Topic: picked me up a new bike the other day ...

[78whiteorbs]

Well having sold the 78' CX500 for a handsome profit I picked up this bike the other night.













not bad for 800$ Runs excellent!

[78whiteorbs]

Forgot to add, it is a 75' XS650

[bill440cars]

   Very Nice Yamaha there, looks like ya done good!

[78whiteorbs]

Thanks brother, looks like my right side handle bar is slighty bent so I think I might go with some euro bars. Other than that I think I will keep it in it's stock beauty. Might repaint the sidecovers and put some new decals on . Not sure on the tank but I like riding my bike more than looking at it and from ten feet you can hardly notice and at 65mph it is even harder to spot!

[dhall57]

I've never had a Yamaha, but that is a good looking 650. Where did you find it? Was it road ready when you bought it or did it take a little work?

[BeSeeingYou]

continued from the other thread:
You should have hose on the overflow barb on the bottom of the carb bowl.  This bike should have a 104 link 530 chain with the standard 17t and 34t sprockets and an o ring chain can be used.    The one time I changed chains they had master links so I just took it apart and hooked the two together and pulled the new chain in place.  The XS650 does have a bit of vibration and with those round stock mirrors on long stems it is no wonder it's an issue.  Personally I dislike the look of that type.  The standard mirror for the Special is a low profile rectangular mirror and I have not had issues with them.  I even use them on my Honda CB750.  Unlike the Honda the Yamaha mirrors come one side right hand thread and the other left hand thread.  Check out www.mikesxs.net for parts.  Parts availability is excellent.  You mentioned a faceplate.  Did you mean the nameplate on the forks under the headlight?  They did not have one it came later on the Specials.  The petcocks are right and left and the levers should orientate the same way.  It's possible that one was replaced and you have two of the same.  The outlet should face the rear.  You may be able to push that dent out from the inside.  When I first got mine I grabbed the first thing at hand(a big box end wrench) and pushed the dent out quite a bit from the inside.  I am sure with more time and the proper tools a better job could have been done  
     The 650 is very popular but the 650 site is kind of slow but you will get your questions answered and a lot of comments about your score.  The 75 is sought after so resist the urge to do alterations that cannot be undone.  Especially with a bike in that nice of shape.  I recently saw a stock 75 not as nice as yours sell for $2K.

[HondaDano]

Nice bike man! I like the old XSs. I've got a buddy wanting to sell one that I'd like to have. It must have been your CX I've been seeing on CL all cafe'd out. I looked at it on there probably 10 times, damn good lookin bike too. Good luck with the Yamaha, Dano

[78whiteorbs]

Wow, thanks for all that info I will use it for certain.
About the faceplate I just meant the speedo gauge faceplate. I am just gonna enjoy this one stock it's to nice. There are several beaters to make projects with around here. Prolly change to some euro bars and take the sissy bar off other than that try to preserve the original integrity as suggested.  Were did you see one go for 2k?
this will be mine for at least the season maybe longer . been toying with the notion of a removable sidecar .... for some long road touring .Have seen some pretty nice setups with the xs's.

Dhall- I got it running excellent , cranked from a cold start at 30 degree weather on two kicks and idled amazingly. I knew I was gonna buy it then ! I had him talkd down lower but I almost felt I was taking advantage of  the guy so I ggave him a little extra . Loading it in my trailer that night was a journey too so I didnt feel the least bit bad for paying him 800$ . My loading board almost snapped and we almost dropped it !scary!
I figured cleaned up it'd make a sharp daily driver and those are my intentions. Feels alot nicer than my cb550 meatier and solid. really love the sound the engine produces to , i see why the motors are used for chops and bobs so often . I am stoked over this bike as much as I was over my 74'cb750 and so far less work

[78whiteorbs]

Thanks Dano- sold it to this dude in statesville,nc
I think I could have got more on the ebay auction but I ended it early because 1 ) I am not greedy and 2)the dude showed up with cash and was a bike mechanic . I would not have felt right selling it to someone who knew nothing about bikes because for one it was not a beginner bike much like any cafe or chopper and 2 it wasnt a cookie cutter bike it was like 3 monthes of my life so it's nice to know someone is gonna really enjoy it properly . There are some things money can't buy

[BeSeeingYou]

Yeah, get rid of that backrest.  There is a vintage rack for that bike with a removable backrest for touring.  I see them on ebay now and again with and without the backrest.  The bike that went for 2k was on ebay also.  You did very good on the price so you score good karma points by not beating him down further.    I took my 79 to California and back and several trips to Montana so there is no problem taking it long distance.

