jrhendryx

hello all, been a while since ive posted any issues about my bike, but im running into one now. pulled in the clutch handle the other day and felt a pop. got it home and took a peek at the cable, and it had started to fray (about half of the strands had given out). So, I took it off, and when I pulled the clutch side cover off the engine, I noticed that the return spring that forces the clutch mechanism (not sure of exactly what its called, but its the part that the cable actually pulls on) to return to place seemed compressed by about 1/3 of its total length. I had a new cable made for it at a local shop, and when i started installing it, noticed that before I hooked it up to the clutch lever, the spring was fully extended (but very very weak... I could easily compress it between finger and thumb). Once I hooked the clutch handle back up and ran the wire through to it, the spring was once again compressed to about 1/3 its total length...... does this mean that there is a load on the clutch at all times? it seems to me that if the spring is compressed, that it must be slightly engaging the clutch, because above the spring is the mount where the cable guide sits, and it is solid. the only moving part is the lower portion. Any ideas how to remedy this? Should I get a stiffer spring? I noticed that at full extension, when I pulled on the cable (while detached from the lever) it would not extend fully. Would a stiffer spring fix this? I dont think that a longer cable is the answer necessarily, because I actually have a little extra play in the lever itself. any ideas where I might be able to find a stiffer spring? Perhaps adding a 3-4 cm spacer above the spring would achieve the same result of adding a stiffer spring? Thanks in advance!

same here on the wheel sizes, mines a 19 on front and an 18 on back.... thats stock - i even checked the yamaha shop book i have for it. ive been told at shops "no, both are 18" and then they get out the tape and scratch their heads.

keep in mind, most places you take it to have it cleaned/lined are going to chem dip it... this will remove all of the rust, but it will also destroy the paint. also, most radiator shops (like the one i just had a replacement tank lined at) have a policy that says "not responsible to damage to motorcycle gas tanks" to cover themselves on the paint or any dents it might get from being dropped or not handled very gently. im happy with my results since i was planning on repainting it anyway.

um... based on what someone above said about the kick only cranking a half rotation, that sounds like the kick lever isnt actually turning the engine over on one of the cylinders.... that doesnt make much sense now that ive written it out, but it did when i thought it. could it be something actually in the gear meshing that is screwy? i looked at my manuals for my xs500, and could the kickstart gear pinion not be engaging the gear threads on the shaft itself? since half the time it works, half it doesnt, could half of it just be damaged? that probably doesnt help with why it wont start, but it might help with the no feed back thing... or it just made it worse...

i think your mechanic should be purchasing the cam chain, since he is the one who didnt use a chain breaker to pop the link out. his mistake, you shouldnt have to pay for it.

"clonk" is the technical term... not to be confused with a "thump" or a "plop"

there is also an XS yahoo group i think.... I joined it a while back, but havent checked in on it lately.

I figured out the petcock positioning after running out of gas..... lesson learned. I sure do still have it, but it looks like the pic I posted on your other thread. ebay for the trim piece. ive seen several on there, including the mesh (which you have to get seperately).

yeah, sorry - I should have mentioned that it only gives snapshots... its still kind of neat though. you can see them staging every now and then, and I saw some lotus (not sure what model) lined up against an r1 the other day. im sure it proved interesting

-everyone_ "hello john..."

Same here.... pm sent by the way.

engine is relatively solid (i think i hear a slight rattle on the left side at idle though - maybe cam chain tensioner starting to go?) im having a used tank with no dents chem-dipped to remove the rust/old paint and am going to have it painted by a friend. im also missing that trim piece on the left hand side cover, and the top one needs to be re-painted. its my first bike, and i love it... its too bad that its so hard to find parts though. I have seen some of those trim pieces on ebay. make sure you click "worldwide" because a lot of the parts seem to be located in germany. Here is a pic of mine as it looks now. I also want to try to find an original seat that wont cost me $200...

