#3 #4 Plugs completely black after 1 mile

[DGXSER]

Yep TC, you are of course correct the air will compress

[CA]

mission accomplished

Welp it seems those floats will still float! I readjusted the hanging tangs and tried it one more time and she didn't overflow! I put her back together and OMG she purred! I didn't realize how rough it was running under 3K rpm, it is so easy to shift no that I don't have to bounce the rpms up!! Since the left two cylinders were being drowned with gasoline the idle setting was way too high she was idling now about 2,300 RPM so me and my friend pulled over at a gas station and toned her back down to 1k. I have yet to check the spark plugs, but she ran great! I have a slight "sucking in popping" when slowing down sometimes but I think that is normal? ANd its not official but after filling up we went about 40 miles and I looked in the tank and still had quite a bit of gas, so Im definitely getting better gas mileage!

Is it normal to have clicking when shifting into gears?? especially that 2nd gear; its never come out of 2nd, and i've pushed it in second.

Next project, burned out taillight!!

[TopCatGr58]

Awesome news!

Hey CA,

Glad to hear you've gotten it working. Yep, with 4-1 pipes it's common to have a slight popping on decel when you close the throttle, but you might also need to get and replace the header pipe to head exhaust gaskets, especially IF the PO put the kerkers on and didn't replace the gaskets!?

Also, a slight tweaking of the pilot SCREWS perhaps a 1/2 turn OUT more can help richen it just enough to reduce the decel popping due to otherwise leaning out when shutting the throttle.

Yep, russian tractor shifting is what the XS is known for...more of a CLUNK than a Clink! Fellow riding behind me one time told me he was expecting to see tranny parts falling out behind me when he heard it shifting!!
T.C.

[DGXSER]

What TC Said.....DITTO!!

Very glad to hear that you fixed it!!! Amazing how those simple things like loose jets hide and make life a bugger. Yep, every now and then when I ride with the visor on my full face up and I get an ear full of the shifts, even I look behind to see if my tranny fell out!! It takes some getting used to hearing that.

A tail light SHOULD be cakewalk after that!!

[boyat68]

Every time some one post that it shifts like a "Russian Tractor", I get an amused feeling as my 80G does just that. I of course have not shifted a Russian Tractor only a Farmall, John Deer, and a Ford, which all shifted better than my 80G. A Russian Tractor she is and I love her, but I still wince when shifting into first or second, I feel the knife in my soul.

[CA]

2 more little things...

So I tried to replace the brake light and it wasn't the bulb, I was reading on the forums and saw someone just said follow the the electrical line to the battery and check for breaks kinks?? I may try this tomorrow but I don't understand electrical.

Also noticed a dirty brown drip on my exhaust directly under my rear brake reservoir, it seems to be coming out of the pole thing going up into the reservoir... do I just need to bleed the rear and put new fluid in?

update on the rich problem; checked my mileage today and got about 37.5 mpg, and checked my spark plugs and they were pearly white...should they be white??? I may be running a little lean huh...well if it gives me better gas mileage!

[DiverRay]

Unplug the connector with the brake light wire, it will be under the seat. Use about three feet of wire with both ends "stripped", and place one end inside the brake light connector and the other end on the positive terminal of the battery. You should see the brake light go on. You can use that wire to check all the bulbs in the rear of the bike. Just put it in one connector, touch it to the battery, and watch for a bulb to light.
If that work, put the connector back together, and then go to the front of the bike. Pull the headlight out of the "bucket". There are two phillips screws, one on each side, that hold it in. Once the headlight is out, look at the wire that comes off the front brake. It is actually two wires, but just looks like one from the outside. Follow it to the headlight bucket, and unplug the two wires from the brake, and plug the two wires on the MAIN harness together. Turn on the ignition switch and see if the brake light is on. If it is, you probably have a bad brake light switch. You can check to see if it has been pulled out of the "socket" type hole it fits in.
You can check the rear brake switch in the same manner, but I think you should wait on it until you rebuild the rear master cylinder.

