JimR

Ok dont forget to remove it from the bike (2 X 6 mm , 10mm, headed bolts) and run it up on the floor/bench running it up insitu will not discount the motor if that spins ok then look at starter switch or clutch Regards Jim

Hi Ewan hence why I suggested removing the starter motor and connecting a battery to it (the food mixer bit) with the rev counter rising indicates high current draw and the clicking you hee is the starter switch. With the starter removed & tested you can discount the starter motor and look else where (the motor contains brushes which if worn out could cause the problem) regards Jim

buy a bigger bike I guess is the answer all issues will be resolved

so I guess the way the bike is ridden makes no difference to its fuel economy? where did this thread really mention mods to the bike ? The 2006 bike for which market is not fuel injected, could you confirm that all bikes that ran off the production line had carbs on ? This thread didnt show a starting issue just a fuel economy so I guess the plug cap lower rubber would make no difference. I would guess a 125 sohc single would give better fuel economy than a 600. At which point did you get 150m/£8 if at the high price point of fuel that would give 65 mpg this bike is less than the bike in question. if the consumption is advertised as so it should get some where near. Can you please tell me who's rolloing road the figures are obtained from ? and can you confirm what loads where effected to the rollers in order to obtain the figures.

well do you rev the nuts out of the bike ? this will have connotations on the fuel consumption, revving the motor freely through the gears will be detrimental to the fuel consumption as changing up early (will not perform so well) but produce better fuel economy. With regards to Valve clearence small motors need to be checked more often than larger ones as they tend to be revved more often and I guess (reading this thread) you give the bike full power the whole time which will give lower fuel consumption regards Jim

Hi Luke What I told you wont appear in manuals I was there at the time .... some younger motorcycle mechanics would not have not come across the problem (or ones without Yam experience). But on the cost of service/repairs I have a workshop & MOT testing station in South Worcestershire and I'm sure that I would have put the bike right for well less than that (an offer I'm extending to users of this site), in fact a full service (labour) would have been £125, MOT £20 and I'm now wondering what to spend the 300 quid on ..... materials would have been no where near that. But I must stress that is only to users of this site, may be bear it in mind if you need anything done later the money saved would well pay for a trip into the depths of Worcestershire. The 528cc cylinder liners would have been very close to a problem bored to 595cc but I guess someone could have added a 600 cylinder & pistons to the 550 as they share the same crankcases but the cams & head were different so it would not go like a 600 (less top end but more torque). You can check the cylinder by looking at the lower section (by the crankcase) at ... ummm memory is failing here either between the 2 centre cylinders at the front or by the l/h engine case cover it will read either 528cc or 595cc dependant on the cylinder fitted. The bike, sorted, should give you lots of riding pleasure for year to come 36k is nowt to worry about Regards Jim

what is the modal code (first 3 digits of the engine number) for both engines ? from that it will give you the modal years and incompatiblities (if any) could be addressed, but I guess the altenator will swap over regards Jim

does this motor has the 2 position (pull out - push in choke)? If so I would suspect the choke tube/drilling in the float chamber a liberal application of carb cleaner may fix it but you may find you have to spray some WD40 in order to help (WD40 sorts so much out it's untrue ... chains (swear by it on chains),carbs,switches etc magic fixer for all?). I guess TTCB has been done .. if not TTCB should be done ... but I guess I wrote this in a previous post Regards Jim

well you could be well out of luck could be a 550 but if you change the field coil, cap of the altenater and the cdi pickups the engine should work, problem may be with the CDI unit it may have a different ignition curve to original, but never mind it could have had 528cc stamped on the front of the cylinder ...... or has it ? Regards Jim

Ok that does sound like a 'loose wire' if the bike is still legal then take it back when ready you can ride without the dash lights, main lights & indicators are a different matter. I'm guessing your a learner & done a CBT ? i guess they don't teach hand signals (or do they ? when I did my test Fred Flintstone wondered around with a clip board and a flip chart), I had to learn them because of the dead awful electrics around at the time... Regards Jim

but as the bike is a 58 at max its 6 weeks old that should not happen !!!! get it back there !

Hi there That stands a good chance either way with a bike that new it should be back in the dealers workshop YESTERDAY to have the fault fixed, your dealer should have had it straight back (or come out to you) and fix it. If it is a loose wire this should have been sorted at build up (from crate) or (if factory connected) found on Pre Delivery Inspection. Don't worry about the fault just get it back there ! Regards Jim

