Resurrecting My '79 XS650F

[jetmechmarty]

Yes, put Mikes at the very bottom of your list, lol. A few good items but mostly junk. In particular, stay away from their repro rubber parts.

They come under the Revival Parts umbrella. Also included in that group is Dime City, Randakks Cycle Shack, Z1 Enterprisis as well as Mike's XS. All come up on a Google search for XS650 parts. They respond and ship quickly. Some parts are good, some are garbage.

 

[5twins]

Your suspected base gasket leak may not be coming from there at all but rather from the cam chain adjuster and just dribbling down so it appears to be the base gasket. Specifically, from the large acorn cover nut. It seals with an o-ring but the groove in the cap nut for it is quite deep. Not much of the o-ring protrudes above the cap for sealing purposes and it doesn't take long it seems for the o-ring to get flattened out a little. This o-ring needs replacing every few years it seems but luckily there's a readily available (and cheap) American size that fits perfectly .....

You can get a lifetime supply for less than $5, lol.

 

[noodlenoggin]

Your suspected base gasket leak may not be coming from there at all but rather from the cam chain adjuster and just dribbling down so it appears to be the base gasket. Specifically, from the large acorn cover nut. It seals with an o-ring but the groove in the cap nut for it is quite deep. Not much of the o-ring protrudes above the cap for sealing purposes and it doesn't take long it seems for the o-ring to get flattened out a little. This o-ring needs replacing every few years it seems but luckily there's a readily available (and cheap) American size that fits perfectly .....

View attachment 250621

You can get a lifetime supply for less than $5, lol.

Thanks, 5twins. So, I can't overstate just how CLEAN I kept this bike when I was riding it. It was my baby. I saw the oil weeping back then. I'm not going to say it isn't also weeping from other places though.

 

[Vincenthdfan]

While we're at it, here's a partial list of suppliers for our bikes... Also, your best bet will be to ask here before ordering a part. Someone will usually chime in on the quality... or a better deal.

Absolutely ask here before ordering from MikesXS. Some of their stuff is OK, some's pure Chinese junk.


How's your bookmark finger?


https://www.cruzinimage.net/

https://www.partshark.com/oemparts/partsearch/suzuki?partsearch=13651-51010

https://www.mikesxs.net/

http://650central.com/

https://www.nospartsnow.com/yamaha/

https://www.partzilla.com/catalog/yamaha/motorcycle

https://yamahaxs650.com/

https://www.diablocycle.com/

https://www.georgefixs.com/yamaha/

http://vintageconnections.com/

https://xs650direct.com/

Google in-site search function.... site:xs650.com (space plus search criteria) For instance... site:xs650.com jim

Bookmarked!

 

[noodlenoggin]

One step closer. My in-laws should be driving it down next weekend.

 

[Vincenthdfan]

View attachment 250773

One step closer. My in-laws should be driving it down next weekend.

I think that'll clean up very nicely. Excited to see it.

 

[46th Georgia]

Yep I get aggravated on other forums when a newer member asks a question and if it’s perceived as dumb they get raked over the coals or humiliated. It’s normally not like that here. There is an occasional wanker here but for the most part everyone tries to help. That’s typical of those master cylinders. I had a 77 that looked pretty much the same. I cleaned the MC. Flushed the lines out. Got the caliper free’d up and after a few bleeding sessions had great brakes. IMHO that rubber seal under the cap is the culprit. What part of MI? There are several members close by that are super helpful.

Sadly, there are some people that have to put others down to make themselves feel smart or tough. I have no time for them and thankfully they are as rare as hens teeth around these parts.

 

[jetmechmarty]

A big can of this is going to affect a dramatic improvement. Very nice!

 

[noodlenoggin]

It's home!

I had a panic when the keys weren't where I thought, but I found them after turning only half the house upside down. One of them has the keychain from the dealer that sold the bike new.

I pulled out my well-used service manual and my owner's manual, which holds the original sales receipt, a wiring diagram and an oil addendum for *automatic transmissions??*

$2,000 out the door, brand new in 1980.

And in it's new place.

Now that I could actually open the seat i found a nice mouse house in the battery box. I'm guessing any mice would have jumped during the 100mile ride down here.

