Locks and Keys

[5twins]

This is going to be a rather long thread in which I'll share all the knowledge I've gathered on the locks and keys these bikes use. These are sadly neglected parts and most haven't been touched or serviced since they left the factory so are (way) past due. Renovating (cleaning, lubing) your lock assemblies is the perfect cold weather or winter project.

So, let's start with the keys and key blanks. I'll be covering mainly the keys from 1976 on because that's what I've mostly dealt with and have access to. The '76-'80 keys and locks have a 4 number code. You'll find it stamped on the lock face and on the key (if it's original) .....

To figure out what key blank you need, Yamaha was kind enough to publish a tech bulletin with a list. The '76-'80 locks/keys will have code numbers starting at 3101 and running up to 4900. The key blanks will be 1211-1222. The locks/keys below 3101 and the blanks with 3 number codes are for the '75 and older locks. Like I said, I don't know as much about them but I can tell you the keys are physically smaller and narrower, some are even only one-sided, and the Ilco YH46-YH51 blanks listed below will not fit them. Ilco probably does make blanks to fit them, I just never researched them because I didn't need any .....

In 1981, the key codes and blanks were changed. They switched to a letter (and 5 numbers). They also no longer stamped the code on the face of the lock, instead placing a sticker on the bottom of the ignition switch/fork lock assembly. Unfortunately, on many the writing on the stickers has worn away after all these years, or the sticker is gone completely. Eventually, after a few years, Yamaha started stamping the code right into the metal base. My '83 is like this, having the code actually stamped into the metal .....

..... and another Tech Bulletin was issued .....

But Yamaha key blanks have gotten outrageously expensive, retailing for as much as $20, so it would be nice to be able to find and use aftermarket blanks. Ilco makes pretty much all we need and here's some info .....

If you study the above pic, you'll see that even though there are 6 different blanks, they are actually 3 mirror imaged pairs. Which blanks match the new letter codes is also shown. But, what about the earlier 4 number code keys and locks? How do the blanks match up to those? Well, through much research, I've pretty much worked that out. Based on the locks, original keys, and aftermarket blanks I have, along with pics of all the factory blanks from eBay, I was able to figure it out and I've put together a cross reference chart .....

The later letter code blanks are simply longer versions of some of the earlier blanks, probably adopted to make using the "push-down" feature to activate access to the fork lock easier. Here's a 1211 and it's longer counterpart, the 1225 .....

You'll also notice there are more Yamaha blanks than aftermarket Ilcos (12 Yamaha blanks, or 6 mirror imaged pairs) listed for the 4 number code keys/locks. There are differences in them, notably in the groove widths that run down them. The Ilco blanks are more "generic", crossing over and fitting several Yamaha locks. As an example, here's a 1214 and 1222 Yamaha blank. You can plainly see the groove down the center is wider on the 1222 .....

A 1214 Yamaha blank won't fit into a 1222 lock nor will a 1222 blank fit a 1214 lock, but the Ilco YH49 blank will fit and work for both. Now while technically, the YH46-YH51 blanks shown above are for the '80s letter code locks, I've always been able to find one that fits any earlier 4 number code lock I've encountered. But, upon further research, it seems Ilco does make specific blanks for these 4 number code locks. They may be harder to find, and are priced a bit higher than the letter code blanks, but these give you even more options. Here they are .....

The benefit of using aftermarket blanks is they're much cheaper, only a few dollars each. But, if you insist on genuine Yamaha blanks, here's some part numbers for you .....

So, if you have what you thought was an original Yamaha key that came with your bike and the number stamped on it starts with a "12", it's a Yamaha blank that was cut to fit, not the original key issued with the bike.

 

[5twins]

This entry will be about the lock cylinders themselves. The 650 uses the common automotive wafer type locks. These have spring-loaded sliding flat plates called wafers instead of little round pins. The key actually fits through a rectangular cut-out in the center of the wafer and works against the bottom section of it. The width of this bottom section varies to match up with the depth of the key notch or cut .....

Even though the keys are double-sided, only one side actually works the lock. The double-sided thing is just a convenience feature that allows you to stick the key in either way.

All the 650 locks except the gas cap one contain 5 wafers .....

