slice

I am thinking of changing my bike, I have an XJ750 (pre divi) that is 30+ years old now and it's really a good bike but getting a bit long in the tooth for long runs, so I was thinking of buying an FJR 1300A or the Honda 1300A ST Pan, I have not ridden either of these and wondered if any of you have and what did you think of them, I have checked out the forums on both of these and there seem's to be no major problems other than the FJR has some issues with minor vibration from the engine/frame? what ever that means. I would like to hear from any of you that have any thoughts on either of these or even what you think might be a good alternative, I am really looking to do some long european runs this year so I would be grateful for your input. Thanks all, Slice

Hi again Nick, Ok so your going to do this then so first off when your in traffic the bike will get hot but not so bad as to be a problem really and you have the added benefit of being able to filter between the other vehicles so keeping the air flow over the cylinders, just remember that you should not filter at speed, for example if all the other traffic of toddling along at 10 mph you can wimble your way through at a few mph more than them but if they are moving at say 30mph you should stay in place as cars WILL not see you when they change lanes and scoop you off, just be sensible and it's no problem. As for carbs well as long as they are balanced properly they should behave themselves, don't know where you got the idea that carbs are more problem than injectors cos there old tech and most of the problems result from incorrect adjustment rather than the difference to other means of delivering fuel to the cylinder. If your friend is any sort of rider he will tell you most of this anyway and if he doe's not know then it's time to buy a manual and find out yourself. One last point, PLEASE get some training BEFORE you get on this thing I may sound like you Dad but it's really important that you understand this thing before you launch your self down the road.

If this is your very FIRST bike and you have never riden before then "YOUR GOING TO DIE" unless you have all the training that is out there BEFORE you even get on it, your local news paper will have loads of obit's on people who have died and if you go online you will find that riding a bike is (if your not trained) lethal, just check out your Governments stastistics on how many riders died in the last year in your country. You say your 22 years old and want to have fun, well it's out there but not for you just yet. If you buy this bike and take no training before you ride it I give you 2 months before your in hospital or on the news as a headline . I'm not having a go at you just telling you that this is a really BAD idea, do your training and ride a small bike for a couple of years and then you might be ready for this machine but not before. By the way I'm 60 years old and have been riding since I was 14, been in Hospital a few times but all when I was your age so ignore me if you want but being an old fart means I get to tell you the truth about bikes there fun exciting and bloody frightening at times, please think carefully about this before you do it.

Hi Phil, Welcome to the YOC, as above really, you should get the electrics checked (or do it yourself) just make sure that the side stand switch is working an easy job just check all the wires are connected and clean then try again, if that don't work ask your local bike shop to look at it for you. Otherwise buy the manual (haynes or whatever) and learn how to do it yourself, lots of satisfaction in sorting your own faults, if you have a mate or whatever that is willing to go through it with you all the better.

Like anything second hand you have to beware that it's not a load of crap but easy to tell with a thermostat just bung it into some hot water if it opens fine if not buy a new one.

Welcome to the YOC Luke, we like questions but you may not like some of the answers!! No really they are good people on here, congrats on your CBT, ride safe.

Oh she's very pretty JR, you lucky boy I hope you have fun with it.

And also very kind of your wife to make it more entertaining!!!

Hi Jonny, Well you can make anything fit I suppose but do you really want to add 20 odd pounds of useless weight to your already small bike? What is it going to do for you other than slow you down? You probably have to rev the nuts off of it to get any descent speed out of it and then your going to add more weight, I can understand that you want it to look good and even that it will make riding it in the rain a bit less uncomfortable but sometimes it's best to leave it alone. Just my thoughts on your question perhaps you have good reason for this but to be honest I would have another think about it before spending any money.

Check your earth first might just be a simple fix.

Up to you I suppose but with my fully comp I get a bike to replace mine if it's nicked or crash damaged, plus theft usually means that the insurance company can say that you should have done more to keep your bike safe so that's why you get shafted by them. Best thing to do is ask them what is considered adequate for you to be fully covered if the worst happens that way you can say you did your best and no quibble from your Ins Comp also if your bike is nicked and they get it back with minor damage or bit's missing you can get it back and get the repairs done by the company and get 12 months cover on all the bits that were repaired or replaced. Seems a fair trade off to me but it's your money!!

It's not impossible for crap to be in your engine from new, ask any engineer if the engines leave the factory clean and they will burst out laughing, when they mill the casings and cut the thread holes all that crud gets left in the engine and only gets washed out when they dip them. If you have no major knocks or rattles your probably ok Grouch, just keep an ear pealed for odd sounds and rattles.

