What did I get myself into?

[schnurpfeil]

So I had a xs650. Good bike, a little small for me. I traded it for a xs1100 1980 midnight special plus some cash. Now this bike feels right for my size (215lbs 6' 2") But I am starting over fresh. No manual and I look at it and sigh. Where did the chain go? This thing has how many carbs to play with? er..um.. I feel a bit out of my level of knowledge and mechanical apptitude. SO, I find this site. YIPPIE .. and throw my situation to the masses. I ask. Does anyone know of a motorcycle mechanic in or near Howell, New Jersey? (no crooks please and I am doing this outside my house holds budget). May any of you good men or ladies have a repair manual I may procure? Is any one intrested in becoming my Bike repair pen pal? (just to warn you. I may have bouts of terets in text form if the wrench slips) Just to get it started, here are the things I know!?! needs to be fixed. Only revs to about 4k on full throttle. Tires show signs of cracking in the treads. once I shift into 2nd gear there is a nasty mechanical noise (I quickly go back to first). The front brakes seem to bind a bit (warped rotor or I squeezed the brake too hard and it wont fully release.. I dunno..) Needs the other basics. Oil, lube, line fluids and maybe a new battery. I will figure out how to post pics as soon as I can get my wife to clear the memory card in the camera from her trip to Lilith..UGH....I know....

[wylie coyote]

Welcome- you came to the right place. These guys got me lined out, and I haven't had any maint or running issues since. Catatonic bug has a link in his signature where you can download a manual. The rest of the stuff is on here if you scope out the site- it has pretty much anything you might need. And the ppl on here are more knowledgeable than any dealer mechanics I've run into.
What you doin up this time of night? Sneaking it in behind SWMBO's back?
Have fun.........

[mxmikie]

i have a manual owners and repair in the for sale section

[schnurpfeil]

Well, I went to that websight for the manuals. it seems that Adobe 8.2 does not like the files and is giving me some resistance to downloading them fully. Yes the wife sleeps at this time of night but I do not. I work 2nd shift. Kinda sucks because no motor noise or loud banging in the garage during "napping time" but I guess thats what the weekends are for.

[WMarshy]

Well, I went to that websight for the manuals. it seems that Adobe 8.2 does not like the files and is giving me some resistance to downloading them fully...

There are two manuals for download, one is OEM and the other is the Clymer manual. The two are very different in size, maybe try them both and then save it to a flash drive once you got it down loaded.

Soulds to me like your going to have to take a trip into the carbs to clear up the running issues with that. Take a trip into the maintenance section of the form it will have tips and tricks that the manual doesnt tell you. Matter of fact, even with out a manual you could do everything you need just be searching this site. Anything and everything your are going to have problems with have already been brought up and discussed so do a little search and you will probably find more than one answer. Welcome to the forum, and dont worry, first ride on your new (properly running) XS11 will put all your doubts to rest.

[schnurpfeil]

Yea, I just saved the files to my flash drive and opened them from there. That worked well. Thanks for the heads up.

[CatatonicBug]

Why are you still running Adobe 8.2? You should be on ver. 9.3 by now. I'm glad you were able to get the files though. As it has been mentioned, you're better off doing all your own work, especially on these classic machines. Most of the modern bike shops don't know the first thing about how these things operate, and will cost you a fortune at the same time. Everything you need is available here on this site, so take your time, read ALL the tech tips, and ask questions. Also, don't spend money on parts until you're absolutely sure you need to (read, ask questions).

Oh, and post some pictures of your new ride!

[fredintoon]

So I had a xs650. Good bike, a little small for me. I traded it for a xs1100 1980 midnight special plus some cash. Now this bike feels right for my size (215lbs 6' 2") But I am starting over fresh. No manual and I look at it and sigh. Where did the chain go? This thing has how many carbs to play with? er..um.. I feel a bit out of my level of knowledge and mechanical apptitude. SO, I find this site. YIPPIE .. and throw my situation to the masses. I ask. Does anyone know of a motorcycle mechanic in or near Howell, New Jersey? (no crooks please and I am doing this outside my house holds budget). May any of you good men or ladies have a repair manual I may procure? Is any one intrested in becoming my Bike repair pen pal? (just to warn you. I may have bouts of terets in text form if the wrench slips) Just to get it started, here are the things I know!?! needs to be fixed. Only revs to about 4k on full throttle. Tires show signs of cracking in the treads. once I shift into 2nd gear there is a nasty mechanical noise (I quickly go back to first). The front brakes seem to bind a bit (warped rotor or I squeezed the brake too hard and it wont fully release.. I dunno..) Needs the other basics. Oil, lube, line fluids and maybe a new battery. I will figure out how to post pics as soon as I can get my wife to clear the memory card in the camera from her trip to Lilith..UGH....I know....

Hi schnurpfeil and welcome,
I too moved up from an XS650 except I kept mine.
Warnings:-
If your tires show cracks replace them before they kill you.
The average bike mechanic knows less about your 30 year old bike than you do so why pay him $75 an hour to learn?
Nuggets:-
Didja know the XS11 engine runs backwards?
And that the Special's front brake pads are supposed to be tapered?
(I didn't when I first got mine, which led to some confusion when checking the ignition timing and to throwing away a perfectly good set of brake pads.)
While XS11s all shift gears like a Russian tractor, a nasty noise in 2nd can mean you'll need to do the 2nd gear Dremel fix.
This site don't do photos direct. You gotta set up an album on a public site (I use photobucket, there are several others) and send them from there.

[FANNING507]

Welcome. You will find everyone very helpful and if you get stuck just holler. You'll probably have to type slower as we don't talk as fast you youse guys from Jersey.