The gas cap lock, being much shorter than the others, only contains 3. There is also a lock plate at the inner end for holding the lock cylinder in it's housing .....

All the lock cylinders (except the steering neck lock, which I'll cover in a later post) have this retaining or lock plate. To remove the lock cylinder from it's housing, you need to push that retaining plate in using a small screwdriver or pick .....

Then the lock cylinder can be slid out the top .....

Unfortunately, you can't access the lock plate from the inside on the hinged seat/helmet lock. To get it's lock cylinder out, you must reach in through the key slot with a special tool or pick of some sort and lift it's lock plate .....

Now back to the lock cylinders themselves. Excluding the very short gas cap lock and the steering neck locks, all the rest (Special and Standard ignitions, lift-off and hinged seat/helmet) come in two different lengths. The Standard ignition and both seat/helmet assemblies use the same lock cylinder, and it's about 30.5mm long .....

The lock cylinder used in the Special ignition switch assembly is longer, about 42mm in length .....

I discovered another difference in the Special lock cylinders. Notice the one above (from an '80 model) has 6 wafer slots but only 5 are populated, the 5 closest to the top (where you insert the key). In 1981, when Yamaha changed to the letter key codes and longer blanks, they modified the lock cylinder too. These later cylinders only have 5 wafer slots, and they moved them farther down into the lock. This would be the equivalent to using the last 5 wafer slots instead of the first 5 on a '78-'80 Special lock cylinder .....

Well, this had me scratching my head for a minute there because on later letter code and earlier 4 number cut keys I've compared, the cuts start down the same distance from the top. Inserting a key in both would have the wafer alignment one key cut off on the later letter code cylinder because the wafer slots were moved ..... unless ..... unless the key inserted deeper into the lock to compensate, and indeed it does .....

Now finally, I'll get to the important part - the cleaning and lubing of the lock cylinder. Many fail to do this when servicing their lock assemblies. They clean and lube all the "mechanical" parts in the unit but don't touch the lock cylinder itself. That's not good, not good at all, because this part needs the servicing just as much as all the other ones in the assembly. When you remove it, you will usually find it pretty crusty, all covered with dirt and dried up grease. The wafers don't move freely and the key was most likely hard to turn .....

When I disassemble one of these, I take notes. I make a little drawing of the lock cylinder and label the wafer slots 1-5 from the top (where the key inserts) down .....

I remove the wafers one at a time, measure them (I'll cover wafer sizes and types in the next post), and lay them out on the work bench in the order they were removed, just like in my drawing. As you can see, they're usually pretty crusty too, lol .....

Even after cleaning with solvent, they're usually still pretty corroded .....

But, a few minutes with a little wire wheel in a Dremel makes short work of that .....

For the lock cylinder, I scrub it with solvent and an old toothbrush, and use pipe cleaners to clean out the slots .....

When you remove one of these lock cylinders, you'll notice that the spring-loaded lock plate and wafers all protrude out one side a little bit .....

The wafers are lightly locked into the cylinder and rocking them side to side will usually release them, allowing them to pop free .....

The lock plate is usually held in better. I think they peen over it's spring hole a little. So, I normally don't bother to remove that, it's easy enough to scrub clean in place. It's not a moving part once the lock cylinder is in place, not constantly being slid in and out like the wafers, so packing fresh grease around it once it's been scrubbed clean seems to work just fine. So, on to the lubing ..... I pack the lock cylinder slots with white lithium grease, insert the little springs, then the wafers .....

Now, before installing the lock cylinder back in the housing, I suggest you test it to make sure you got all the wafers back in the right slots. If you did, inserting the key will pull them all down flush with the cylinder .....

If you didn't, some wafers won't get pulled down enough, others will be pulled too much and stick out the other side .....

After confirming the wafer placement is correct, you can install the cylinder. I lightly grease the inside of the housing and the rest of the cylinder with regular grease .....

You may need to depress the lock plate with a pick or small screwdriver to get the lock cylinder to start into the housing .....

And finally, a word on the lubes I'm using. When I first started renovating these years back, I used white lithium grease on the whole thing .....