Grough you might want to see if the coil you have is hard or soft metal, if it's soft then NOT a washer. Best to check if anything sounds different with the bike, Are there any unusual sounds from the engine (like a low rumbling) that was not there before? Just a thought. Might also be something that has been in the engine for ages and only just worked it's was out. Migtht also be the thread from any of the dozens of bolts that are in the casing when it was first made, it's unusual to have a bolts strip out a thread unless someting has gone wrong and if it still runs and rides ok just keep a weather eye out for odd knocks and rumbles.

Hi Davie, Don't see why not, might be a good idea to straighten them out a bit the in head collars seem a little rounded out but the head seals will take some of that up just give them a bit of a whack where they are most ripply and that should be enough I would think. Great that you managed to find them a bit lucky there, what is the difference between the old ones and the new ones? Are they longer necked than the old one's? Can't really see with your other photo being a bit TINY. Good luck anyway. Ok so I actually clicked on your photo and got the full size picture (All this modern stuff is confusing when you get old) and was just wondering if you did in fact have the NEW collars the wrong way round? not that it actually matters if you have the old ones but if you havent tried the collars the RIGHTway round it might be worth having another go with them before putting the old ones on. Also if you have nice new exhaust pipes then it might be an idea to change the exhaust seals in the head as ewell as that will guarantee a good seal.

Hi Davie, I see no reason why threaded rod can't be used as long as the thread is the same and you can get the old studs out then do that, makes much more sense than pissing about with the short originals, might be an idea to use stainless and make sure you use some copper ease/grease as well so that the thread goes in nice and smooth and it makes it easier to get them out at a later date. Wish you luck mate. you can buy rod of off ebay for just a few quid drewpy sent me a link to some one he's used before but I have forgotten it so PM him and see what he comes up with. Also just thought that stainless nuts might be the way to go as well as then your pretty sure they won't rust on, let me know how your doing if you would.

Hi Davie, I had the same problem but you just HAVE to jiggle the buggers until you get the thread in not easy but DO NOT cut the collars down they are the correct length, To coin a phrase the BELL end goes against the sealing ring up against the head and the collar has the end that just rests inside the recess, then it's just a case of wiggling it till goes home, it's worse when you use new sealing rings in the head as you have to crush them down before the things tighten up. You can use longer studs (I think they are M6 size) to get them in place and replace them with the originals when you have it tightened down, it's just fiddly to do, just do one at a time and it should be simple. Good luck.

Well done Alex, onward and upward

Hi Tim Welcome to the YOC, it's usual to do an intro before asking questions but perhaps you could do it later. Have you checked to see if the filter in the tank is blocked? Take the tank off undo the screws that hold the tank tap in place and pull the unit out, check to see if any of the tubes/filters are blocked, needless to say empty the tank first before you do this as otherwise you will have fuel all over the place. Also check all the pipes that feed fuel to the carb to make sure they are not kinked, just one other thing I can think of at the moment is the fuel tank filler cap air hole blocked? Try running the bike with the tank lid off or open. Hope some of that helps.

Kens right, your float is either stuck down or the needle valve is not seating properly, give the float bowl a sharp tap with the end of a screwdriver that sometimes works just to knock it back into line.

Shambles, if you run the bike without the baffle in you will burn out the piston if you don't retime it, plus you need the back pressure to help the piston to actually go up and down, had a honda once upon a time and it sounded great for a while until the tops of the pistons fell off stick with hot water and detergent and if you want to keep it hot use a blow lamp on the silencer to keep it on the boil.

Into madness perhaps!!

I have one of those fancy bluetooth thingys in my helmet connects to my phone and can listen to music or take calls, it's ok when I have the flip front down and works quite well but with the front up it's not worth the bother,don't find it distracting on the motorway but would not use it when riding in town or country roads, to many muppets trying to kill me, my lid cost about £60 off of good old ebay and was a doddle to setup it is also one of the quietest helmets I have ever had, tried using ear plugs but really uncomfortable plus you can't turn them off if you need to hear something.

If your wheel bearing surface is knackered then why not try a replacement wheel, I mean how much would that cost as opposed to all this milling and clamps that have been suggested and as OG says what's wrong with the "original" Italian tin can if it ain't broke (well not much) don't fix it.

Welcome to the YOC John, always nice to have a new members with a project, someone will have ideas about what and where you can find the bits your looking for. Wish you luck with you bike and hope to see and hear how your getting on. Ride safe.

Thank you Monkeyjim It seems I'm not so daft after all and your right just the thought of trying to get into one of those one piece leather race outfits gives me the creeps, plus I would look like a badly stuffed duvet.