wakebrdpunk Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Hey there, I have a 1983 rx50 with low miles. I picked it up off a guy who got it from a guy... long story short the thing looks mint but has obvious signs that it was left sitting since 83. I got the thing rebuilt when one night my entire house starts smelling of gasoline. I go out and luckily my toolbox was open and fairly empty as the tank decided to give out and fill up the box with gasoline. I had resealed the tank with a KBS coating kit and had used some JB Weld on the sides prior to the failure and decided to get a friend to help weld it up. I got it back and decided to start removing (or try at least) the tank sealer with some methylene chloride based stripper and was rinsing it out with some water when numerous holes sprang loose with water. My question to you guys is this... Any idea where I could pick up a used tank for this bike? I don't want to drop much more into it as I was using this as a learning experience as my first bike and first rebuild. The whole experience was great and has made me want to move to a bigger 4-cycle bike but I got to get this done and off my hands before that can happen... Any tips would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFunk Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Hey there, I have a 1983 rx50 with low miles. I picked it up off a guy who got it from a guy... long story short the thing looks mint but has obvious signs that it was left sitting since 83. I got the thing rebuilt when one night my entire house starts smelling of gasoline. I go out and luckily my toolbox was open and fairly empty as the tank decided to give out and fill up the box with gasoline. I had resealed the tank with a KBS coating kit and had used some JB Weld on the sides prior to the failure and decided to get a friend to help weld it up. I got it back and decided to start removing (or try at least) the tank sealer with some methylene chloride based stripper and was rinsing it out with some water when numerous holes sprang loose with water. My question to you guys is this... Any idea where I could pick up a used tank for this bike? I don't want to drop much more into it as I was using this as a learning experience as my first bike and first rebuild. The whole experience was great and has made me want to move to a bigger 4-cycle bike but I got to get this done and off my hands before that can happen... Any tips would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Wooohooo, someone else with a bike like mine! An '83 RX50 is my normal bike for running around town with no worries. I only found one other post about an RX50 from back in 2006 when I did a forum search. I wish I could help you with the gas tank, but I really don't know any sources. I believe its a part specific to only RX50s, and you know these are really rare bikes, right? Most websites say that only 2,000 were ever made. Most are probably behind someones shed rusting away by now. Your best bet is checking ebay regularly, but I've never seen a gas tank alone come up on there. If not that, some kinda patch is probably all you can do. Bikebandit.com lists a price of $321 for a new one, but it doesn't list them as still being available. Oh, and theres lots of support for the engine and electronics on YSR websites. The YSR is a small sport bike that shared most of its engine and components with the RX50, and they're still raced quite a bit and are much more plentiful. Obviously though, they have way different gas tanks. Good luck, Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakebrdpunk Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 yeah i know all about how rare it is... mine has something like 2k miles on it and i rebuilt the engine. I even scored a yamaha service center mechanics guide on ebay for 20$. ive only ever seen one or two gas tanks on ebay and i check at least daily... I really just wanna get this tank done so i can sell it. I really like it and with me on it (pushing 140 pounds) i was hitting around 50-55mph rev'd up fully, but i really want to move to something that i could put more of a cafe twist on. Also i saw that bikebandit deal but i cant justify spending 300$+ when i got the bike for 150$. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFunk Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 yeah i know all about how rare it is... mine has something like 2k miles on it and i rebuilt the engine. I even scored a yamaha service center mechanics guide on ebay for 20$. ive only ever seen one or two gas tanks on ebay and i check at least daily... I really just wanna get this tank done so i can sell it. I really like it and with me on it (pushing 140 pounds) i was hitting around 50-55mph rev'd up fully, but i really want to move to something that i could put more of a cafe twist on. Also i saw that bikebandit deal but i cant justify spending 300$+ when i got the bike for 150$. I've moved on to a slightly bigger bike (400), but I think I'll keep the 50 around for cruising in town. It's just so light and fun, which you can't have with a bigger bike. You know you can get higher top speed and less