Just got my first bike. It's an XJ.

Hello all!

Just got my first ever bike! It's an '82 650 Maxim.

I know for a fact it needs carb work. A cleaning at minimum. It's definitely going to need some TLC, but should be a nice bike when I get her running. It only sat for 2 years after the last owner stopped riding, so it shouldn't take all that much, I think. Pic is attached.

Looking forward to learning a lot about this bike. I haven't gotten to ride it yet (not running), but it seems to fit me really well, and I hear mostly good things about them.

 

It looks like a solid start.

Welcome aboard.

Expect to clean and service the carbs; get the valve clearances in spec; completely rebuild the brakes and replace the tires if they're more than about 6 years old. BEFORE you try to ride it.

Don't assume any of the above has been attended to. Look in "XJ FAQ Suggestions" for a lot of articles on all of the above; including the importance of the brake rebuild. A lot of these bikes are kicking around with dangerously old brake hoses and a good chance of delaminating rear shoes.

They ARE great bikes; but you'll have to reverse a bit of neglected maintenance in order to get the most out of it and stay safe.

That's why we're here; but you will need a service manual.

 

BIG fitz is a wealth of info , welcome to xj forever . lots of folks here to help you . your new bike looks really good im sure you will be able to ride soon and safe with the help from the forums . welcome

 

Welcome to the XJ family zoo. As stated from those before me, there is a wealth of information here on this site.

 

Welcome!

http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=14561.html

 

Welcome, looks a decent enough bike &, with the above advice taken will be a good start to your "career"

 

robut,

Welcome.

Gary

 

Wow! This looks like a great resource for parts!

I found another post elsewhere on the forums with a giant checklist of things to check before riding an old bike, such as mine. I have a friend who completely rebuilt an 82 Nighthawk from the frame up coming over to help me check over everything this weekend, as well as help me clean the carbs and see if I need a rebuild kit. After this weekend I will most likely be looking to order some of those parts

 

This is a fantastic site! Bigfitz is the man. Do what he says. Welcome to the club.

 

I will indeed do what Bigfitz says!

I'm eager for Saturday to get here so I can start working on it! My apartment doesn't let me work on vehicles in the parking lot, so I had to leave it at my dad's house 45 minutes away. It's very hard to not waste the gas every night just to look at it

 

no wasting going on there, sometimes i sit back, drink a bourbon, run my hand through my beard and just stare at mine

 

Sitting looking at your bike (especially with a drink or 3) helps visualise what you're going to do with it, so agreed no a waste of anything

 

Well, there was a mouse nest in the air filter/airbox, and a few helpful parts were missing. I'm cleaning the carbs over the next couple days, and the parts I need are in the mail. I tested all the electronic parts with the new battery I bought, and everything checked out perfectly. The engine turns over just fine, and my buddy is coming over some time soon to help me do a compression test, since I've never done it before.

All in all, not a bad 10 hours of inspecting. I wager she will be running next weekend, if not 100% road worthy yet!

These forums were invaluable for information throughout the day. I'm thoroughly impressed!

 

Welcome aboard! I just finished restoring an 82 XJ650J myself. I can tell you that rebuilding of the master cylinder, brake caliper, replacing the front brake lines and the rear brake shoes as well as the tires are an absolutely must. My bike seemed fine except for carbs and cosmetics. Once I got digging, because of this board, I found the brake lines were over 30 years old, the front brake caliber was leaking, the rear brake shoes showed delamination and the tires had dry rot cracks in them. No sense risking your life over a few hundred dollars, take a close look at these items..before you go out for a ride. Again, welcome aboard!

 

Welcome.
Great choice for a first bike IMHO.
As you, my first bike is an XJ.
The information and support on this site has been an invaluable aid and teaching tool to me for everything XJ.
I bought a "fixer upper" from my neighbor. It took 50 or so tries to start it in damp 60 degree weather.Ended up learning a lot while bringing it back up to spec. It now starts in one or two tries from 30 to 100 degrees, damp or not.
Pulls like a champ and purrs like a kitten.
All thanks to the help here.
These guys definitely know their sh%t.

Good luck with your endeavor.
Maz

 

I am absolutely going to check all of the above. I might have the shop check all the rear wheel related stuff. Brakes, drive shaft lube, etc. Seems like a big pain to take that sucker off myself. Especially with this bike being shaft driven. Am I wrong in that assumption?

 

Yep.

All of the drive shaft/final drive stuff stays put. Once you pull the axle and spacers out, the rear wheel/brake comes away from the final drive.

