A stock spacer measured 90.8 mm, 3.57 inches.
You could just shorten up the spacers you have.
You could just shorten up the spacers you have.
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Saving another XS2
- Thread starter willis
- Start date
Awesome, thank you!
These shocks came with some XS1 and TX650 parts I bought last winter. Mounting hole is the same on both ends.
I’ll shoot you a PM
A little progress was made lately. I purchased replacement fork tubes from Niche Cycle along with stock length cables and a few misc do-dads from Mikes. I got the fork tubes swapped out and mounted my cb750 bars to bring it back into standard form. I haven’t filled the tubes with oil yet as they may still be coming back off again. I decided to clean up the lowers too while I had them off. Just sanded down quick with the DA and hit with scotch bright pads. I still need to finish off with some blue magic polish. Not going for a bright polished look here, just close to an original finish. Afterwards I popped the wheel back on so I could move it around again, but it needs to come back off for a good cleaning and new rubber. I did take the opportunity to pull the trees off to clean and repack the bearings with fresh grease though. Everything looked fine so I just kept the original bearings in there. Still lots to do but I am going to focus on getting the front end buttoned up before I jump into anything else.
Hey! It’s looking like a real motorcycle again! 
It’s got a long way to go, but I’ll inch my way there.
Minor progress but no pictures. Continued work on the front end this weekend. Disassembled the front wheel and rotor. Bearing in rotor felt gritty but flushed out well with brake cleaner. The rotor had the factory rubber pads as well as the o-ring which were all in good shape. Repacked bearings and cleaned up the oxidation on the bare aluminum and mounted back to fork leg. I debated repainting, but I just want to get this road worthy and running before getting too cosmetically involved. Also attacked to front wheel aggressively. After cutting off the original rotted tire I went to town with steel wood and lubricant. Got most of the rust off with only a few minor pits left. Also hit the spokes with steel wool. They cleaned up a little and are good enough for me. The bearings are sealed with metal shrouds and spun free and well, so I left them be. I cleaned and lubed the speedo drive and mounted the wheel in the forks. I also bought some new tires this week. I went with Duro HF308’s front and rear. They resemble k70’s but a fraction of the price. I just need tubes and I can get them mounted.
I also worked on the cables & wiring on the front end. There was a lot of cleaning along the way while I replaced the throttle cables, decomp/starter cable and speedo cable. There’s a lot of stuff going on up there. I originally wanted to run the wires in the bars, but I’m not 100% sure I’ll keep this one, so I resisted the temptation. Most everything is buttoned back up, but I still need a new headlight trim ring. The original was broken and bent from the PO’s son when he dropped it in their yard. Besides the front turn signals also being smashed, I discovered the front master cylinder is also broken where the brake switch mounts. I think I’ve got spares so should not be a big deal. Oh ya, I also mounted a new set of OEM condensers. I figured that would be good measure to help bring it back to life.
Next up is to mount the front tire and address the front brake. After that I’m hoping to hook up a battery and test the electrical circuits and see what works.
I also worked on the cables & wiring on the front end. There was a lot of cleaning along the way while I replaced the throttle cables, decomp/starter cable and speedo cable. There’s a lot of stuff going on up there. I originally wanted to run the wires in the bars, but I’m not 100% sure I’ll keep this one, so I resisted the temptation. Most everything is buttoned back up, but I still need a new headlight trim ring. The original was broken and bent from the PO’s son when he dropped it in their yard. Besides the front turn signals also being smashed, I discovered the front master cylinder is also broken where the brake switch mounts. I think I’ve got spares so should not be a big deal. Oh ya, I also mounted a new set of OEM condensers. I figured that would be good measure to help bring it back to life.
Next up is to mount the front tire and address the front brake. After that I’m hoping to hook up a battery and test the electrical circuits and see what works.
A little progress, and pictures this time. The new tires and tubes arrived promptly. The front was installed with no issues and gave everything a good cleaning. I will address the rear tire in good time, but lot of other stuff in line before it. Next was the brakes. The original master was toast, as the bracket for the brake light switch was broken off. I have a couple of decent units in the stash, so found a suitable one and stripped it down. The cylinder piston assembly from the original came out and cleaned up nicely. I was able to re-use all the inner bits in the replacement unit. The old brake fluid had solidified into almost a waxy consistency, so it was very easy to clean up. While I was in the stash, I grabbed a nice rotor and caliper left over from my '75 build. The caliper had previously been rebuilt so I just swapped them out. All parts were installed along with a new speedo cable. The only thing left on the front end is to to fill the fork tubes with oil, install new brake lines, and find a replacement headlight trim ring.
