Potential new project

[Prisoner6]

Forgot to add a big +1 on what Nate said ... definitely ditch the ballast resistor when using the 3 ohm Dyna coils.

EDIT: Slow typing getting in the way again ...

[James England]

Looking better and better, James! (As I suspected it would)

This build could end up looking even better than your previous Black Beauty!! (Is that even possible?)

oh, I don't know. I suppose it could end up better as I never had BB's frame powder-coated. One things for sure...it's going to look very similar! In some ways, this one is easier in that it was missing only one original piece.... The rear 'lift handle'. Everything else was there on the bike.

Here's a pic when I first got the bike and took the fuel tank off....yuk...


It's a strange bike, I thought at first..cosmetically very rough but only 38,000 on the clock. The instrument gasket on the speedo was ruined, so I thought it had been opened up to wind the speedo back..but I found the speedo untouched and obviously never opened up. The cams and internals all support the mileage and all the expensive bits that are often missing were all on the bike. I've come to the conclusion that it's a bike which just spent most of its 34 years outside in the rain of the UK climate. So, in a way, all reversible by a bit of expenditure and work.

[James England]

A few pix

Well XSives

Here's a few more pix. I got the clock cases painted today..




Then glued the case retaining bolts into place using epoxy adhesive. This saves the mounting bolts popping up into the case when mounting the case on the bike! Very irritating when that happens....



I replaced all OEM dome nuts with stainless version..



Instruments back on the bike.....


The next small job is to use a paintbrush (with only one hair on it the last time I did this) and lens and freshen up the white text and line on the centre console.. Tricky but not impossible!



I then got the refurbished front brake calipers back on and connected up...



The rear caliper piston is past it and I'll have to replace it with a stainless one. It's corroded and pitted etc and really bad....

Incidentally, the splendiferous stainless castellated axle nut was sent to me completely free of charge by a UK company called http://www.mrmegapacks.com. A while ago, I bought a rear one from them...a hefty 18mm one. I emailed and asked if they had a 14mm front one and he just emailed back and said he'd send me one for free. Which he then did. Really nice, I thought!

The oil radiator is now on the bike..... You US guys are so deprived not having one of these lovely little things adorning the front of your bikes!



Onwards and upwards, gentlemen (and Wildkat)

[motoman]

Well XSives

Here's a few more pix. I got the clock cases painted today..




Then glued the case retaining bolts into place using epoxy adhesive. This saves the mounting bolts popping up into the case when mounting the case on the bike! Very irritating when that happens....



I replaced all OEM dome nuts with stainless version..



Instruments back on the bike.....


The next small job is to use a paintbrush (with only one hair on it the last time I did this) and lens and freshen up the white text and line on the centre console.. Tricky but not impossible!



I then got the refurbished front brake calipers back on and connected up...



The rear caliper piston is past it and I'll have to replace it with a stainless one. It's corroded and pitted etc and really bad....

Incidentally, the splendiferous stainless castellated axle nut was sent to me completely free of charge by a UK company called http://www.mrmegapacks.com. A while ago, I bought a rear one from them...a hefty 18mm one. I emailed and asked if they had a 14mm front one and he just emailed back and said he'd send me one for free. Which he then did. Really nice, I thought!

The oil radiator is now on the bike..... You US guys are so deprived not having one of these lovely little things adorning the front of your bikes!



Onwards and upwards, gentlemen (and Wildkat)

Not particularly James, The Venturer I've owned from new ALL came from factory with the oil cooler.

[James England]

More pix. Hope I'm not being boring

Aha...so some of the US bikes have the oil cooler. Be grateful for small mercies, then

Here's some more pix. I got the rear brake caliper on today, bled the front and rears and now have braking.....



Then, some nice new inlet manifolds arrived in the mail and I got those fitted...


I'm now looking for stainless clamps for the carb boots. They're a bit specific at 8mm wide, although I did find some last time on eBay...

Then some green Dyna coils,arrived from the USA, so I rushed off to the hardware store and bought these....

They are perfect for mounting the coils like so..









The next stage is to get oil in the middle gearbox and final drive. The the carbs back on and the airbox, once I find the stainless clamps.

