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**Bonz** · 06-05-2017, 08:40 AM

Originally posted by coyotedream1 View Post

I just recently purchased a 1980 MS with 12,500 original miles.

Are there any little idiosyncrasies (quirks) about this bike that I need to know.

Congrats! Welcome to the site. I couldn't see the pictures but it sounds like a nice cosmetically preserved bike.

I think you'll find the guys that hang out you're have more quirks then the XS1100 itself...

For your sore hand, is it because the throttle is stiff or because of the angle your hand is that? I just did almost 600 miles on my SG over two days last week riding the routes for the Colorado rally this summer in July and can say if you haven't ridden a bike a lot then your hand needs to get used to working a throttle, if you will.

For the bars, loosen the bar clamps and rotate the bars upward to get a better riding position. I did that and it made a ton of difference. Maybe no need to change the bar.

There is a throttle lock that came on one of my SG's and definitely is nice to relieve the right wrist here and there. That isn't the bike I took on my ride however.

If the throttle is returning snapplily, probably just fine. You could remove it and clean it by squirting brake cleaner in the throttle end and letting it flow out of the bottom. Then lube it by running some straight 30 weight oil into the top of the cable and let it hang over night and drip out the bottom. Same thing with the clutch cable, that bike doesn't have many miles so it hasn't been used regularly even buy the most conservative of definitions.

I have a pair of SG bikes in fantastic condition right now (lower mile units when I got them) and can say you should go through everything in terms of at least flushing front and rear brakes, changing middle drive fluid, final drive fluid, fork oil flush and fill. Then you can start getting into looking at the wheel bearings, if the tires are old you'll have to change them, a perfect time to do that. There is a grease zerk on the back of the shaft housing that needs a good lubing. Some guys say the grease doesn't reach the places it needs to because the zerk is poorly positioned however I have a trusted member and friend (CaptonZap) who has figured it out and says the grease does get to where it needs to go.

You will want to put some fresh grease on the final drive splines at the wheel/ final drive interface regardless if you are putting new tires on it (The grease needs to be reapplied at each tire change based on experience of the collective here). As you go deeper, check out the steering head bearings and swingarm bearings.

Put a fresh fill of Walmart Super Tech 20W50 in the engine if you haven't already changed the oil before starting your riding. Run it for 500 or so miles, then drain and refill, that should take care of any impurities in the crankcase.

Many guys recommend Super Tech oil because it does a good job, is inexpensive and since oil change interval on the XS1100 is 2500 miles because the oil gets contaminated before it wears out, it's a great cost-effective way to go. No need to run a synthetic when you were changing it that often as Yamaha recommends.

However, you will may find shift quality starts to fall off around 2500 miles when hot because the old engine shears oil pretty good, but that doesn't do anything to hinder protection per se. Again, the contamination and depletion of the additive package in the oil from combustion and blow-by of the loose tolerance air cooled engine that you are really dealing with when it comes to oil change interval.

You can also check some of the main electrical connectors and see if there are signs of corrosion in them. Even if the bike is well taken care of, it's 37 years old now and that can cause turn signals to function poorly and other issues if many of the connections show corrosion. A little bit here and there adds up down the line when we were talking electricity traveling through the wires.

If the valves have not been checked, they are due for a look and adjust them with shims accordingly. Even if/though the engine may sound very smooth and quiet, that could mean the valves are on the tight side of clearance. These big valves need to be checked every 6000 miles as per Yamaha because they do tighten up. In a hot running air cooled engine it's even more of a must do to keep from potentially burning a valve.

For the light tank rust you could put in-line filters on each side going to the carbs and let the gas and riding take care of cleaning it for you.

OK, that is probably more than you wanted but it's a slow Monday morning and I'm off work from teaching for the summer.

Let us know what else you might have questions on!

My pair of SG's

On top of Trail Ridge Road in Colorado last Thursday on the first day it was open for the season. These old bikes can still get it done in style!

**coyotedream1** · 06-05-2017, 02:33 PM

Originally posted by Bonz View Post

For your sore hand, is it because the throttle is stiff or because of the angle your hand is that? I just did almost 600 miles on my SG over two days last week riding the routes for the Colorado rally this summer in July and can say if you haven't ridden a bike a lot then your hand needs to get used to working a throttle, if you will.

