First Impression: the 1980 XS650 Special II

Welcome to the group! I've been riding an '80 SG for the last 11 years. These bikes are made for the back roads. 65-70 is my comfort zone limit. Easy to work on. Don't need a lot of special tools when rebuilding anything on it. Factory workshop manual is a must.
Thanks, azman. I may enjoy the 55-60 zone. I just don't know yet. The Bullet is about 45 mph and pleasurable. Plenty quick for me at the moment. I don't quite know the differences between the Special II and the Special of the same year, '80 but I don't plan on trading. I kind of like what I got, even if it isn't as pretty as @Jim's. (Seriously!)
'TT'
 
Yeah, but Boog literally has "fire engine red" in his avatar. I think he's pullin' our leg. :cautious: :laugh2:
The first XS650 I met was in a showroom back in 1985. It was a Heritage Special, I think an '82. It was fire-engine red with yellow spark plug wires and I fell in love. Then the temptress 883 appeared and I got sucked away on a plum purple instead. It took this long to get back. Nice to meet you, sir!
'TT'
 
I was curious what the production runs were on the 80's; whether the Special II or the Special was more popular? I read these motorcycles took a sales hit and were over produced about that time, and it was still possible to get a 'new' one of the XS650 series as late as 1987.
'TT'
 
I was curious what the production runs were on the 80's; whether the Special II or the Special was more popular? I read these motorcycles took a sales hit and were over produced about that time, and it was still possible to get a 'new' one of the XS650 series as late as 1987.
'TT'

Late seventies... early eighties were when the UJM's came of age. The XS was a little long in the tooth at that point. Yeah.... they sat in dealerships a bit.
 
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I have a wretched '79 Special II that I'm actively bringing back. Mine came from a Georgia junk yard.
I understand it is frowned upon to quote a member with the picture embedded, but I don't know how to shortcut or crop it. This once though I pray it won't dissatisfy immensely. I can't help but admire the paint scheme Marty. I hear Jim does some fabulous work and have seen some results. You too?
'TT'
 
...with the picture embedded, but I don't know how to shortcut or crop it.
Highlight the text you want to include in your reply, click "reply" and it'll paste it into you comment. There's other ways, but that's prolly the easiest way. Here's a screen grab.


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Late seventies... early eighties were when the UJM's came of age. The XS was a little long in the tooth at that point. Yeah.... they sat in dealerships a bit.
You would think @gggGary would have some figures on the production runs that year ('80). I would like to learn how many of these were produced as 'U. S. Custom' here in our country, or were they imported. Possibly others too might know. I only have met a handful of us so far. I think I have caught up to today and can add some more soon. I appreciate the support of friendliness with each response from every member. I will try to strike a good pace without distracting the rhythm of all the other threads and keep a steady pace on cue. And pray no one feels left out. @nj1639 thank you for the welcome, too.
'TT'
 
Believe it or not, when I first sat upon the XSG at home, and started it up on the 9th of Nov., I said "Beauty"! Maybe it was the way it felt being under me, and parked behind the Bullet, which is way more pretty. But I did say "Beauty" and J. E. B. Stuart does come to mind, who isn't pretty at all. So, I think I will call him "Beauty" since it is the in thing to do. Anyone else own a "Beauty"?
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This was the idle response. It really does feel nice on that K/Q seat at this point. My feet are easily on the ground and the balance is right at seat height. All in all, a very confident position. Here are the specifications found on the tag inside the left side panel.
'TT'
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I recommend you run high test. Regular isn't 91 octane anymore and the bike will probably ping on it. The '80 and earlier seats look the best, less of a hump. I swapped one onto my '83. The original was butt ugly in my opinion (but comfortable) .....

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There is so much you can do to these bikes to improve them, much of it not costing very much, just involving your time.
 
I can't help but admire the paint scheme Marty. I hear Jim does some fabulous work and have seen some results. You too?
'TT'
Yes, me too. :thumbsup: The paint scheme is inspired by Triumph, both then and now. They Royal Enfield Interceptor is also painted in similar fashion.
 