I am on the fence about how to rig up the brake light switch. I am thinking of going a little out of the box to help tidy up the front end. Possibly installing a t-fitting that allows to screw in a brake light switch mid-line. The rest of the lines would be replaced with braided stainless. I'll be putting some more thought into this later.
I also cleaned up the chrome rear fender support bracket. It was pretty crusty to say the least. I broke out my bottle of Krud Kutter gel spray made by Rustoleum. It's main ingredient is phosphoric acid. It does amazing work on rust removal and have used it on many projects before. I like the gel as a clinging agent and it works fast too. While the Evapo-Rust works well, the gel is better on these larger applications and I am very happy with the result. While there is still considerable pitting, the rust is gone. Makes for a decent 10-15 footer for a resurrection job.
That's it for now.
I am on the fence about how to rig up the brake light switch. I am thinking of going a little out of the box to help tidy up the front end. Possibly installing a t-fitting that allows to screw in a brake light switch mid-line. The rest of the lines would be replaced with braided stainless. I'll be putting some more thought into this later.
I also cleaned up the chrome rear fender support bracket. It was pretty crusty to say the least. I broke out my bottle of Krud Kutter gel spray made by Rustoleum. It's main ingredient is phosphoric acid. It does amazing work on rust removal and have used it on many projects before. I like the gel as a clinging agent and it works fast too. While the Evapo-Rust works well, the gel is better on these larger applications and I am very happy with the result. While there is still considerable pitting, the rust is gone. Makes for a decent 10-15 footer for a resurrection job.
That's it for now.
Minor progress as I patiently collect a few more parts. A few weeks ago I scored the used set of factory shocks from Halfmile posted above. The patina fits the rest of the bike and they are a fair nick better than the ones I had. I also acquired a set of side covers and headlight assembly (ears, bucket, light and trim ring) here in the classifieds. I’ve been watching for a useable left cover for some time and everything I was seeing was fairly rough or ridiculously expensive. These units came off a gold xs1b but were crudely spray painted an awful purple with white pinstripes.
Today I spent about 45 minutes stripping the purple off one cover. Just a bit of brake cleaner and a plastic scraper effectively removed the old paint. Jim gave me a few tips that helped. I worked in small areas and gave the paint time to harden back up between applications. Although I’m not sure this process is necessary as there is some rust that will need addressed before painting. But I am extremely pleased with how straight the covers are. I’ll mess with paint once I have it running. For now I’m just pleased to have the missing parts in hand.
Today I spent about 45 minutes stripping the purple off one cover. Just a bit of brake cleaner and a plastic scraper effectively removed the old paint. Jim gave me a few tips that helped. I worked in small areas and gave the paint time to harden back up between applications. Although I’m not sure this process is necessary as there is some rust that will need addressed before painting. But I am extremely pleased with how straight the covers are. I’ll mess with paint once I have it running. For now I’m just pleased to have the missing parts in hand.
I see I’m not the only one who’s tailgate is the workbench of choice
Yep, it’s over 90 here today and pretty stagnant in the shop, especially for working with brake parts cleaner. I set up a box fan and a chair and was pretty comfortable working on my tailgate in the shade.
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What a shame you're not restoring a XS1B !
I seem to be having a run of good luck with acquiring '70 to '73 bits here in the UK.
Or maybe luck has nothing to do with it.
A couple of years ago there seemed to be pretty fierce competition for early bits here.
Now not so much.
Maybe everyone else has finished their projects ?
Did you buy that suspect tank with the rust belt around the seams ?
No, I have a good tank. All I really needed was the left side cover, headlight bulb and trim ring, but I went ahead and bought the lot as listed.
Been putting this off for a while, but finally cleaned out my tank with heavily varnished gas in it. But as a positive, the tank was stored 1/2 full so the liquid helped preserve the lower half of the tank. My hands smelled of varnish for a few days though. I went the vinegar route and only took 2 days. Very happy with the results, even though both petcocks are trashed. So hard to get good pictures inside. I tried my new bore scope but it wasn’t turning out.
If there is one thing I dislike about messing with these bikes it’s the old varnish smell from carbs and tanks. Maybe because it’s just so hard to shake it.
Why does fresh gasoline smell good and old gasoline smell so bad?
IT RANKS RIGHT UP THERE WITH THE SMELL OF OLD FORK OIL!
It’s repulsive like rotting meat!
Not quite as bad as burnt differential oil though.