Then I changed my tune slightly, deciding that a regular grease would be better on the metal moving parts, so I started putting Kendall Super Blu on them, my "go-to" normal grease. I still continued to use the white lithium on the lock wafers and the plastic parts. But recently, looking over a spare lock set I put together for my Standard several years ago, I noticed the white lithium grease on the fork lock wafers had turned a bit brown, stiffened up some, and was apparently drying out. It's always worked fine for me on locks I put right back in service but apparently may not be the best choice for ones that are going to just be sitting on a shelf for long term storage. So, I've changed my tune again, going to Super Lube Synthetic grease now .....

Checking this stuff's compatibility charts show it's rating as good to excellent on almost all plastics and most rubbers, besides metals of course. So that means I can use just this one grease throughout the whole lock assembly, and I'm hoping it will be better in long term storage. You can get a tube at your local HF. Applying it out of the tube can be a pain so I transfer it to a small plastic container .....

 

[5twins]

This post will explain how to re-key one of these locks and also provide information on the different wafer styles and the key cuts. If you want to replace a lock or lock assembly and want to use your existing key, you will need to find one that uses the same key blank. You can determine that by using the charts at the beginning of the first post. Then to re-key it so it works with your key, it's simply a matter of swapping wafers around or replacing them so they match your key's cuts. If you don't have extra wafers, you can sometimes modify ones you have by filing them down, but obviously, this only allows you to make larger ones smaller. If you have to, you can leave a wafer or two out. As shown in the post above, inserting a properly cut and matched key will pull all the wafers down flush with the lock cylinder. It will be "unlocked" and can be rotated ......

The '76-'80 locks use two cuts, what I call "medium" and "deep", and each differs by .75mm. The '81 and later locks added a third cut and the depth difference between them was changed to .50mm. Both also use a wafer size that corresponds to no cut. This adds another choice when coming up with the overall key cut. I mentioned measuring the wafers in the last post. Here's some pics showing '76-'80 wafers .....

..... and how the wafer sizes relate to the key cuts .....

After working on a few of these, it's not that difficult to actually see what the cuts are from just looking at the key. Here's the notes from one I did recently and it's pretty easy to see the two "no cuts" followed by the three "deep cuts" on the key .....

Besides the differing "cuts", the '81 and later wafers look a little different from the earlier ones as well. The early ones have two "bumps" on the side, the later ones are smooth. This also makes them a little narrower .....

Their sizes fall pretty much in the same range as the earlier ones but are a bit smaller, by about .10mm. The late "no cut" measures in around 2.40mm instead of 2.50mm, the "deep cut" around 3.90mm instead of 4mm. The two in between, what I call a "light" and "medium", are around 2.90mm (+.50mm) and 3.40mm (+2 x .50mm). Here's the notes from a later letter code lock I worked on .....

Now, while these early and late type wafers will swap, I don't much see the point. The "no cut" and "deep cut" ones may work but the two late intermediate ones (2.90mm & 3.40mm) are too different from the early "medium cut" (3.25mm) to work in it's place. Of course, I suppose they could be modified by filing in a pinch.

Now I'll walk you through a re-key operation I did recently. I'm making up a spare set of locks for my '78 based on an original pre-cut plastic headed key I got off eBay. This is a steering neck fork lock I scrounged from my dealer's boneyard. As is, wafers 2 and 4 match, 1, 3, and 5 will need to be changed .....

From already doing some other locks for the set, I knew what wafer sizes I needed. Measuring the existing fork lock wafers,and taking some notes, I figured out that I could simply swap wafers 1 and 5 to make them right, but would need to replace #3 .....

So, here's 1 and 5 swapped, only #3 remains off .....

A trip to my wafer "stash" to exchange the "medium cut" wafer for a "deep cut" one .....

..... and it's a done deal, fitting my "new" key perfectly .....

 

[5twins]

Now I'll start in on the renovation of the various lock assemblies. I'll begin with the Special ignition/fork lock assembly as it seems to be one of the most common and asked about. This is due to the fact that there are probably more Specials still running around than any of the other 650 models. There have been posts on this assembly in the past but, for the most part, they are incomplete and leave out some important details. I won't get into the removal process because it's pretty simple and straight forward (unplug the wires and remove two bolts) other than to say you do want to remove it to perform the overhaul.