I recommend you run high test. Regular isn't 91 octane anymore and the bike will probably ping on it.
Hi, 5twins. High Test is 91 around here I think, but all of it is unleaded. There are only a few stations I can get real gas without ethanol, and I hear problems emerge if it is used, 'Regular Unleaded' comes in 87 octane, 89 octane and 91. The emissions control label on the side panel specifies 91 as a minimum. Is there a 93?
'TT'
 
I think you'll have difficulty finding a 93 octane anymore. This motor was designed to use unleaded so it's not an issue. I also think it runs better on the no alcohol stuff. I get it whenever I can. But before I did, running the alcohol stuff never gave me any problems. The no alcohol stuff wasn't readily available near by in my area until just recently. Now that it is, I run it whenever possible.
 
Hi, 5twins. High Test is 91 around here I think, but all of it is unleaded. There are only a few stations I can get real gas without ethanol, and I hear problems emerge if it is used, 'Regular Unleaded' comes in 87 octane, 89 octane and 91. The emissions control label on the side panel specifies 91 as a minimum. Is there a 93?
'TT'
Historically, I've always run 93 octane in my 650 or 91 E0. E0 is only routinely available as 87 where I live. My bike is in very good tune and stock. It runs very well on 87 E0. I can ride all over Mississippi exclusively on E0. So that's what I do. If it isn't knocking, 87 is fine. Not so much if it's pinging.
 
Hello there from up above Skull. I saw that page and noticed the '80 Europe, U. S. Custom, SII with the VIN numbers confused me. Mine begin with 3G0000.... and no information other than some pictures. There were no highlights to link to for this model code 4G7. My eye is not discerning enough to know the differences yet, and due to various model changes possibly in the same year, I am unsure what came as stock on mine. The components should be as specified, with metal side panels instead of plastic, as the SJ is, and I have the chrome topped B34 carb assembly. But I have handlebars that seem more drawn in than any others I have seen as stock (Picture below). I know the K/Q seat most likely was added on, but the hinges on the right side and the locking mechanism on the left appear as original. @5twins made a comment about his seat he swapped from an '80 to his '83, and I can't find any fact on how the stock seat was attached, originally.
Were the U. S. Custom SII imported from Europe or Canada or Japan or were they made in the States?
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In 80 Yamaha had 2 distinct models. They changed the look when they introduced the 80SG. The changes are listed in the link.

The 80G/SII, visually, looked exactly like the 79SII with the Spoke wheels. The big change from 79 to 80 was the introduction of the BS34 Carbs and the Factory Electronic, (TCI), ignition and these 2 changes, was on all US models.

Your king/Queen seat is an aftermarket add on...........Forget about the clip on seat 5Twins talks about, (2 different types of clip on seats from the factory), No relation to your bike because of the hinges.

Vin chart is colour coded to show what country the different models came from.
 
Yes, mine is a lift-off type seat but visually resembles the earlier hinged seats (has less of a hump). If you wanted to revert to stock, you would need to look for a '78-'80 Special hinged seat.

I think your handlebars are stock. They very much resemble the originals that came on my '83 .....

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In my opinion, one of the best changes you can make to the Special model is changing the handlebars to something lower and of a more normal style. It will improve the looks, handling, and comfort, and all for less than $30. Now I know handlebars are a personal thing, and there are actually a (very) few folks who like their original buckhorn bars, but I'm not one of them, lol, and I'll tell you why .....

I was working on a local guy's 650 a few years back, tuning his carbs. Of course, a test ride was needed afterward. He still had those original, Gawd-awful buckhorn bars and this was actually the first time I had ever tried them. Recently in our little village, they did away with many of the traffic lights and put in traffic circles instead. My little test drive was just fine ..... until I got to one of those circles, lol. Going around that circle with those buckhorn bars was awful, like driving a wheelbarrow. But wait, there's more to the story. I finally talked the guy into letting me change them out for some lower bars. I installed my bar of choice, the Euro bend (the most comfortable handlebar bend ON THE PLANET, in my opinion of course). I hopped on for a test drive and didn't even get much more than 100 feet down the road before noticing the steering was terrible, all notchy. The steering head bearings were toast, totally shot, and some of the worst I've ever seen (when I got in there to change them). They were all dried out, rusty, and the races were all dinged up. But here's the thing - I absolutely could not feel any of this worst-bearings-I've-ever-encountered thing through those original buckhorn bars. They give you pretty much zero steering feedback. OK, I'll climb down off my soapbox now, lol.
 
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