New to the site

Howdy, I have a xj650 that has sat for about 6 years. With gas prices as they are, I decided to try to get it running. I have gotten a lot of good advice from this site and have just cleaned the carbs thoroughly. I got it to run after about 6 minutes of trying and it sounded a little rough before it backfired and caught on fire. I put it out without much damage. There is a definite leak in my gas tank.

 

Welcome.
Sounds like you've got a start just don;t gurn down the house.
There is much help to be found on this site.
The Buff

 

Welcome to the forums! These old bikes are notorious for doing that"not really". I know when I tried starting mine after a few years of sitting I had one of the plugs out to check spark and it fell back down to the plug hole and it ignited the fuel in the cylinder and I had flames shoot out of it right down my side about 8 ft in the air. I was working in my shed at the time. Good to hear you didn't get hurt or sustain to much damage! Depending on how bad the leak is in the gas tank you might be able to put a tank liner in it or solder the holes. Good luck!

 

Dididid, welcome. While we love to hear from new folks, it is especially good to hear from folks who have been there, done that.
I am glad to hear you didn't suffer too badly with the subsequent fire. We recently had a member burn down his garage while working on his bike. I hope that these lessons re-enforce the need to have a properly rated fire extinguisher handy when working around fuel.
Welcome to the gang and I look forward to learning just who it is you have as your avatar (I'm leaning toward Weird Al).

 

Needless to say my wife wasn't very pleased.

 

backfired and caught on fire.

did you get any pictures?

 

I really wasn't thinking about a camera at that time... Maybe I can ask the neighbors.

 

Robert,
Was it the bologna curls or the wild shirt that gave Weird Al away?

 

^^^The shirt, hands down.
Seen him in concert yet? WELL worth the while. If you think his videos are funny, he (the whole band) performs exactly like the videos I remember, fat suit and all!

 

Weird Al was the first concert I ever saw. I was in the army and they had him come to our base. He was a hoot!

mikeg

 

I haven't seen him yet, hopefully soon

 

I lit up my bike a few years ago using starting fluid without an air filter in place (and using too much of it, I might add). The fire extinguisher by the garage door saved my air box and wiring - if not my whole house. I lost some potentially precious seconds by having to untangle the sweatshirt and dog leash that were hanging from it.

Have 'em handy, keep 'em full, and know how to use 'em!

Sure, I had a heck of a time cleaning all of the powder out of the airbox/intakes, but it was a small price to pay for what could have been a HUGE mistake.

Welcome to the group. I certainly call that baptism by fire.