First thing, you'll want to perform all the disassembly and re-assembly with the key in the "OFF" position. This will align all the parts so they fit back together properly and I will be pointing out how some of these need to be oriented. So, start by separating the bottom lock portion from the upper black lock cylinder housing. There are two screws in the bottom and J.I.S. screwdrivers are your friend here .....

Then the two parts can be separated and you should see something like this .....

Next, we'll pull the bottom lock portion apart. Remove the two small screws holding the little back plate on. There's no need to remove the switch plate's wiring loom from the attached clip, it can stay crimped in place .....

The switch plate with it's wiring loom still attached to the little back plate can now be removed and set aside .....

Now take a look at the position of the plastic disc that operates the fork lock. For re-assembly purposes, this is how it should look with the key in the "OFF" position. The lower point of the extended portion around the disc's O.D. should point to approximately 2:30 or 3 o'clock, be just above the slot in the metal housing .....

For comparisons sake, here's what it would look like with the key in the "ON" position. That edge on the plastic disc would be below the slot in the metal housing ......

Now, if you slightly depress the spring-loaded pin of the fork lock by pushing in at the rear where you removed the little backing plate, you can lift the plastic disc out .....

..... and slide the metal fork lock parts out the back .....

Now we can move on to the top portion, the black lock cylinder housing. When you first separate it from the bottom lock portion of the assembly, you'll see a white plastic contact "spinner" when you look into it .....

You can remove that by just lifting it off. There are no worries about re-installing it wrong. Even though it can go on in one of two ways, it's symmetrical so either way orients it the same .....

Under that you'll see the detent plate. It has extrusions or "bumps" stamped into it and they should face out towards you .....

The plastic contact "spinner" has a couple "bumps" on it's back side and these ride around on the detents of the plate. This gives you the "notches" or "clicks" for the key in it's various positions .....

The detent plate will lift right out .....

Under that, you'll find a metal plate with a post sticking out of it held in by two screws. Note the position of the little tab on the base of the post. This is where it should be with the key in the "OFF" position, for re-assembly. There's a little spring under the plate that spring-loads the lock cylinder so it springs back up after you push it down to allow turning to the steering lock, so keep a little downward pressure on the post as you remove the screws .....

It's only possible to assemble this one way, the correct way. If you had the plate flipped over so the half moon slot was on the left, the screw holes in the plate aren't going to line up with the mount holes in the housing. Lift the post and plate out. Other than remnants of old grease, it will probably still be pretty clean on top ......

..... but the bottom can be quite a mess, lol. No problem, it cleans up easily .....

With those parts removed, you'll see the bottom of the lock cylinder with it's little return spring on top. The spring can be lifted out. The pin indicated by the arrow is the bottom end of the "stopper" that keeps the lock from turning to "Lock" and "Park" unless you push the lock cylinder in and release it .....

Now you can access the bottom of the lock cylinder. Note the position of the lock plate, pointing down at about the 7 o'clock position. This is with the key in the "OFF" position and how you want it oriented for re-assembly. It's possible to assemble it with the plate pointing 180° away from this spot, pointing to about the 1 o'clock position. The switch will function like this but won't need to (or be able to) be pushed down before turning to the "Lock" and "Park" positions, and the key won't be able to be removed in those positions either .....

Let's go back to that "stopper" piece for a moment. In the up position, it stops the lock cylinder from rotating to the "Lock" and "Park" positions. It's bottom end will be flush with the housing .....

Push the lock cylinder down in and let it spring back up, and that will push the "stopper" down out of the way so the cylinder can be rotated by it. It's bottom end will stick out into the housing inside .....

To reset it to the "stop" position requires cycling the key all the way back to the "ON" position. When you do this, the "ramp" portion on the bottom of the metal post base (on the left 8 pics up) pushes the "stopper" back up. You can't remove this part from the housing because the label ring blocks it in. I just oil it in place. I put a few drops of oil on the top, work the part up and down, and in a short time, that oil has flowed through and is coming out the bottom.

