My First Bike...What have I gotten myself into?

[black01scoobyrs]

So the calipers can just be cleaned Up? do a rebuild and go to town? or do they need to be replaced too? Are the pistons the same on the back too. I also saw some stainless steal pistons on ebay for $25 a piece. Do I still have to have different pad material in the front in the back like the book says or is that just old technology? When I ran the VIN that's on the title (haven't checked the frame) it said it was an indigo blue 79 1100F. With the center stand I am just looking to get one to work on the bike. I will take it off when I'm not working on the bike. I'm just not comfortable doing what I have to do on the center stand and I can't get the forks off to reubild them on the kick stand. Also that explains why the gas cap looks different than what I was finding for the standard.

[bikerphil]

Usually the calipers can be disassembled and cleaned without a rebuilding kit. Make sure to scrape the crud out of the groove where the rubber seal fits. If the pistons are slightly pitted, they can be cleaned up with an emery cloth, if real bad, replace them. When cleaning and reassembling, use only clean brake fluid. Front and rear pads consist of the same material now AFAIK. I've used a Special centerstand to lift my Standard for years now, no clearance issues, it might be a tad shorter, but it works fine, don't know about the XJ one though.

Typing at the same time, eh Steve.

[crazy steve]

As long as your caliper bores aren't damaged (gouged, out of round, etc), they can be rebuilt. Clean all the corrosion out of the piston bores and seal grooves (use some fine sandpaper if need be), install new seals/pistons and they'll be like new. If the SS pistons you saw were listed by the 'Kenosha_Kid', that's the same guy as the link I posted. If you buy three, he'll discount the price and give you a break on shipping, making his cheaper than either Mikes or PartsNMore (at least he did when I bought mine).

Yes, on the standards the pistons/seals/pads are the same front and rear; the oddball 'different' rear pads was a factory thing. All currently available pads are the same front/rear.

For a centerstand, you'll need one off a '78, '79, or '80 standard. The '81 standard uses a 'special' stand (in fact, this year is closer to a special frame-wise than it is a standard).

[cywelchjr]

Yes, on the standards the pistons/seals/pads are the same front and rear; the oddball 'different' rear pads was a factory thing. All currently available pads are the same front/rear.

While it's true that what is sold currently is the same front and rear, from what I've been able to determine the rears were originally sintered copper and the fronts were organic. I'm running organic on the front and sintered copper on the rear and it's working fine. The sintered copper doesn't grab as hard, so it's easier to modulate the rear and avoid a lockup. It also likely will last longer. I'll probably keep mine the way it is for the time being, I like how they work. I found that sintered copper on the fronts caused brake fade with a lot of heavy stopping in hot weather as the heat transfer rate of the pads caused the brake fluid to boil, that's running DOT4 fluid as well, but with organic pads I don't get that problem.

[black01scoobyrs]

Thanks for the info everybody.

[crazy steve]

...from what I've been able to determine the rears were originally sintered copper and the fronts were organic...

Well, I can't speak to the newer bikes, but (believe it or not) I still have the OEM pads for my '78 and both ends are organic. They even have the same part number on both (ASK A21 GG), but the rear is marked with a 'RR'. The only change I can see is a slight color difference in the pad material, with the fronts being more of a red-brown color, while the rear is dark gray/black. Neither has any metallic content I can see.

Even the Yamaha parts fiche shows the same pad front/rear, so maybe these 'different' pads were a 'refinement' only fitted to the production line...

[cywelchjr]

Well, I can't speak to the newer bikes, but (believe it or not) I still have the OEM pads for my '78 and both ends are organic. They even have the same part number on both (ASK A21 GG), but the rear is marked with a 'RR'. The only change I can see is a slight color difference in the pad material, with the fronts being more of a red-brown color, while the rear is dark gray/black. Neither has any metallic content I can see.

Even the Yamaha parts fiche shows the same pad front/rear, so maybe these 'different' pads were a 'refinement' only fitted to the production line...

Good to know. What I do know is that with organics on the back I had to be really careful or the rear would try to slip, but with the metalic pads on the back I still have more than enough to lock the rear, but it's much more controllable. I am looking forward to when I can afford braided stainless lines though, while I can bring the front to the edge of locking on clean dry pavement as it is, reducing the pressure at the handle would be welcome. I may consider getting 80 or later special rotors as well, as it can be a bit alarming when braking in the wet with these solid smooth rotors.

[black01scoobyrs]

So my frame and motor have the same VIN number. 2h70 are the first 4 digits. I got a bunch more pics coming.

[DGXSER]

That makes it a 78 or 79 standard for sure. So the front end is stock, the tank and seat are not. Either someone replaced the cylinders, or more likely painted them.

Most likely the electrical system and components are from the 78 or 79 Standard.

[cywelchjr]

Yep, what he said. If you look in the thread pointed out earlier about identifying the model, the 78 and 79 models start with the same 1st 3 characters and then those below a certain number are 78's and those above are 79's.

[black01scoobyrs]

[black01scoobyrs]

Dgxser, My family is from right outside of Cincy. Go Bearcats!

[MaximPhil]

While the picture of the tire shows plenty of tread. Look for the code of when the tire was made. If it is more than four years old you should replace it
as it will be rock hard.
Phil

[black01scoobyrs]

Can anybody tell me what carbs are showing in the pictures? I want to just get parts for them. My stock carbs are going to need a lot of work. How about it not having a fuse box? If sitting and I can't the bike to go into all of the gears is that part of the 2nd gear issue or is it because the motors not running and kicking oil on the clutch. Also could I just need to adjust my clutch.

[natemoen]

Well tc sells a nice atc fuse box that fits nicely with a little modification.

I can't go through my gears when I am just sitting there. I can however do it if I move the back wheel a little.