Some tlc for the xj

Hi all,

Hope both yourselves and your bikes are well

I am in the process of acquiring a new bike (a '98 Honda CBR600 f). Rather than sell my xj600 on (since she has been so loyal and reliable) I plan to give it some TLC and have my Dad use it. He used to ride a Triumph Bonnie but got rid of it 35 years ago because he was too busy with me and my siblings! He's 65 now and just retired. He's ridden my xj and found it very comfortable and I think it's the perfect bike for somebody whose been off the road for a bit.

While parked outside my girlfriends house a few months ago, some vandals tipped the bike over :x so the 1st thing I will need to get is a new front brake lever and a screen (2nd hand on ebay should be fine). The crash guards protected the bike from any further damage thank God. Another issue with the bike is that the throttle "slips" on the handlebar and doesn't stay in the one place. Apart from this, all the bike will need is a full service so I will pick up a Haynes manual and go from there.

One thing I have noticed is that when I turn the bike on, the engine will cut out if I don't keep the choke out for a little bit. Then, once it warms up, I can let the choke in gradually, keeping it at about 1.5 thousand revs all the time. Eventually the choke is fully in and the engine idles at one thousand revs. When riding, if I turn the throttle, the repsonse is a bit spongy around 2-3 thousand revs. This only happens sometimes especially after a few days of no use. On one occasion, if I revved the bike while stationary (in neutral) it would rev, then once I stopped revving, the engine would cut. This only happened one day, and hasn't happened since. My suspicion is that the carbs need cleaning. Or could it be the valves? I have no idea. The bike has been parked outside (but covered) over the winter which can't have helped, as the Irish weather is cold and wet :'(. With that said the bike has been ridden regularly and it seems to run better the more I use it.


I am looking forward to getting the bike into the garage (have just acquired a garage space) and getting the bike up to par. This will be a learning experience for me as I do not have much mechanical experience to begin with. I will take pictures and keep you updated with how things go. Nothing too fancy going on, but may be of interest to some. And if anybody as any helpful advice, I'll be glad to listen

All the best,

Ben

 

My suggestion is to treat it like a bike you just purchased it. Take the carbs off and do a thorough cleaning, rebuild the master cylinder and front brake caliper, replace the pads, replace the rear brake shoes, replace the brake lines and check the valve clearances and adjust as required and the vacuum sync the carbs. Make sure the tires are not old and dry rotted and give the battery a load test. Change the oil and filter to the dino stuff as recommended. Believe it or not, this is all pretty cheap to do, but sure can make one heck of a difference both being able to start and ride the bike as well as stopping it when you want. There are "how-to's" all over this board, just have to search them out...
And have fun...it isn't hard to work on these bikes at all...

 

Thanks BruceB. Much appreciated

 

Yep, first thing I'd look at is give the carbs a good cleaning.

As for the throttle, do the controls move/twist as well? That's just a couple pinch screws to tighten then.

 

Yes. Thanks mtnbikecrazy55. Sounds about right.