BrewTrooper

I'm going to restore my rusting kickstarter (see picture below). I know how to kill the rust and prep it for painting, but I'm not sure if the original finish is chrome, or just a chrome paint. I was hoping one of you could help me out with some of your experience. Also, if you have any suggestions on how to restore it...I'm all ears. Thanks, BrewTrooper (a.k.a. Ken)

Congratulations on the manual. You can also check out this site. It has a lot of nice full color picture of the whole breakdown. Also, the carbs used are almost identical to yours. Carb Rebuild Pictures Good luck!!

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that you might assume you'd have to lube a disc brake line. I was just curious, since the brake fluid in the line might gel. If so, you'd have to obviously change the fluid.

Jerka, When I mentioned the chasis, I did mean the two nipples on either side. There should only be two. To lube the cables, I just remove both ends and spray into the top and spin or push/pull the cable inside until I see some lubricant come out the bottom end. You don't necessarily have to remove both ends though. This is what I do...but others may have different methods. If your method is different, please post it here. Do you have drum brakes on both the front and back, or do you have disc brake(s)? If you have disc brakes, the procedure is more complicated. Let me know if you have more questions. Good luck, BrewTrooper (a.k.a Ken)

Moretto, If the bike did sit for a while, you'll definitely want to clean the carbs. If you can afford to have it professionally serviced that is good. If you do it yourself you could save some money. It's really not that hard, and you'll learn much about how your bike works; and you'll have the knowledge to do it again in the future. I wouldn't worry about the synchronization unless you think that someone messed with it. Otherwise, it should be fine if you clean the carbs. I recommend replacing the float valve assembly with O-Ring, Carb rubber passage Plug, & Float bowl Gasket. You can get the rebuild kits for $12/each (U.S. $). If you can't find a cheap source, let me know and I can help you get them. Good luck, BrewTrooper (a.k.a. Ken)

Jerka, I have a 1981 XS400/H that I got this year. It sat idle for over 11 years and I can sympathize with your question on what to lube and what to use to lube it. Here are some of my suggestions: Lube the throttle, brake, clutch, tach, and odometer/speedometer cables with silicone spray or graphite. I use silicone spray. Lube the chasis with a lithium grease using a grease gun. Lube the chain. I use regular motor oil, but this tends to spray all over and is messy. I'm going to switch to a chain lube product. This winter I'm going to remove the chain, clean it and re-lube it. I'll change products then since I don't want to mix two differently lubricants. There are plenty of recommendations about chain lubricants on this forum and others. When you have it inspected, have the shop check the cable adjustments, the headlight adjustment. They should be able to lube the chasis for you for next to nothing. Be sure they check your brakes and chain wear too. It might be a good idea to have them check the front fork seals too. Let me know if you have any specific questions. I hope this helps and have fun. These are fun little bikes. BrewTrooper (a.k.a. Ken)

Moretto, I have an XS400 and I recently "rebuilt" and cleaned the carbs because it sat for over 11 years. I had never looked at a carb before in my life. Yamahead helped me out and now I'm willing to do the same. PM me if you want help and some links to photos and some "how-to" information. The problem with your choke sounds like it is related to the choke circuit in your carbs and they could be blocked. If so, a cleaning would help. The fuel leak is not good. Were you able to track down where it was coming from? You have to be careful that the fuel was not leaking into your combustion chamber. If so, it would leak down into your oil and break it down. That would definitely not be good. If the carb floats are leaking, I highly recommend servicing them. What year is your XS400? BrewTrooper (a.k.a. Ken)

Oh yeah, You also need to make sure that the slide needel CV Boot tabs are lined up with the index mark on in the chamber and that they are sealed well. They are raised via a vacuum so they need to be seated properly. Ken