The final disassembly step is removing the lock cylinder. Depress the lock plate into it and it will push out the top .....

 

[5twins]

Special Ignition Switch Part 2 - Re-assembly .....

Now you can clean up all the parts and start the re-assembly. Clean and lube the lock cylinder and wafers (details in the "Lock Cylinder" post above), and install it .....

For proper key "OFF" orientation, face the wafers and lock plate towards the "Ignition" portion of the label .....

Make sure the lock plate is oriented in the correct key "OFF" position as shown above, and don't forget the little spring .....

Now you can grease up the post and it's base, and install them. Orient the little tab on the base in the plate slot for the key "OFF" position. Since the post is spring-loaded, hold it down in place with a finger. This will allow the plate to drop into place and the screws to be installed .....

Next, drop the detent plate in, detents or "bumps" facing out towards you .....

Some grease on the detents and on the two little "bumps" on the back of the contact "spinner" (and in it's hole), and it can be installed .....

Now you can put together the fork lock portion. Grease up the parts and the inside of the housing, and assemble .....

Grease the bottom of the plastic disc and install it, oriented for the key "OFF" position. Press the spring-loaded fork lock pin in from the back with a finger to align it so the disc will drop in .....

Then the little backing plate with the contact plate and wire loom attached can be installed

And final step, a little dielectric grease on the "spinner" and contact plate contacts, and the two sections can be fitted together .....

I'll add here that while you have the switch all apart, if you have or plan to add a voltmeter sometime in the future, you might want to install a power plug for it coming off the brown wire in the switch plate harness .....

This is the best switched power connection point on the Special models. Any other point inside the headlight bucket will have gone through multiple splits and two fuses. Your voltmeter reading will most likely be a few tenths of a volt lower than the actual battery voltage because of this. Here's a thread that details the power wire install .....

http://www.xs650.com/threads/voltmeter-power-connection-on-special-model.60829/

 

[5twins]

This post will be about the Special lift-off seat/helmet lock. I've run across two versions of this, internally the same but externally having different sized helmet lock loops. The early version has the smaller helmet lock loop and this blocks access to the assembly's mounting screw when locked .....

The later version has a larger helmet lock loop with a slight bend in it and this allows access to the assembly's mounting screw even when locked .....

Once off, you'll find the unit has a rear cover plate. Nothing holds it on other than it being trapped in place when the assembly is mounted to the bike. Once removed, you'll see the plate with two small screws that really holds everything together. You should also find a square section o-ring on the seat lock post. This is a wiper ring I suppose, helping to keep water out and the grease or lube in ......

You can carefully ply this off then remove the plate .....

Then you can see the "guts" of the unit. On top is the helmet lock latch. It has a spring steel strap on it that spring-loads it and returns it automatically to it's "locked" position when you release key pressure. You can wiggle this out by grabbing the spring steel strap with some needle nose pliers .....

Under that are the other two main components, the seat lock pin and the round disc-like part that it fits into. They will pull out together and can then be separated .....

Under these parts, you'll find the last couple little ones, a detent ball and spring. They can be removed .....

The detent ball fits into a depression in the bottom of the round disc-like part that sits on top of it. This holds the assembled parts in the "locked" position, key slot horizontal to the body, as seen in the first couple pics at the beginning of this post. Also note the lock cylinder lock plate orientation. It should face the short end of the housing. Near the top of the lock cylinder, just under it's chrome cap, is a stepped down area. This fits into a stepped down area in the housing. This both limits it's turning travel and lets it go in deep enough to be flush with the housing. Misalign this and the lock cylinder won't push in all the way .....

Last step, depress the lock plate and remove the lock cylinder .....

Clean and grease all the parts. The lock cylinder can be done up per the instructions in post #2 above. Now the reassembly can begin. Install the lock cylinder, little spring, and the detent ball. Make sure the lock cylinder lock plate is facing the short end of the housing .....

Now a word on the seat lock pin. It has a small hole cross-drilled through it's side. This hole isn't quite centered along it's length. The pin measures about 32mm long and the center of the little pin hole is about 15mm from one end, 17mm from the other. The longer end is also beveled. This long, beveled end inserts into the housing. I'm thinking the bevel allows it to slide in the housing hole easier .....