I'd forget about that "shop" thing. Most shops won't touch a bike as old as ours; and those that will often have no clue as to what they're doing. A 30-year old bike is pretty much a DIY proposition unless you're made of money. AND can find a qualified mechanic to pay.

Find a service manual; you're going to need it.

 

You can see a list of everything I ended up doing to my bike here.....
http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic ... tml#273379
I first brought my bike to a bike shop but like Fitz said they really do not know how to work on them. I ended up having to redo everything I had them do. Don't waiste your money. Learn to do it yourself. You have people here that will be able to help you with any problem you might have.

 

DYI projects are fairly easy with the help of everyone here. The secret is to read..read..read..and reread a procedure before grabbing a wrench. Even then, it something isn't coming apart or going back together easily, then stop, reevaluate, ask the board, discuss the problem, refer to manual. Most of all, don't lose your temper. Temper breaks more than it fixes.

 

Great advice.

I have done everything myself so far, Just from looking at the rear wheel and all related parts it seems a bit tough, but I'll go ahead and do it myself. I actually really enjoy the work, I was just trying to save a little headache.

So far I have checked and double checked everything on this bike, except for the rear wheel stuff I mentioned. It really wasn't too bad, except for the mouse nest in the air filter/box.

 

You did the valve clearances already too?

How old are the front brake lines, originals? Date codes on the tires?

 

Don't forget about the wheel bearings. While you have that wheel off I would change them out. Mine were busted into pieces. Both front and back were bad. You don't want to be going down the road and have the center of the wheel come apart on you. My bike only had 11,000 miles on it also so please keep this in mind.

 

Haven't done the valve clearances yet. That's something outside my realm of knowledge, so I'm having a friend come over soon to show me how. He's bringing his compression testing kit as well. Brake lines, among a few other parts are in the mail! They were definitely original haha.

 

Yes, Fitz makes some valad points... There is more work to be done on this bike than you may think. You want to check out everything. Being safe is a priority. You don't want wheels to fly apart, you don't want to be able to stop, you don't want any cables to break while going down the road, etc.

 

If you get a maual you will be able to take care of all these things properly.

 

Valve clearances how-to: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=14827.html

Part Deux: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=29209.html

And don't forget the caliper and master cylinder seals, they had a recommended life span of TWO years.

 

ya know...ain't it some crap...get a old cheap bike...start puttering polishing and shining...and the next thing ya know your a old motorcycle mechanic restoring a old beauty. I can say for me, it has been fun and rewarding, if not educational. It the scheme of all things...having an old XJ to restore has been pretty cool. Again thanks to everyone on this board for the solid advice on how to restore and make the bike SAFE!

 

Welcome, and looks like you're well on your way. Make sure you check the date on the brake lines...I got a bike last year that had been ridden about 1k miles each year since 1982, and when I started looking the brake lines were dated 1981! That's an almost guaranteed fail if you ever needed a panic stop. Do not trust the rubber, be it lines or tires. Check and replace after their expiry date.

You'll like the shaft drive, very simple.

 

Not only are you more than welcome, that's pretty much my story too. I rescued my '81 from beside the road, figuring, hey; old, cheap bike, fix it up a bit, ride it to work and save some money. I've been riding all my life, British twins mostly, plus a smattering of Jap bikes; but a bike is a bike and I sure had worked on and resurrected enough of them. Plus, I had very good experiences with my '80s Yammies back in the day.

Then I discovered Mikunis ain't Amals and my golly I'm surrounded, there's four of 'em! Purely mechanical stuff like valve clearances and clutches and wheel bearings and brakes=easy squeezy. Not that I haven't had my share of CV carb experience, my MGs had dual SUs.

So after all that, and experiencing the "I can roll the bike forward but not backward" syndrome plus a goofy safety circuit---

Then I joined XJ Bikes. The guys here helped solve my remaining issues and the bike became a reliable commuter, plus a stone gas to ride. Said to myself, "self, I gotta get another one of these!"

The second one was easy.

 

And therein lies the "problem" with a community like this... I'm already eyeing up a couple of 750 secas on ebay with low start prices fresh from the US... :?

 

Hey guys. Which model carbs are on my 82 xj650 Maxim? I'm hoping to do a little reading at lunch today.

Thanks in advance!

Also, I'm going to check out that valve clearance guide you linked for me BigFitz. Thanks!

 

*SHOULD* be Hitachi HSC32, you can check the side of your carbs to make sure they're Hitachi (they have like a star in a circle on the body, will add a pic if you want.) Mikunis have Mikuni (shocker, that! ) or MIK on the body.

 

Awesome, thank you!