Xj750 Seca - things to do after it has been sitting

Hey everyone,

Recently i was given a 83-84 XJ750 Seca- I was told just to go pick it up and it would be mine, I'll be going to get it today.

I was just curious on if there was anything special i should look for before i attempt to start it?
-It has been sitting for about a year or two. My uncle said that he parked it in his garage and it has not been messed with since, It was running when he parked it, but it has not been touched since. He had purchased a new bike and had planned to do something special with the XJ but that never happened.

I have been seeing on some forums that people have 60k + miles on these bikes and they are still running, how many miles have you all put on yours?

I hear that the carb's need to be syncronized quite a bit, I have been looking all over for the YCIS tool I hear you can make your own.

If your interested i'll post some more information about the bike once i acctually go pick it up.

 

If it were me it kinda depends on how much it was run before parked last year or the year before. If it hadn't run in years then your uncle got it to fire up, took it around the block then parked it again that's a whole different story than if it was someone's daily driver for a decade then your uncle got it and parked it, ya know what I mean?

I don't know what your mechanical aptitude is so anything I said could end up anywhere from helpful to patronizing. Mostly the usual "spark, lube, carbs" stuff about any vehicle that's been sitting.

There are known issues with rear brake shoes delaminating. this CAN be deadly and you don't know till ya pull the wheel and have a look. It's a game of russian roulette if you try to ride it without checking. If things go south on you it locks the rear up SOLID, in a perfect situation you'd still be stuck repairing the wheel, brakes and so on. less than perfect and you have a very bad day.

The YICS tool is easy to make and easy to use. the tricky part is tracking down good materials to use for the flexible tubing portion.

I hear people often saying they have an '84. I think that's a registration thing, leftover '83 inventory sold later.

please do come on back when ya have it. After all, We're all here cuz we're into XJ's.

 

Thanks for the reply,

As for how it was running before, He is an avid bike rider, Through the week as much as he can and on the weekends it was taken out every few days if not daily before it was parked, from what he said the bike always ran well, he would have it put in the shop every year before he would take it out and have it tuned and the carb's synced. He purchased a new bike and that’s why the XJ was retired.

I will defiantly take your advice and check all of the brakes etc. that would make for a terrible riding experience.

I had money saved to purchase a bike, but with him giving me this bike I can use the saved money to fix/repair/replace whatever I need to on this one.

He was unsure about the year; I will get a copy of the VIN and see what I can learn from that as well as the title.

Any advice at all is welcomed, I do not take offence at all when I am given advice, and I appreciate any and all helpful ideas.

I’m new to the bike world.
I’m one of the kids where the parents would constantly pop off with the idea that bikes are dangerous and I should never have one. I’ve finally gotten interested in bikes, taken the safety training courses provided through my local college and I think that I’m ready to own one of my own.

As with everything else I have, I enjoy fixing it on my own, I believe that it gives me a greater appreciation of what I have if I can say that I have maintained and repair it with my own hands.

Once I get the bike here and have a look at it, I plan to get a ColorTune, and attempt to make a YICS, so I can keep everything tuned myself.

 

Smoking and motorcycling both seem to have skipped a generation in my family. Grandparents all did both, parents set against 'em and here I am.

If he had been riding it consistently then I'd say you're fine as far as the risk of delamination goes. still worth a look but I'd ride it home, ya know?

You've definitely got the right attitude AND come to the right place for doing your own work. Your bike (and mine) isn't the absolute simplest to wrench on but it's close. The early 80's in my mind represented a the beginnings of some major spurts in innovation so you'll see much of the same concepts as earlier (simpler) bikes but with a few, limited twists here and there. Case in point, YICS and all those sensors fed to the atari dash. The motor on the other hand is "just" a good ol aircooled DOHC straight four. Shaft drive is a low maintenance dream. I could type all day but I've got my carbs all over the kitchen right now and loving it.

Welcome to the addiction.

 

if it was me i would change the oil clean the carbs and tank out. replace the plugs while you have the tank off. get it started .change the brake fluid and would probbibly be a good idea to change the differential fluid .ride it see how it runs then work on tuning it.
i realize you want to ride but i see alout of people that get it running then put off changing the fluids if you do it first you dont have to worry about it but get it started before changing the brake and diff oil.

 

The standard XJ bugaboos besides the carbs are the crumbly fusebox and perpetual fine rust in the fuel tank.

Rear brake delam you're aware of; install in inline fuel filter almost immediately, rebuild or retrofit the fusebox and you're off to a good start.

Front brake fluid needs to be flushed out ond replaced; plan on rebuilding the calipers and master cylinder soon, and replacing all the lines sooner. Good opportunity for an upgrade to stainless lines.

Valves will need to be checked and probably adjusted; be sure to check the date codes on the tires. Tubeless motorcycle tires more than 6 years old are a recipe for disaster.

Get a manual, and go though all the maintenance items, one by one and don't skip any.

Welcome aboard. Take your time, be patient and methodical and it will be very rewarding.

