A rescue very soon - Barn fresh, Deer damaged

This coming weekend I'll be making a short trip to rescue a XJ550.

The story: Son-in-laws bike, smacked a deer or deer smacked it & it has been in barn storage for a couple of years. Son-in-law doesn't want to deal with fixing it, & mother-in-law has title in hand. Bike battery was charged last summer & bike ran. End of story.

I have digital pics of the damage - headlight, front fender are gone, looks to have been on it's left side - case bar is bent, left exhaust muffler, left mirror missing. Front signal is bent... It's a mess for sure.

I'll give more details when I get it home.

I found this place hoping for some friendship - my riding partner curses & spits when I say Yamaha. He's riding a Kaw that I sold him right now, & he used to race a Suzuki in his younger days in the USAF.

That's it for now - I'll be back with more soon!

Sammowry

 

After rebuilding my ninja 600 I'd like to point out just how durable the xj's are... so long as the forks/frame are straight you've got little to worry about.

Pictures would help do an assessment. Whats your budget?

 

Pic Attach try view 1

This may or may not work - I just signed onto this board today & am figuring out how to do stuff.

I'll have a better idea on the forks & the bike overall once I get it home.

Budget & time? I'm not planning a quick turn around. First I'll see if I can get it started & running. I'll be patient & tinker on it. It'll be a good project, & It'll give my riding buddy something to curse & spit about.

Hopefully the pic will "attach"

Thanks for the reply - I appreciate it.

Hey! It worked! All right!

 

That actually looks to be in really good shape.

Exhaust and fender

Carbs

Seat ( who cares???)

a little bath - new rubber potentially - fresh oil - fresh brake fluid... if the battery is ok

man - that's not bad at all.

 

It needs some work....

My list of replacement parts are about the same - a headlight is needed here in the USA - has to be ON when the bike is ON. Mostly bolt on stuff.

I'm going to attach another pic - from the front - Looks like the speedo back cover is missing too.

Well, that's all I've got for now - I'll post more when I get it home & have a good look.

Thanks for the encouragement.
PS - I had to flip the pic on it's side for it to attach - sorry.

 

Yes - speedo parts probably could be found at a wreckers... indicators might be fixable ( depends on whether they've cracked the stalks).

How much are you paying for this bike if you don't mind me asking?

 

$150 US dollars.

too much?

 

sounds about right... impossible to tell from here 100% but looks good.

 

UPDATE: got it home, only got a quick look over between rain showers. Needs a LOT of attention. I'll be making a more complete list of stuff later.

Due to inclement weather, & football playoff games, I tucked it away.

I'll be posting again soon with pictues.

 

I have a friend in Washington. He said its rained for over 25 days straight!

Ick!

BOL

 

Forcast for today was supposed to be clear. Nope, 28th day of scattered rain. The sun did come out for 5 minutes, then the clouds moved in again, with more rain. I have moss growing moss on my roof! Ick is RIGHT on.

Needless to say, I did nothing but look on Ebay for parts today & watch the football playoff games.

Long range forcast - more RAIN for the next 3 to 10 days.

Another beautiful day in paradise.......

 

List of what I can see that needs repair or replacement.

Stem to Stern (front to back), top to bottom, here's what I found needs replacement:

Headlight, headlight bucket, headlight bracket.
Speedo, Tach back plastic cover is broken - not sure if gauges work.
left mirror. Left mirror screw in spot is broken. Left control button switch for headlight on/off is broken. Unknown if turn signal switch works.
Both clutch lever & brake lever need replaced.
Brake fluid cup missing right screw for lid. Left screw is there, but phillips slot is reamed - I will have to counter screw & replace.
Both front turn signals broken.
Yellow reflector on right side missing.
Front fender missing
Front tyre is very worn & has small sidewall cracks.
Front caliper must be dragging - A LOT (bike is very hard to push or pull)
Left engine cover (Ignition pick ups?) broken with open spot on top.
Left foot peg (I have the bracket & spring no peg)
Left & right case saver bars bent back.
Left exhaust muffler.
Right side plastic cover missing (covers the rectifier & Battery box)
Seat cover needs replacement
Left & Right Rear signals broken, rear red reflector broken & missing
Rear tyre very worn & cracked
Drive chain rusty & dirty
Rear sprocket looks worn.

