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so i have had this 74 honda xl350 for about 5 years turning it into a cafe racer. Everytime i get to do the electrical it puts a halt in my plans. I want to convert it to 12v but I was wondering if anyone has converted it to a newer style stator? Any positive input would be greatly appreciated and helpful. Im kinda new to building bikes but not new to turning wrenches. Thanks in advance.
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Hey guys, I really appreciate you taking the time to read this and possibly give me some help. I have a 1979 Honda XL185s that I have rebuilt and am to the point of wiring it up. I picked up the bike for $50 and it came with no wiring. I wanted to do custom anyways. I am converting to 12v with an antigravity 4cell 12v battery, 12v regulator, along with new oem style CDI, new coil, new pulse generator, ITS ALL NEW and fresh. I am not running any lights, all I need is to wire up the ignition and charging system, kickstart only. Problem is my new reg/rec has different colors than oem with no instructions, the coil I have has an extra wire compared to oem, I’m running a simple two wire on/off keyed ignition switch, subtle differences that leave me confused on where to go. Long story shortish, here is a list of what I have with color of each wire Any help you could give as to where to go with what is much appreciated, I know a few are probably obvious and simple but I’ll list them anyways for full coverage. Ignition switch (in-line fuse coming off of red wire, going straight to pos on batt) Black Red Reg/rec 2 yellow Red Black CDI Blk with female blade connector Two green Red/blk Blue/white Blk/white Pulse generator Blue Green Coil Blk/yellow Green Alternator Yellow/white Yellow Pink Red/black
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Been a lurker here for awhile but I’ve never really posted, but I’ve been working on this little bike as a winter project and figured some of you might enjoy it the bike is a 84 xr200 frame with a 87 motor that’s bored to 205 with a hot cam in it and a wiseco high comp piston, it’s got stock forks ( for now) and an 89 xr250 rear shock, I welded up a straight pipe for it too, she purrs. (Sorry In advance I couldn’t resist a test ride even though it was muddy, so the bikes a little dirty)
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Hi all, This is my first post on here so hopefully I don't mess it up. Also hope I don't piss of any "purest" people out there as this is in no way a restoration and I have no interest in restoring it to original. This is what I have been working on the last few weeks. I picked up an xr500 about a month ago for $300, it started but had no clutch lever so I didn't get a chance to ride it. I noticed later that it has a White Brothers aluminum swing arm and possibly upgraded shocks but I really don't know. Its pretty rough but a running bike for $300 I wasn't going to complain. I decided i wanted to build it into something that was kind of a cross between a bobber and a scrambler and use it mainly for commuting across town to work, but still be able to tackle mild single track. I went though my garage and was able to come up with a front fender off of a newer honda 150r (i liked how small it was), and a rear fender off of an 04 crf250x so it has the licence plate holder an led brake lights. the front fender bolted directly on but he back took some modifying. From ebay I found a 21" wheel for the front (81-83 xr500) but the drum was a 131mm max dia while the original 23" was a 141mm max dia. this was quite a disappointment but I guess i should have done a little more research. I ended up putting the brake hub from a 83xl250r into it, its not perfect but it works for now. I then started to build a seat, while the original was quite comfy, it did not have the look I was after. I started with cardboard until I had a shape I liked. Then I cut, bent and welded it all together, luckily at work I have access to a nice break, shear, welders and scrap metal. It turned out ok I thought for my first attempt at a seat pan. Next I put some closed cell foam on it from a sleeping pad I got from the sporting goods store. I wanted a low profile for the look so the thickest part is only about an inch thick. I used a steak knife to trim the foam and it worked alright, I ended up covering all the edges with gorilla tape to smooth it out. I then covered it with marine vinyl I found at Jo Ann fabric. Instead of cutting and sewing to get the material to fit right I used a heat gun which stretched the material enough for a "good" fit. I used 3m spray glue and a metal plate on the bottom to secure the cover, its holding so far. Here it is with the seat all finished. I also found some horrendously cheap foot pegs for a yz bike from (99-05), I think they are a cast steel of some sort. I guess you cant complain much for $15. they required a little grinding to fit but seem to work good enough. I was finally able to take it out this last weekend and had a blast, it runs way better than a $300 bike should. I had to remember how to engine break as I usually ride a 2t with good brakes, it turns out they went away from drums for a reason. My seat wasn't quite as bad as I thought it would be out on the single and double track. We also went out to some hill climbs and the 500 impressed me with amount of torque it delivered at any rpm. This bike is much different than anything I've ridden before between its torque and having almost no weight over the back tire. As far as the seating position goes, I actually like how compact it feels. I also think the low profile seat goes with lines of the bike rather well so I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, especially for being my first try at making one. Next for this build I would like to make it street legal. I'm not looking forward to figuring out whats going on with the wiring and converting from 6v to 12 as the components I have are 12v and i would like to have the front light be a LED light bar. I have a different bike that I am thinking about adding lighting to using a rechargeable battery like a Milwaukee m12 or something, so maybe I will go that route. I would also like to figure out an exhaust for this at some point so i don't get kicked out of my neighborhood. Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear what you think and any suggestions you may have.