There is an angled slot on the back side of the round disc-like part that engages the small pin in the seat lock pin. Rotating the round part makes the little pin slide along the slot, moving the seat lock pin in and out .....

Then the last two large parts can be fitted. The last part fitted, the helmet lock latch, nestles down into the round disc part like so .....

And finally, the plate with two screws and the square sectioned o-ring "wiper" can be fitted, then the back cover .....

 

[5twins]

This post will cover the hinged seat helmet/seat lock used on all Standard and Special hinged seats from 1976 up to 1980. In 1980, only the SPII model had a hinged seat and got this assembly. The full blown "deluxe" Special, the SG model, had a lift-off seat and used the lock covered in the last post .....

In order to access the mounting screws and remove the lock, the seat will need to be open .....

If you don't have a key, you'll need to pull the lock cylinder out so you can operate the seat lock by sticking a big screwdriver in the slot that the lock cylinder was stuck into. Once removed, here's what you'll be looking at .....

Start by prying the top cover plate off .....

Next, you can pop the seat latch and it's spring out .....

Under that, you'll find a sheet metal "guide" of sorts for the spring. That can be lifted out .....

Now, before any other parts will come out, the lock cylinder needs to be removed. Unfortunately, you can't access the lock plate on the lock cylinder from the inside, the round disc it fits into blocks it. You'll have to release the lock plate by reaching into the lock with a pick of some sort and lifting it .....

Now you can pull out the round disc .....

..... and the helmet lock latch and spring .....

On some of these, you'll also find a sheet metal liner of sorts inserted into the area that the seat latch pin sticks into. You can pull that out as well if it's there. This and the housing can be cleaned up, and it can be re-inserted prior to any of the other parts going back in .....

And on the backside, there's a little spring steel strip held on by a little screw. This pops the helmet loop open when you open the lock. I usually find them all rusty so I wire wheel them clean and paint them with some Testor's silver model paint .....

Now you can clean up all the parts and start the re-assembly. Grease the inside of the housing and first in is the helmet lock latch with it's spring .....

Now you can install the round disc. It has two pegs on it, and a groove on the side under the smaller peg. This groove and the smaller peg go down .....

Make sure the slot in the disc is vertical and you can insert the greased lock cylinder. Face the side that the wafers and lock plate spring out of down .....

And the final few parts - the spring guide, seat latch, and it's spring, followed by replacing the top cover .....

And just a short note on the mounting screws - up through 1979, countersunk flat head screws were used, and the mounting holes in the frame were countersunk to accept them .....

In 1980, the countersink was eliminated and just normal flat head screws were used .....

 

[5twins]

This post will cover the Standard ignition switch. Being just an ignition switch, it's simpler inside than the Special ignition switch/fork lock combo but it is a little more difficult to get into. It's not screwed together like the Special switch, it's crimped. You will need to bend these parts out to release the switch plate and get inside. Needle nose pliers or needle nose vice grips will do the trick .....

But let's backtrack a little here. When you first pull the switch out of the dash, you'll be presented with something like this. You'll find specially shaped washers covering the mount tabs and the round washers on the mounting screws may have a side clipped off for clearance .....

There are some things to note for proper re-assembly, specifically the wire loom clip and the notches in the tin housing and black lock cylinder housing. These should all face the lower side of the assembly .....

Also, the mounting ears should run straight along the bottom side, angle up more on the top side, and the key code numbers should be on the lower left of the lock face .....

OK, back to the disassembly. Once the contact plate has been removed, you'll see a contact spinner, just like in the Special ignition switch (it's actually the same part), and that can be lifted out. There is no separate detent plate in this assembly, the detents are stamped right into the tin housing top .....

Next, remove the two little screws and the lock cylinder housing can be separated from the tin contact plate housing and mounting bracket. The mounting bracket and tin housing are actually two separate parts but may be stuck together pretty good. No need to separate them if they are, other than for cleaning purposes. You'll find a plastic part stuck on the bottom of the lock cylinder and it can be lifted off. This is what the contact spinner fits onto .....

Last step, remove the lock cylinder from it's housing by depressing it's locking plate into it .....

