New rider

thespirit · Posted: June 25, 2006, 9:55 pm Post subject: New rider

I just bought a 650 yesterday. I had a kawasaki vulcan 500 7 or 8 years ago, but the finance at the time made me get rid of it. My wife has always told me I could get a bike, and when my car died, I decided to replace it with a bike while I fix up the car...

I paid $550 for it. The title says it's a 1976, but it has side covers that say Special-II. I'm currently trying to figure out what the heck it is so I can start fixing it up. One problem is the gas cap on the tank. It is not the right one. It doesn't latch down because the part that goes into the tank to seal it is out too far (by about 1/4")... I found a site that lists serial#s and model years, and going by the engine serial number, it says it's a 79 xs650sf. If I look at the side cover pictures, it's a 78-80 "special", but going by the frame pics, it says it's a 74-79 standard.. I'm really confused. I know titles can be wrong, and I've noticed that it doesn't look like they even had the special in 1976. The vin on the frame and on the title match, so it's stolen. Laughing

I can post pics, but does anyone have pics that I can compare too?

It also has a few problems i need to resolve before it's road worthy. I fixed a gas leak, but I really need to put new seals on the petcock.

It's not charging the battery, so I need to diagnose that this week.

The shifter was broken off and they welded it back on... too low. So I was going to take that off when I noticed they welded it to the post.. So I need to grind that off and just buy a new one.

The ignition is "loose" .. it doesn't stop at the places it should and the fork lock doesn't work at all, the key doesn't even fit in it.

The brake lights were not working, but I figure out the rear brake switch, but broke it trying to adjust it, so I jb welded it for right now....

Thats it for now. Any help is appreciated.
Aaron

jayel · Posted: June 25, 2006, 10:30 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

so you have a 79 motor in a 76 frame, simply motor swap no big deal they probably put on what ever side covers that fit, there are two types of gas caps the standard (center line of tank) and the special (offset to the right side) the caps and sealing rubbers don't interchange, here's a link to find correct cap www.mikesxs.com/

Wulf · Posted: June 28, 2006, 12:01 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Hey Aaron, welcome aboard and congrats on your new ride. Was that finance or fiance? Great price on the bike even if you have to spend a few hundred on it. MikesXS will have pretty much everything you need and the shipping is quick. Ebay is another great source for parts although I'd get the stuff for the petcocks from Mikes. Give us a shout.
Wulf

thespirit · Posted: June 28, 2006, 12:14 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

That was supposed to be fiance. She hated bikes and didn't want me to have one... I should have known it was a sign of things to come! Laughing

A cycle graveyard that fixes up old bikes and resells them told me yesterday he has quite a few 650s in his lot and to stop by to see what parts he has. I'm going to do that on saturday after I do some more tests on the charging system.

Going by the serial # and vin #, we found out it's a 78 standard frame and a 79 special engine.

Here are some pictures of it.

Wulf · Posted: June 28, 2006, 12:23 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

I kinda thought you meant fiance. Yes that would have been the first and last sign. Bye Bitch!!!!!!!! Well good for you for finding a woman with better taste. Nice lookin' ride ya got there.
Wulf

thespirit · Posted: June 28, 2006, 12:26 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Thanks. I plan on getting it on the road in the next week or two so I can ride it back and forth to work this year. If I have money next year, I'm going to try for a new exhaust. My wife wants to try to do a custom paint job on the tank this winter.

Wulf · Posted: June 28, 2006, 12:39 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Good luck on your ride. A new exhaust will run you about 230-250 from mikes. Sounds good on the custom paint too. Sounds like you've got a pretty good ol' lady too.
Wulf

thespirit · Posted: June 28, 2006, 12:53 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Yea, she is pretty cool. She stays at home with the kids so money is really tight, but she said she is looking for a part time job then I can watch the kids when she gets home. I don't do so good with kids under 1 though. Laughing

Cafe_Shop · Posted: June 28, 2006, 10:03 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

So who/where is this cycle graveyard you speak of? I hope it's not Slicks. His pricing is outrageous.

thespirit · Posted: June 28, 2006, 10:13 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

It's EMC Cycle in Yale. They seem like nice people, this is the first time I have ever dealt with them.

Cafe_Shop · Posted: June 28, 2006, 10:59 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

What's their contact info? I'm looking for a front wire wheel. Thanks for the help.

Wulf · Posted: June 29, 2006, 4:07 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Hey Cafe_Shop, I've seen front wire wheels on ebay go fairly inexpensively.
Wulf

Wulf · Posted: June 29, 2006, 4:21 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Hey thespirit. As for kids under 1, hell, all ya need is a bunch of velcro and a clean flat surface. They wont go far that way. Just kidding. Yeah, with wife no. 2 we played the I work and she stay home game for about 13 years. Totally sucked. What's really fucked up was the whole time every dime I made including sidework ( I'm an auto tech) went to paying bills, so all my bikes sat on the sideline. As soon as she started working I was still paying all the bills and such and the money she made was HER money. Of course shortly after that she started fucking the union president, but THAT'S another story. Needless to say the bitch is gone.
Wulf

XSiv · Posted: June 29, 2006, 10:34 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Let's all be thankful for our Yami's then, right? heh Smile

Nice looking bike spirit. For $550, you made out all right. Even tho you'll probably change the paint, it seems to be in good condition. For bikes this old, there're a lot more problems, in general, than the small ones you listed. Someone took decent care of it for ya, haha. I especially like the front fork brace. They run almost $60 at mikes! bah!

Anyhow, welcome and happy riding.

Cafe_Shop · Posted: June 30, 2006, 9:48 am Post subject: Re: New rider

Wulf wrote:

Hey Cafe_Shop, I've seen front wire wheels on ebay go fairly inexpensively.
Wulf

I have a running search on ebay for front wheels. I just seem to loose every auction. Also the cost of shipping a whole wheel is ridiculous when I really only need the hub.

thespirit · Posted: June 30, 2006, 9:30 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Cafe_Shop, sorry it took me so long to get back to you. I've had my arms up to my elbows in motorcycle the last few days... I'm going to post another topic for help, I'm at a loss.

EMC Cycle in Yale, MI is located here: www.emccycle.com

I am going there tomorrow once my bro-in-law gets here. I'm just going to pick up what parts I know I need and hope I don't need anymore.

Wulf · Posted: June 30, 2006, 9:45 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

Hey Cafe, understood about just needing the front hub. You know, Yamaha had to have used the same front wheel on several other models simply for economics sake. Anybody out there have an idea what else the wheels may have been on that is also readily available?
Wulf

Wulf · Posted: June 30, 2006, 9:49 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

XSiv so eloquently stated "Let's all be thankful for our Yami's then, right? heh"

DAMN RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wulf

blahcap · Posted: July 11, 2006, 10:55 pm Post subject: Re: New rider

What Happened to 650rider.com?

Yamaha xs650