[ManagerMike]

Welcome to your newest adventure. You are about to embark upon a journey rife with pitfalls and setbacks, but a very rewarding journey indeed. A journey taken by all that make up the body of this site, resulting in a bevy of accumulated wisdom and experience.
Tap this experience, and you will find yourself riding one of the best personal conveyances ever assembled, with the rewarding sensation of having learned it, understood it, rebuilt it, and fixed it for yourself. Best of luck! And keep the rubber side down.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey there schnurpfeil,

Welcome, and congrats on your acquisition/upgrade!! Be thankful you got the 80LH, the 81LH is too much like the 82XJ!

Okay, you've got the manuals, but here's a few bits about what you stated to get you started. There is a thread in the MISC forum about what to look for in a neglected XS11. Please edit your signature to include your year/make/model for future posts so we don't have to look into your profile to see it, certain problems and fixes are MODEL specific.

BTW, how long has this bike SAT before you got it, how many miles on it?

The brakes, check out the SPOOGE HOLE tech tip.

Yeap, a new battery can go along way in helping to eliminate electrical gremlins, but pulling apart and inspecting, cleaning ALL of the connections is a good start. Take the seat and tank off, and go at it, don't forget the 3 large white plugs behind the fuseblock. Also, pull the glass fuses, test by grabbing ends, pulling/twisting slightly, if they break, they were bad anyways. If the tangs they fit into feel loose or weak, or corroded, then plan on replacing the block...see the FOR SALE forum, STICKY thread for info about where to get one.

AFTER you have done the fluid changes....BTW, IF the bike has sat for many years, several ounces of Marvel Mystery Oil, or Seafoam into the OIL, start, and run GENTLY till operating temps, NO LOADS, NO DRIVING/RIDING, then drain, and replace oil and filters. The middle oil chamber is especially critical, ENSURE you can get the filler cap OFF first before draining!

Then see the tech tips on CLUTCH adjustment....after you have fully lubed the cables!! Then see how it shifts and behaves...see the repair tips, TRANNY for 1st/2nd gear fix....this can be a problem on these machines.

With a limited budget, you may not be able to get the bike in proper shape for THIS SEASON, but take your time, and ask here BEFORE you jump into something new, and we can often help you save time/money.

Yes, plan on learning how to work on these carbs...don't be scared, they aren't as mystical as they seem! You CAN DO IT!!!

T.C.

[schnurpfeil]

Wow. Such a supportive audiance! I really do appreciate it. I am feeling pretty confident at the moment (time wil tell) that I can take a crack at it. I am not origianally from Jersey so we can leave the wise guy cracks out of this . I hale from VA and WI. Married and moved to her native state (what was I thinking). Any who... After I finished applying the 10th coat of gold glass polish to the tank and fenders I was kinda wondering how I can get the original look to the gold painted pieces back. Fixing up the looks of the bike is good when I dont have a whole lot of time that day. I plan to tackle the brake thing first. I printed out every manual (fills a 2 inch binder) and have saved a link to this forum on my desktop. I am ready to go to it. Overcourse I now have to go back through my tools and seperate the metric from the imperial. I was lazy one day while working on my car. I will pay for it now. Anyway *I ramble* thanks for your support. Next sunny day I will roll her out in the driveway and take some pictures.

[fredintoon]

I now have to go back through my tools and separate the metric from the imperial. I was lazy one day while working on my car.

Hi schnurpfeil,
what car do you have that needs Whitworth wrenches?
If you mean your metric & inch a/f wrenches are mixed, here's some of the nearest equivalent sizes:-
5/16" fits 8mm. 7/16" fits 11mm. 9/16" fits 14mm. 3/4" fits 19mm. 1-1/16" fits 27mm.
There are others that are kinda near, where a 6-point socket will work but a 12 point socket may slip and an open end wrench can take the corners off.

[schnurpfeil]

Well its funny that you asked. My Ford needed both metric and Imperial ( standard) sized wrenches. I do not like to make a habit of mixing sizes when working on things. They almost always turn out badly for me. So I get home and open up the master front cylinder. A lot of crud in there. I take it off clean it out put it back on and pump till no more bubbles come out. Then I take off the left brake and inspect the pads. One of the worst brake designs I have ever seen although my knowledge of brakes is all car based up to this point. Anyway, I compress the piston and lube up the slide points. Left side seems fine. Gonna do the right side tomorrow.The tech book says that there is a bleeder screw somewhere on the caliper but I can not find it. Gonna just loosen the brake line at the caliper fitting a smidge and pump some clean fluid down there. Is that the right way to do it?

[WMarshy]

might not be the "correct" way...

...The tech book says that there is a bleeder screw somewhere on the caliper but I can not find it. Gonna just loosen the brake line at the caliper fitting a smidge and pump some clean fluid down there. Is that the right way to do it?

Since my bike is a 79 it might be slightly different but, IIRC there should be a bleeder screw on both calipers. While just bleading the old fluid out and replacing with new maybe better than nothing, you may want to consider taking the breaking system all apart and flushing out the old fluid. In addition, disassemble the break calipers and master cylinders and clean them out. Reason for this is, many people have experienced hung up breaks once they heat up, either from use or just the hot sun beating on them. Junk builds up around the o-ring seal and binds up the piston in the caliper. Also, there are some small passages in the master cylinder that can get clogged and mess up the system operation. There are instructions on how to remove that square o-ring and clean it all out. If you go that far you will be assured to not have any further break problems in the future. From then on, you could just blead out the old fluid every other year or so and not worry about corrosion products in your system...

Search for spooge hole for MC cleaning. Your bike has a linked breaking system, the one of the front calipers always actuated in conjunction with the rear caliper using either the front or back break MC. This can be deleated if desired and there are instruction on how to. Bleading your breaks is complicated due to that "link" line. Enjoy.