A note for re-assembly, the lock plate should spring out towards the notches in the housing .....

Clean all the parts and re-assembly can begin, greasing things up as you go .....

There is a rubber ring around the top of the lock cylinder housing. It should be installed so it's flush with the top of the housing .....

Plastic part on the bottom of the lock cylinder first, then the tin housing can be installed on it, trapping the plastic part between the two. Be sure to orient the housing notches and mounting tabs correctly .....

..... and some grease on the detents and contact spinner .....

Finally, a little dielectric grease on the contacts and the contact plate can be installed and crimped back in place. You'll find a tab on the side of the contact plate to orient it correctly .....

 

[5twins]

In this post, I'd like to talk about the switch plate wiring on the Standard ignition switch. Basically, there were two versions. '77 and older switch plates had 4 different color wires (red power in from the battery, blue power out to the tail light, R/Y power out to the headlight on-off switch, and brown power out to the rest of the bike circuits). In '78 and '79, the wiring and connection points on the plate changed. The R/Y wire was eliminated so there were only 3 wires (red, blue, and brown).

The '77 and older switches did not power the tail light in the "ON" position, only in "PARK" .....

You will find anywhere from 4 to 6 wires connected to them. They may have 4 single wires, or double up the blue wire, or double up the blue and brown wires .....

At the connector end of the wires, for the 4 wire set-up, you'll find a 3 connector block and a multi female bullet connector on the blue wire .....

The 5 wire with 2 blues will be basically the same, with multi bullet connectors (doubles) on the 2 blues .....

The 6 wire with 2 blues and 2 browns will most likely be all bullet connectors .....

As I mentioned, the '78 and '79 switches power the tail light in the "ON" position and only have 3 wires. At the connector end you'll find one 3 connector block .....

The wire connection points on the plate were changed so the switch would power the tail light in both the "ON" and "PARK" positions. The blue was moved to the center and the red connects to 2 points. Here's how the "ON" and "PARK" positions connect up .....

In making up the spare lock set for my '78, one of my goals was to eliminate the tail light-always-on feature and return control of it to the headlight on-off switch. The easiest way to do that was to use a '77 or older switch plate that didn't power the tail light in the "ON" position. I modded it by clipping some of the extra wires off, reducing the number to 3 like the original '78 switch plate. I eliminated one of the blues and the R/Y .....

On the connector end, male spades were installed so a 3 connector block could be fitted. The orange wire fitted to the blue has a pigtail so tail light power can be fed into it from the headlight on-off switch. Wired like this, I can turn the tail light on and off with the headlight switch but still retain the parking light feature .....

 

[Niels B]

this was helpful - couldn't figure out how to get mine out (missing key), i managed to use a small pcs of wire from the inside (back) to lift the little "tap", tried your option first but couldn't make it work

 

[5twins]

This post will be about the steering neck fork locks. These were used on all the Standard models up through 1979. There were two versions or sizes. The early one ('70-'75) had a smaller diameter, only about 12mm .....

The later version ('76-'79) had a larger 16mm diameter .....

At first, I couldn't figure out how to access these locks, how to get them out of the frame. It took actually cutting one off a frame and then splitting it open to learn their inner workings .....

As mentioned in an earlier post, this lock assembly doesn't have a sliding lock or retainer plate to hold it together or in the neck. Instead there's a roll pin sticking out the side .....

This serves the dual purpose of both holding the lock cylinder in it's housing and holding the assembly in the neck. Looking inside the split open neck mount, you'll see two grooves for the roll pin to ride in. With the fork lock disengaged, the roll pin rides in the groove closer to the top. Unlock it and push it in to engage the fork lock, and the roll pin rides in the groove further in .....

In the "locked" position, the roll pin is off to the side like so, and the key slot is horizontal .....

In the "unlocked" position, the roll pin aligns with the boss on top of the lock cylinder housing .....

The key doesn't rotate much from the "locked" to "unlocked" positions, only about 1/8 of a turn .....

Now on to removing the lock assembly from the neck. You simply open the lock so the roll pin aligns with the boss on top, and it will slide right out of the neck. But now, what keeps that from happening any time you open it? Well, the cover plate holds it in. Even once opened to reveal the key slot, the plate still covers the boss on top of the lock assembly, holding it in the neck .....