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Hey All, Made an original post on this forum that is a bit wordy, so giving a condensed summary here for those willing to read a bit more (pics are also in that post), and help me out. 19 year old with very little mechanical knowledge, fairly proficient rider, looking for advice on proper bike maintenance and how to get started on converting my bike into a café racer/scrambler type of bike. In OP (and here) I included pictures of what I want the bike to look like more or less, and many other details. My bike has around 27,000 miles on it, and I've let it get a bit too rusted - so advice on the pics in that post and whether I need to replace certain parts or just get to polishing/scrubbing away rust with WD40. Any and all tips are appreciated about this bike and project - thanks! John
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Hey All! Reposting my first post from touring/adventure touring - thought this forum would see more activity. Here it is: 7/18/17 Hello Thumper Talk Community! This is my first post here, just created my account a few minutes ago. I apologize if I violate any type of forum rules or formatting, but I'm sure I'll learn as I go. To begin with: I've been riding dirtbikes since I was 8. I am currently a 19 year old University student in upstate NY, and I am riding a 2006 Honda XR650L that I bought myself when I turned 16. I've attached pictures of it (taken today, as I wrote this post) to illustrate the condition it is in, what it looks like, etc. While I have been riding for an extremely long time, and consider myself a safe and competent rider, I have a very limited mechanical knowledge of motorcycles. My dad introduced me to bikes and taught me to ride, but my riding experience over the years has been on my own, and my mechanical knowledge is self-taught and basic maintenance of my bike at best - nothing fancy whatsoever. He and I don't really speak anymore, and therefore I don't have any type of guidance or reference points when it comes to bike mechanics (or mechanics of any kind, for that matter). Nevertheless, I am very interested in modifying and improving my bike and possibly beginning a project to convert it into a café racer or scrambler-esque bike. I rarely go off-road anymore and use my XR as a daily driver, but I find the traction of off-road tires to be favorable and have never had street tires. Therefore I'm debating whether or not to keep my off-road tires (or get different ones), making the bike more of a scrambler - or to use street tires making it more of a café racer. If I'm using terminology wrong and have no idea what the f**k I'm talking about, then please always feel free to correct me. I am using Daniel Peter's custom XR650L café racer, and Ready Moto's brat/cafe racer as inspiration. I think both are beautiful bikes/rebuilds, and want something very similar as my final product. However, I think Daniel Peter's bike is tricked out in a very expensive (and unnecessary to me) way (i.e. antelope seat, c'mon dude). I also want to preserve my passenger seat and pegs, if possible. I have absolutely no idea where to start, and have no current access to welding or fabrication machines of any kind. I'm asking for a full walkthrough and as much help as you all are willing to give me. Because I'm in school, I have a very limited budget. Basically, I'm willing to do my short term modifications and enhancements, and probably put the conversion project on hold until the spring. This is particularly dependent upon the advice I get. I don't need the bike as much in the fall, because I live on my college campus, but it's nice to have around in working condition (I know the project would require pulling it all apart and not riding for a while). So if any part I need for this is expensive but necessary, I will save up for it and make it happen. If there are cheaper, reasonable alternatives to achieve the same goal, then I will do that. I'd appreciate all advice along those lines. I just replaced my battery two weeks ago, and am going to attempt to replace the brake pads (a simple job, I know, but with luck/mechanical ability like mine, it can be quite daunting!) The chain is new, the frame has been reinforced at certain points, but everything else is stock! What I Want Out of This Bike (Short Term) 1. I'd like to put the battery underneath the seat - what are the benefits/disadvantages of this? To my knowledge it'll just slim the profile of the bike when I take off side paneling and prevent the battery from getting wet or as damaged in a drop. 2. I want to clean it up, particularly the rusted parts, and possibly repaint/replace them to make sure the bike looks better. (Need guidance for this, as I'm unsure how to remove rust/how to go about repainting parts - why I posted pics, so hopefully this community can identify where my "problem areas" are on this bike). 