Barn find freebie 1978 xs1100E

[olinrj]

While the carbs are off the cycle I decided to check the intake boots and confirm they are ok to reuse. The cracks in the exterior surface do not go all the way through so I used liquid electrical tape to seal them, after a good degreasing and wipe down. When the boots were off the head I noticed it looks like a previous owner may have port matched the heads. Cylinders 2 & 3 have a little grinding on the left side of the bore. Can anyone confirm that this is not something done from the factory?









The boots appear to take the liquid electrical tape well, but we'll see how it holds up. I do plan on getting my hands on a new set for next year but am anxious to get it running and funds are limited for the project.







Thanks for stopping in.
Bob

[olinrj]

T.C.
Thanks for the break down on the shim clearance theory. That is what I thought was the case but you made it much more clear. I guess now it's time to find some shims!

I'll plan on leaving the jetting as is for now and once it's up and running willl see how things go with a carb sync. Thanks again for the advice.

Bob

[TopCatGr58]

Hey again,

The clearances NARROW as the engine wears, so most folks who do not like to work on their bikes any more than they have to will set the clearances to the widest spec, that way they have lots of miles/time before they hammer the valves into the head and eventually wear to too narrow a gap again! Others who want the maximum performance and don't mind both checking and changing shims more often will set to the minimum clearance. YMMV!!

Also, you could possibly cut down on one shim change by moving Ex #4 to Ex #1, leave Ex. 2/3 alone, and then just get the replacement for Ex #4. You should also be able to swap In #2 to In #1, and so you will only need to get shims for In #2, 3, 4.

I don't know what book you're looking at, but the 137.5 Mains and 42.5 pilots are the correct OEM size. The Air jet sounds correct, and most folks don't change the air jet at all!!

T.C.

[olinrj]

Here are a few pictures of what I've been working on.

[olinrj]

JeffH, thanks for the info on your xs and how it runs through the range of elevations and speeds. The odometer reads at 55,000 miles, but it may be more as the previous owner said his sister ran it for a while without the speedo connected.
I'm working on the pics, need to reinstall photo bucket on my phone, again.
Today I pulled the petcocks off and was able to clean them out. Aside from a little scuffing on one where the o-ring and adjustment plate sit, everything looked good. I also checked on the coil pickup wires and they have already been repaired, with an extra 1-1/2" length of wire soldered in. I re-taped the solder joints but everything looked good.
I'll get the carbs back on next and hopefully try to put some fuel into it to see where the float level sit as well as how it fires. After that I should be able to get the new clutch springs in and adjust the clutch lever.

[JeffH]

Glad you had some time to get back at that E project.
I got a junker E in 2012 and bought new Mikuni stock jetting. I will check what i used but it was genuine Mikuni and stock. btw: driven 18,000 miles since. Normally get 38-39mpg in most driving conditions, including mountain twisties. Of course drops -5mpg going straight & really steady-fast pace like in Texas. (not sure I like those 85-90 mph speed limits anyway on an old bike) Bike runs great at sea level and just did top of Pike's Peak 14,110 ft. at the Colorado XS Rally. Ran good going up. It started easily at summit which surprised me. (though only got 33-34 mpg crossing KS with Kansas gas for some reason).

btw: your valves were way tighter than mine. I didn't look back at your mileage but maybe they were never adjusted since the factory put them in. My I-4 was way wide a gap but after running the bike 100 miles found the valve had ever so slightly rusted open and it was not seating all the way until I actually rode the bike 100 miles.

Keep us posted. Interested in hearing how this turns out. Pics too. We like pics.

Jeff

[olinrj]

After another break from the bike I have been able to put some time in the garage and got quite a bit done. I tweaked the valve shim tool to fit the head and took measurements and verified what shims I have :
Intake
1 .003 Shim 260
2 .004 shim 255
3 .004. Shim 260
4 .005. Shim 260

Exhaust
1 .006 shim 290
2 .008 shim 285
3 .008 shim 290
4 .007 shim 285

Based on this I'll need to change at least 6 shims to get everything back into spec. Some advice I am seeking is whether to go to the high side of the spec or just get it into the range. Any thoughts are appreciated.

I was able to replace the cam chain tensioner with the automatic tensioner and all went well.

The carbs came off and I started digging into them. Two had fuel staining on the outside of the float bowl and each one had sediment in the bowls. I cleared all the jets and noted what size was for each. The mains are 137.5, the pilots are 42.5 and what I believe are the air pilots, at 8 o'clock on the airbox side are 210. I don't know how the change in both pilots will affect performance but there must have been a reason for replacing the stock sizes. Again, any thoughts are welcome.

