise. I guess I'll get some more insight as I get further in. As I was stuck with the cam chain I decided to move on to some other parts. Stator came off without any dramas so I moved around to the other side. Time to take off the side cover but let's get that filter out first.
Dear lord, is there any of my engine left in the case or is it all stuck in the filter!
OK, the wisdom of the forum has helped again. Obviously the chunks of black plastic are what is left of the cam guides so that answers that question, I'll need replacements. The red/brown bits I'm not sure of, hopefully nothing too expensive. I'm a little more worried about the metallic particles in the filter but I expect I'll find they are aluminium shavings also from the cam guides seeing as there is obviously no plastic left on them. My main hope is that no internal parts are damaged by these and all that will be required is a thorough clean up, replacement of the guides and maybe chain and then all will be fine. Yeah, I'm not banking on it either.
So after that horror story I figure I'll continue on and check out the clutch basket. Except all bolts are out of the cover and it's not budging. Must be a sign that it's time to wrap up for the evening and do some more research then have another crack tomorrow night.
So that's where I'm currently up to. Shortly I'll have the cam and cranks shafts on their way to Hugh's house of wizadry, I'll have measured all internals to find out whether I need to rebore, new pistons, new valves, etc or if I can reuse what I currently have.
So where is this all going? Well I don't want to get too carried away, just make some improvements and have a nice looking machine that is reliable and fun to ride. If I wanted a 'real' cafe racer I'd buy a modern sportster that goes like a scalded cat, but it's about the style and the feel for me, and really, is there any more sexy looking engine out there than the XS650?
So it's the rephase to reduce the vibrations to where I can see straight with a matching ignition, a mild upgrade to the suspension, probably upgrade the calipers to blue spots for some improved performance and reduced weight, new headlight with integrated speedo for more of an old school look, Shorai or similar battery for reliability, weight reduction and flexibility in location, and a number of other minor changes.
Ultimately I'd like to do as much as I can myself but I know my limitations. I won't be tackling any painting myself as I don't have the set up for it, and I'm too much of a perfectionist to accept a second rate job. The engine will need to be soda blasted to restore the metal finish but I'll outsource that too. Probably the other thing I'll outsource will be the brake set up because it will probably require some brackets to be manufactured and fitted and I'd rather let an expert do that than stuff it up myself.
All comments, suggestions and words of wisdom are most welcome
1. This site and the members here are awesome. Without the collated knowledge and the willingness of others to provide guidance, help and the odd sarcastic comment I wouldn't have the confidence to tackle such a comprehensive rebuild. Kudos to you all!
2. Do not expect regular updates, regular progress, or anything to really happen in a hurry. I go through fits and starts of motivation and already it took me about 2 years just to get around to stripping the thing down. I do have a little more motivation lately as I've just bought another bike that needs a restoration but I better finish at least one before I start on another!
So, here we are at the start:
She's an Australian model '79 XS650 and I have a vision for her. Just as well cause right now she looks rough. Hopefully it's just old age and some minor neglect and nothing too serious. On the down side she wasn't running when I bought her but on the plus side, the engine turns freely. So after a couple of years sitting idle in my possession it's finally time to start swinging spanners!
Stop. Actually, the first thing was to take stock, work out what I wanted to do, what I was capable of doing and come up with a plan. That involved lots and lots of reading here and other places before doing anything. I have taken the sage advice of others, I have a manual, I've read it a number of times and keep referring aback to it, this site, You tube, etc. Now we start swinging spanners!
Part way through the strip down, engine out, most parts removed and we're starting to get serious. Lots of other detailed photos taken to remind me what parts go where (what did we do before mobile phone cameras?). The engine is now in a stand my Dad built for me waiting its turn.
Thanks to this site for the plans and measurements and thanks to my Dad for his hard work.
During this phase I'm learning a lot about the bike. I don't mean in general, I mean specifically. Thinks that aren't right like the home made chain guard bolted on in the most ridiculous way so you have to take the wheel off to remove the guard. Mismatching of screws, some with flat heads and some with phillips. A bent bolt here, damaged screw heads, etc. Obviously one or more previous owners were more of the backyard bodgie mechanic using parts to hand and often doing it poorly. These are good warning signs that there may be trouble down the track and if I wasn't already planning a full tear down I would be thinking of it now.