Tank looks good - inside is nice & shiny no rust spots. Missing Yamaha badge on right side. Cap has a few little rust spots on the chrome.

I have yet to get it fired up. The weather has NOT been nice around here.

I'll post more when I get a break in the weather.

Sammowry

 

Update: Good & bad.

Finally got a break in the rainy weather around here. Had a devil of a time getting the front caliper off the rotor. No wonder it was difficult to push! The brake pads were closed on the rotor.

Spun the front & back wheels. No wobbles. That's good.

Took the fuel tank off. The rubber carb manifolds are cracked. That's bad.

Tried to check the oil - the sight glass is very dark, & looking down into the oil opening didn't give me a clue to the oil level in this engine. I'll go spend a couple of bucks, get a new filter, drain what oil I can out of it, fill it with good.

Air filter was grey dirty & smelled like gas. Another couple of bucks for a new filter.

I got the headlight bracket with turn signals off the front. The left side is bent but the right looks good. I may be able to "gently persuade" this back into shape. Both signals are broken. As are the plastic housings for the tach & speedo. That's all I've done for now.

My goal is to get the engine to fire up. Unless there is something very important electrical on the left side where the broken cover was, I'm confident I can get this to run. Maybe not well at first, but run.

This is going to be loud with the left muffler missing!

I'll post more when I have more.

 

The carb manifolds - the rubber boots? Mine are cracked too - it just matters if they are air tire. If you find they aren't air tight you can use RTV silicone to make them air tight again... or you could buy new ones which you'd have to do eventually. I'm still running the original ones.

You can't see the oil from the top... in a way that is good - that means you didn't have the tank of gas get drained through a stuck float into the oil. Mine is dark when I change it - that's ok. If you do an oil change put cheap oil in the first time. Get it running and change it again shortly after you get it street ready.

Good luck - lots of cosmetic parts on your list... you'll be fine.

Woot.

 

She's truely mine now. I went & did the title transfer & registration at the licensing office today. I haven't done much other than ebay win a couple of items on the "replace" list.

The weather here has worsened. A pacific storm with wind & heavy rain forecasted for the next few days.

There's a "salvage yard" that is in a big concrete building that I'm planning on going to this weekend, to stroll with my list & see what I can find.

I'm working on a name for her - a character fault of mine - naming all my mechanical beasties.

My buddy is still shaking his head, cursing & spitting. He spits A LOT.

That's all I have for now, I'll be back with more.
Sammowry

 

I just got my title with my name on it yesterday, and the "real plates" in the mail the day before that. Had to celebrate by trying a few new roads...

 

hey it doesn't look all bad.. you might want to look into a place up in lynnwood called 'bent bike' they handled just about anything used..
good luck, keep us posted

 

Congrats Jazzmoose. I did a mapquest search on where Pineville was in LA. The only news we get up here of your state is still centered around New Orleans & the Katrina damage. I know that there are good things happening down there, but the only news reported is bad. I'm glad somebody is out riding! In my area, rain is still coming down, so I'm VERY envious.

And thanks to Dao29 for the Bent Bike suggestion. I've never been there myself, but do know about it. Ebay has been good place too.

Ebay wins - a $5 front fender, $13 Tach/speedo set, $10 used Clymer repair manual.

Does anybody have any good/bad comments on Cheng Shin tires? During this "bad weather" I've been researching tires. It's about all I can do, with the "winter weather" I've not been able to do a lot of wrenching.

Thanks for all the posts!

 

Feb UPDATE: No luck starting, but hope survives.

Good charged up battery, new gas, new sparkys, petcock on prime for 10 seconds, spritz of start spray in air box, choke on, in neutal, run switch on, key on, start button....

Engine turns over briskly but no fire.

I turned it off, waited a few moments, Choke off, start spray in air box, choke on, key on, start button....

No fire. Turned it off again. Waited & tried again.

I had 1 little "BUMP", but that was it. By the thrid try the battery was loosing its uhmph to crank over the engine.

That's all I was able to do this time around. The sky got darker & darker, threatening me or I'd get wet. It hasn't, but it feels like it.

I know that the right thing to do would be to pull & clean the carbs, but the rubber holders are very hard & cracked & they will get worse when I pull the carbs.

Hope survives, but just.