http://www.nuerburgring.de/fileadmin/webcam/webcam.jpg check this out.... its the webcam for the neübergring race track in germany. its pretty interesting.

you may be able to fit up some of the mikesxs.com exhaust to yours, not sure... perhaps have your old ones re-chromed? as for the side covers - good luck finding one for under $100. they are not cheap. I have the same bike. Pictures?

also, your petcocks have a tiny (but not that great) filter built in most likely. if you pull the back cover off the petcock, you might be able to clear out any rust that has built up in there. thats what I do whenever mine starts trying to run rough/backfire. good luck

Did they feel kind of spongy? mine have felt that way ever since i did them last.

my yamaha shop manual for my xs500b calls for plain old 10w 30

i believe so.... there ought to be a vacuum barb somewhere on the carb that you cap off when you change from a vacuum to a manual petcock. i dont know - i dont have much experience with the vacuum systems.

odd.... mine is faced the other direction....

Drewpy, i have a question about your front brake calipers. are they faced towards the back of the bike originally, or was that a decision you made when you changed it over to dual front discs? Does it lessen the fatigue on the mounts - with them facing backwards, they push against the fork instead of pulling away when braking? just curious.

mikesxs.com is one place that i have found some of the parts that work out. they carry the petcocks you need... though yours must be vacuum, mine are manual. i think that they carry the vacuum kind too. yamatopdog.com is another good place to look for NOS parts.

is there a specific part that you need to make it ride-able? a lot of items on all of the older bikes (esp the xs series from what ive found) are interchangeable, except when it comes to motor parts. suspension parts especially are bin parts. welcome!

apparently, "daewoo" is korean for "blind stupid twat" Was crossing a bridge this morning, one of two I have to cross on my way to work, and the longer of the two. it is two lanes separated by cement dividers in the center, with cement dividers on the outside between the roadway and a sidewalk. Some jackass in a little daewoo sedan started coming in on me from the left, even though i was even with his front window... talking on his phone and drifting into my lane. The car in front was slowing, and the one behind was even with the daewoo's bumper, so i was pretty well pinched. i hit my horn.... no reaction. i pegged the revs..... no reaction, and now he has me a foot from the divider, and hes maybe a foot and a half off my left side. finally, i didnt have any other choices - the guy behind was still on the daewoo's bumper, and the dude in front wouldnt speed up. my new summer gloves have pretty heavily armored knuckles, so i swung and smacked his door as hard as I could.... nice dent. that got his attention. this son of a bitch has the balls to flip me off once he gets back in his own lane. I chalked this up to him just being a moron, shot the gap between him and the guy in front, and got back into my original lane of travel. this guy then came up on my left AGAIN, and cut in so close that he actually clipped (just barely) my rear tire. it was touch and go for a moment, but i managed to recover - barely. let him pass, gave him the finger, and went on my way - after memorizing his plate. Called the cops and put in a hit and run/ road rage complaint on him. hopefully he gets whats coming to him. what a way to start the day.... i cant wait until my wife finishes school so i can move out of here, these people are just so damn rude.

You know, I was wondering about this same question this morning wile I was riding to work. I have no idea if it would fit inside the frame, or would bolt into the stock mounts. I know that the frames are slightly different, but have nothing to measure against. I want to know the answer to this question as well. I doubt that it will though.

I was quoted by a small shop that does the stuff i dont know how to do (and that i trust a great deal), at 1.5 hours labor at 62.50 per hour, plus parts/oil. I did it myself in one day. It took me a while because i kept having to run to the store and get the right tools, and had to go to that same shop to get a used stanchion when i cracked mine. I really think that you should give it a shot yourself. The most difficult part of my work was putting the seal back in place without damaging it. You will learn a lot, and I felt pretty proud of myself (im slowly learning this stuff). plus, once youve done one thing on the bike yourself, you will be more confident that you can fix other things, and will end up saving yourself a bunch of money. let us know if we can help!