Seeking input on possible acquisition..

Hi friends! Today I answered an ad in our local newspaper for an '86 XJ700 Maxim and went on a test drive. I visited the fella selling the bike and my first impression with the bike was that it didn't look too bad. It looks like he wasn't happy with the original oem paint scheme and started down the path of making it a 'midnight' special. It was bit of a sloppy job with overspray on the engine and such but I could live with it. Overall the bike seemed pretty clean with 13000 miles on the clock. It started right up (of course, I gave him a call and let him know I was on my way, so don't know if there are any starting issues).

So my question is, can anyone out there fill me in on the 'typical' quirks with this make/model bike? We all know that every bike has some quirks and I'm interested in learning about the XJ700.

I noticed after my test ride, it appeared to idle high...like 1200 rpm (if I recall correctly). Not sure if that's masking a problem with the carbs or not. Anyone know what idle it should be after a decent ride? The machine will need new rubber front and rear and possibly new rear brakes. Also noticed the current owner whacked off the front turn signals for whatever reason so I would like to put those back on.

I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to stuff like this so if I buy it, I'll prolly try to take it back to oem fit and finish.

Anyway, all comments/input welcome.

Thanks!

 

Welcome dcbc ! You didn't say if it idled smooth, or with a "lope".
And did it pull in gear smoothly at 1,200 ? Starter grind? I don't have that model, but idle is 1,050 , and a lack of low end smoothness indicates carb work.
You also didn't reveal the asking price, so $750 = good find regardless of paint. $1,800 = he's dreamin !!!

 

Yeh, $$$$ that would be my first question, can't make a judgement without knowing the asking.

 

I have a 85 XJ700 and in my service manual it says that it should idle at about 1100 rpm

 

Thanks for the input so far.

The bike idled smoothly and pulled hard through all gears. No noticeable lope or anything like that. No starter grind noticed. He started out asking $1700, then dropped to $1500. Then when the tire discussion came up, the price dropped to $1200. I'm thinking about making him an offer of $1000 as I think it's fair.

It seemed to be a very comfortable bike.

Thanks guys!