anatomy of a basket case ... longer post

[thewiz]

sorting it out ...

Okay, Okay .... I guess it's not as much of a basket case as it could be ....Along with the chassis came about 10 cardboard boxes of pieces. I guess that's what prompted me to call it that .... maybe I shoulda' called it a 'box lunch' instead.

Spent most of the day organizing the fasteners, small parts and big stuff. I put the case halves of the spare mill back together and then bolted the big stuff that looked like it came from there back onto the block and tucked it out of the way. This reduced the clutter immensely. Two of everything …. A little taste of what Noah must have felt when he was loadin’ up that boat. I kept out the stuff that I think is gonna’ go on the bike, then went shoppin’ for a 5 gal carb dip. Yeah, right !!…. Guess ya’ can’t get ‘em in California any more. I took some photos yesterday and I’m still waiting for them to get here from my Sprint PCS picture mail then I’ll post ‘em.

TC suggested matching up the micro-gall marks on the cam caps and head …. that was RIGHT ON !! Was easy to do thataway and there is no doubt that it's right. It appears that the head with the valves has a partly stripped out spark plug hole which will need to be Helicoiled too. I assume that's OK to do on a bike motor, right?

I think next I gonna try to turn the motor over some by hand before I put the top end back on ..... maybe put enough back together along with the middle drive and try to turn it over with the back wheel. If it turns over smoothly by hand and changes gears, I'll mic the bores, and as long as they’re OK, I’ll stick it the rest of the way back together and go from there. If there is anything that doesn't feel or look right anywhere along the way, I'll probably take Hobbyman's advice and resplit it for a look/see inside.

Prom … you got my info, right?

[GNEPIG]

then went shoppin’ for a 5 gal carb dip. Yeah, right !!…. Guess ya’ can’t get ‘em in California any more

.. good, that stuff will ruin the rubber and plastic parts that are hard to remove and dont need to be removed.
instead, go shopping for two cans of spray carb cleaner. compressed air is also a good idea. dont take the carb bodies off of the rails/apart from each other, this is not necessary either[unless you have already dunked your carbs in the 5 gal bucket of toxic-ooze, then you will need to replace the butterfly shaft seals].

[John]

Heli Coil kit

I rethreaded a stripped spark plug in an XS11 last year. Heli Coil has special kit for spark plugs. The P/N is 5334-14. It is not a regular coil type, but is an insert type, Works great. Costs aboout $30.

[Ken Talbot]

With everything apart, I would go ahead and helicoil all four cylinders. Call it cheap insurance.

[thewiz]

thx for the warnings ...

Appreciate the all of the input .... I was gettin' the parts dip for the dirty-ass head and valve cover and all the funky fasteners ... but thought it woulda' come in handy for the carbs too. I have never intentionally dunked rubber or plastic parts in that stuff and I ain't about to begin now but I surely coulda' missed those shaft seals... so thx ... but it don't matter ... I ain't goin' to NV or AZ to get a bucket!! Also thanks for the Helicoil PN too .... I just may do all four .... guess I'll pressure wash the head and wire wheel the bolts instead .... can I do that?

[John]

If you do all four, you'll need to see if you can buy just some of the inserts, because the kit ony has a few of them and one of them is way too long unless it can be cut down.
How badly is it stripped? If the threads are gone, then you'll need to buy a 5/8 drill bit, and drill the spark plug hole out before you can tap new threads in it . The directions to do that come with the kit. I have a post written up on how I did it. Here's a link to it.http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...il+spark+plug. You won't have to go through what I did with the air hose, but the thread repair is in there too.
Good luck.

[prometheus578]

Wiz... I gots yor info.
Before doing the helicoil, let me take a look at them.
Most stripped holes only go down a few threads before the plug jams. I've got a plughole tap that inserts into the hole, expands into the good threads at the bottom, and reverses out, cleaning up the messed up threads at the top. Works great... but if all your threads are shot, something else is called for.

[XSRIK]

wow we must have gone to different high schools together!
Cheers!
XSRIK

[thewiz]

decended upon ....

Seems like a long while since I've even gotten on the computer much less twisted any bolts on this bike project. In the last ten days, I have finished building a room addition and dug and poured a driveway instead. Now back to the fun.

10 days ago, Prometheus, .... that's right .... the renegade God, the giver of the gift of fire, himself, decended upon my little place in the desert .... not with a fire stick but instead with a bag of secret tools and tiny little, itty, bitty carburetor parts. He braved a couple of hours in rush hour traffic on the nasty SoCal freeways to get here which not only shows his benevolant side in all it's magnificance BUT also shows what a bona fide XS nut he really is. You are a great guy, Prom ! ..... thank you very much for the visit ... I learned a ton and benefited greatly from the all-too-brief time you spent here.

Prior to Prom's arrival, I had taken a float bowl off of #4 carb just for a quick peek inside and didn't see much to concern myself over. A closer look by Prom laid my wishful thinking to rest. Gooey black crap galore, a main jet floppin' around in a float bowl ... were just a part of what he found. Then the stopper .... idle mixture screw broken off in #2 .... efforts to free the broken-off screw tip failed that night and since then I have tried another hour or so of poking, warming, soaking and wiggling to no avail. Soooooo .... I guess I'm looking for a #2 carb now. Finally at about midnight, after a piece of pie and more coffee, Prometheus headed back to the coast with a shorter, more pleasant ride ahead of him at this time of night. Wow and many thanks again, Prom ...... that's all I can say

While I hunt for a carb, guess I'll work some more on the other stuff. The head still needs attention as it is all apart. Prom left a couple extra shims to play with .... Also anyone who has an extra carb, please feel free to PM me and let me know what you're asking. I've seen several posts about the broken screw thing so I'll be readin' them too, perhaps there is a method for getting the screw out ?? .... but I'm pretty sure this carb is shot though since the tiny hole in the venturi has been made slightly larger by a predecessor and I'm thinkin' that's probably the end of it ....

[Ken Talbot]

Variations on the push-pin technique have worked for a lot of folks with broken pilot screws. Don't give up yet.

[John]

The broken tips can be drilled out by hand using a pin vise and a #60 drill bit. I had good luck with that method.

[DiverRay]

I may have a carb for you. I do have spares, for the '78/'79 models.
PM me if you still need one.
Ray

[strom]

Hmm... I would take the thing apart... check all the gears, dogs, slots, everything.
Use the manual and check for missing pieces.
While the head is apart, change the valve oil seals.
Get the full gasket kit, they are cheap and you get a bunch of stuff you will need.
Do the work right, dont hurry. I would start with the engine. If it runs OK, sort out everything else. If not, dump it. Or use for spares.
Bikes in boxes are cheap to buy, expencive to get running.... combined its cheaper to get a nice running bike. I wish I would listen to my own advice at least ONCE!
Good luck!

LP