Looks as a deal I have accepted the price and if the cold start dont smoke or rattle to much I will pay the asked price and drive it home.
Tomorrow
Any recommendations about tool sets
Tomorrow
Any recommendations about tool sets
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What have you done to your Triumph today?
- Thread starter grouchie77
- Start date
Nervous driving home making stats even --- numbers of bike making it home
Actually smiled inside the helmet it does rattle a bit on top end but nothing major for now.
Not leaked either after the 50 km Ride home which is surprising throttle response is " Manly "
even though I took it carefully not knowing about tyres chains and so
This time I looked more at the sellers face than the bike .Him being a Business owner in relevant professions and a petrol head
Downloaded a Manual and ordered a set of tools in Inch
It has not been cleaned or polished it might start shining once that happens perhaps even after a wash
The rear wheel hub looks grey but that is dirt
So far so good or above expectations
Front brake even worse than on XS 650
Will take some time getting used to shifting on the right side
Carburetors can need some time to settle .But I find that normal for a not much driven machine
Dont know about filters
Rear shocks are Koni
No brake light from front brake no wire even
No turn indicators
No mirror which is needed on the left side
Exhaust more or less new
Front stanchions also
Something looks strange at the center stand Backwards ?
Gonna order a new License plate the one on is dented stained and have some extra holes ..
Perhaps missing reflexes at the grab rail rear
A dent in the tank
Plan when manual ,comes do the service and find out where the oil is filled and check if there are any oil in there
And Polish
Around 16 -- 18 Celsius which is high this time of year
Actually smiled inside the helmet it does rattle a bit on top end but nothing major for now.
Not leaked either after the 50 km Ride home which is surprising throttle response is " Manly "
even though I took it carefully not knowing about tyres chains and so
This time I looked more at the sellers face than the bike .Him being a Business owner in relevant professions and a petrol head
Downloaded a Manual and ordered a set of tools in Inch
It has not been cleaned or polished it might start shining once that happens perhaps even after a wash
The rear wheel hub looks grey but that is dirt
So far so good or above expectations
Front brake even worse than on XS 650
Will take some time getting used to shifting on the right side
Carburetors can need some time to settle .But I find that normal for a not much driven machine
Dont know about filters
Rear shocks are Koni
No brake light from front brake no wire even
No turn indicators
No mirror which is needed on the left side
Exhaust more or less new
Front stanchions also
Something looks strange at the center stand Backwards ?
Gonna order a new License plate the one on is dented stained and have some extra holes ..
Perhaps missing reflexes at the grab rail rear
A dent in the tank
Plan when manual ,comes do the service and find out where the oil is filled and check if there are any oil in there
And Polish
Around 16 -- 18 Celsius which is high this time of year
Attachments
That looks a great find!
A full set of Metric, whitworth, BST and SAE wrenches and sockets will have you still searching for something fits the bolt heads.....
A full set of Metric, whitworth, BST and SAE wrenches and sockets will have you still searching for something fits the bolt heads.....
Excellent. Front brake clean and proper setup should have the bike stopping much better. I'm (almost) envious 
Ditto...really great find!!That looks a great find!
A full set of Metric, whitworth, BST and SAE wrenches and sockets will have you still searching for something fits the bolt heads.....
FWIW, I never found any need for BST or Whitworth wrenches with the Meriden Triumphs I owned, just SAE and Metric seemed to work...or maybe I was just lucky?!
Best of luck with your new acquisition!
mike in idaho
XS650 Addict
They started adopting fasteners with "unified" threads, about 1969. Diameter and threads per inch count the same as USS threads, using SAE wrench sizes. Some engine hardware and various other fasteners were still Whitworth specs (why bother to change, until the parts bins are empty?).
Thank you Sir and Gentlemen .. Not bought any bike yet without some problem not noticed when buying ...Ditto...really great find!!
FWIW, I never found any need for BST or Whitworth wrenches with the Meriden Triumphs I owned, just SAE and Metric seemed to work...or maybe I was just lucky?!
Best of luck with your new acquisition!
But no really big mistakes—even though a dealer told me not to spend time or money on an XS 650, dismissing it as a lost cause. He’s no longer in the business, but the motorcycle lasted at least another 20 years.