3. Learn how to properly winterize and maintain bike. Currently I check oil regularly, fill it with premium gas, lube the chain once or a week or more, and wash it (probably not enough) and spray WD-40 on various pieces. If I'm an incompetent fool, tell me. 4. Replace footpegs, throttle, handgrips. 5. If feasible with my current bike, put in a circular (brighter) headlight instead of the stock square one. Am willing to get rid of red plastic housing, or find an alternative. What I Want Out of This Bike (Long Term) 1. A full café-racer type conversion, styled similar to what I linked above. My dream "bought brand new" bike currently is a Triumph Bonneville converted to a scrambler (provided a pic) to let y'all know what I'm interested in, aesthetically. 2. Switch out stock carb (40mm) with a 41mm Keihin FCR-MX flat slide. I've been doing lots of reading, and it looks like this will drastically improve bike performance and throttle response in many ways, not limited to AFR and starting. I know nothing about AFR...or carbs. 3. Repaint the sucker! I've read online various opinions, the main camps seem to be either (a) don't do it yourself, have a professional do it or (b) you can do it yourself very carefully. Sorry for the giant wall of text, I appreciate those who have read this far. Please ask any questions, give comments, critiques, advice, anything! I look forward to hearing what the TT Community has to say. Cheers! John UPDATE 07/22/17 I replaced both front and rear brake pads because I had irresponsibly been using very worn-down ones, and the friction subsequently wore down my rotors. Not bad enough to replace rotors (thank goodness, I'm too cheap for that right now), but still negligent on my part. Started taking the most rusted bolts out and WD40+steel wool scrubbing them, then putting grease on. I don't have any never-seize, but I'll get some at some point. For now, grease should suffice. Going to wash the bike soon, scrub everything down and then get to polishing up....everything!
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Hello Thumper Talk Community! This is my first post here, just created my account a few minutes ago. I apologize if I violate any type of forum rules or formatting, but I'm sure I'll learn as I go. To begin with: I've been riding dirtbikes since I was 8. I am currently a 19 year old University student in upstate NY, and I am riding a 2006 Honda XR650L that I bought myself when I turned 16. I've attached pictures of it (taken today, as I wrote this post) to illustrate the condition it is in, what it looks like, etc. While I have been riding for an extremely long time, and consider myself a safe and competent rider, I have a very limited mechanical knowledge of motorcycles. My dad introduced me to bikes and taught me to ride, but my riding experience over the years has been on my own, and my mechanical knowledge is self-taught and basic maintenance of my bike at best - nothing fancy whatsoever. He and I don't really speak anymore, and therefore I don't have any type of guidance or reference points when it comes to bike mechanics (or mechanics of any kind, for that matter). Nevertheless, I am very interested in modifying and improving my bike and possibly beginning a project to convert it into a café racer or scrambler-esque bike. I rarely go off-road anymore and use my XR as a daily driver, but I find the traction of off-road tires to be favorable and have never had street tires. Therefore I'm debating whether or not to keep my off-road tires (or get different ones), making the bike more of a scrambler - or to use street tires making it more of a café racer. If I'm using terminology wrong and have no idea what the f**k I'm talking about, then please always feel free to correct me. I am using Daniel Peter's custom XR650L café racer, and Ready Moto's brat/cafe racer as inspiration. I think both are beautiful bikes/rebuilds, and want something very similar as my final product. However, I think Daniel Peter's bike is tricked