New Member with '79 XS650 Special II

Darin Jordan

Darin Jordan

XS650 Member
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Location
Renton, WA
Hello, everyone!

I'm new here and just picked up a 1979 XS650 Special II from a lady here at work whose husband GAVE it to me! (See attached pic with my son testing out the fit!) It's been sitting in their garage for 17-years, last registered in '94. Bike was put away in really nice condition... unfortunately, it was also put away with about 3/4 of a tank of fuel, so the inside of the tank is atrocious! From brake master cylinder isn't much better!

However, I just finished a nice restoration/hop-up on a 1980 Suzuki GS850 GT (see attached pic, prepped for a trip to Idaho), which I ride all the time and LOVE, and I'm confident that once I get the tank and a few other issues sorted, this Yamaha will be a nice bike again!

I've already searched through your threads here on tank de-rusting, and am delighted at the amount of detailed information available here. I'll post some pics of the process as I go.

It's wonderful having such detailed resources when undertaking a project like this site. the www.gsresources.com site made my Suzuki clean-up/resto/hop-up possible, and I'm looking forward to enjoying this site to help with this Yamaha project over the coming year.

Anyhow, Hello and I look forward to interacting with you in the future!


Thanks,
Darin Jordan
Renton, WA
 

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:bike: Welcome.....My tank was rusty when I got mine too. I cleaned it by putting a double handful of small nuts and washers in it, wrapped it up in a thick blanket with duct tape and put it in the clothes dryer for 1/2 hour....Worked like a charm .lol...clean as a whistle....
 
mouser said:
:bike: Welcome.....My tank was rusty when I got mine too. I cleaned it by putting a double handful of small nuts and washers in it, wrapped it up in a thick blanket with duct tape and put it in the clothes dryer for 1/2 hour....Worked like a charm .lol...clean as a whistle....
Click to expand...

I'm going to give that a shot to at least clean out the major chunks before giving it a go with one of the acid solution techniques... It's REALLY bad, but after spending some time getting as much of the loose stuff out as possible, the metal actually looks like it may still be fairly solid and salvageable. The paint and exterior of the tank is pretty much perfect, so if I can do this and save that, all the better, but it won't be the end of the world if I end up having to paint it.

I read somewhere that one gentleman actually used about 6000 BBs in his tank to tumble it... I think I may try something like that...
 
I also did the bb trick once and it worked great. I just funded them in a would shake it it my arm were tired and then did it again and again inviolable all the big pieces were out.
 
I have the tank all padded up and rotating the the dryer right now, with 6000 BBs in there tumbling around. We'll see how that works to get the majority of the big stuff out...
 
I have to say nice job on the gs850g. I also had an it 83. I loved that bike. My wife and I logged a lot of miles on it. I wish I never had sold it.
 
Gerwin Brommer said:
Darin ! Welcome !
( I know Darin from my previous hobby : rc-boating )
What are your plans for this bike ?
I hardtailed mine, in Fong-Bros style.
Click to expand...

Hey Gerwin! Small world, eh!? Thanks for the Welcome!

My plans are, for now anyhow, to just get the bike cleaned up and get everything functioning properly and safely, and see just how clean I can get it again. Planning on leaving it as stock as possible, with the exception of those details that are good to update for reliability. I'm really hoping that I can fix the gas tank without messing up the paint, but if I have to, I'll repaint it.
 
Well... I tumbled the tank for awhile in the drier and the BB's did some some work. Looks like the major stuff is gone.

Now I'm going to have to get some MSR or something similar and see if I can soak the rest of the rust away...

I'd like to get the tank back in shape so then I can tear into the carbs, which likely need all the rubber bits replaced.
 
careful on the acid. i had negative affect on my tank. muratic acid, did my best to neutralize (im no chemist) with baking soda, blah blah blah. someday ill maybe try out the electrolysis, besides the time it takes, i haven't heard much negative about it at all.
 
Hi my tank had so much rust in it I was not sure I would be able to get it all out .Well I did the electrolysis thing it took 10 days ot get all the rust out but in the end it worked very well for me And it takes no effort and while that was going on i fixed the rest of the bike. good luck with your bike It looks great. and score on the price too.:cheers: we have a great carb guide here too
 

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