Sammowry

 

Sammowry;
Did you try what Woot said about the RTV sealant for the carb manifolds. If their in as bad a shape as you discribe, it wouldn't hurt to try it. I'm not sure if you have to remove them to do it. but if you do remove them, the mounting bolts are notorious for breaking. Best to spray with a good penetrating oil, I use PB Blaster. Then I took a 3/8 drive 6mm allen and inserted into the bolt and gave a few good raps with a hammer then took my ratchet and they came right out. I was lucky and didn't break any. Good luck.

 

Thanks for the tips jdrich48. I was hoping that new sparkys, good gas, & good spark from a battery would be just enough to get it to run. The cheap & easy route first.

Looking over my Clymers manual I'm resolved to do step by step trouble shooting, Spark, compression, Carbs, etc.

My frustration is mostly due to having only brief time in-between storms & other interuptions on my day.

I do appreciate the words of caution on the mounting bolts for the rubber intakes & will take extra care & your suggestions on removing them.

Thanks for the reply & the good luck!
Sammowry

UPDATE: 2/24/2006 Pulled the carbs. What a Pain in the rear! The rubber intakes are very, very, very cracked & old. Good thing was the allen screws were tight, but easy to loosen. I know why guys change to pods - it's easier to get them on & off so you can get the carbs out!

I'll have to get new intakes - which will be "ouch" in the wallet, but needs to be done. I'll go over the carbs - they're very dirty outside - but the throats look good & clean. The slides move, but are a bit slow. A gentle clean up to de-varnish & get rid of the old gas.

I'm going to try & attach a couple of pics. I'll do better taking pictures next time - I'll use my wife's camera.

I think I need to start a blog on this poor, poor thing.
I appreciate the replies!
Sammowry

 

I've started a blog on my efforts to revive this beast. I hope my posts will help encourage & motivate others.

Sammowry

 

Sam, your intakes are $100, which isn't that bad as bike parts go. Consider yourself lucky. Cheng Shin Tires are best avoided. I've a number of poor experiences with them, they are what you pay for, cheap. You have a beautiful bike there, I look forward to seeing the finished work. Best of luck to you.

 

Thank you Robert. Yeah, $25 per carb holder is a normal price. I replaced a pair for a Kawasaki 440 twin last year, $50 & shipping.

I'm a long waaay off from getting tires, but I've done some searches on other forums on cheng shin. Mostly negative responces. Dunlops are on my other 2 bikes & they work fine.

The digital pic's I've posted don't give the up close detail of rust spots & dirt all over this machine. It shows the barn storeage it has endured for 2 years. Bits of hay & grass & a layers of dust, dirt & rust all over.

She's a work in progress all right. Lately I haven't had much progress due to weather & daylight time. The days are getting longer.

I appreciate the reply & the comment on the Cheng Shin tires. Thanks.
Sammowry
P.S. I received the XJ CD's. Wow - lots of info on these! I'll order the next version too - with the cross reference!

 

hi Sammowry
keep us informed on progess with bike that baby sure needs some love and attention , i used to have the 550 it a great bike its definatley worth all the time and effort to do up , i'm looking on ebay at the moment in the UK at a maxim 550 ive already got a 750 max but i just cannot resit a 550 max to play around with . well done with pics its not easy at first but youve got it now . best wishes UK mike

 

are the carb boots cracked all the way through i see some people use resin to fill gaps .
i hope you guys dont mind me butting in on your conversion
best wishes all

 

Wow - I'm very flattered. My "barn rescue" has received replies from all over the USA, Nova Scotia Canada, Manatoba Canada, and most recent from Lincoln United Kingdom! I did a mapquest search where that is.

Wow. I am truely humbled. Thank you all for your replys.

Thank you for your best wishes from the UK.

In answer to the question about the carb holders / boots. I haven't done a really close inspection to see if they are cracked all the way through. The outsides are very dirty & some cracking is visible.

I guess I could have removed them at the same time I removed the carb bank, but I thought it better for the engine to leave the holders on, cram rags into the openings to stop anything else getting in there.

And as usual spring is happening around my home. Which means MY WIFE has many little jobs she wants done when the sun shines. Spring here can be told by the daffodil flowers that spring up & bloom, even when the temps get down to freezing over night or day long rain. They under stand the days getting longer & the Ultra Violet rays still coming down even when it's overcast. Now if the weather man would just co-operate & get me a few sunny moments & my wife would leave me alone for awhile - I would make more progress!