out in a very expensive (and unnecessary to me) way (i.e. antelope seat, c'mon dude). I also want to preserve my passenger seat and pegs, if possible. I have absolutely no idea where to start, and have no current access to welding or fabrication machines of any kind. I'm asking for a full walkthrough and as much help as you all are willing to give me. Because I'm in school, I have a very limited budget. Basically, I'm willing to do my short term modifications and enhancements, and probably put the conversion project on hold until the spring. This is particularly dependent upon the advice I get. I don't need the bike as much in the fall, because I live on my college campus, but it's nice to have around in working condition (I know the project would require pulling it all apart and not riding for a while). So if any part I need for this is expensive but necessary, I will save up for it and make it happen. If there are cheaper, reasonable alternatives to achieve the same goal, then I will do that. I'd appreciate all advice along those lines. I just replaced my battery two weeks ago, and am going to attempt to replace the brake pads (a simple job, I know, but with luck/mechanical ability like mine, it can be quite daunting!) The chain is new, the frame has been reinforced at certain points, but everything else is stock! What I Want Out of This Bike (Short Term) 1. I'd like to put the battery underneath the seat. 2. I want to clean it up, particularly the rusted parts, and possibly repaint/replace them to make sure the bike looks better. (Need guidance for this, as I'm unsure how to remove rust/how to go about repainting parts - why I posted pics, so hopefully this community can identify where my "problem areas" are on this bike). 3. Learn how to properly winterize and maintain bike. Currently I check oil regularly, fill it with premium gas, lube the chain once or a week or more, and wash it (probably not enough) and spray WD-40 on various pieces. If I'm an incompetent fool, tell me. 4. Replace footpegs, throttle, handgrips. 5. If feasible with my current bike, put in a circular (brighter) headlight instead of the stock square one. Am willing to get rid of red plastic housing, or find an alternative. What I Want Out of This Bike (Long Term) 1. A full café-racer type conversion, styled similar to what I linked above. My dream "bought brand new" bike currently is a Triumph Bonneville converted to a scrambler (provided a pic) to let y'all know what I'm interested in, aesthetically. 2. Switch out stock carb (40mm) with a 41mm Keihin FCR-MX flat slide. I've been doing lots of reading, and it looks like this will drastically improve bike performance and throttle response in many ways, not limited to AFR and starting. 3. Repaint the sucker! Sorry for the giant wall of text, I appreciate those who have read this far. Please ask any questions, give comments, critiques, advice, anything! I look forward to hearing what the TT Community has to say. Cheers! John
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I am considering buying a crf 250l dual sport. I like the size and seems like the perfect lil bike to whip around town in. Its my alternative to a scooter. Not to mention the price tag is very attractive. I'd like to make it into a scrambler. My buddy told me this would be difficult because this particular bike has a perimeter frame, and a metal gas tank wouldn't properly fit. Also the radiator is up front under the plastics and would stick out funny. Any ideas and could someone school me on what a perimeter frame is and why a cool looking metal gas tank won't fit? Any ideas on how to make this possible? I know the xr 650 could work but I like how small and cheap the 250 is. Thanks
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I am considering buying a crf 250l dual sport. I like the size and seems like the perfect lil bike to whip around town in. Its my alternative to a scooter. Not to mention the price tag is very attractive. I'd like to make it into a scrambler. My buddy told me this would be difficult because this particular bike has a perimeter frame, and a metal gas tank wouldn't properly fit. Also the radiator is up front under the plastics and would stick out funny. Any ideas and could someone school me on what a perimeter frame is and why a cool looking metal gas tank won't fit? Any ideas on how to make this possible? I know the xr 650 could work but I like how small and cheap the 250 is. Thanks