[DGXSER]

Isn't there a grounding wire for the brake lights? I would probably start with that as 80% of electrical issues on these bikes seems to be grounding.

If your ground is solid and clean, then Ray gave a great testing path! (One I would never have known.)

[DGXSER]

Plugs...forgot the plugs

If your plugs just look clean like when installed, you are probably a little lean. If they look white and ashy, then you are lean and should richen it up. Running to lean can cause the engine to over heat, even burn through the pistons There was a post from RP on here somewhere on a 500 Maxim I believe where he pulled the heads and the pistons were burned through.

I'd probably richen it up a half turn or so till it starts looking just a bit tanish brown. JMO, YMMV

[CA]

Hmm

I don't understand electrical but I will give it a shot, also I need to rebuild the rear MC for sure???? Crap. The rear brake is working fine...man o man...

[DiverRay]

I don't understand electrical but I will give it a shot, also I need to rebuild the rear MC for sure???? Crap. The rear brake is working fine...man o man...

If the brake works, but you are leaking brake fluid, you will need to rebuild the MC. If it's NOT brake fluid, you should be OK.
The electrical is easy. Think of it as plumbing. You just need to flow the water from the water main,(battery) to the spigot in the bathroom(brake light). All you are doing is following the path the "water" needs to flow. Each switch is like a spigot in the line, it can shut off or allow the flow of water. when you put a jumper wire from the battery to the connector at the back of the bike, you just bypass all the other "spigots" in the system.
The BIG difference is you NEED the "drain" in the sink to connect to. That is the "ground" wire. ALL electrical needs a full circle to work. Battery, through a wire to a light bulb, and then a short wire to the frame and back to the battery.
Hope this helps you get your mind around the problem!

[CA]

RIvers and such

Thanks DiverRay for the lesson, that actually really helps...so i guess I am just looking for a hole in the pipe! It doesn't make sense to me that just the running light is out and not the brake light...hmm. O well, my brother does electrical stuff so Ill grab him.

Now concerning the fluid, it must be brake fluid because what else would be leaking there...it just looks really weird like Carmel syrup almost...

...and by rebuild could I just take it out and clean it and use original parts? Remember I have college debt...

Thanks for the heads up DGSXER, I will probably turn her a little richer tomorrow if there is ever a break in the rain this week!!

I need to take a picture of my bike and have you guys give it a look over...see whats original and what not...the guy that i bought it from was under the impression everything was stock for it but 4-1 cant be? and my seat has a big hump in the back, and I can't find another one with the same exact one so....I actually don't like the seat but a girl today told me that she liked the hump because she sat higher up and could see...so it may just have to stay...just looks like she's got a fat ace! (not the girl...the bike...)

[DGXSER]

Yeah, its amazing what a PO will do or say. There is a standard for sale near me righ tnow, was even tossed about here on the site while back and now relisted on CL. It is absolutely a Standard all the way through with a round headlight installed. Guy has posted it as being identical to a MNS!! I wrote an email to the guy advising him of the mis information, and the ad still reads the same a month later.

When I bought mine, the first pics the guy had posted showed beautiful paint and nice gold badges, great stock seat!! I show up and the badges are painted black, it has a king/queen seat on it. After some discussions he tells me had did not have a camera so he posted pics of his buddies identical 81SH which is stock! Think it was for sale on CL earlier this year. Funny though the pics were at his house.

As to the MC, you can certainly try pulling it apart and cleanign everything up and putting it back together. It may work, it may not. But cheaper to try it than just buy new parts. Time and elbow grease is cheap! Old gunky brake fluid will look like that Good sign you need to clean the caliper and the MC anyway.

[CA]

How to?

Is there a good how to take apart the rear MC and caliper around on the forums? I looked and couldn't find it.

Has anyone successfully just cleaned it and fixed it? if not I'll just order the kit because I saw somewhere its like $15.

[randy]

CA,

Order the kit anyway, no sense dismantling it and putting back old rubber. There's really nothing in it but the plunger. Once you have it off, there is a snap ring holding the plunger in. Replace the rubbers the same way they came off. Tough part is bleeding it, have patience.