New 1982 Yamaha XJ550R Seca owner

Hey everyone, I'm happy to have stumbled upon this wealth of knowledge.
My name is Matt, I'm 18 years old and needless to say I'm obsessed with vintage motorcycles. My first bike was a 1983 Yamaha maxim 400 which is still my daily rider. I also own a 1983 Suzuki GS650G which i've restored, I've previously owned a 1985 Kawasaki ZX600R and lastly a 1997 Kawasaki EX500 (flip project).

I purchased an 82 550 Seca about a month ago for a stupidly cheap price ($250). I bought it off the original owner, it had been parked in a garage since 1993 and hadn't been running since. Cosmetically the bikes in good shape, theres some minor blemishes in the factory paint but the goal for this project is to make the bike mechanically perfect so I can ride it hard like it was mean't to be, cosmetics will be a second priority.

In less than 24 hours of owning the bike I already had the carbs ripped apart and cleaned as well as the valves adjusted. After new intake boots were installed and the carbs put back on I rigged up a make shift gas tank out of a sprite bottle and to my surprise the engine started nearly instantly after 22 years of sitting.

The stock mufflers were rotted out so I mounted a pair of emgo shorties. The exhaust note from the inline 4 is seriously intoxicating.

Theres still plenty left for me to do till I feel the bike is road worthy, such as:

Tires, brake pads, chain & sprocket, rear shocks and a new seat cover.

Heres a few pictures and a crap quality video of the bike running.

 

Welcome aboard. I watched the vid...you bought it for what!!!!

Very nice dig.

Gary H.

 

thanks! Definitely my best find thus far!

 

That is a great find. The right side battery cover is worth as much as you paid for the bike. Where are you in Ontario? I have extra parts if needed.

 

That is a beauty ... Great find

 

Thank you both! Are you serious about the side cover? I didn't know it was such a rarity. I'm in Georgetown, 45 mins west of Toronto.

The bikes nearly 100% complete except for the front fairing but I'll certainly let you know if I need anything in particular during the restoration!

 

The bike looks ugly with the front fairing. I do have the shell of the fairing no hardware or windshield if you are interested.

 

I agree, I prefer the naked look better myself as well. Thanks for the offer though!

 

Good find. Go over all the safety items and post your progress, mine is on the driveway waiting for valve shims to be checked and carbs to be finished.

 

I sure will! I just put an order in for tires, front brake pads, tach cable and clutch cover gasket.

 

Wow, nice bike and great deal. I'm a XJ550 fan as well. We have similar tastes in bikes, I owned a GS550ES back in day and thought the EX500 was very cool too.

Good luck with the Seca. You'll surely find everything you need on this site.

JB

 

Thank you! I love the GS550ES, very unique looking middle weight bike from the 80's. My GS650 has a soft spot in my heart too but something about the XJ550's 6 speed tranny and chain drive vs the 650's 5 speed shafty puts it one notch above the suzuki in my books for sportyness.

I have more parts coming in hopefully today so I'll update the thread more this weekend.

 

Alright it's been a while since I've been able to work on the bike because of University but Christmas break is just around the corner and I'll have nearly a full month of build time.

Parts I have coming in include:
New front and rear tires
New rear shocks
Sprockets & Chain
New jets and Misc carb parts
Rear brake shoes
S.S brake lines

I've mounted up some new turn signals in my spare time, also cleaned up the front rim while I have it off. Made these pretty cool custom grips from an old belt I had lying around.

 

Those grips are cool.

 

I found my 550r 5 mi down the road for $700.00

You're in good hands here.

Lost boy, I'm looking for a 550r fairing shell.... Be interested in talking with you since specialk doesn't want a fairing----I don't remember if we talked about it or not anymore. Could you send a private conversation to me?

Thanks,

Dave Fox

 

Are the grips leather?!!! Super cool! Makes them look like a knife handle. Or an Estwing, if they're availñable in black...
Ahhh, would ya look at that!

 

your wheel bearings are original open style you may want to change them.
I picked up XJ550RJ (red)the other day $100 no left side cover or keys 4 to 1 exhaust. it was under a tarp for 3 years
new keys on the way from lock smith on ebay for 29$ for 2 keys cut from code.
the roads must be littered with left side side covers

 

he made them from a belt so any color you want if its in your closet

 

Thanks for then comments on the grips guys, I just stitched them together with some 20lb fishing line. Thanks for pointing out the open bearing, definitely going to replace it with a sealed one.

 

Clean it, lube it, run it if it spins smoothly.

 

Leather can be dyed as well any color of dye you can find
Alan