1. Hello Guest. You have limited privileges and you can't "SEARCH" the forums. Please "Log In" or "Sign Up" for additional functionality. Click HERE to proceed.

XJ550 (re)build

Discussion in 'XJ Modifications' started by Lodewijk, Apr 20, 2019.

  1. Chitwood

    Chitwood Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    866
    Likes Received:
    374
    Trophy Points:
    63
    Location:
    Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin
    +1 I have a 650 in the garage with 44k miles on it and as soon as I find a suitable titled frame for it, or get a title for it's current frame, I fully expect it to run and shift just fine for as long as I want it to
     
    Lodewijk likes this.
  2. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    Thank you for the feedback, you raise a few good points. Leave well enough alone, and all that ... A rebore would def. not be in the works. So, I've ordered a compressiontest set and see what that gives.
     
    Rooster53 likes this.
  3. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    (stock) Fuel tank arrived today and it looks awesome on the bike! So much better than the aftermarket one that was one there ... It'll also hold more fuel, so that's another plus. All in all, it's in decent condition. A small dent and some scratches but fixable. The inside was rusted, though. I had already ordered a POR15 fuel tank kit and today was a holiday, so I dove straight into that!

    The kit holds a tank cleaner, rust remover, a sealant and some fixing gauze if you have small leaks (none, so far). A whole of shaking, waiting, rinsing, shaking, some more rinsing and drying (paint stripper gun) later, I'm ready to seal it. I'll give it two more days to dry completely (busy tomorrow) before I do that. I'll also strip and primer the outside then.
     
  4. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    So, I sealed the tank today. Pretty happy with the results! All the rust's gone and it looks nice and shiny on the inside now. :)

    Before:
    [​IMG]

    After:
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Once I get some body filler, I can start on the outside.

    I finally got the heads off, too. Looks like I have a lot of cleaning up to do.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  5. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    Yesterday, I stripped the paint from the outside of my fuel tank. I used a chemical that you just slop on, let it do it's thing and you can scrape the paint off in 20 minutes. Well, it worked as promised but it took longer than 20 minutes. I've learned it always takes longer when working on bikes. Judging by the body filler I uncovered, this tank has already been places in its life. Also, after rinsing the stripper off, it started rusting straight away. So, I gave it a quick sanding and applied some anti-rust. After letting it dry for a couple of hours, I gave the tank a coat of black primer. And decided to have it painted rather than doing that myself. ;-)

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
    Uxbridge Brule likes this.
  6. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    Today I started cleaning the head. I took the valves out with my shiny new valve spring compression tool and started scrubbing that built-up carbon out! And look what was hiding beneath all that grime ...

    [​IMG]

    Wait, what's that on the number 2? :eek:

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Let's check the piston!

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    :(

    How f***ed am I on a scale ranging from "She'll be right, mate" to "You're turbo-f***ed"?
     
  7. k-moe

    k-moe Pie, Bacon, Bourbon. Moderator Premium Member

    Messages:
    19,613
    Likes Received:
    6,703
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    The City of Seven Hills
    You're fine. The damage is minimal. Clean it up and run the parts. Heck, it's clearly been running that way for a long while already.
     
    Chitwood likes this.
  8. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    Good to hear! ^-^ I wasn't looking forward to having to find a new (old) block.
     
  9. a100man

    a100man Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    1,597
    Likes Received:
    346
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Location:
    Bedford, UK
    something got in there - but it's not there now. How was compression on that one?
     
  10. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    By the time the compression set arrived, I'd already taken the head off. =/ Not my brightest moment, in retrospect.
     
  11. a100man

    a100man Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    1,597
    Likes Received:
    346
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Location:
    Bedford, UK
    Oh well, not to worry - from what I can tell the bores survived 'the intruder.'
     
  12. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    Yesterday, I took the afternoon off to work on my bike. Weather was good, and that reminded me I have an unfinished bike in my shed. I've been slacking a bit lately with the family and vacation and stuff ... Got a few things done, so feeling a bit better about myself again.

    A mechanic friend supplied me with some noxious stuff to soak my cylinder head in. Hopefully now I'll get all the goo and grime off. At first glance it's also stripping the black paint off the PO put on the engine block, so it's doing something at least (lol). I also managed to get the engine block out of the frame. PO welded some kind of panel in there, and that's going to be in the way for the airbox. Now I can decently get at it with grinder.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    I also got the cylinder block of the crankcase/engine.

    [​IMG]

    Is this discoloration of the cylinder heads normal?

    [​IMG]

    The Clymer manual said to check for variance and play in the piston rods (other than the normal, rotating motion). I'm able to rock all piston rods left to right about a milimeter; is this normal wear?

    The oil pan has some sludge in it, but less than I was expecting. Also, no metal or other particles so that's good. Not planning to split or open the crankcase if I can help it.
     
  13. Franz

    Franz Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    3,646
    Likes Received:
    1,037
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Scotland UK.
    As you have the bike dismantled to this extent it would be a good idea to replace any potential problem parts in the crankcase. It may save you a lot of work later.
     
    Lodewijk likes this.
  14. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    That's sound reasoning. I hate to sound like the noob that I am, but any pointers to what to check?
     
  15. Franz

    Franz Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    3,646
    Likes Received:
    1,037
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Scotland UK.
    Last edited: Jul 18, 2019
    Lodewijk likes this.
  16. a100man

    a100man Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    1,597
    Likes Received:
    346
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Location:
    Bedford, UK
    Pfff. Really? A 'may save' isn't enough for me. Top end rebuild is usually enough on these motors isn't it? The shaft version have there own set issues though I understand. Like most of us the guy is struggling to find time to do the basics and then there the carbs to set-up, brakes to reburb etc..yet...
     
  17. Lodewijk

    Lodewijk Member

    Messages:
    101
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Oudenburg, Belgium
    Continued the good work today, by starting to clean the engine block. Had to stop because it started to rain (doing it outdoors so I don't trip on the fumes).

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Are these supposed to come out? Because they're stuck in there good, and if I have to use pliers, I'll score them.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  18. Ryengoth

    Ryengoth Active Member

    Messages:
    720
    Likes Received:
    194
    Trophy Points:
    43
    Location:
    Wilmington, NC
    Don't bother with those, they look fine, just replace the O-rings and the head gasket as well as the big cylinder o-rings.
     
    Lodewijk and Franz like this.
  19. Polock

    Polock Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    9,751
    Likes Received:
    2,093
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Beaver Falls, PA
    go ahead and open up the bottom, there's all sorts of fun stuff in there
     
  20. PavelK313

    PavelK313 Active Member

    Messages:
    205
    Likes Received:
    99
    Trophy Points:
    28
    Location:
    Fairfield CA
    Wiha and Knipex tools... I like your style! ;)
     

Share This Page