Hi Luke, back in the 80's Oxford products (along with others) made a nose fairing for the XJ550, but it did upset the handling alot (over 85 mph you would go into a tank slapper) and the only way to fix it was to add a steering damper and have it turned up high for high speed work. The fittings the fairings came with (by todays standard) were really bad (bits of mild steel bent and drilled and the odd U bolt or so !). But maybe today someone has made a better one have a look at this. The gearbox (back in the 80's) was not clunky in fact better than most, have you checked the chain tension and the rear sprocket dampers (either could give you a clunky gear change), but if the bike has laid idle for some time the oil gallery behind the altenator maybe partly blocked, this gallery supplied force feed oil to the gearbox & clutch from the oil pump and if you feel the clunkyness is internal to tthe engine, this is a good place to start. I had one blocked with swarf (from the factory) and it took about 500 miles to destroy the engine (all that was left was the cylinder, cylinder head and crankshaft, I fitted new crankcases,gearbox and clutch) but I very much doubt this is a problem to you and your ruff gearchange will be in the external tranmission. Regards Jim

same as TZR but this may help. 36 hp tho should go quite well, and made by Yamaha Thailand regards Jim

looks like a TZR 125 engine from what I can see , the exhaust does too but try typing the modal prefix into a search engine which mat give you more info on it regards Jim

Hi There check the brushes in the genny (XJ550 had them) and I guess the 600 did to. when the bike is running what voltage do you get at 2k+ (should 13.8v) then do the same with the lights on the result sould be the same. If the 600 has a bush genny and the brushes r OK look to the rectifier/regulator, make sure all diodes are working red -> to the whites then the whites -> red then do the same with the black rather than red, then red to black & reverse. But perhaps the starter motor is suspect ? (this contains brushes also) and its dead easy to take off and connect to a battery to see at what rate it spins, if connected to a fully charged battery the starter motor should turn quickly (and sound like a food mixer) when removed from the engine, if it does not suspect the starter. Regards Jim

looking for some .. my old man died not so long back and he was the man with the camera if I'm allowed to look thro his stuff I will find some pics .... awsome night tho ! regards Jim

You've got to the point of no return... you will need to cut the airbox away to get the the K&N (or whatever) in, and if it goes 'tits up' good old ebay may find you the part to return to Yamaha standard. I think I would get another air box before you cut the other about (so you can you go back). DT50 could be 'pimped up' via different means, fresco etc and as a last meausre fit a hi flo filter Regards Jim

depends on how legal you want to be ! you could get washers with the same o/d as the inlet manifolds (rubbers) and drill the hole out to about 12mm (not to legal but 33hp would be close if put on a dyno) cost (aprox £4.00 + fitting) or buy the real kit @ £160 + fitting. At present I have restricted a FZR600 (water cooled - early Thundercat) to 33hp using the first method and the dyno showed 32.5 hp but I must admit the bike was not rideable and you would be better off finding a 33hp bike Regards Jim

oh I guess there buggered you may be able to get around the problem by adjusting the clip position. but don't forget to look at the diaphragms when you have the slides out if they are brittle they could be recovered with GT85 or WD Regards Jim

just read this part of the thread (sorry for missing it) have you run some vacuum gauges on the bike yet ? with a mixture screw so far out of spec the carb balance is well worth a look.. if the one cylinder is well down & the other high try to sync them with the screw between the carbs , if the engine idle increases when correct adjustment is achieved and set back to 1100 rpm if the bike then dies suspect the valves !!! in the UK TX500 was called XS500 our(UK) early XS500 had a 2 piece cylinder head and was prone to problems I'm not sure if the TX was the same motor as the early XS500 here (but I guess it was). but I must add this bike did always run better with the Dwell set (22.5 %) rather than just gapping the points !!! Regards Jim

at 10k what is it going to need ? .. a cam chain (always worth a new one if you dont know the history), a bit of a clean, oil & filter change. Also you may want to set valve clearences (easy with the motor on the bench). pulling the motor to bits could be quite costly and you gain nothing bar peace of mind that the engine is A1 (which I guess you will find out after the strip down). If the old engine is showing signs of wear I would fit the replacement and rebuild the original then you may be striping the engine for some good reason ! either way when you do the oil/filter change dont forget to 'bleed' the system regards Jim

well not really but I have had mine in since 1998 & never failed to pass the test on headlamp. m/c headlamps should be 60w each so if you have 2 headlights you can display 120w but if you have one only 60w which I think is a little unfair also by the same token HID systems are not quite legal look here. Makes you wonder when Vosa will catch up with hi tech systems Regards Jim

Yes they are bucket & shim system and should be adjusted at 10,000 miles (Yamaha say 6000 but that is to short a time). But from experence the noise you have sounds like it could be a stuck cam chain tensioner (dead easy to fix), basically remove the tensioner from the l/h side of the cylinder undo the lock nut and adjuster bolt (care to be taken as the plunger will fly out of the housing). On the plunger there may be burs and or dents where the bolt has been over tightened, clean these off and reassemble the adjuster unit with the plunger pushed all the way home. refit to the cylinder then slacken the adjuster bolt. Slowly turn the motor 3 to 4 turns clockwise (viewed from the left of the bike) watch the end of the tensioner plunger move in & out, tighten at the point that the plunger is deepest in that should set the chain at the correct tension. But at 30k miles if it's not had a chain fitted fit one could be well worn by now Regards Jim

Hi there try looking at this one, hope this helps Regards Jim