How far would you trust your 11?

[icecycle]

I trust my 1100 all the way to the crash site.

And the 11's are fast because you beat the para-medics to the crash

[slow mo]

icecycle have you been to the s bend in Waverly ? next time look over the guard rail for bike parts ! ride safe ,,slow mo!

[STEPPENWOLF]

I would just load and go.My low beam doesn't work and my turn signals are a little bit iffy..advance timing wires are good,rubber is good and I have the right attitude,some extra padding on the seat wouldn't hurt but I would still have every confidence it will take me to and from where I am going with out it breaking down.

[natemoen]

For a second there I was trying to figure out how that blue drum was mounted to your bike.

[icecycle]

First season I stayed in my end of the city, second year I would go anywhere in the city and do day trips involving 2 to 3 hundred miles. Third season i would go anywhere. The bike never let me down so it was not a bike thing, it just took some time for me to gain true confidence in the bike.
Rob

Hey Rob Tinman is on the mark, check out the info on XS North. I rode for the first time last year. Rides were so good and the company great. I'm riding this year!!!

[DenyP]

Like Steppenwolf, As long as you have gone through the check list for reviving one of these wonderful bikes, Load her up and ride.













Deny

[Crusty Snippets]

How far

A used XS11 is more reliable than a new Norton.
Proof? I have already travelled further on my 79 Special purchased last year than I did total on my 71 Norton.
A friend and I bought one each. His did not make it accross London town. The chain case was leaking too much oil.
Mine made it about a hundred miles and the ignition advance exploded.
It was down hill for both bikes after that.
My Yami has brakes that are not releasing properly, so the advice about rebuilding all the cylinders is good IMO.
Most anything else is fixable on the way, but if you do as the others have suggested I would go anywhere.
At least these things are fixable, if my 006 Suzuki quits I do not know where to look. Try talking to a computer or whatever the heck is in there.

Unkle Crusty

[Special Ed]

RuKidding?

I have worn out the original odometer on my '79 Special. I rode it to Eugene Oregon right after 9-11. It had around 40,000 miles on it at the time. I had some electrical problems which I attribute to P.O.'s leaving it parked out in the rain, but nothing that I couldn't jury rig or have fixed en route.
I would get on my bike and ride it to Texas with nothing more than a maintenance check and be confident that I would arrive in Lubbock with no trouble: except for arriving in Lubbock. But That's another story.
Except for a valve job at around 30,000 miles ( very minor, only needed re-seating,) the top end has been untouched, and I have over 100,000 on the bottom end. I've been riding since 1958, owned a dozen bikes, and my XS11 is the best of the lot.
Special Ed

[planedick]

Odometer

There is a way to prevent the odo from wearing out. Done in two before I found this. Under the little switch for the signal canceler is the worm gear that wears out. Just pull out the sensor and using a q-tip or similar put a little grease on the gears and put the sensor back in.

[cywelchjr]

There is a way to prevent the odo from wearing out. Done in two before I found this. Under the little switch for the signal canceler is the worm gear that wears out. Just pull out the sensor and using a q-tip or similar put a little grease on the gears and put the sensor back in.

Could you not just spray a little silicone spray up in there every so often with just as much success? Just asking here, as of course we want the method most likely to prevent extra work, including extra teardown.

[ManitoulinLad]

as far as I can ride in a day

Basically no worries. I ride alot with $30,000 bikes, & those guys don't even know how to change the oil - they just press the start button & know the low & high bean switch. If they had a problem is basically park it & tow it. As mentioned with ours at least we have an idea, & with regular maint. there is 'no probs". I have never been stuck with mine - total confidence cause at least I know what the story with it is. Read the manual & go over the bike to get a feeling for it & maint the obivious. These bikes ride as good for the first half hour as they do for the 7th hour of continuous running. If its good in town, no worries for the highway. I love mine, even if its not worth $30,000 - it usually gets the most attention anyways. You gotta jewel man - take it on a trip & let it shine - Dan

[planedick]

Spray

Could you not just spray a little silicone spray up in there every so often with just as much success? Just asking here, as of course we want the method most likely to prevent extra work, including extra teardown.

Of course you have to open it up somewhere to do that also. Just two nuts on the back, same difficulty as changing a bulb.

[Special Ed]

Thanks PlaneDick. My odo quit working at around 130,000 miles. You mean if I had followed your advice I could have a clock reading over 80,000 for the second time around? It's a bummer that I've lost track of the true mileage. I've ridden it for a couple of months with a broken cable, and found out later that the speedo was reading optimistic for who knows how long before I realized it, but I figure I must have at least 180,000 miles on it. It runs like a top, doesn't burn a drop of oil, and has good compression on all cylinders. Oh yeah, and will outrun anything built before 1978 and most built afterwards. What a bike!
Special Ed

[Pain]

I would trust mine all over the planet. Ural won in the voting though.

[foreda]

Trust

Been riding my 78 for 30+ years, I think that pretty much covers the trust issue.