[hoodellyhoo]

I think I read on here that the 75's had an exhaust that was specific to the year. Very hard to find and worth$$.

[BeSeeingYou]

I think I read on here that the 75's had an exhaust that was specific to the year. Very hard to find and worth$$.

The 74 and 75 had the same mufflers and they are hard to find.  It' a huge plus to get a bike with them in that nice of condition. I love the look.  I saw a NOS pair go for $800 not long ago.  By their size they seem to suffer a lot from dents and much of what I see on ebay is dented to some degree.  When I see 75's for sale more often than not the mufflers are banged up to some degree.  My right side has a dent in the side/bottom.

[78whiteorbs]

I have one ity bity ding other than that they look pretty nice.

Cool snow pic. How long do you warm your bike up for or do you just ride with the choke on and kill it after a bit .
I think the kick stand is ridiculous , it is kinda in a weird spot . Strangest kick stand I have incountered  to date. It makes like a circular motion instead of just opening straight out at an angle .

Did yours have a tool kit? I did up some side cover emblems today and matched them to a scan . they are pretty spot on. I am gonna sand down my covers prime em and paint em back a gloss black. I wonder why stock they wen twith a flat.... Anywho Think I am gonna get soem euro bars and thinking about a bar end mirror of some sort but not to sure yet. This is one on my friends 70'Triumph
Tiger

[BeSeeingYou]

The bike in the snow is not mine but I used it to show the backrest/rack.  I will start mine on full choke and after 20-30 seconds go to half and sit for another 30 and then run on half choke or less for a short bit.  I only have the tool kit for the 79 but I see them on ebay often.  The kickstand on he 75 is a bit different, the 79 is not like that.  The paint on the side covers should match the tank and not be flat.  Should have a sparse scattering of gold metal flake.

Nice Triumph.  I don't know if your buddy will appreciate this but the XS650 has often been called the best Triumph that Triumph never built.

[Kframe]

That's a nice little bike! 

Does the 'electric' refer to electronic ignition, or electric start, or?

Looks like a nimble ride!
-K

[78whiteorbs]

Thanks  it handles pretty well even with the slightly bent handle bar
The electric is for electric start which ironically is the only thing not functioning on this bike ! That and the spring in the horn button. I got a starter off ebay on the way so hopefully that does the trick, as of now it is a kick only but it's cool it runs great and kicks on two or three kicks. Alotta compression!

[78whiteorbs]

well, just the other day as I was typing the last post above I got a call from my friend who is also the mailman . He wrenches and asked me if I had moved. i said no man , course not . he said , I was just delivering around your house and saw a bike laying over on its side.....

haha i thought that is funny , good one ! He then proceded to explain how he was seriously not joking..... You gotta be kiddin me I was thinking , i just got that bike . Well he went back and picked it up , aparently the ground was softer than I thought the night before. Lesson learned.     No damage though amazingly , glad he saw it and warned me . that is a sick sick site seeing a bike knocked over on it's side.   A few years back another honda I had just gotten was knocked over into my new truck! Two vehicles with liability only . Ithought about pellet gun sniper tactics But one shot one kill would not have knocked the dents out .  Now I don't live in an apartment complex and have a barn, that was why the almost sudden heart attack after trying to figure which sick mother coulda done that to another mans bike. I started mentally going over the people in my mind I could have possibly pissed off as well.

alls well that ends well.  Also learned why magic button bikes are "magic". stalled out at a light the other night at a busy intersection....
had my woman on the back so i was kicking like a maniac trying to get it started and dont you know that is the one time that a bike wants to not start for some reason. Ten kicks later she roared to live and I goosed it on down the road....