Again - Thanks for the replies - I do appreciate it!
Sammowry

 

the internet makes it a very small world , thanks for tracking me down i live 6 miles outside lincoln in a very small village if you blink when you pass through you miss it , i understand your wife needing jobs doing but tell her that the world is waiting for you to get bike up and running :lol:
best wishes from UK

 

3 weeks not much done.
Spring is sprung & the weather hasn't given me a break.
Tonight I tinkered on the carb bank, made a rough pencil diagram where brackets are screwed on & other noteables. Broke loose the float bowl drain screws. Number 4 was orange & took some determination to loosen.

That's it for now. Soon the weather will turn and I'll be wrenching like crazy!

Sammowry

 

first time iv read this post glad to see you found your self a xj to restore hope you get it running before the weather hit's the 70's post some more pic's when you get it washed up and the new parts on id love to see them well till next time have great day's

 

A BIG thank you has to go to TAZZMANN. In the 2 weeks I was gone on a trip he's done more than I've been able to do in a little over 5 months.

And the big announcement is...the RESCUE LIVES!

Vrrooomm! She sounds good too.

She still looks a mess - but the engine is running - and most of the rest is cosmetic, fine tuning, and some better rubber, which is on the parts bike - a straight swap.

Per Tazz, she should be back on her feet in a few days. (she's licensed & titled)

I'll get some pic's posted on here very soon. Yippee!

 

Yup, I stripped the parts bike down to frame and engine last night. Tonight I am swapping the tires, re-building the front brakes and setting the air mixture as good as I can get it until the colortune plugs arrive (Which I ordered yesterday). The wiring is a little off as the front headlight doesn't come on and the left front blinker comes on and stays on, but that is minor things. I am going over to a salvage yard this afternoon and looking for rear blinkers and other little cosmetic stuff. Next week is supposed to rain, so the next sunny weather break after that, I will sandblast and re-paint the tank. I am also looking at bead blasting the aluminum to help shiny it up a little. I will take some pictures tonight and post so you guys can see.

 

FWIW:
The blinker will stay on if there is only one of two bulbs working... ie - the front will stay lit if there is no rear bulb (and vice versa). It is a thermal flasher I'd guess, without both bulbs drawing current it won't heat it enough to toggle it off/on.

Great work guys - waiting for pictures!

 

ok, I should clarify. The front left blinker stays on constantly whether the switch is on or not. It NEVER shuts off even while playing with the switch. Now I kinda threw the wiring back together and may have something mis-connected inside the headlight bucket. I was just trying to get things halfway back together to see if I could get it to start. So, now I can go back and see if I fubared any of the wiring and correct it. (Not only that, when I put the wiring back together, I didn't have a manual to look at to see what wires went where)

 

Ah -

In that case - sounds like you might have it on park mode.

I always do what you did - throw it together and test fire it - alot less headaches to fix a problem when it is already in parts. I hate taking a fully assembled bike apart AGAIN just to fix one of my silly mistakes.

 

yeah, I am not big in taking things apart twice, but most of the bike is for naught if the engine don't run! And tracing the problem wiring should be easy!

 

Ok, well worked some more on the bike tonight. pulled the entire rear end off which was good because the swingarm was stiff. Then I noticed that the mufflers and pipes were not in all that good a shape, but the ones on the parts bike were, so I am in the process of swaping them out.

I won a set of SECA blinkers off of EPay and some mirrors, so those should be in next week. By the time they get in, the back end should be back on, the front caliper should be re-built, the front tire swapped out, the mufflers/header pipes should be back on and the carbs should be mostly tuned (as good as i can get without the YICS tool.) Basically, it should be ridable!

As soon as I get it all back together, i will post some pics so you guys can see the before and after pics! It is REALLY close now!

 

Got the rear end all back together, got the exhaust swapped over and cleaned up, got the front caliper re-built. Going to swap the front tire, adjust the mixture on the carbs, waiting on blinkers and she should be ready for a road test!

 

This is getting me excited. After I saw your bike stripped down to frame and engine I knew should be taking photos of my 550 Maxim restoration as well!

Reading through this thread has provided me with some answers to technical questions and will save me lots of time. I feel bad for not contributing but can at least add that my local MC tire supply store suggested the Conti Blitz for the Maxim. She's wearing them now and I can't wait to scrub them in!

By the way, I have spare turn signals and exhaust header if anyone out there's interested. I also have a spare seat in good condition - with the usual slight tear in one plete.