My friends had problems with this type back in the early 70s.
Especially if you tried to tune it and boost the power.
It’s a gamble—things can easily go wrong.
We'll see what happens.
mike in idaho
XS650 Addict
"Plan when manual ,comes do the service and find out where the oil is filled and check if there are any oil in there"
Oil fill is on the frame backbone, under the front edge of the seat. If you're lucky, the PO will have left the dipstick in there under the cap.
Oil fill is on the frame backbone, under the front edge of the seat. If you're lucky, the PO will have left the dipstick in there under the cap.
No dipstick.
But read on line and made a stick of a bicycle spoke there are oil down there.
There was a few drops leaking,
Comes Nicely after degreasing and solvent .+wash Not polished yet
She will look pretty.
Plugs are sooty Exhausts Smelling petrol That will be a winter readup if needed AMAL carburetors
and it was difficult to start after wash
Still a bit noise at the top end Se what happens .New oil Maybe valve adjustment..and better looking plugs and so on
But read on line and made a stick of a bicycle spoke there are oil down there.
There was a few drops leaking,
Comes Nicely after degreasing and solvent .+wash Not polished yet
She will look pretty.
Plugs are sooty Exhausts Smelling petrol That will be a winter readup if needed AMAL carburetors
and it was difficult to start after wash
Still a bit noise at the top end Se what happens .New oil Maybe valve adjustment..and better looking plugs and so on
Attachments
mike in idaho
XS650 Addict
Nice find,it even shifts on the correct side, for a proper British motorcycle.
If it's not on the right side it's on the wrong side.
Wiped her down and cleaned her up.
What ???
Reading the Service manual ..Changing the engine Oil
" It is advisable to flush out the oil reservoir with a flushing oil or if this is not available paraffin ( kerosene ) will do ..
I have heard of use kerosene for auto engines but many many years ago
Its a workshop manual is this something that was or is done
a digital version of that
have I missed this totally ?
Reading the Service manual ..Changing the engine Oil
" It is advisable to flush out the oil reservoir with a flushing oil or if this is not available paraffin ( kerosene ) will do ..
I have heard of use kerosene for auto engines but many many years ago
Its a workshop manual is this something that was or is done
a digital version of that
have I missed this totally ?
I've heard of flushing out with flushing oil but it's not something I've ever done or seen anybody else do neither. I usually just get the oil hot, let it all drain, maybe tip the bike to and fro to get the last drops out, plugs and so forth back in and fill up with new oil. Maybe the manual is giving the counsel of 'perfection'?
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I've also heard of using diesel to clean, because of the detergents in it.
By "heard of", there's a 50-50 chance I'm making up bullshit again.
By "heard of", there's a 50-50 chance I'm making up bullshit again.
My take would be that engine oils have come on a long way in the last 60 years. If the engine has been run periodically there's no reason I can think of to use a flush as part of an oil change.
There's one scenario a flush would be useful. If the oil has been in there for over say 5 years and the system needs a full clean and recommission.
There's one scenario a flush would be useful. If the oil has been in there for over say 5 years and the system needs a full clean and recommission.
I did a diesel flush ONCE it was about 50 years ago, OK Fifty FIVE years ago. IIRC I added a quart of kerosene, ran it "a bit" then did the oil change. It did no harm I was aware of but can't claim it made the motor new again either. (It was a Chev 283 of dubious heritage) Like others; get it good and warm and make a highway run to stir things up well then do the oil change. If what comes out looks particularly black or has ANY metallic flakes, plan a second oil change in say 500 miles? Call it good.
^^^^ Agree. There are also of course quite a number of name brand oil flush additive products out there, but I might be a bit worried about their effect on wet clutch discs?
mike in idaho
XS650 Addict
I would pull the bottom plate(four bolts) off the frame back bone. All the sludge will be right there, the oil pickup screen will be right there, for cleaning.
Some pictures here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/2782897311...MigNB3zlQndPsksvAWJYKCl3Q=|tkp:Bk9SR7yzxtqdaA
Some pictures here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/2782897311...MigNB3zlQndPsksvAWJYKCl3Q=|tkp:Bk9SR7yzxtqdaA
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