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Just booked with my local plods and unfortunately have to go on a waiting list as there is no course at the moment, it's £25 a pop tho so I might get more than a wooly hat, Thanks for the posting.

Hi SD, Have you checked the air filter and maybe the jet sizes? plus the fuel lines might be kinked, Air filter might be blocked & the jets might be undersized. Also look at your exhaust and see if it an original or an after market one, all of these can have an effect on how your bike runs. Hope some of that helps otherwise stick it in your local DYNO shop and get them to tell you if it is running properly according to the original specs.

Thanks Foamy, I did wonder if it might be held in place by a clip that I can't see, I have the key so will give it a go in the vice.

HI all, need a bit of advice, I have got hold of a nice shiny petrol cap, the one on the bike at the moment is rusty and horrid, so I am trying to change the key mechanism out of the barrel but no matter what I do it wont come out, tried poking it prodding it and even talked to it nicely but no joy it seems to be in there for ever, it must come out but for the life of me I can't see how, do any of you know what holds the bugger in there and can I in fact change it? My thought is that at some time some little japanese guy put the thing in there so it must come out but as above can't see how. ANY help much appreciated. Thanks All.

HI Puma, I have the XJ750 and the fuel tap (petcock) is only operated by a vaccum pipe off of the number 3 carb, unless it's been changed over the years, try a replacement valve kit from ebay should cost about $20 and will save you havinfg to fork out on a replacement tap, the bit that goes wrong with it is the diaphram at the engine side of the tap, easy to replace and then you just leave it in the "ON" position forever as the only time fuel will flow is when you turn over the engine. One other thing you SHOULD check as it has stood for a while is the vaccum tube and fuel tube are not perished, they are a bugger to replace but well worth doing.Hope that helps?

Pretty litle bike grouch, fun to ride I should think.

Hi Mark, You have to try them both FIRST before you decide which one to go for cos just that it looks nice does not mean it will suit you, it's about how you fit to the bike , can your feet reach the floor for instance, nothing worse thatn having to lean to one side cos your a short arse (sorry to all short arses!) how comfortable is it to sit on is a major factor as well, go look at some in a showroom and ask if you can sit on it, you don't have to buy it just tell the guy your interested even if your not, should not say this here really but some yammies are right bastards on your arse the seats being hard and narrow, so look at ALL the options. Hope you find your dream bike and ride safe.

Hi Lerch, Welcome to thew forum, no one gets annoyed here just like to know who you are, all better now

Hi Lerch, It might be a good idea to do an INTRO (new member section) BEFORE you jump in with a "How can I fix my problem" question, not being nasty it's just nice to know who you are and anything else that you might like to share, it's friendly, you wouldn't just walk up to strangers and start asking questions would you?

Hi Mash, If you remove the end? of your silencer then you run the risk of wrecking the engine, the silencer system is there not only to silence the bike but provide back pressure to the engine, this means that by removing bits from the system you will have to retime the engine to take into account the reduced back pressure, if you DON'T do this then the piston will burn out in short order, this MIGHT happen anyway but to be blunt it's there for a reason and you would be a tit to take it off without finding out exactly what it does, go to your local Yammie dealer mechanic and ask what the recommended SPORTS silencer is for your bike and fit that if you want to make it louder and a bit faster, but to be honest the chances of you making the bike into a speed machine as next to nil, I would suggest that you look around for a slightly more sporty bike and trade up to a bike you can live with rather than screw up the one you have. Hope that helps a bit?

Hi All, small problem that you can perhaps help me out with, I have (as some of you know) an XJ750 and a Midnight Maxim, the Maxim is in the middle of having it's head repaired but my problem is getting hold of the right head gasket. Both engines look identical externally and the XJ gasket (ebay) looks identincal to the one off of the Maxim but the guy who is selling it does not know if it will fit. Can any of you tell me either do they have the same gasket or a part number for the correct one. Any advice you can offer would be gratefully recieved. Thanks all.

No prob Good luck!

Hi Nathan, check your EARTH on the circuit and give it a clean, usually just crud and dirt that causes these problems. Also just the obvious check that the bulbs work?

Welcome Ray, as SACHA says photos do more than anything to help identify it,& PLEASE do an INTRO (new member section) as it's polite to say Hi, no real problem but it's nice to know who your talking to!