Anyway, sorry for the slight hijack and good luck with your project. I'll be posting pics here soon as well!

 

ok. Got the blinkers worked out. It was a corroded banjo on the rear left blinker. All the electrical works now after I also found a bad ignition cutoff relay.

Got the bike back together tonight including front brakes. I took it for a brief ride and found that it has a hard time shifting to and from second gear. Any ideas? Worn shift forks maybe?

 

ok, here are the before and after shots. Now in the after shots I am still not done detailing it, but you get the general idea...

 

front shot...

 

It's back on it's feet! Wooo HOOO! I was there when Tazz took it out for a quick run around the neighborhood streets before the RAIN came down.

There are some shifter issues to sort out but I'm sure Tazz will figure it out.

The middle picture above tells the start of this story - Deer Damage - meaning the previous owner was smacked or smacked a DEER. And stored in an OPEN BARN here in the Pacific Northwest. Even if it stays dry inside the barn, there's still lots of MOISTURE durning the winters.

But she is back on her feet. And she looks great. The first pic above shows it.

There's still some small details & tweaking that needs to be done, but Hey everybody - Give TAZZ an ATTA BOY or WELL done - he deserves it!

Sammowry

 

Ok guys, here is some shots of it after some detailing...

 

July 16, 2006 the barn rescue has a new owner and home.

A lot of thanks needs to go to Tazz, who did most of the work on the rescue and got her back on her feet again.

And that's the end of the story of the Barn Rescue!

 

Looks amazing!

After seeing those final pictures I'm thinking I should have looked for a 550 when I bought my 750. I love the 750 engine but the custom look I'm going for (and having a helluva time finding parts for) is near identical to the 550 there.

Very nice work!

 

Man it is truly a reborn again bike. very nice.

 

Buy a few sheets of ScotchBrite Buffing Pads. 3 - Red ... 3 - Gray (Course and Medium ... Oh, go ahead and get a few White ones, too ... why not!)

Start with the Red sheet.
Cut-out 7 circles of Red ScotchBrite using a the open end of a Yogurt cup as your template. Stack the 7 circles and push a nail right down through the center of them.
Mount those circles of ScotchBrite on the shaft of that tool you just got done finishing so it can't possibly gouge anything ... using the Star Washers to prevent the Pads from slipping on the rotating shaft.

Buff shift case, starter mount, alternator cover and crank cover with the Red stuff. (Mask YICS -- Don't worry about YAMAHA)

Red removes weathered clear coat and aluminum oxidation.
Gray restores finish to bright allow covers.
White places a very pleasant looking finish on the aluminum.

Various rouges and compounds:
Jewelers RED
Jewelers WHITE - 5
Jewelers GREEN - 6

Used with the buffing wheels that came with the kit ... will polish the cases to a mirror finish which rivals chrome.

 

Head to the hardware store and get yourself one of those buffing wheel kits for your drill. And a half dozen External Star Locking washers.

Round-off the hard square edge on the end of it at the grinder.
Spin-it ... at high-speed in the drill and hold some 400 Paper on the rounded-off edge until the 400 removed the scratches and makes the rounded-down edge real smooth.

Hit it again with 800 to put a finish on it that will not scratch or mar anything should that rounded-off end come into contact while spinning.

Buy a few sheets of ScotchBrite Buffing Pads. 3 - Red ... 3 - Gray (Course and Medium ... Oh, go ahead and get a few White ones, too ... why not!)

Start with the Red sheet.
Cut-out 7 circles of Red ScotchBrite using a the open end of a Yogurt cup as your template. Stack the 7 circles and push a nail right down through the center of them.
Mount those circles of ScotchBrite on the shaft of that tool you just got done finishing so it can't possibly gouge anything ... using the Star Washers to prevent the Pads from slipping on the rotating shaft.

Buff shift case, starter mount, alternator cover and crank cover with the Red stuff. (Mask YICS -- Don't worry about YAMAHA)

Red removes weathered clear coat and aluminum oxidation.
Gray restores finish to bright allow covers.
White places a very pleasant looking finish on the aluminum.

Various rouges and compounds:
Jewelers RED
Jewelers WHITE - 5
Jewelers GREEN - 6

Used with the buffing wheels that came with the kit ... will polish the cases to a mirror finish which rivals chrome.