I didnt talk myself out of it

[Ozmodius]

Ok, i'm a sucker for a good deal. I have an 81 bagger at home that I just got running, only to find that it has the 1st and 2nd gear issue. Now this add comes out in craigs list ...

http://memphis.craigslist.org/mcy/584578165.html

and i'm thinking, hmm if it is in that bad of shape that he wont show a picuture of it (He knows how, he's showing an add picture probably from this site) maybe the transmission will be worth reusing in mine.

So I go to the guys house, turns out he lives about a mile from where i work, and take a look at the bike. The seat is torn (no biggie) tires are new, paint looks new cept for the tank. guages and controls look new. And I check out the milage ... 5736. It has new intake boots .. brand new. Petcocks are leaking and it has no battery, (i brought my own). I slap the battery in and he gives it a shot of ether and it roars to life... purs like a kitten, then promptly dies. Guy says the fuel hoses were rotten and he replaced them and isnt sure he hooked everything up right. He asks $600 for it ....

Bottom line .. i paid $450 for the bike and $50 for him to deliver it to my house and i now have 2 non running XS1100's, but i'm very hopefull of this one being on the road within a month.

If anyone has working petcocks for a 81 special I would be willing to buy them and send back my old ones. Also i've looked in the repair section under fuel, i didnt find a whole lot about the routing of the tubing, is this a simple affair?

[mro]

Think bikebandit has the rebuild kit for the specials.
Relitivly easy to do. Takes about 10 minuets each plus cleaning time. Shut off diaphram be real easy to do too.

Does it have the octopus ?
There is a diagram some where here on the site.


mro

[cajun31]

Rebuilding the petcocks is very easy and does not cost an arm and a leg to get the kits. Another site to check is http://www.oldbikebarn.com

[Ozmodius]

Thanks!

Thanks, I've found rebuild kits for $25.

I believe the octopus is gone, I'll take a picture of what is there and get back to ya.

[fredintoon]

Hi Oz,
looks like you got a deal. If a PO has already tossed the octopus you won't have to. Not their best idea. Special petcocks have two fuel spigots. One is for ON and RES(erve) and t'other is for PRIME.
After you have rebuilt the petcocks cap off the PRIME spigot on each. The simplest fuel connection is to run a hose from the left ON/RES spigot to the left side fuel feed between carbs 1 & 2 and run another hose from the right ON/RES spigot to the right side fuel feed between carbs 3 & 4.
The first complication is to put an in-line fuel filter in each feed line. Now remember to use both taps to run and turn both taps to OFF when you park. The next complication is to put a tee in each hose and connect between them so the bike will run all 4 cylinders with either spigot.
If you think that's complicated, the original octopus system uses 8 fuel hoses.

[dpotter58]

Nice find! I have a couple of the 81 midnights and love them. I have never had an octopus problem so before you yank it out check to be sure the lines ae right and the petcocks are working. If the octopus works, you don't have to worry about shutting of the fuel when you aren't riding. Here's a link to a thread that shows where they go.

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4139&highlight=fuel+and+line+and+routing

[lakecountrydave]

Pictures!!!

I can't seem to find all the pictures

Congrats, sounds like a great find!

Dave

[Ozmodius]

Thanks for the info ... the bike should be delivered some time this week. As soon as it gets here i'll post some pics.

[Ozmodius]

Pics - Here

One petcock is leaking and someone had removed the octopuss (multi-line vaccum system) and replaced with strait fuel lines. The PO could not get it to run.

After an inspection of how the petcocks work and the way the fuel lines were run, it became evident why the bike would not start. When the petcock was in the run position, that line was blocked off, if the PO had turned it to "Prime" it would have fired right up .. just as it did for me after I put in a new battery.

So ... I have one parts bike (81 bagger with bad 1st & 2nd, not gonna put the cash into it to redo the transmission) and one rocket. I still need to go through and restore the breaks and that leaking petcock, but this is gonna be a fun project.

by the way... did I mention that this thing is a rocket?

[CarolynS]

Well done

Looks like a perfect project. It will be nice when you're done with it!
Good find! I did the same thing with mine. Had one that needed alot. Looked around for a parts bike. Found a bike that's too nice to part and I'm fixing her now. Paid almost the same as you did too for the 'parts' bike. Having a blast working on it and learning alot.
Good luck!