Ok so I have decided to finally do something about the old maxim that has sat in my garage for the last 2 years and have whipped the head off to get the broken stud removed by someone who has more patience than me (local engineers) So while I have the head off I was having a bit of a poke about and realised that I can block off the bloody YICS balance holes by replacing the rubber O rings with 4 blanking pieces, after all my XJ runs better and has better mileage since I used the YICS blanking tool (£45) , but it got me thinking, should I block off the internal pass through balance holes or should I get another YICS blanking tool, cos if I blank it off internally (about 50p per hole) then there will be no way to undo it without removing the head, it's not for me but the next poor sod who has it. I know it's not really going to be my problem but was wondering what you boys and girls think is the best thing to do. For those of you who don't know what a YICS system is it's to internally balance the carbs/fuel flow, and it's a bloody nuisance when you try to balance the carbs cos a "PROPER" YICS tool is about £100 & as rare as rocking horse shit. Thanks for any thoughts on this small conundrum.

Congrats on passing well done.

Thanks Alex, I like to hear what folks have to say from around the world and as for one hit wonders some do in fact stick around after they have fixed the original problem, simply cos they know they can get help from here. If you make it to difficult to post most will sod off to easier sites and your just left with the same folks, nothing wrong with you lot but new blood is always welcome it keeps things fresh.

Take the test now, you will not regret it. 400 is a nice size for a step up and will go fast enouigh to be fun but not so fast as to rip your head off, buy an old one as a beginner bike that way if you do drop it it's not such a drama. good luck.

HI Chris, Welcome to the YOC, try BENNETTS or Thebikeinsurer.co.uk or any of the comparison websites for a quote but make sure your sitting down BEFORE you read the quotes tho as some of them will make your eyes water, it might be cheap to run a bike but insurance is the same crappy rip off as anything else. luck mate. P.S nice intro :biglaugha:

Hi Poirot, Just saw your message so sorry if this is a bit late in getting to you, the only reason I can see that a wooden dowel might be a problem is that if left to long in situ it might become porous and flake off into your ports otherwise it might work for a short tune up. the rubbers on the YICS tool are of the non perish high heat type and as such are not unduely affected by being in contact with the hot inlet. I have left my YICS tool in situ since I tuned the carbs (about 8 months ago) and since then have had no probs with fuel consumption in fact it seems to be doing better mileage than before getting 65 to 70 per gal at about 70 plus MPH which is much much better than originally. Hope some of this helps and good luck with your home made wooden dowel thingy, let me know if it works if you would, just one thing, the dowel will have to be a really tight fit to block the fuel off so watch out for wood shavings in your fuel/jets as you put it in cos I suspect that trying to tune it with sawdust in the way might make it a bit difficult. LOL!

Hi Chrisbob, Insurance is always a pain in the arse so just get the best quote you can, different folks get different quotes I'm afraid, don't seem no reason for some of them I think they just guess a lot of the time, try to use a motorcycle insurance company rather than the bog standard car lot as at least they will understand your needs a bit more, some offer free bits and bobs on their policys like cover for your clothes and helmet but if you can store your bike in a locked shed and it has an alarm plus disc lock then this can sometimes bring the quote down quite a bit, just keep plugging away and eventually you will find one you can live with. Plus will you PLEASE do an INTRO (NEW MEMBERS SECTION) so folks know who they are talking to, just polite really to say Hi BEFORE asking strangers for advice OH and one other thing USE A BIGGER FONT for you messages as you message is horrible to read, good luck with your hunt.

NOT Spain all bloody madmen, Italy is only if you have a death wish, France however is warm & sunny wine by the bucket load and food to die for plus they actually obey most of heir driving rules, but make sure you KNOW the rules before you go, passing through one of their traffic lights (the ones with the extra light?) can be a bit unnerving to begin with but as a novice it's got to be FRANCE. Enjoy your trip where ever you go. Stay safe.

Thanks Noise, Just added 38Deg to my favourites list, it's time to take our country back.

Remember this Noise "I used to ride motorbikes then I got married and had kids!" :biglaugha: Have a fun time stay safe.

Hi, EBAY do have silencers for this bike but they are expensive about £300 for a complete set, are you sure that you cant patch the hole in yours, even if it looks horrible it's better than forking out hundreds of dollars for just one hole, what about a silencer wrap one of those things that have a bandage and strapping that you get wet and just mould around the pipe as a temporary fix? Your right about getting a 30 year old set is next to impossible and the only ones I have found are pattern ones which are usually 4/2 in to 1, it might be an idea to look at bike breakers in your local area and see if there are any to be had off of a donor bike. U S Ebay had some the last time I looked and they were at a reasonable price compared to what we have to pay in the UK, it's like treasure island here every thing costs a bloody fortune about twice the price as anywhere else, good luck finding your exhaust and hope your back on the road soon.