Toying with the idea of buying an XS650

[Courtney]

I know some of you are quite knowledgable about the XS650's and I've always secretly wanted the old school Brit look but with Jap reliability. My buddy in high school came home with a shiny new gold XS650 in 1970 and I was sold, but I have some questions, as to which are the best years, easiest to maintain, easiest to get parts for etc etc. Can anyone enlighten me on what to stay away from for one-off year parts etc etc and which will be easiest to restore? I kinda like the earlier non specials myself.

[Courtney]

Looks like I've already screwed up with my question; the 650's are NOT all xs650's; the earliest ones are XS-1's ???? then 2's etc.

[DGXSER]

And not to be ignored is the XJ650 which also carried into the 80s. But it is a four cylinder and not two like the XS were.

[Courtney]

Yes, I'm after the 2 cylinder old school look ones. My friend had a 4cylinder XJ and it was a good little bike.

[LoHo]

Court, I picked up an XJ700 (a straight four) a couple of months ago because the price was good and I could tell what the problem was during test ride/pushing it (Survey says: Dirty Carbs!). It has become my daily commuter, although the XS11 will supplant it soon. The smaller bike is more zippy and easier to get around, but feels small and requires a bit more shifting.

I, too, like the look of the straight-twin Yamahas. The local CraigsList had a couple of barn find 650s a while back, but before I was prepared to face the spousal wrath resulting from dragging home two more dead bikes, someone else snagged them up. I am probably better off, but still....

[jetmechmarty]

1977 began the last era and are easiest when shopping parts. '77 and up have all the frame improvements, larger 35 mm forks, more modern brakes (same as XS11 standard) '79 was the last year a standard was offered. 1980 begins electronic ignition. It is reliable. XS-1, XS-1B, XS-2, and TX650 are comparatively big money bikes. They offer a much bigger challenge finding parts. All of them are easy compared to the XS11.

If you're going to customize a bike, the XS650 Special and XS650 standard pretty much share the same frames. The Special has the top of the shocks mounted 46 mm farther forward than the standard. Of coarse, mounting tabs for the body parts may vary. Wheels swap between models, so you have lots of options.

XS650temp.proboards.com is a helpful forum. It's my preference.


This can be transformed into....


this with very little effort.

[crazy steve]

If you want that 'Brit look', you're thinking of the early models. The XS1 ('70-71) was the first but was kick-only and had drum brakes front/rear. The XS2 ('72) got electric start and a front disc but was otherwise unchanged. Two-tone paint and spoke wheels, very 'traditional'...

I owned a XS2 'back in the day' and it was a great bike (sold to buy my XS11 ... shoulda kept it). The last bike I owned that you could perform all normal maintenance on with the supplied tool kit. No electronics anywhere (point ignition) and very few plastic parts; even the sidecovers were metal.

Which is 'best'? Mechanically, they're all more-or-less the same, with the later bikes being a better for availability of replacement parts like tanks, etc. But Yamaha started 'modernizing' the design with the TX models in '74 and they lost some of their charm IMO. Unmolested XS1s and 2s are worth good money these days if you can find one. Huge aftermarket support (for a Japanese bike) so few worries there. They're very popular, so don't expect any bargains.

[1234loft]

I built a 650 street tracker.

It was a fun project, but I sold the bike.
It was just too under powered, and I did not like riding without fenders.
Glad I did it, but would not do it again.
You cannot sell them for what it costs to build them even with free labor.
(At least I could not)

If I was to do another 650, I would do a later model stock bike with the better brakes etc.

Good luck on your project whatever you choose.

[Crusty Snippets]

650

The earliest 650 twins handled awful. Yvon Duhamel ( Miguel's dad and Number 1 plate in Canada early 70's ) threw one away because of the bad handling.
Lots of guys owned them and they seem to go faster every year.
Faster than an XS11 according to the stories. They did not leak oil and that is what was appealing about them. But the bad handling and shaking kept me away.
I rode alongside a 4 cylinder 650 a few weeks ago, and it did 145 KPH and seemed to go around corners okay.
Unkle Crusty

[jetmechmarty]

I can about run over an XS11 with an XS650 Special in the twisties. It's easy enough to make it handle even quicker. There are lots of available parts.

Courtney, what do you want to do with the bike? If you're looking to do a restoration project, the earlier the model, the better. You stand a better chance of having something worth more than what you put in it. If you want to do a lot of riding, the later ones are better. A Special would be the least expensive acquisition. The '78 through '80 Specials have a rear disc brake.

[650mark]

xs650?

I've restored a few xs650's and have found them to be a great little bike for running around town and taking to your local vintage bike night. parts are readily available on line(both new and used) or in your local salvage yard if you have one near. I think they are too small for any serious road trips but having said that I've done several 700 mile 2-3 day rides on a couple of mine and if you're not in a hurry they hold up well. never had more than a flat tire.
all my motors were rebuilt but stock. I stayed mostly with 1980 and newer to get the electronic ignition, i'm not a real fan of points ignition but ymmv. but imho the xs1100 is FAR superior to the 650 in every way for those riders who will put a lot of miles on the bikes. I have some pics of some of mine here:
photobucket.com/albums/yy148/xs650mark.

[Courtney]

I can about run over an XS11 with an XS650 Special in the twisties. It's easy enough to make it handle even quicker. There are lots of available parts.

Courtney, what do you want to do with the bike? If you're looking to do a restoration project, the earlier the model, the better. You stand a better chance of having something worth more than what you put in it. If you want to do a lot of riding, the later ones are better. A Special would be the least expensive acquisition. The '78 through '80 Specials have a rear disc brake.

This would be a resto, not a modded bike. I like to plod along at the speed limit, and my days of canyon carving are gone, so stock is prob all I need. What gas mileage do the 650's get? Better than the XS11 ?

[jetmechmarty]

Eleven years ago, I rode this bike to my class reunion. The trip was over two thousand miles. I'm 6'4". Two years ago I rode it the length of the Blue Ridge Parkway and back. For sure it's no fun on the interstate.

The XS1100 certainly has longer legs.



Hey Mark! You do nice work. Those XS1100 exhausts are impressive!

[Courtney]

I've restored a few xs650's and have found them to be a great little bike for running around town and taking to your local vintage bike night. parts are readily available on line(both new and used) or in your local salvage yard if you have one near. I think they are too small for any serious road trips but having said that I've done several 700 mile 2-3 day rides on a couple of mine and if you're not in a hurry they hold up well. never had more than a flat tire.
all my motors were rebuilt but stock. I stayed mostly with 1980 and newer to get the electronic ignition, i'm not a real fan of points ignition but ymmv. but imho the xs1100 is FAR superior to the 650 in every way for those riders who will put a lot of miles on the bikes. I have some pics of some of mine here:
photobucket.com/albums/yy148/xs650mark.

LOVE the red pin striped one! What year is that one?

[crazy steve]

I'll agree with what Mark said; great short-hop and town bike. Yeah, I've done some distance riding on one, but the vibration at freeway speeds just beats the crap out of you...

For mileage, expect a well-tuned example to get about 50 around town, 60 at higher speeds.