For the bars, loosen the bar clamps and rotate the bars upward to get a better riding position. I did that and it made a ton of difference. Maybe no need to change the bar.

There is a throttle lock that came on one of my SG's and definitely is nice to relieve the right wrist here and there. That isn't the bike I took on my ride however.

If the throttle is returning snapplily, probably just fine. You could remove it and clean it by squirting brake cleaner in the throttle end and letting it flow out of the bottom. Then lube it by running some straight 30 weight oil into the top of the cable and let it hang over night and drip out the bottom. Same thing with the clutch cable, that bike doesn't have many miles so it hasn't been used regularly even buy the most conservative of definitions.

I have a pair of SG bikes in fantastic condition right now (lower mile units when I got them) and can say you should go through everything in terms of at least flushing front and rear brakes, changing middle drive fluid, final drive fluid, fork oil flush and fill. Then you can start getting into looking at the wheel bearings, if the tires are old you'll have to change them, a perfect time to do that. There is a grease zerk on the back of the shaft housing that needs a good lubing. Some guys say the grease doesn't reach the places it needs to because the zerk is poorly positioned however I have a trusted member and friend (CaptonZap) who has figured it out and says the grease does get to where it needs to go.

You will want to put some fresh grease on the final drive splines at the wheel/ final drive interface regardless if you are putting new tires on it (The grease needs to be reapplied at each tire change based on experience of the collective here). As you go deeper, check out the steering head bearings and swingarm bearings.

Put a fresh fill of Walmart Super Tech 20W50 in the engine if you haven't already changed the oil before starting your riding. Run it for 500 or so miles, then drain and refill, that should take care of any impurities in the crankcase.

Many guys recommend Super Tech oil because it does a good job, is inexpensive and since oil change interval on the XS1100 is 2500 miles because the oil gets contaminated before it wears out, it's a great cost-effective way to go. No need to run a synthetic when you were changing it that often as Yamaha recommends.

However, you will may find shift quality starts to fall off around 2500 miles when hot because the old engine shears oil pretty good, but that doesn't do anything to hinder protection per se. Again, the contamination and depletion of the additive package in the oil from combustion and blow-by of the loose tolerance air cooled engine that you are really dealing with when it comes to oil change interval.

You can also check some of the main electrical connectors and see if there are signs of corrosion in them. Even if the bike is well taken care of, it's 37 years old now and that can cause turn signals to function poorly and other issues if many of the connections show corrosion. A little bit here and there adds up down the line when we were talking electricity traveling through the wires.

If the valves have not been checked, they are due for a look and adjust them with shims accordingly. Even if/though the engine may sound very smooth and quiet, that could mean the valves are on the tight side of clearance. These big valves need to be checked every 6000 miles as per Yamaha because they do tighten up. In a hot running air cooled engine it's even more of a must do to keep from potentially burning a valve.

For the light tank rust you could put in-line filters on each side going to the carbs and let the gas and riding take care of cleaning it for you.

OK, that is probably more than you wanted but it's a slow Monday morning and I'm off work from teaching for the summer.

Thank you, brother. Love your advice. I went through it electrically when I brought it home. Everything looked good. The guy I bought it from had bought it a year earlier in an estate sale where it was sitting somewhat in pieces, in boxes, in the garage and hadn't been ridden since the 80s. He is a mechanic and put it all back together before selling it.

What I've done to it: I did spray WD-40 down the throttle cable - had no real effect. I ride all the time - I have several other bikes, and am almost always on a motorcycle (unless it's storming like it's been the past few days), but for some reason this bike makes my hands hurt. I guess I'll get use to it. I checked all of the electronics. I changed the oil (with 20/50 synthetic). I put on a new oil filter. I've order new bars for it and new grips. I took the carbs off and cleaned them - although they weren't bad at all - the guy I bought it from cleaned them too. I ordered new mirrors. I want to keep it as stock as possible, but I just can't stand those bars and mirrors. That's about all I've done.

I love your advice on the shaft and will do that this week. I've had no mechanical issues whatsoever except my petcocks need to be replaced.

**Bonz** · 06-05-2017, 02:54 PM

Good stuff! To be sure, I gather the throttle is returning snappily? If it's snapping back then you have done what you need to do!

LOL on the oil.. I am running 20w50 Castrol 4T synthetic in my SG as well. I put it in there last year before the Colorado rally to show all the Dino oil buffs that synthetic oil won't cause a bike to start leaking from every seam.