I hope to continue progress once my weekend starts on Wednesday and will let you know how it goes. Thanks for stopping in on my thread/diary.
Bob

[olinrj]

T.C., thanks for the tip on the compression test. I'll do it to get the initial numbers and hopefully they are good enough, but if they aren't, your advice puts me at ease. I definitely want to get this on the road for this season and if I don't have to open up the top end, all the better. I'll post my findings once I can get back to it, after getting the garden ready today.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Olin,

Great work/progress so far. Don't get too hung up on your early compression readings. After sitting for years, the rings can get stuck, microrust can form in the cylinders. Using some Marvel Mystery Oil in the oil can help loosen up stuck/gummed rings, and after a few hundred miles the rings can reseat themselves. IF the valves were not too far off of spec, then hopefully their sealing surfaces are still good. vs. too little clearance and chance of burning/pitting the seats/valves which could then require at least lapping.

The oily plugs could possibly be the valve seals that also can dry up with age/heat, and allow oil to slowly leak down the valve into the combustion chamber. But also stuck rings could allow excessive amounts of oil to come up past the rings as well. If you aren't keen on taking the head off to replace the valve seals, then you may want to get some oil treatment that is designed to help soften old rubber seals to let them slightly swell to help them seal better. JAT!

T.C.

[olinrj]

Yeah, from the way it ran the day it came home I'm sure the rings or valve seats will need some attention. Once I check the valve clearances and swap the cct the compression test will be next. Gotta say I feel much more confident that I'll be able to make the proper repairs on this bike as compared to several years ago when I worked on my xj650.

[edwardruth]

Last night I finished my initial work on the brake systems. Started trying to bleed the rear but didn't seem to make any progress getting fluid through to the caliper. Took a break from that to knock out the fronts. Replaced all the fluid and gave everything a good visual check.

The rear needed to come apart, as I thought I didn't prime the master enough, but once the master was out, there was fluid in the first banjo fitting. I separated the hoses from the hard line and found that there was a blockage in the caliper banjo on the rear flexible hose. I used 14g solid wire from my electrical parts bin to work my way through the hose and after a short while had cleared the blockage. Reassembled everything and had a beer to enjoy the minor success. Finished bleeding the system and put the right hard bag back on.
I changed focus to the engine and got the cam cover off, need to order a new gasket, and changed the plugs. All 4 were black and oily.
Next up is checking cam clearances and replacing the cam chain tensioner.

Thanks,
Bob

Fun stuff. With those oily plugs, it might be a good time to do a compression check. If nothing else, good to know anyways.

[olinrj]

Last night I finished my initial work on the brake systems. Started trying to bleed the rear but didn't seem to make any progress getting fluid through to the caliper. Took a break from that to knock out the fronts. Replaced all the fluid and gave everything a good visual check.

The rear needed to come apart, as I thought I didn't prime the master enough, but once the master was out, there was fluid in the first banjo fitting. I separated the hoses from the hard line and found that there was a blockage in the caliper banjo on the rear flexible hose. I used 14g solid wire from my electrical parts bin to work my way through the hose and after a short while had cleared the blockage. Reassembled everything and had a beer to enjoy the minor success. Finished bleeding the system and put the right hard bag back on.
I changed focus to the engine and got the cam cover off, need to order a new gasket, and changed the plugs. All 4 were black and oily.
Next up is checking cam clearances and replacing the cam chain tensioner.

Thanks,
Bob

[olinrj]

Thanks for the heads up on the main jet emulsion tube. I'll verify those are good once I get into the carbs. I haven't touched the bike in a few days, cut down some trees in our front yard that leaned over the driveway and am finishing clearing the mess. We're heading out of town this weekend to visit family. Once home I need to get the garden ready and then can focus on the bike again.

Thanks,
Bob

[edwardruth]

Hello. Nice find. My bike sat for 20 years they say, it took me 3 weeks of working on it every day after work and on my days off to get mine going. Still got a few things to do before it's first 8,000 mile checkup is completed.

I'm still new to the forums and I'm sure you'll find this in the tech tips somewhere but, when I got my bike, the guys said he "cleaned the carbs" but it still ran just like yours. He was a dirt bike guy but still missed this next part. Main Jet emulsion tube. I think it's easy to overlook or not notice that the main jet emulsion tube comes out for cleaning. Although it's part of the "Main" system, it still affects idle if they are clogged.

Also, the choke can be seen as a self destruct system if you think about it, and running the bike for long periods of time with the choke on is bad. What happens is you flood the cylinder with too much gas and that extra gas is too much for the oil to lubricate the cylinder walls and piston skirts. It washes the oil away leaving metal on metal grinding against each other. I would rather sit and hold the throttle open a little before using the choke for warm up or at least shut it off as soon as the bike will run with a little throttle and no choke.

Hope you get it going soon.

[HalfCentury]

I was able to get it out by soaking the piston edge in Kroil then pushing it down. Once it moved I used plastic pry bars to work it out of the bore. There was no rust or pitting on the bore, just sludge in the brake fluid. I'm not concerned with cosmetics at this point, just trying to go through each system and get it road-safe. This winter I'll go through the bike and pretty things up as I see fit. Probably will get stainless brake lines and repaint everything then.

Thanks,
Bob

Kroil is awesome. I have a spray can on the shelf and use it often. I am with you. Make it road safe first. My calipers are not pretty but they are ultra-clean inside and out.