Help with some XS questions

[Joey's toy]

Hey folks.

I'm in the process of buying a 1980 XS 1100 that is is very good mechanical and cosmetic condition however it does have 40K miles on the bike. Here is one of the issues that I am concerned with as a newbie to the XS 1100..........what should I look out for with a bike that has been well taken cared of but has 40K miles. Next. The seating height is a bit beyond my comfort zone and it cause me concern as only a portion of my forefoot touches the ground. What are some of the things that I could do to lower the seating height by about 2 or 3 inches. Schocks are presently fully extended as the previous owner was over 6 ft tall. Any help would be appreciated.....Thanks Joey's toy

[MrOzz]

Here is a good thread on the subject.

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?t=792

Ozz

[Ken Talbot]

Lowering can involve a number of things:
- take off the seat, remove the seat cover, resculpt the foam with an electric carving knife, recover and reinstall
- replace the 17" rear wheel on a Standard with a 16" wheel from a Special
- install new rear shocks with a 10.5" eye to eye length in place of the 12" or so eye to eye of the stock units
- raise the fork tubes up an inch or so in the triple clamps

Doing all of these will definitely bring the seat down. It also means you will have to cut and reweld the sidestand by a few inches to restore a proper lean angle.

[thewiz]

"...only a portion of my forefoot touches ..."

I am 5'6" so I have similar issues with the seat height. All I can say there is that I have gotten used to it after having had so many of these bikes. I have found that most of the difficulty with the lack of 'foot hold' on the ground is in backing up so I tend to look for ways to park that facilitate getting out of the spot .... worst comes to worst; you can always carefully push it backwards ...PLUS ... you may find, as I have, that you'll appreciate the extra height in the corners

[rover]

I have my 79F rigged with full touring, windjammer, hard bags, tail trunk, floorboards, air shocks, XJ handle bars. I have been setting the shocks low cause I like a rather soft ride, and I have a 29" inseam. Recently I had an opportunity to take a young lady riding, so, on the way to pick her up, I put more air in the shocks, which raised the rear of the bike a bit. I still had a nice ride, but I was amazed at the difference in handling. Now it was much easier to steer, much more responsive, and almost like my friend's crotch rocket. I went from 20 psi to 75 psi, and after putting the young lady on the back, I bled off about 10 psi. Now I will leave the 65 psi, as the ride is just a bit stiffer, and the handling not so mushy. Oh, the young lady really enjoyed the ride. She is the daughter of one of my best friends. No hanky-panky. Just a thought for those that want to lower the rear of their XS. I may even consider sliding the forks up into the triple trees. The improvement in handling is awesome with the rear higher than I had it before.

[Korr]

I'm only 5'5" with my shoes on so i'm only touching the ground a little bit. The easiest way to lower it is by adjusting the rear suspension. I also did the seat carving with an electric carving knife. Pick your parking spots carefully My kickstand just barely clears the ground when i kick it out. Sometimes i have to lean the bike to it's right a little bit to get it out. Once you get used to it you will be fine. Oh and 40k is not alot of miles for these bikes. Just check for leaks and make sure it's not making horrible metal grinding sounds while it's running. See if it engages good in 2nd gear. Make sure the throttle actually springs back...that happened to a xs750 and xs1100 that i checked out before i found my sexy wexy