So the frame is completely stripped now (sorry, forgot to take a photo of that) and almost ready to be shipped off for a strip and paint. Nothing fancy to happen here, just remove some surface rust, straighten a tab or two and paint her black again. The only thing holding me back right now is getting those damn old bushings out of the swing arm! As soon as I find my hacksaw I'll fix that problem! Incidentally, any Aussies here that can recommend a good panel beater / auto painter in Melbourne that could handle a basic job like this?
As part of the strip down I will disassemble the forks to replace the springs and also make it easier to polish the lowers. Once again, lots of reading completed and then follow the simple steps of removing the forks from the triple tree. Yeah. One hour later of cursing, struggling and hammering and I finally get them loose. Before anyone asks, yes the triple tree was loosened properly to allow the forks to 'slide' out but there was no sliding, they were very, very tight and nothing I did would loosen them further. It was just a long slow process of hammering away.
I even tried loosening the cap on a fork and almost took my head off as the damn thing shot itself at me! I then tried to get it back on but I just couldn't compress the spring and turn the cap enough times to engage the thread. Is there a trick to this, do I have a weird problem with the spring strength or do I just need to HTFU? Anyway, that's now a problem for another day
So, time to get into the engine now because I want to send the cam and crank to Hugh for a rephase and that can be happening while I'm concentrating on other areas. So following the manual I'm starting the engine disassembly and... err.... I'm a novice but I'm sure there should have been something under this cover.
No matter, I was going to need a new ignition anyway for the rephase so no big loss but again, another good indication of the lack of care the bike has had.
Made good progress lately with the head now off and the plan was to remove the cam chain with my chain breaker, remove the cam shaft and then work my way down to the crank shaft. OK, just gotta find that master link in the chain (turn, turn, turn), uh OK, there's no master link. More reading on the forum and I'll see if I can take the bearings off and remove the cam shaft without breaking the chain. I'll let you know how that goes.
While the exterior or the engine is filthy the interior (what I can see so far) is not bad. Everything moves smoothly and the oil is doing its job properly. A bit too early to tell if I have any major wear issues till I break the components down a bit further but at least no bits of valves are banging around.
The cam chain does appear to have some wear on the rounded tips of the links but I'm not sure if this is normal wear or otherwise. I guess I'll get some more insight as I get further in. As I was stuck with the cam chain I decided to move on to some other parts. Stator came off without any dramas so I moved around to the other side. Time to take off the side cover but let's get that filter out first.
OK, the wisdom of the forum has helped again. Obviously the chunks of black plastic are what is left of the cam guides so that answers that question, I'll need replacements. The red/brown bits I'm not sure of, hopefully nothing too expensive. I'm a little more worried about the metallic particles in the filter but I expect I'll find they are aluminium shavings also from the cam guides seeing as there is obviously no plastic left on them. My main hope is that no internal parts are damaged by these and all that will be required is a thorough clean up, replacement of the guides and maybe chain and then all will be fine. Yeah, I'm not banking on it either.
So after that horror story I figure I'll continue on and check out the clutch basket. Except all bolts are out of the cover and it's not budging. Must be a sign that it's time to wrap up for the evening and do some more research then have another crack tomorrow night.
So that's where I'm currently up to. Shortly I'll have the cam and cranks shafts on their way to Hugh's house of wizadry, I'll have measured all internals to find out whether I need to rebore, new pistons, new valves, etc or if I can reuse what I currently have.
So where is this all going? Well I don't want to get too carried away, just make some improvements and have a nice looking machine that is reliable and fun to ride. If I wanted a 'real' cafe racer I'd buy a modern sportster that goes like a scalded cat, but it's about the style and the feel for me, and really, is there any more sexy looking engine out there than the XS650?
So it's the rephase to reduce the vibrations to where I can see straight with a matching ignition, a mild upgrade to the suspension, probably upgrade the calipers to blue spots for some improved performance and reduced weight, new headlight with integrated speedo for more of an old school look, Shorai or similar battery for reliability, weight reduction and flexibility in location, and a number of other minor changes.
Ultimately I'd like to do as much as I can myself but I know my limitations. I won't be tackling any painting myself as I don't have the set up for it, and I'm too much of a perfectionist to accept a second rate job. The engine will need to be soda blasted to restore the metal finish but I'll outsource that too. Probably the other thing I'll outsource will be the brake set up because it will probably require some brackets to be manufactured and fitted and I'd rather let an expert do that than stuff it up myself.
All comments, suggestions and words of wisdom are most welcome