. Yep, still going strong and leak free at 1800 miles.

I'll go back to dino oil next change though, just doesn't make sense for the cost and the frequency with which it gets changed on this old bike.

Another modification you want to consider is the automatic cam chain tensioner (ACCT) mod. Do a search and you can read all about it. And see the reasons for going to it as well.

**dpotter58** · 06-05-2017, 09:01 PM

welcome!!
Both of my petcocks need to be replaced. Probably not. There are rebuild kits for the rubber parts that dry out.
Do a lot of searching on here for your answers. Lots of knowledge covering most if not all of the issues you may or may not run into.
I love those midnights also.

**cajun31** · 06-05-2017, 09:49 PM

coyote

Welcome to the fold. I too am the proud owner of this very bike. I bought mine new in 1980. If you want to maintain the value of the bike, of course not knowing how much you paid for it, I would not change anything on the bike to non stock. As for your hands hurting I would change the throttle cable. Sounds like it may be old. You can pick up a new on on ebay. I would also change the grips back to original. Here is a listing for a pair which include the throttle housing. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-Vinta...pSRCV6&vxp=mtr. I am using a "Vista Cruise Model # MCVICY – Fits many Yamaha (single or dual cable) with 7/8” handlebars" for when I am on the highway. Helps relieve pain and my hand going numb when I am on long rides. To get it to fit right you will need to trim some of the rubber off of your throttle grip. You actually measure it against the lock then trim the rubber down to fit. If you ever get rid of the throttle lock you will need another throttle rubber grip. My advice if you decide to go this route is to just buy two grips to begin with to have as a spare for later. You never know when they might stop making them. Anyway the reason I put you onto this solution is because these grips are exactly what came on the bike when new.

You do not want to use synthetic oil in the crankcase of these bikes. Doing so will cause your clutch to slip. Just get the cheap dino 20w50 oil from Walmart. You can use synthetic in the final and middle drive gear areas. Walmart carries the supertech 75w140 full synthetic which works fine.

You also don't need to replace the petcocks. They can be completely rebuilt. Check these out http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw...+kits&_sacat=0. You can also still get the petcock fuel filters that go inside the tank to keep debris out of your carbs, check these out http://www.partzilla.com/parts/searc...ING/parts.html I agree that unless the rust is really bad, riding the bike and going through many tanks of fuel should help that out. You mentioned repainting the bike so what I would do is treat the tank with evaporust then either coat the inside of the tank yourself or take it to a reputable radiator shop and have them do it. Then repaint.

Another thing that most will recommend is that you completely go through your brake system front and back. I would and many on here will advise that you replace your old brake lines with stainless. You can get them in black to match the original. On the back I fitted mine and actually used several layers of shrink tubing to replicate the way the back looks as well as on the front where the lines rub the headlight ears. I can send you pictures of mine to show you what I am talking about and what it looks like.

Last thing and just my personal opinion, but those original mirrors you have on there are unobtanium. You can only get them occasionally on ebay so unless they are really bad I would not replace them so as, again, to preserve the originality of the bike. Those pipes you have are gain unobtainable and are sought after. Looks like yours are in excellent condition. Don't ever use anything abrasive on them to clean them and never clean them while hot.

as for the paint to use when redoing the bike you can gave the paint scanned by a reputable auto paint store. Or you can can go to this site http://www.partzilla.com/parts/searc...ING/parts.html. The reason Yamaha named this new Yamaha black is because of the process they used to paint it not the actual color of paint. Can't remember exactly but it had something to do with laying down a few coats of base then a couple of coats of clear followed by wet sanding and more coats of base with finishing coats of clear. Who knows for sure.

You are starting with a beautiful bike. I may think of more things to add later and will post again as others chime in.

**Bonz** · 06-05-2017, 10:50 PM

I'm going to step in a deep pile of doo-doo here, but synthetic oil will not cause your clutch to slip if it is in good shape. I am running 20w50 Castrol 4T synthetic in my SG. 3phase borrowed for the Colorado rally last year and it didn't miss a beat. I just did 600 miles in 2 days last week on it in demanding conditions with elevations over 12,000 feet and it didn't miss a beat.

My bike has 25,000 miles on it, less than some but more than others I suspect.