Well, I took your advice and used rust killer and then applied an undercoating. It was much easier than I thought it would be, and it turned out great in my opinion. I have updated the photos with the finished fender (use link below): Updated Fender Photos The undercoating took almost 24 hours to dry completely - which is odd since the can says to let it dry "at least 10 minutes". Maybe I put on too thick of a coat, but it's dry now. It's pretty neat stuff. It's supposed to prevent rust and chipping and even dampen vibrations and sound. There are a couple of close-up photos showing rust pitting on the chrome. From a few feet it's not really noticeable but it stands out when you are close up. Short of dipping, does anyone know of a way to minimize the pitting in the chrome????? I'm assuming that I'll have to live with it. Thanks again for all your help. Please PM me if you want more details or have any questions. BrewTrooper (a.k.a. Ken)

Thanks Mervin, I'm not sure about the Autsol but I'll go check at the autoparts store. I'm going to use a chrome cleaner on the chrome, and use your suggestion on getting rid of the rust. I really appreciate the advice!! BrewTrooper (A.K.A. Ken)

I'm cleaning up my 1981 XS400's front fender and I was looking for suggestions on how to treat the underside which has a nice layer of rust. (See photos via URL/link below): Fender Photos As you can see from the photos, the underside has a nice layer of rust that has formed. How would you recommend going about removing the rust and then treating/painting it after I do? I plan on cleaning up the chrome with some stell wool. It has some pitting, but otherwise is in good shape considering... If anyone has other recommendations I'm all ears. Thanks!!!! BrewTrooper (a.k.a. Ken)

Scooby, I just recently rebuilt my the carbs on my XS400 with a lot of help from Yamahead. I'm not a pro, but from my recent experience I'd look at the slides and see if they are sticking. They need a little lubrication to make sure that they move freely. If they don't slide...it won't rev. How does it react when you open the choke? BrewTrooper

Thanks for explaining Merv. That is interesting. Do you think that this progressive limitation helps with safety, or is it just another governement 'mothering' program run amok? BrewTrooper (Ken)

This may be a silly question from a Yank...but is there an age limitation of 21 on riding a larger engine motorcycle in your country? Here at age 16 you can ride anything that's legal...and in many states that's "anything".

I finally got my 1981 Yamaha XS400 on the road after being garaged for 11 years...and totally legal to boot (Thanks go to Yamahead and MSchott99 for all their patience and help.) Now I need to get a helmet. I've pretty much made up my mind to get a full face helmet, and hopefully one with some ventilation. Other than that I'm not sure what I want/need or should consider. I was hoping that you folks could offer some advice and help me with the following: What type to get - brand/style? Where to shop to get a great deal? Thanks for all your help, and I look forward to seeing you on the road. BrewTrooper

Drewpy, Awesome job! I have an XS400/H and that I'm in the process of restoring. I had a couple of questions... Did you paint the engine to get it looking that new? Did you totally strip this down to restore it? I'm assuming you did to get it looking that nice. What parts did you have to replace that you couldn't restore? Thanks, BrewTrooper

Since you all helped me so much, I wanted to give you an update: I was able to clean the carbs and BOY did they need it!!! Every single jet was totally clogged. I was able to complete all the other items on my list including getting a new battery. It wasn't easy or fast by any means but I learned much and now know the intricacies on how my bike operates. Today I was able to start the bike, and tweak the carbs so that is idles correctly (many thanks and kudos to Yamahead for all of the PM help.) I was even able to ride the bike. I want to thank everyone for their help, and now that I've leaned a few things I might now be able to lend some helpful advice. BrewTrooper

I trying to get my 1981 XS400 on the road and I just cleaned the tank and petcock. When I reattached it, gas leaked from where the petcock attaches to the tank. I assume that the o-ring needs to be replaced and I ordered a new one; however, I wondered if anyone uses any kind of sealant, silicone or oil on the o-ring to help with the seal. Any and all help is appreciated. Thanks, BrewTrooper

I won the factory manual auction. I hope I get it soon. Hopefully I'll then have at least some knowledge backing up my amatuer mechanics.

Thanks Drewpy!! Do you recommend it? Do you think it's worth it?

