Newbie Alert

Hi, I'm Steve and I am a newbie.
I joined the site after I bought a cherry 1986 XJ700 from a sweet little lady... who was selling it after her Father passed... after he got it as a trade in...which is why it only had 10,000 miles...and it's been in the garage ever since...and it's in perfect condition...yada yada yada.
I joined the site almost two years ago and exactly one week later the beast threw me off. I don't think it was personal, it seemed the beast had decided to continue the journey on it's own. Unfortunately it only managed to make it a hundred yards or so down the road before coming to rest on the curb, where 1 or 2 seconds later we were reunited.
Today I am in the process of getting the beast back on the road. And although there are still scars, emotionally and physically, from our brief separation I am beginning to warm up to the task.
I have completed some tasks and currently I am rebuilding the carbs but I thought it would be correct to introduce myself and give a little background before reaching out for help from the members.

 

type of bike
have you done a valve clearance check?
how about a compression check..
ohh and those brakes? they are probably old and need to be replaced

 

Hi Steve,

Glad you're still with us.

The 700 is a nice little bike, I'm sure you love it. Glad to hear you're getting back in the saddle. You're at the right place...........here. THIS is where you get ALL the support you need for your bike-----physically, and even emotionally. We are ALL in this together, and we DO feel for someone when they fall off. As you're fixing her up, ASK if you have a question, need help, or need parts.

You'll be alright.

Dave Fox

 

I love my 700. Wouldn't part with it for the world. With all the help I've gotten from this site, it runs like it's arse was on fire.
Take your time and do it right. NO short cuts. When you're done, you'll have a bike that will keep up with any V-twin on the road. I don't care how big it is. If your 700 is a water-cooled, those things can be SCARY fast.

 

welcome. Dont forget to check those tires

 

Thanks all...I appreciate you all taking the time to answer. Thanks.
Now if I could get a little help with protocol...Where do I post for technical help? and how do I go about buying/trading/getting/ parts?
I have already rebuilt the forks and the triple tree and the information on the forum was priceless! I found out I had the front end wobble with the tank slapping blues about a week after I got the bike. I read the posts on the forum so I knew I had some work ahead of me but I was moving apartments and thought I could hold off until after the move. I flushed the gas tank(it was full of snot), changed the plugs and topped off the battery with some distilled water and went around the block for a spin.

Never let your bike drink distilled water and if by some chance it does...then definitely keep it away from storm drains...on tight left handers...that you can really lean into...at 50 miles per hour.

Luckily the crash bars, center stand, and handlebars took most of the slide.
And thank God for full face helmets.

So my plan is to restore the motor before going any further, there is some frame damage but I don't know if it's critical. I figure if worst comes to worst I can part it out and anything invested in the motor is not a complete loss.

I'm doing the valves first, I took a quick look and I will need a shim or two.
#1 carb(far left I think) has a broken float post so I need that carb body and it's the Cal style with the smog rigamarole on it. One needle valve is bent like a noodle, one diaphragm is chewed up and it was pinched with no spring!! And some moron took off the screw and the sheetmetal tab that you use to set TDC(out of all the crazy stuff that has happened with this bike that is the one that really makes me scratch my head and mumble WTF over and over)
I also have 3 good carb bodies(ie, float posts are not broken) from an XJ650(non cal) that I can sell or trade. I got them off ebay, one of those impulse ebay purchases like my girlfriend gets...I wouldn't even know where to store 40 pairs of shoes let alone know what to do with 'em...anyway three good carb bodies should help some one out there. I've got three , #2, #3 and #4.
Hopefully some of you guys can point me in the right direction.

Thanks again.

 

Hey Steve!

I'm Duncan - fairly new too, and in the middle of remediating a 10k mile '83 XJ750 Seca.

You can find most stuff from the Forums menu (hover mouse over "Community" button at top left of any page; click 'Forums'). From there, the second forum is the appropriately-named "Sell, Trade, Swap, Wanted".

The fifth forum is "XJ Chat", which is the place to ask questions (after you've searched to make sure the topic hasn't just been covered elsewhere).

I'm sure the more experienced guys will have other tips... the only other thing I'd add is to check out the first Forum, XJForever, which promotes the services of our supporting vendor (Len, screen name chacal). Seems like he stocks just about every nut & bolt on these bikes!!

-Duncan
Ottawa

 

Awesome thanks Duncan