XJ1100 customization now under way

Hey all, I don't normally post, but have been around here for ages. You might say I enjoy looking at all the awesome bikes, both modded and not, and learning more about the bikes.

As a result of being bitten by the modding bug as well as having some major electrical issues, I've decided to tear the bike down and customize while repairing. The plan is to modernize a few things while minimizing as much as I can. As I decide on what I'm going to keep on the bike and what I care to part with, I'll be offering up to the community.

That being said, I'm going to try to keep up on posting progress as it is made, starting with what I managed to get done today. I am lucky enough to be a night shift worker, so much of my "honey-do" list puts me out in my garage when such a list exists. It also affords me nearly 10 hours of nag free time to work on the bike if so choose on my days off.

On to the photos.
As it was when I got it:


After the session tonight:






Questions and comments will be welcome, and I'm sure I'll end up have many questions along the way.

-Kevin

 

Heck of a GOOD runnin' start! Wish my honey-do list had a stoppin' point. It seems to grow by leaps and bounds...

skillet

 

Between oil changes in the cages and fixing the wiring on trunk of my wife's car (bad ford design causes broken wires and shorts), I only had a little time to go through the factory wiring diagram and start taking out items that were broken/missing from the bike. This is what I ended up with:



At some point, I'll end up making a better version of this, but for now It will do to keep it in memory.

 

Had a little more time tonite. Gonna have to start putting in more OT at work to save up for all the parts I need and want.


rear wheel, swing arm and final drive. the unpainted final is from an XS750 that I will be putting in for a better final drive ratio.


pretty much bare frame now. time to start cleaning it up and knocking off mounts for things that will be disappearing.


rear suspension and brake


front brakes


front wheel, forks, fender, triple tree. at least the top steering head bearing needs to be replaced. seized solid. bottom one seem in perfect condition, but since i'm in there.....

 

Looks like you're slamming away pretty good!

Tapered rollers are a great upgrade to the steerer bearings. New progressive fork springs are awesome as well and relatively inexpensive. ~65$

 

run into a bit of a snag trying to get the rear brake "pivot shaft" or what ever they want to call it out of the frame. It barely moves at all so I know it needs to be lubed and from the parts diagrams, it looks like it should just pop out....

Ideas anyone?

 

Rear brake pivot shaft problem was solved with penetrating oil and a heavier hammer.

Started removing unnecessary mounts for electrical items that were missing/broken/will not be going back in as well as moving mounts for items that will remain.

 

didn't do too much the past few days. just stripped out the electrical that i need/want. this pile is the throw-away.



I might steal a few more wires out of there, but not much. I might even have to put the motor back in the frame to do all the wiring, but will see.

 

Another day of work into the bike. Well maybe not into the bike, but in the garage and bike related. I think I spent more time cleaning and boxing up the parts so I don't lose anything.



But I did actually commit turning the bike into a solo only machine.



I started mocking up a rear fender to see how I want to go about putting one on. "The Man" says that my license plate has to be mounted horizontally on the rear fender or mudgaurd. I plan to have the plate mounted on the end of the fender under the tail light. Doing so with the XJ1100 fender will require a fair bit of work, but it looks like the rear fender from the XJ550 will do what I want...





The Virago risers I bought finally arrived so no more square bars for me.

 

So at work I made and adapter to put my bike engine on the engine stand I have. I have to re-drill some holes later to move the center of gravity a bit, but I have the mass/strength to deal with it as is for now.



So I thought I'd get started on doing the "2nd gear fix" on my bike as it was showing signs of needing it.



When I took off the oil pan I saw something that made me think to myself "i'm pretty sure I know what that is, and I darn well better be wrong.



I thought that that since I'd be tearing all that stuff off, I should check the valve shims while i'm at it. I'll post the results later as I forgot them in the garage.

Off with the cams



Off with the head



Off with the jugs





It was as I hoped it would not be



When the PO of the engine put it together, he must have not got the rings in right and broke the second ring on #3. Kind of surprising that the bike ran as well as it did. Hell, mind boggling that it didn't get jammed in any of the gears and make a right mess of things. No scratches in the cylinders either.

At least I have these to correct the problem easily.



I've got some work ahead of me.

 

Shim clearances.
[justify]
I mm old new E mm old new
1 0.102 275 270 1 0.279 255 260
2 0.076 280 275 2 0.254 265 265
3 0.152 255 255 3 0.229 265 265
4 0.076 265 260 4 0.305 255 265[/justify]

I need to find my little stash of shims to see if I need to get any at all, but within what is in the head now, need to get 2 @ 260 and 1 @ 270

 

Well it has been far to long since I've updated things here. Not much has changed since the last post. All overtime was cancelled at work which means no $$ to put towards what I need for the bike. I'm also now in school for my 1st year apprenticeship training. Money is pretty much gone now. Work also booked me for my 2nd year training early. Must have confidence in my abilities to book my 2nd year before I've completed my 1st.

