XS11 Special for sale from New England Motorcycle Museum

[DEEBS11]

I believe it is a MAC exhaust. They made 4 into 1 & 2 into 2.

[jetmechmarty]

Is that the Delkevic exhaust? If so, it sounds worse than a Mac or cheap Dunstall exhaust

Agreed. I think it’s a Mac. It’s only an upgrade if the stock exhaust rotted away. IMHO, the only upgrade might be the shocks. Progressive springs were stock.

[IanDMacDonald]

Agreed. I think it’s a Mac. It’s only an upgrade if the stock exhaust rotted away. IMHO, the only upgrade might be the shocks. Progressive springs were stock.

He acquires some nice bikes, but gathers his info from some website summary. Doesn't ever sound like he's intimately familiar with any bike he sells.

[IanDMacDonald]

On the UK or Aussie page, someone had an exhaust write-up of all of the different exhausts like Marshall, Alphabet, Jardine, etc. Can't find it anymore.

[DEEBS11]

Here is the latest from Budget Wolverine. A 79 Special. Clean. Do you like that price? Wow.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/36467847219...Bk9SR9CF9vKgYw

[cajun31]

Here is the latest from Budget Wolverine. A 79 Special. Clean. Do you like that price? Wow.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/36467847219...Bk9SR9CF9vKgYw

He does seem to get his hands on some rather nice bikes. That one is in really pristine condition. I don't know about the price. I was reading through the list of things done to the bike and one thing they stated was they converted the bike over to DOT 5 brake fluid. Never thought of doing that which poses a good question for the group here. Who has done that and anything to worry about? Would be nice to not have to worry so much about brake fluid break down with water absorbtion problems eliminated. The DOT 5 fluid is more difficult to find these days. Harley used it on their bikes prior to them implementing ABS on their bikes. All their new bikes are back to DOT4 because of all the safety features now in place. Having a silicon based brake fluid that DOT 5 gives you and the fact that it is not hygroscopic (absorbs water) has got to cut down on much of what we have to watch for on our antique brakes. Anxious to hear feedback on this one and may be a project in my future for my bikes.

[DEEBS11]

A triple.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/39513392986...Bk9SR9Kct5miYw

[jetmechmarty]

He does seem to get his hands on some rather nice bikes. That one is in really pristine condition. I don't know about the price. I was reading through the list of things done to the bike and one thing they stated was they converted the bike over to DOT 5 brake fluid. Never thought of doing that which poses a good question for the group here. Who has done that and anything to worry about? Would be nice to not have to worry so much about brake fluid break down with water absorbtion problems eliminated. The DOT 5 fluid is more difficult to find these days. Harley used it on their bikes prior to them implementing ABS on their bikes. All their new bikes are back to DOT4 because of all the safety features now in place. Having a silicon based brake fluid that DOT 5 gives you and the fact that it is not hygroscopic (absorbs water) has got to cut down on much of what we have to watch for on our antique brakes. Anxious to hear feedback on this one and may be a project in my future for my bikes.

Going to DOT 5 means a new system. All traces of DOT 3/4 must be removed. Also, DOT 5 suspends air. PITA to bleed. I suspect you know all that. DOT 5 is paint friendly.

[DEEBS11]

Back in the 90's I had a co-worker who owned an 86 GSXR1100. He got it in his head that he must convert to DOT5 fluid in order to stay "Ahead of the pack". I informed him that it would require all new rubber pieces in the system because you can't just flush the DOT4 out of it. He didn't listen. He made it to work OK but when he got on his bike at 4:00PM quitting time, the front calipers were locked up. He could not believe it. Luckily he only did the front brakes. I introduced air into the front hydraulics so he could limp home on the rear brake that still had DOT4 in it.

[Radioguylogs]

My Vmax had DOT5 in the hydraulic clutch when I bought it (and the slave was still leaking), yet it had DOT3 in both brakes.

I didn't want to have two different types of fluid in it, so I disaasembled everything, washed all the parts thouroughly, and changed it all over to DOT5.

There was no going back after DOT5 was in the clutch because it is impossible to wash off.

It's been about 5 years, and I have no problems at all.

One has to be careful about moisture. If water gets into the DOT5 brake system, it will sink to the bottom of the calipers....where it can become vapor when the brakes heat up, disabling the brake.

[Schming]

All the brake fluid on the shelves seems to be synthetic Dot 3 ,4 included.

[DEEBS11]

DOT 5 is mostly a Harley EVO thing.

[jetmechmarty]

One has to be careful about moisture. If water gets into the DOT5 brake system, it will sink to the bottom of the calipers....where it can become vapor when the brakes heat up, disabling the brake.

I believe that is why it is not used in high performance applications. Did you have fun bleeding it? It easily suspends air in tiny bubbles. Lastly, does DOT 5 require routine fluid changes as with DOT 3?

[DEEBS11]

I usually change any type of brake fluid about every 2 years. Same with fork fluid. I usually include both in a standard motorcycle service. If you ride in the rain or store your bike outside it really needs to be done sooner than later. It doesn't take long with a Mityvac. The trick is to use some liquid teflon on the bleeder threads so air does not leak out from that area when using the vac. I do the car & truck every few years as well. It will save your calipers (as long as you grease the carriers as well).

[LAB3]

I use something similar to this with a piece of clear tubing attached and clamped over the bleeder for what's called "reverse bleeding" Fill the caliper with fluid then force it up to the master cylinder, makes a lot more sense than forcing air bubbles downward!

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Up-to-50-...ool/3813533947