New Member, New (to me) XJ750RH

Hi all,
I just picked up a 1981 Seca 750. I have always been a Harley man (20 yrs on an FXST) but HD sold me out to to the RUBs so here I am.

I like this little bike more than I would have thought after riding a 1340cc lugger for so long!

One question though, Is the Top End whine normal or do I need to take a look at it. I have never ridden an DOHC scooter until yesterday, so I don't know what they normally sound like. There's no pinging but it sings pretty loudly and taps just a bit.

It seems to perform well enough considering it is 28 yrs old and I have no Idea how well it has been maintained.

All-in-all, I have to say that I think I am going to be a happy Seca owner.

 

Congrats! I'm repairing my '82 Seca 750 at the moment. Hope to join you in about a year. (This bike is quite a mess.)

To answer your question, that whine you hear is probably normal. I hear that same sound in my Honda CBR 600 and in my XJ650 at higher RPMs. I think it's just a side effect of the high rate of turn on the engine's internals. The bigger block bike just spin slower, so you don't get that on those.

That said, neither of my 600s whine *loudly*. It's noticeable - particularly with ear plugs in - but it's mostly drowned out by the engine noise. If it's really loud or if it's coming from the final drive, you might have a bearing or a seal failing.

Have you changed the oil in the crankcase AND in the final drive yet? Could also be related to the timing chain (worn tensioner?).

 

Congrats on the Seca! They're mean little bikes, and you'll never see a RUB riding one... Although it would smoke a good majority of them :-D

The whine is pretty typical of the shafties... From what I understand, it's caused by improper lash on the constant mesh gears... But hey, for a bike that's almost 30 years old, what do you expect? Mine whines a bit too, but I'm kinda used to it now. Maybe I'll dig into it next winter.

 

rhys,
I haven't done anything but ride the s**t out of it yet!
I am going to change the oil and gear lube in the dif. this weekend.
I'm new to shaft drive too. I hope the learning curve isn't too steep.
I have to soak the header bolts and pick up some new ones before I can change the oil. as it doesn't look like I can get the oil filter cover off without dropping the headers.

 

Before you snap off an exhaust stud, see if you can tilt the filter housing enough to pull the old filter out. I used to remove the exhaust everytime I changed oil, but then figured out that I didn't need to remove the housing, just needed the filter out. Take note of how the spring and washer come out with the filter.

 

Greetings 40 and welcome!
A little whine is common at all speeds really. I love my "shafties". Low maintenance and durn near bulletproof (except when regular service is ignored). Where-abouts on the map are you located?

 

Y-Town, Ohio