Onwards and upwards!

[MaximPhil]

Hi James,
You are making excellent progress. North American bikes have a cowling around the oil cooler Just a bit of plastic but a nice finishing touch.
Phil

[LoHo]

UK bikes have stock oil coolers? What's the average high in the UK, about 60F?

I took a spin today and it was 109F...air cooled and no oil cooler. Some logic....

[James England]

UK bikes have stock oil coolers? What's the average high in the UK, about 60F?

I took a spin today and it was 109F...air cooled and no oil cooler. Some logic....

yes, totally weird. All the European bikes have an oil cooler as standard...every single one of them. Temperatures across Europe never exceed some of the US states and yet we get an oil cooler and you don't.

[Mathh]

yes, totally weird. All the European bikes have an oil cooler as standard...every single one of them. Temperatures across Europe never exceed some of the US states and yet we get an oil cooler and you don't.

It was never about the temperatures, it was about riding speed. In Europe these bikes were ridden fast / very fast, take your pick. Speed limits in Europe were much higher than in the US, in Germany non existent.

[James England]

It was never about the temperatures, it was about riding speed. In Europe these bikes were ridden fast / very fast, take your pick. Speed limits in Europe were much higher than in the US, in Germany non existent.

Nice one. of course! I never thought of that. The US had 50mph speed limits back then? And no speed limits at all on the the German autobahns. It makes sense now...

[James England]

Carb tee fix

Whilst checking things before putting the carbs back on the bike, I found the flue tees had dried out and become very loose, even since I cleaned the carbs a few months ago. The breather tees are actually fine. Anyway, trawling through the forum, I found this fix thread

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36207

It really is good and I thought I'd mention it again. I did the fix on one side tonight but have had to order more nitrile O rings for the other side. I reckon I may as well do the breather tees too, although I suspect they are not critical? Are they?

[TopCatGr58]

Nice one. of course! I never thought of that. The US had 50mph speed limits back then? And no speed limits at all on the the German autobahns. It makes sense now...

Hey Mathh, James,

The oil cooler is to help lower the engine oil temps to provide better cooling of the engine since it's the oil that provides a considerable amount of the cooling affect.....aside from the air cooling process. However, as has been demonstrated and reported by many members here in the USA, especially out in the HOT WEST, the Non-oil cooled 11's have been ridden for hours and hundreds of miles in 90-100+ temps without any ill affects, which shows the effectiveness of the air cooling process alone. The few models in the USA that did come with oil coolers were the touring rigs that had full fairings/lowers, and were expected to have higher loads...passenger and gear, and so the oil coolers were added to provide that little extra cooling affect vs. just air cooling alone.

Aside from the heavy city congested type traffic jam traffic, the USA is usually more OPEN and so even with only 55 mph limits back then, the bikes were able to get plenty of air movement across the fins to provide adequate cooling affects. Conversely, England/Europe has more densely populated environments, and city traffic is quite congested and SLOW, and so that's why "I THINK" Yamaha put the oil coolers on the Euro machines, because they would actually have been often ridden in much slower type traffic within the cities vs. the rare highway stretches. When on the Highways whether it be the autobahn or others, the highway speeds generate plenty of air cooling affect and the oil coolers are really rather redundant....IMHO.

So...that's MY take/idea/opinion on why most of the USA models didn't get oil coolers, but the Euro ones did.

T.C.

[bikerphil]

I reckon I may as well do the breather tees too, although I suspect they are not critical? Are they?

Not as critical, the fuel level should never reach that high, if you soak them in "petrol" they should swell up to size again.

[LoHo]

Yeah, one of the signs of being low on oil is the heat the bike radiates when the oil isn't topped up...or so I've been told, as I would never go long without checking it...again....

[James England]

Not as critical, the fuel level should never reach that high, if you soak them in "petrol" they should swell up to size again.

I thought I may as well do them with the O rings anyway. I used a product called CT-1 which comes in a tube but sets like rubber. It's resistant to everything and fills in the gap between the O rings..





I'm waiting for a couple of boxes of O rings to arrive and then will get the rest done!