shifting by changing the front sprockets? Stock is a 12-tooth, and I bought 13 and 15-tooth sprockets from bikebandit (they've got 14 too). With the 15 I can get between 55 to 60mph on a hill, but it feels too light, and it can't pull me to those speeds on flat ground. (I'm 175lbs. or so). I've been running the 13-tooth most of the time since it cuts down on having to shift in the middle of turns, and gets a little better top speed. I really run it on small city streets most of the time. I've taken the RX50 to the twisty backroads here, but it feels dangerous when you're expecting cars to come up behind you going 65+. So yeah, thats why I got the 400... for some nice backroads cruising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakebrdpunk Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 I've moved on to a slightly bigger bike (400), but I think I'll keep the 50 around for cruising in town. It's just so light and fun, which you can't have with a bigger bike. You know you can get higher top speed and less shifting by changing the front sprockets? Stock is a 12-tooth, and I bought 13 and 15-tooth sprockets from bikebandit (they've got 14 too). With the 15 I can get between 55 to 60mph on a hill, but it feels too light, and it can't pull me to those speeds on flat ground. (I'm 175lbs. or so). I've been running the 13-tooth most of the time since it cuts down on having to shift in the middle of turns, and gets a little better top speed. I really run it on small city streets most of the time. I've taken the RX50 to the twisty backroads here, but it feels dangerous when you're expecting cars to come up behind you going 65+. So yeah, thats why I got the 400... for some nice backroads cruising. Hmm that could make it a lil more fun and practical... if i get this tank situation sorted out i might have to bump that up a lil bit. the tank and front break pads are the only two things that really need any sort of messin with. If you need any scans or direction from the guide just let me know and ill try and hook it up. Also is there much of a difference between the two tanks on your bikes? i didnt know if the larger tank would work with the rx as im runnin low on options... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator drewpy Posted January 10, 2009 Moderator Share Posted January 10, 2009 ger parts here http://www.cmsnl.com/yamaha-rx50k-50-speci...8957/partslist/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFunk Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Hmm that could make it a lil more fun and practical... if i get this tank situation sorted out i might have to bump that up a lil bit. the tank and front break pads are the only two things that really need any sort of messin with. If you need any scans or direction from the guide just let me know and ill try and hook it up. Also is there much of a difference between the two tanks on your bikes? i didnt know if the larger tank would work with the rx as im runnin low on options... I managed to find a PDF online for the repair manual of the YSR50, so thats covered most everything I need. Yeah, I rebuilt my engine once too.... It appears that both gas tanks mount in a similar way, but it would depend on if the front mounting pins are too apart on the 400, but you could maybe rig something up. When I get the chance I could try fitting one on the other. The 400's gas tank holds about 3 gallons while the 50's tank holds 2 i think, so it would be a bit big. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakebrdpunk Posted January 11, 2009 Author Share Posted January 11, 2009 I managed to find a PDF online for the repair manual of the YSR50, so thats covered most everything I need. Yeah, I rebuilt my engine once too.... It appears that both gas tanks mount in a similar way, but it would depend on if the front mounting pins are too apart on the 400, but you could maybe rig something up. When I get the chance I could try fitting one on the other. The 400's gas tank holds about 3 gallons while the 50's tank holds 2 i think, so it would be a bit big. I would really appreciate if you could check that out for me i wouldnt mind being able to get an extra gallon of gas... be like 50-60 more miles per fill. The guide has everything so please keep that in mind and ill try and supply what i can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakebrdpunk Posted January 11, 2009 Author Share Posted January 11, 2009 ger parts here http://www.cmsnl.com/yamaha-rx50k-50-speci...8957/partslist/ Thanks for that but the tank seems to be the only thing not available on that site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dull Johnny Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 Thanks for that but the tank seems to be the only thing not available on that site. Check these guys out. http://www.nwvintagecycleparts.com/ They are located just outside of Portland I believe. They don't like visitors though. Call and ask for Mark. They may be able to track one down for you. Also there is Bent Bike in Seattle but beware the noise is that it's find it yourself type place with very little friendly