The type of synthetic oil we are talking about is exactly the same base oil that comes out of the ground that dino oil is made of. It is simply then refined to where the molecules are more consistent in size and shape where as regular dino oil has much more variation in the sizes and shapes of its molecules. Obviously it is at the molecular level and cannot be seen with the eye but that's the truth of it.

It is no more slipperier than regular dino oil and the additives that are used to control wear and eliminate by-products of combustion come from the same tanks at the refineries.

You have been riding your bike and it is working fine, so obviously it won't cause your clutch to slip.

Stick with it and never look back, and know to save some money with the more frequent oil change interval the XS calls for dino oil will do very well also.

**cajun31** · 06-06-2017, 03:55 AM

waste of money on these bikes

to use synthetic. Could be enough said.... but many on this forum have reported that it does cause clutch slippage. Your call though. As frequently as you will need to change the oil on these bikes why waste the money on synthetic?

Interesting thread on the topic from the maintenance section...

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?t=31

**cajun31** · 06-06-2017, 04:06 AM

Correction

I messed up the link on my previous post for a source of paint. it was supposed to be http://www.colorrite.com/product/yam...k-nyb-1833.cfm. The new Yamaha black paint code from that site and I believe from Yamaha is 006G.

**BA80** · 06-06-2017, 05:53 AM

Originally posted by Bonz View Post

The type of synthetic oil we are talking about is exactly the same base oil that comes out of the ground that dino oil is made of.

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q...=1496749721581

4T is motorcycle specific and expensive. All dino oil is refined, it's unnecessary to refine synthetic.

**Bonz** · 06-06-2017, 06:42 AM

Totally agree we don't need to run synthetic because the cost is expensive and oil change intervals are short.

Greg, I thought I had edumacated you on this last year.

there are man-made synthetic oils which are Redline, Silkolene some Motul and more of the other Boutique brands.

Mobil 1, Castrol, Valvoline, Lucas, are not made that way.

I posted links to all the stuff last year in another thread. The standard synthetic oils are simply more highly refined oil that comes straight out of the ground. There is nothing done to the base stock to improve it they just take the best of what is there to begin with and the rest of the stuff becomes regular Dino oil more less. The additive packages are exactly the same components which yes are man-made.

I know what I have learned over the years doesn't jive with a few clutches slipping however if a bike slips on it of course don't use it.

**DiverRay** · 06-06-2017, 08:20 AM

Jeeze, a guy posts about a great looking MNS and you three turn it into an oil thread!

Let him run what works for him, and lets just help him keep it running well and looking good.

**tcoop** · 06-06-2017, 09:51 AM

Coyote I have a 80 LG (Highly modified though) and it also hurts my wrist. It probably is the angle the bars are set at. For me having the bars tilted towards me seems to help. I have the foam grips on them (not bad but not the best) The stock grips for me are to thin which adds to the pain in the wrist. The ones I will be putting on are thicker in the middle to make it easier to grip. They are Grand turismo style. They do help with the wrist pain, at least for me. It would be a good idea to get the stock ones to put on for shows or to sell it

not sure why you would do that???

**donebysunday** · 06-06-2017, 01:35 PM

Grips

Originally posted by tcoop View Post

Coyote I have a 80 LG (Highly modified though) and it also hurts my wrist. It probably is the angle the bars are set at. For me having the bars tilted towards me seems to help. I have the foam grips on them (not bad but not the best) The stock grips for me are to thin which adds to the pain in the wrist. The ones I will be putting on are thicker in the middle to make it easier to grip. They are Grand turismo style. They do help with the wrist pain, at least for me. It would be a good idea to get the stock ones to put on for shows or to sell it

not sure why you would do that???

Where do you find the Grand Turismo grips ? ? ?

These are the most comfy grips I've ever had (Dennis Kirk ?) and I can't find them anywhere. I don't have pain in my hand or wrist (usually) but with the swell in the middle of these, so nice !
CHEAP TOO !!!!!

**tcoop** · 06-06-2017, 02:00 PM

[QUOTE=donebysunday;499381]Where do you find the Grand Turismo grips ? ? ?

I got mine on flee bay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Black-130mm-...ZZFit3&vxp=mtr

Lots of sellers have the Grand Tourismo Style. Just have to make sure you get the 7/8" and not the 1" size

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