asmudgexj600

Sorry for more obvious questions, but what tools do I need for those? I assume I need a compression gage and vacuum gage for the carbs. what else?

I'm new to bikes, so those weren't obvious for me. Thanks alot, I'll look into them.

Hi all, I hope you can help. I finally fixed the oil leek problem with my xj600 (is anyone else has the problem, the way I fixed it is on the bar forum) I went for a ride yesterday, everything was fine, but my top speed was 70mph in wind, almost 80 on flat no wind. Should I expect this top speed from a 1998 xj600 n which hasn't been too well looked after (till me!) If not, any suggestions as to what's wrong? Thanks for any help.

How does that work?? Mine's only valid till 2013, and I only got mine just over a year ago?!

Sorry, yeah should have said. I'm not exactly how the problem started, but basically, the guy who I bought it off had over-filled the oil (I don't know if it was the starting cause, but it definately made things worse). When I removed the tank and the air filter and air box, I found that the filter was covered in oil, the box had loads in it too. The breather hose that comes out of the air box (towards the front, to the crankcase) was clogged with thick whitish/grey oil. The thick bore hose that comes out of the airbox (towards the rear) was also all clogged up. I cleaned the air filter element, took off the hoses and cleaned them with meths and pipe-cleaners (trying to scrape out any gunk I could see where I taken them off). I made sure when I put everything back that all the breather-hoses were free from nicks or bends or kinks. I then drained the oil (the bike was warm before any of this - watch you fingers on any hot parts) took the filter off, and did a full filter and oil change. Cleaned the engine and downpipes with a bike-cleaning product that breaks down oil (most of the smoking war from hot oil on metal). I ran it for a bit, then took the tank off to see if there was anything in the air filter, nothing. That was it. I think it was a combination of over-filling, blocked hoses and the bike being barely run in the winter (before I got it), that was the problem.

I was tinkering with my bike today (for the first time ever), and I managed to fix a problem (air filter and box getting filled with oil when the engine is hot, then dumping it all over the road when I stop). I went out for a 60mile round trip, and ... no leak, no smoke..........BLISS That feeling of having managed to fix a problem on your own (with the help of the YOG forum) was f***ing amazing! Considering I'm a complete newbie when it comes to bike mechanics, I was chuffed, almost as much as passing my test with only 1 minor after being certain I'd failed it at the first roundabout! Anyone got other bike-related moments of bliss?

I want to swap the led indicators off the back of my bike, because the front ones are normal ones, and it means there's no flasher relay wired in, so the rear indicators are only bright if i'm revving. (not great at traffic lights) I don't really like the led lights, so I want to put normal indicators on the back. For some reason, original xj600 indicators on ebay are quite expensive: about £20 each. There are others (Which the sellers say will fit a yamaha). Does it matter which ones I get? For example I found some cheap xj900 ones, would there be any problem with putting them on my 600? Cheers

...ok, maybe a its not potentially as straigtfoward as I'd hoped. Different question: I read somewhere in post that someone had called Yamaha UK to ask about his Dragstar. Is there a number you can just call to get mechanical advice without having to pay a garage for a consult?

I've got 98 xj600, and it rattles like mad in neutral (but not once ive reached biting point). I was told it might be the cam chain tensioner. Its easy to remove and check, the Hayes manual explains it well, but I can talk you through it, if you know where it is. (I don't mean to be patronising, but I'm just learning, and names mean bugger-all to me until i see a picture). I checked mine, It worked fine, I put it back in, overtightenned and snalpped the bolt. It was easy enough to get a 'new' one from a salvage yard (cost me about a fiver). The rattle is still there, so I'm told it might be the cam chain itself, but that its not an urgent problem at all. One thing I did find out though, was that my bike was iddle under the recommended revs. When i upped the iddle to the correct revs the rattling died down by about half. Might help? Again, hayes tells you how, Or I could tell you if u like. Hope some of that helps.

Hiya, newbie here, I've had my bike a couple of months, I think the guy who had it before was a bit of pratt and botch-job merchant. I just took the tank off my xj600 to see why it was dripping oil when hot, wnadered if anyone could help. OK, firstly the oil drippage was from the where the 'drain hose from the left side of the air cleaner housing' should be, but on mine theres no hose, the oil just drips right out of the stubby tube that pokes out. When I took the filter out, there was oil in bottom of the air box, what I can't work out is how it got there. When I disconnected both the tubes that come out of a t-shapes piece that comes out of the bottom of the air box, they were both a bit gunked up with oil that had gone thick and white (i think thats because of water and I hadnt run the bike for a while) One is called the 'large-bore crankcase hose' and the other 'drain hose' When I took the air box off, the carburettors looked clean and oil-free (the oil that has been pissing out of the air box is black or dark brown) When I went to disconnect the fuel tank, where the instructions (in the Hayes manual) tell me to 'pull the breather line off the tank stub', there was no breather line, its already been taken off, and by all accounts doesn't exist. Finally, the vacuum line goes to the 'manifold stub' is just a short piece of hose with what looks like a bold comming out of the other end (imagine of the head of an allen bolt was up the hose, with the threat sticking out), I don't know if its supposed to be like that, of its another botch job. LOTS of info there, sorry, but I really want to fox this problem, because its stops me doing anything more a small commute. I've got a new oil filter, and oil, but want to try and fix the problem before I do an oil filter change. Can any engine boffins make any sense of this?