You might want to read this: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=24010.html for a perspective on the process; and this: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=14581.html so you know exactly what you're getting into.

Oh, and this: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=14577.html will help you conclusively identify your bike.

 

Actually, the very first thing that is supposed to be done to a new bike is show us some pictures!

 

Here are some pics after a quick bath, it was covered from head to toe with dust.















After checking everything out,

-The Gas tank was drained before it was left to sit,

-I looked into the tank and to my suprise i didnt see any rust at all and i was looking hard for it.

-The front brakes didnt work at all. The back brakes worked great.

-The throttle was stuck, it wouldnt turn at all.

-The clutch worked and it would click through all the gears without any problems.

-The choke was working fine i could see it raising and lowering above the carbeurators

-I hooked it up to my battery pack, all of the lights work <turn signals etc> all except for the Headlights. The fusebox was replaced with a newer style fuse box. Horn works fine.

-The oil looked clean.

I tried to turn it over to make sure the engine was not siezed, it sounded like it had great compression, it tried to start up.

I am now going to take everything apart / clean / replace all fluids / check all hoses / replace the spark plugs.

 

Also after looking at the VIN, i believe this is a 82 XJ750 - i used the VIN decoder to get a idea of the year etc...

The vin on the front forks reads : JYA5G2005CA107600

 

Nice bike, or it will be. From the looks of the upper part of the fork tubes and the carb hats you've got some work ahead.

It'll be worth it.

 

Thanks!, I hope so, I plan on taking your advice to the max Ive read many of your posts, i'm a perfectionist in all that i do, sometimes to a fault. I want to do exactly that with this bike, Its exactly what i have been looking for.

 

you lucky person sweet looking bike congrads

 

what a beauty. The fairing and luggage are a little few and far between. Several less spiders in the atari than I had and I paid more

 

Ok, time for an update,
I was able to break down some things, I found out the stuck throttle cable was due to the carbeurator being seized.
I managed to take the carbs off, the rubber pieces that attach the carbs to the head are going to need to be replaced.
I plan to rebuild the carbeurator over the next few days, we will see how that goes!

I purchased the manual and ill be reading through that when I get a few moments

 

The carb cleaning is going to take a bit longer than I had first expected. I worked on them for 3 hours last night and I was only able to complete #1 but boy is it pretty.
3 to go!

Also I’m going to have to try to possibly use the bike inner tube fix on the Intake boots - Hopefully that will at least let me know if the engine will run or not.

I'll be working on the carb's again tonight after work, I took the Main Jets out - when I unscrewed them after breaking them loose, 2 of them just spun in place without screwing out at all. Has anyone had that experience?

I purchased a new set of Main Jets off of EBay to make sure that it’s not something wrong with them.

Once I finish the carb's I plan to work on re-wiring the Harness!

 

You've got some fun ahead! I mean that, these bikes are awesome to work on.

 

Another update – I have taken all of the carb’s apart and let the pieces sit in cleaner, then hand cleaned every part, The troublesome parts seem to be on the carb body, The very tiny pilot outlet, and bypass holes located in the main chamber. I tried everything and I could not find anything that was small enough to clean these holes, so I just keep spraying them really good with high pressure carb cleaner, other than that everything looks great, passed the clunk test on all of them,

Another problem that I am having, which may just be my fault, I was cleaning the float bowls, where the emulsion tube sits, It looks like the emulsion tube is supposed to connect to the inner area of the float bowl, but for the life of me, I cannot get any air to pass between the two holes,


(The image is from 98formulaLS1's catb cleaning post)


Do I need to keep trying or do the two sections not connect?

 

Those holes connect and you need to get them cleared!
I have used, ahem... uh Rick, cover your ears, a small drill bit (1/16 or smaller) to GENTLY drill out gunk blocking that hole. I emphasize gently as you don't want to chuck that bit into the 18V you got for Christmas and go to town on these things. By hand only and easy does it. Gentle twists by hand should clear enough of the blockage to get you going. Be sure to pull out of the hole often (every other twist would be a good starting point) and inspect the debris you are generating.
Again, BY HAND. Have I made the point? Under no circumstances should you use enough pressure to remove metal, if you do, STOP! Take the carbs to someone else and avoid damaging the carbs further.
Good luck!
Ok, I will now endure the inevitable brickbats and stones that are sure to be thrown at me for suggesting such a course of action.

 

Ok great! Thanks for the idea, last night i was using one of my dremel's very small round tipped drill/router type bits to try to remove some of the gunk, ill just keep at it!

 

Make your own YICS tool.. I did.

Open both ends of the YICS port. Push a straightened coat hanger through the hole, Make a flat hook at the pushed through end and jam a rag into the hook (I used 2 inches off the bottom of an old tShirt. Pull the rag back though so it's sticking out both ends (This needs to be a tight fit) and inside, It'll be blocking off the YICS holes.

Works just as well as the YICS tool, costs a lot lot less.