Over the past 17 years I've toyed with the thought of going mildly café with Clubman bars, fishtail mufflers and a little headlight fairing. Now though, it seems that my bike has gone from a quasi-cult-classic "why is THAT here" at the carshow... to an actual classic bike, and I think I'm going to keep it as original as I can.

 

[Vincenthdfan]

It's home!
View attachment 251099

I had a panic when the keys weren't where I thought, but I found them after turning only half the house upside down. One of them has the keychain from the dealer that sold the bike new.
View attachment 251100

I pulled out my well-used service manual and my owner's manual, which holds the original sales receipt, a wiring diagram and an oil addendum for *automatic transmissions??*
View attachment 251101
View attachment 251106
View attachment 251103
View attachment 251104
$2,000 out the door, brand new in 1980.

And in it's new place.
View attachment 251105
Now that I could actually open the seat i found a nice mouse house in the battery box. I'm guessing any mice would have jumped during the 100mile ride down here.

Over the past 17 years I've toyed with the thought of going mildly café with Clubman bars, fishtail mufflers and a little headlight fairing. Now though, it seems that my bike has gone from a quasi-cult-classic "why is THAT here" at the carshow... to an actual classic bike, and I think I'm going to keep it as original as I can.

I love all the documentation, etc...just adds that much more to the story.

 

[Jim]

Bath time.

 

[Wingedwheel]

Looks like the typical resto start. Dirt, grime, mouse poop and that darn leaky master cylinder. That is going to be a gorgeous bike!

 

[Raymond]

You have the whole bike, plus its known history, plus you have history with the bike. There might be bumps in the road but looking to be a nice straightforward resurrection.

 

[noodlenoggin]

I certainly hope so!

 

[noodlenoggin]

I had a chance to go out in the garage and tinker after dinner.

• Only one mouse house, in the empty battery box.
• Removed airboxes, they're clear.
• Gas tank is about half full... and shiny down there. I felt inside the tank with my finger and only felt a little surface dusty rust.
• I hooked up a battery charger, and the neutral light lit right up, blinkers work, and the starter button at least made the solenoid click.
• Carbs look gummmmy.

 

[Jim]

Carbs look gummmmy.

A word of caution....
If you try to start it with gummed up carbs... and it actually lights off, all that gunk will get sucked up into the delicate little passageways and clog 'em. Then your life gets much harder. You now have to "unclog" the passageways you just clogged.
You can do yourself a huge favor by taking apart and cleaning the carbs, the petcock and the tank. Do it now and it ain't so bad, do it after all the little passageways are clogged and you'll hate yourself.

Fwiw or course...

 

[noodlenoggin]

A word of caution....
If you try to start it with gummed up carbs... and it actually lights off, all that gunk will get sucked up into the delicate little passageways and clog 'em. Then your life gets much harder. You now have to "unclog" the passageways you just clogged.
You can do yourself a huge favor by taking apart and cleaning the carbs, the petcock and the tank. Do it now and it ain't so bad, do it after all the little passageways are clogged and you'll hate yourself.

Fwiw or course...

I know, that's the plan. I wanted to see if it would blip the starter, that's all.

 

[Jim]

I know, that's the plan. I wanted to see if it would blip the starter, that's all.

Gotcha...

 

[noodlenoggin]

Gotcha... View attachment 251202

Actually, what I should've said is that at it's BEST, this bike has never started that easy when it was cold. There's no way it was ever going to light off with no battery and one blip of the starter button after 17 years of sitting.

 

[noodlenoggin]

I'm ready to start finagling the carbs off of it and seeing if I can disassemble them carefully enough to re-use the gaskets, as suggested here. I think I've run into a snag -- a garage-related one. We've lived in this house for five years now, and the garage is piled up with everything that hasn't been stored anywhere else. My tools are still in boxes on the floor, for instance. But, the garage came with an old buffet-style cabinet as a "workbench," but it's covered about16" high with assorted...um....crap.

I literally don't have a place to lay out bike parts and have them stay put.

So I need to build some shelves over the "workbench" and move the crap to them. I figured I can do this with a sheet of plywood and some time with a Skilsaw and a hammer.

Except one of my work-stands broke, and I need to fix THAT...
...so I can cut plywood and make shelves...
............so I can install shelves...
....................so I can clean off my "workbench"...
..............................so I can disassemble my carbs.

I think this thread's about to turn into a carpentry/woodworking thread.