So, removal from the frame requires you to first remove the cover plate and then open the lock. The plate is installed with what Yamaha calls a "rivet", but it's actually just sort of a short, tapered nail with swirled grooves down the sides. With a couple screwdrivers under the plate, it and this "rivet" pry right off .....

OK, finally on to disassembling the lock itself. It's pretty easy, you just pull the roll pin out of the side with some pliers. Then the lock cylinder will slide out of the housing .....

Cleaned and greased, it can then be re-assembled .....

Tap the roll pin back in, grease the housing, and install it back into the neck (also greased). Don't forget the little tapered coil spring that fits on the bottom. The lock won't pop out of the "locked" position without it .....

 

[5twins]

Reserved

 

[DogBunny]

With 5twins permission, I will describe how to repair the early 1970-1973 ignition switches.
There is a problem with some of these switches. As shown, the middle top contact can become badly pitted and deteriorated over time -- I've seen it more than once. You can't see it in the pic, but that contact is about half of its original thickness. That contact attaches to the solid red (main power) wire. However, the added resistance will cause the insulation to melt off of the brown (switched power) wire, which is a smaller gauge than the red wire.

You can see the melted brown wire which has burned through the outer cable sheath. I should have taken a "before" picture of the entire length -- it was pretty bad.
The switch comes apart very easily, just two screws in the recess on the back. It is easy to get to and remove the lock cylinder following the methods that 5twins has already described.
You can see evidence of arcing and sparking on the Bakelite wafer.

This switch was in poor, neglected condition.

Fortunately, there is a "spare" contact button -- the one on the left in this pic -- that can be swapped for the damaged contact.

That "spare" contact button serves no electrical function. It is simply a rivet that attaches the cable clamp to the Bakelite wafer.

I have un-soldered the red wire and the burned-up brown wire. I have used a tiny ball burr to un-rivet the bad red wire contact (green arrow), and the "spare" cable clamp contact (red arrow).

I have replaced the burned-up brown wire with a LARGER GAUGE good brown wire. I have replaced the burned up red wire contact with the good contact, and I have tinned it.

I replaced the now-missing cable clamp contact button with the bad contact button, and I soldered the clamp to it.

I put a dab of JB-Weld on the pitted surface of the old contact button, in order to get it back to it's original thickness. That button does play a nominal function in the mechanical operation of the switch, and it helps if it is restored to it's original thickness.

New, replacement, silver-grey outer wire sleeve material is available. In order to slide it on, I had to un-solder and re-solder all of the wires.

The finished repair. Half of the triangular black rubber damper on this switch has been cut off -- it's supposed to go all the way around the switch base. It would be nice if someone made a replacement.

 

[jpdevol]

New, replacement, silver-grey outer wire sleeve material is available.

Awesome craftsman-like repair!

Where can one get the silver-grey loom? Did you use 12AWG for the new brown wire?

Thank You

 

[DogBunny]

MikesXS sells the silver-grey sheath, but they only sell one size, and that's not where I got mine from. I bought mine a long time ago, can't remember where, but they sold multiple sizes. Shouldn't be too hard to find, as it was used on a lot of different brands. Some sellers call it sheath, some call it sleeve, maybe some call it loom.

The brown wire was originally 18AWG, and I up-sized it to 16AWG. That's what the solid red main power wire is.

Personally, I am not a fan of using 14AWG or 12AWG. I think it makes the loom too big. When I wire a bike from scratch, at least half of the wire I use comes from old harnesses. As far as I know, there is nothing bigger than 16AWG on an XS650 harness, but I'm prepared to be proven wrong.

 

[DogBunny]

Just used this thread, again.
5twins deserves some kind on an award for this thread. The time and thought and thoroughness that went into it is remarkable. There should be a pay wall attached to the thread, or maybe a PayPal Donate Button that goes to 5twins, or something.

 

[jetmechmarty]

5twins deserves some kind on an award for this thread.

It would probably be appropriate to charge admission and pay @5twins a salary. I’m currently enjoying his bike on the April 2024 calendar.