Hello everyone,
Stoked to has just acquired a BEAUTIFUL 74 Xs650B complete with 4k ORIGINAL miles for a mere $500. Grabbed it and ran without even a second thought, it had been sitting for at least 25+ years. Unfortunately cracked the windshield while transporting (although i was going to take it off anyway) but that is not my problem.
I got it home and did the obvious, first searched through about a thousand keys at the motorcycle junkyard to find a key for it, carbs off, cleaned the molasses (almost glass) out of them, rebuilt to stock with new jets and floats as the others were just too far gone and i needed to drill out the pilot jets. About a week of shaking and 7 gallons of vinegar later the tank nearly spotless with minimal rust. Rebuilt petcocks, new battery, fuel filters new hoses and plugs. Also picked up some UNI pods because they are just easier to move around.
This brings us to today, put a bit of oil in the cylinders to help things get along for the first test, couple of kicks and it started right up, SOLID. However there is a ticking coming from the left cylinder, it also backfires, but only on the left. The ticking isnt horrible but definitely noticeable. The exhaust on the left also took much longer to heat up compared to the right. The engine in general seems to be hotter on the right. So i took the plug out on the left and it was black covered in carbon which i believe not to to be a foul but just buildup, checked to make sure the valves and piston were all moving correctly and they are. it is also getting good spark to both.
So what do you guys suggest i do from here? Could it just be that there is a lot of buildup in the left cylinder and that somehow is making it tick? with such low miles could it need a valve adjustment (may be a stupid question considering its age, not sure)? And do you think the backfire and the ticking have any correlation?
Excited to be a part of the community. looking forward to restoring this treasure!
Thanks
-Rogue
Stoked to has just acquired a BEAUTIFUL 74 Xs650B complete with 4k ORIGINAL miles for a mere $500. Grabbed it and ran without even a second thought, it had been sitting for at least 25+ years. Unfortunately cracked the windshield while transporting (although i was going to take it off anyway) but that is not my problem.
I got it home and did the obvious, first searched through about a thousand keys at the motorcycle junkyard to find a key for it, carbs off, cleaned the molasses (almost glass) out of them, rebuilt to stock with new jets and floats as the others were just too far gone and i needed to drill out the pilot jets. About a week of shaking and 7 gallons of vinegar later the tank nearly spotless with minimal rust. Rebuilt petcocks, new battery, fuel filters new hoses and plugs. Also picked up some UNI pods because they are just easier to move around.
This brings us to today, put a bit of oil in the cylinders to help things get along for the first test, couple of kicks and it started right up, SOLID. However there is a ticking coming from the left cylinder, it also backfires, but only on the left. The ticking isnt horrible but definitely noticeable. The exhaust on the left also took much longer to heat up compared to the right. The engine in general seems to be hotter on the right. So i took the plug out on the left and it was black covered in carbon which i believe not to to be a foul but just buildup, checked to make sure the valves and piston were all moving correctly and they are. it is also getting good spark to both.
So what do you guys suggest i do from here? Could it just be that there is a lot of buildup in the left cylinder and that somehow is making it tick? with such low miles could it need a valve adjustment (may be a stupid question considering its age, not sure)? And do you think the backfire and the ticking have any correlation?
Excited to be a part of the community. looking forward to restoring this treasure!
Thanks
-Rogue