Thanks Yamahead. I really appreciate the help. Hopefully I can help someone on this forum...instead of sponging all the information. If anyone has any computer problems, or needs advice; I've got 17 years of hands on experience I might be able to share with you.

I checked ebay and found a 'Supplementary Service Manual' at Ebay Yamaha Manual Is this the right manual? I'm confused by the word 'Supplementary'. Thanks!!

Thanks again. I'll post again when I'm done. It will probably be about three weeks. That's unfortunate, since I'll be missing some great riding weather. Any suggestions on where to get a service manual? Thanks!

Thanks so much for all the helpful replies and advice! From your sage advice, here is what I'm planning to do. Since I want to make sure the engine is sound and works well before I put too much money or time into it, I plan on focusing on getting the engine running at minimal cost. To do this I will: Flush the gas tank and lines Clean the carbs (I'm going to attempt this myself, but I'll get help quickly if I'm in unknown territory) Clean the air filter Change the oil (use 20/50) and oil filter Pour some oil down the spark plug holes for each cylinder Spin up the engine with the spark plugs out to get the oil circulating first (and check for sparks at same time) Put the spark plugs back in, hook up my car battery to turn it over and hopefully it'll take off Couple of questions regarding this though: Do I need to wait some time after I pour oil down the spark plug holes, to let the oil drip out of the combustion chamber? Do I need to worry about checking the timing before I start it, or can that wait? If it can't wait on checking the timing, any advice on where I get the procedure for checking the timing? Any futher advice or critique on my plan of action is welcome, encouraged, and appreciated. After I get it running and I'm certain that the engine is OK, I'm going to get a new battery, lube all the cables, get new tires and tubes, and look into touching up the paint on the gas tank. Then I'll focus on getting some miles put on that baby. I'm pretty excited about this, and I think this is going to be a great hobby. Unfortunately I'm not sure how well this hobby compliments my other hobby - Hombrewing! BTW: Is this post getting off topic for this forum?

I was just given a 1981 XS400 Special II by my brother. It only has 2,300 miles on it. The history behind the bike is rather interesting. It was purchased by a friend of my brother in 1986. At that time it was still in the crate. He rode it for less than two months and sold it to my brother. (They were both in the military and he got reassigned to another country and didn't want to take the bike with him.) My brother rode the bike to his home town, about 200 miles away. There it sat until he got it on the road again in 1994. He rode it the entire summer of '94. He subsequently lost the key and never rode it again, and now it's mine. I'm pretty excited about it. The bike is in good condition overall, since it was stored in a garage the entire time, other than some minor rusting and a few scratches on the top of the gas tank that have just started to show signs of rust. I figure it needs a new battery and a new key made, which I will get very soon from my local Yamaha dealer. I was hoping that I could get some advice from the folks here on what I should do to it before I try to start it. I'm planning on flushing the gas tank, lines and carbs, with fresh fuel. Do you think it's necessary that I get the carbs cleaned out before I try to start it? Also, I'm thinking I should change the oil, since I don't know how old it is, or if it has ever been changed; but with only 2300 miles on it, I'm not sure the oil ever needed to be changed. The tires are holding pressure fine, but do you think I need to be concerned about their age? Unfortunately that last 11 years it was stored, it was not up on the bike rest, he had it just sitting using the kick stand and the tires went mostly flat (9 PSI). Before I ride it, I'm going to check the brakes including the cables, along with the clutch cable. Is there anything else I should definitly check before I ride it, assuming I get it running? Do you recommend I take it to a shop for a quick inspection? I do plan on getting it inspected of course, but I'm talking about the initial test ride. Also, can I use a normal car battery to test it, before buying a battery for it? They are both 12V, but I'm not sure if anything else matters. I'm not a mechanic and haven't worked on engines in over 20 years, so please go easy on the motorhead terminiology...I want to be one, but I'm not one yet. BTW: This is a great forum, and I can't believe great attitude and spirit of camaraderie here. I'm hoping I will have something to offer the community.