 

Crap happens to of us, keep at it and don't give up.

 

Definitely gonna keep it up. It was all a big change to go from a tech career to a trade. It will be worth it though. In 3 years I'll more than double my income and then I'll have more disposable money to play with.

 

Be patient, it will be worth it!

 

well i had a little time the past week to tinker a little bit. made a support for the rear fender and started to mock up the seat. one might say the direction i have chosen is locked in doubly so now. frame has been trimmed and now the seat has been cut. I am a little concerned with how thin the foam is, but I will figure something out for shaping the seat and dishing it for maybe a gel pad. I'm still not sure how i'm going to secure the seat. if anyone has any suggestions i'd be glad to hear them.

 

Just a little more tweaking for the seat. just need to find a way to make it conform to my backside a little more.

 

This thing is gonna be sweet man! Nice to see a fellow Albertan on this forum site. Keep up the good work!

 

Made a little more progress today. No pictures tho. Rear fender is pretty much done for mounting. I'm gonna end up cutting the old grab rails so I have, well, a grab rail for if the bike ever tips over. (heaven forbid) May look into connecting the fender into that for a little more support as well as making a little rack to carry a small load, which will then in turn get connected to saddlebag racks later. Still have to figure out how i'm gonna "latch" the seat down.

 

yay for birthday money. bought my speedometer to replace the not-really-working originals. got me one of these:

It might be a little small at 2" diameter, but it will be legal. I'm pretty sure I can read it from more than arms length.....
now to get a replica vin decal so i can go hog wild on finishing up the frame and painting it.

 

Nice looking gauge.

 

Trimmed the grab rails down. Need something to grab for shifting the bike sideways when all together. eventually I will make a little light luggage rack to go between them. Need something to carry my lunch on when I head to work.

 

Started on making something of a rear luggage rack. While test fitting for the picture, i thought of something: how close is that fender gonna to that tire when I hit a bump? Now I need to find out how much she sinks on a bump when being ridden compared to how close it gets when i compress the suspension with a ratchet strap. The manual says the max shock travel is 3.15". Does that mean that the shock compresses that much or that the back end clearance decreases that much at a max? I can compress it about 2" and that puts the fender within a 1/4" of the tire. I can get about 1/4" more with a little tweaking of the rack. Man, do I ever want to put it together to find out and then take it apart again to paint the frame. Unless someone out there knows.....

 

The build looks like its coming along nicely, amazing gauge too. You'll have to let us know how the individual air filters work when you get It running. Keep up the great work!

 

I've only ever run the bike on individual filters. I've never had an airbox for it. The plugs have a nice color to them, power is smooth and consistent with no lag. Fuel economy sucks compared to my Maxim-X, but seems to be on par with what the XS1100 guys are getting.

 

tweaked the luggage rack a bit, got myself about an extra 5/8" clearance. will see how that goes when it's all put together.
like always, i appreciate all constructive comments

 

OK, individual filters is something that I've been wanting to do, but I've heard mixed reviews. It's good to hear some positive feedback. Again keep up the good work on the bike.

 

I should warn though, the XJ1100 is a completely different beast. It is more XS than XJ. The XS line of bikes seem to care a little less about the filters than the XJ line. Then again, since i've never had an airbox on it i have no point of reference either. All I can say is that it runs smoothly, has good power and seems to behave well.

 

took the bike completely apart again. I am happy with how the fender sits, how the rack looks and the seat shape. I had one bit left to cut off the frame : the left side center stand mount. the PO had broken the other side off and I had never thought to check this side before. with my motorcycle jack, I have no real need for the center stand, though I may re-make them at some point.

anyway, i flipped the frame over to grind off the remaining mount. as i started i'm thinking to myself "that's not a weld, that is silicone. same here. and those are just two little tacks on the sides". so i ground off the tacks and whacked the mount with a hammer to reveal this:



so i took the mount, chopped it up and ground it down to make a plug for the hole.



and now you almost can't tell it was fixed. I may do a couple more surface passes to build up the strength again. after it cools down more i'll decide.



gotta love POs

 

I get 34MPG with US gallons with my both XJ11 and my Maxim-X.

You're doing some really nice work & you have met the bane of so many, the PO $%^& !@ that leaves you wondering what the $%^&...

The PO of my XJ11 should have never been allowed to touch anything mechanical.

Gary

 

everything is ready to go out and be blasted, then time for paint. just have to wait until i get the replacement VIN decal in my hands before I get them blasted, you know, just in case it can't be duplicated.

 

Got any updates?

 

Man this was awhile ago. What's the state of your bike now?