81 Heritage Special

[Shovel Jockey]

Looks like my son & I are building a street tracker with this bike as a start. I am more familiar with the earlier standard/roadster models. Was the 81 Heritage Special the only special that had the spokes front and rear and offered the rear drum? Is this setup rare? thanks. Joe

 

[XSLeo]

The spoked 16 inch rear wheel was If I recall right a one year thing. 79 Special II.
They used a mag disc brake rear 16 wheel for a couple years mid 78-80. In 81 they went back to a drum brake mag wheel. In 82 up they used a rear drum with a 16 inch 64 spoke wheel with a 48 spoke front wheel.
Before 78 all the rear wheels were 18 inch spoked drum brakes.
Leo

 

[leggers]

I have an 83 special with spoked rims, drum rear and disk front.

 

[gggGary]

Heritage special has the "disco" 64 spoke front, 48 spoke 16" drum rear chrome rim wheels (I like them). Special II 80-81 had 16 rear drum spoke chrome rim wheels 79 Special II had 16" drum spoke alloy rim rear wheel, one year only.

 

[missile150]

Both my '80 and '81 have spoked front and rear, discs up front and rear drums.

 

[ReycleBill]

Can't say for the '80 but I've got an '81 Yamaha XS650 Factory Service Manual in front of me and it shows XS650H with spokes (36, I think) disc front, drum rear and XS650SH with cast mags disc front and drum rear.

I just got an '81 650SH especially for the cast rear wheel with drum. I prefer the look of spokes but really want to go tubeless tires on the XS I'm putting together now as I plan for it to be a keeper.

And like gggary said, both my '83 SKs have the disco wheels. Took me forever to true one of those 64 spoke wheels one day last week.