service. http://www.yelp.com/biz/bent-bike-motorcyc...alvage-lynnwood Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakebrdpunk Posted January 15, 2009 Author Share Posted January 15, 2009 Check these guys out. http://www.nwvintagecycleparts.com/ They are located just outside of Portland I believe. They don't like visitors though. Call and ask for Mark. They may be able to track one down for you. Also there is Bent Bike in Seattle but beware the noise is that it's find it yourself type place with very little friendly service. http://www.yelp.com/biz/bent-bike-motorcyc...alvage-lynnwood Good luck! Thanks alot! i think i drove by this place while workin the other day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naildriver Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 Hey there, I have a 1983 rx50 with low miles. I picked it up off a guy who got it from a guy... long story short the thing looks mint but has obvious signs that it was left sitting since 83. I got the thing rebuilt when one night my entire house starts smelling of gasoline. I go out and luckily my toolbox was open and fairly empty as the tank decided to give out and fill up the box with gasoline. I had resealed the tank with a KBS coating kit and had used some JB Weld on the sides prior to the failure and decided to get a friend to help weld it up. I got it back and decided to start removing (or try at least) the tank sealer with some methylene chloride based stripper and was rinsing it out with some water when numerous holes sprang loose with water. My question to you guys is this... Any idea where I could pick up a used tank for this bike? I don't want to drop much more into it as I was using this as a learning experience as my first bike and first rebuild. The whole experience was great and has made me want to move to a bigger 4-cycle bike but I got to get this done and off my hands before that can happen... Any tips would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Try www.alfaheaven.com. Found a decent used tank for my 74 tx500 there. Once you find a tank. I would recomend skipping the over the counter tank sealer kits. Take your tank to a radiator shop and have them clean and seal the tank. Should be around a $100, but you will NEVER have issues with the tank rusting from the inside again. I would do this before you paint the tank as they wont gaurantee the paint job. They initially dip the tank in sulfuric acid to remove any rust. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakebrdpunk Posted January 20, 2009 Author Share Posted January 20, 2009 Try www.alfaheaven.com. Found a decent used tank for my 74 tx500 there. Once you find a tank. I would recomend skipping the over the counter tank sealer kits. Take your tank to a radiator shop and have them clean and seal the tank. Should be around a $100, but you will NEVER have issues with the tank rusting from the inside again. I would do this before you paint the tank as they wont gaurantee the paint job. They initially dip the tank in sulfuric acid to remove any rust. Hope this helps. Im taking the original tank into a place that said they would boil out the original liner and im gunna get it braised and sealed while its there so im guessing around 150 bucks but its worth it. Thanks for your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cshocker Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Hey guys, I just bought an 83 rx 50.. And I'm honestly having the most fun I've ever had on that thing. Its cool to know there are other people out there that are still riding these. That being said I was wondering if you guys could help me out in finding a pdf for the service manual online? I'm curious as to whether or not a ysr 50 exhaust would work on my rx. I know this is an old thread but its pretty much the only one I found haha. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks guys!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
costanzo42 Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Hey guys, I just bought an 83 rx 50.. And I'm honestly having the most fun I've ever had on that thing. Its cool to know there are other people out there that are still riding these. That being said I was wondering if you guys could help me out in finding a pdf for the service manual online? I'm curious as to whether or not a ysr 50 exhaust would work on my rx. I know this is an old thread but its pretty much the only one I found haha. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks guys!! I'm with ya - just picked up an '83 RX50 in black. Also need a manual and a little tech help, but it's been a damn blast thus far! Hoping there might be a few more folks with this bike still on the forum... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dt502001 Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 Must still be summer this post is 5 yrs old and all 1 hit wonders since. costanzo42 if you want help do a intro in the new members section and someone might be able to help you lots of nice people here who if they can will help. Welcome to the YOC BTW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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