Newbie with his first XBR ! - the continuing saga !

[Bojer]

Took delivery of my 72,000mile  Ebay XBR today   - was quite impressed  

Not sure how much is original but forks are not pitted and the engine seems fine - except for the electric start !

Clatter , clatter , whiz pretty much describes the action after pressing the e/s button - starter clutch ? is it worth having a look at it or just remove the motor and use the kickstart ? Starts easily on the kick start - first time usually so far .

Want to cleanup /paint the undersides of the tank and assorted bits of frame and swingingarm could do with some black gloss after that I need to make with the alloy polish and it will look quite decent .

Pleased to have joined you , fancied an XBR when they came out but were too pricey for me then and have been diverted by other bikes since but when I needed some cheap transport and this one came up it seemed ideal.

cheers chaps !

[bobby554]

Hi I am fairly new myself, Don't understand "polish"

Bob

[Bojer]

"Hi I am fairly new myself, Don't understand "polish"

Bob"


Er well I may have exaggerated slightly - I had in mind ten minutes with a brillo pad to remove any obvious "fur"  

[guest18]

Best keep it below 10, any more than that will confuse and alarm many of the XBR owners round here 
Hope you have loads of fun with it, they're good bikes, and there's bags of knowledge/information about them on here 
I always just ignored the starter on mine and used the kickstart, seems to be a common tactic (although onepot must have entered into some dark pact with Mr Honda and got the only effective electric foot they ever produced...)

[SteveC#222]

Welcome aboard!

You won't go far wrong with an XBR, damn good little bikes. The starter ( yes it is the starter clutch) goes on most of them sooner or later...if you can live without it I wouldn't worry.  Make sure you change the oil every 1200-1500 miles and filter every other change, this seems to be the key to long engine life.  Most parts are easy to get either new or secondhand. Exhausts and downpipes are a bit of a problem - if your's are good look after them also rear brake drum can go oval and is difficult and expensive to repair...good secondhand back wheels are like hens teeth.  Other than that it's usually all good news.  If you have any problems just ask on the forum and someone should be able to help. 

[Bojer]

Ok , thanks all , will solve the electric starter prob by my favourite method then - ignore it !

Exhaust is a messed about Motad but downpipes seem sound enough so might try a universal megga on it 

To my amazement the engine seems to be the original - early one by the number 250 from start (?) , first thing I checked was g/b output shaft - I have had an XR600 that destroyed the splines on the shaft after 25000miles - XBR on 74,000 seems fine ! Impressed 

[guest833]

I've got a couple of starters if you get a bad leg kicking it up.

Cheers

John

[SteveC#222]

The engines are pretty well bullet proof as long as you change the oil and don't try and keep it in the red zone all the time.  Cams and top ends can wear - usually if you ignore the above. I know of several that have gone over 100K without problems - GC's outfit has done about 160K+ (ish) .. but I don't how much of that is original ( in fact I don't know how much of it is still motorbike!....some of it is definately organic ...probably makes it technically a cyborg!)

Two things - if you ever take the head off it'll probably have a crack from the plug 'ole to one of the valve seats....they all do that....don't worry.

Also if you ever leave it standing for a few weeks you may find all the compression has gone when you try and start it....they do that too ...just keep turning it over and eventually it will come back.

[guest564]

Early models had weaker starter gears, easily recognised by the flat cover.

[Bojer]

Mmm , so could be the gears rather than just the clutch ? - not too bothered but will have a look to see what's failed . The starter motor itself seems ok just the drive to the crank appears to have died .

Started up first kick this morning having sat out in the rain all night so no biggie if it doesnt get sorted . Fixed a CB500T (!) starter clutch many years ago with three biro pen springs - the rollers had jammed the springs and got stuck . Any more expense/difficulty and I'll just use the kick start .

My old XR600 and SR500 rated as a couple of my preffered bikes so hoping the XBR will fit right in there !

Thanks again .

[Bojer]

Sunny day today so started on the first job on my list - removing and painting under the fuel tank.......as is often the case with me , should have left well alone  

Looked a bit damp in a couple of places but no leaks or smells but a couple of prods with my screwdriver soon made three big holes - why dont I just leave things alone   So will have to make with some epoxy putty until I find a tank that is better than mine .

Air filter looks like it has been in there since the bike was built so more expense there and I have a rear tyre on order .

Was some good news today though I got my shiny indicators from Paul  

Better get on - holes to fill !!

Update - ok holes filled so while that was drying had a look at the valve clearances ........one inlet a bit tight and I think the RH exhaust must have had twice the clearance it should - all reset to the Honda latest spec ( bit wider !) - fitting the last valve cover I find it wont tighten - was a bit loose on removal - threaded part had cracked away from the top hex............ , seems bike has more to fix on it than before I looked at it - not my fault - honest ! 

[Bojer]

Sunny day today so started on the first job on my list - removing and painting under the fuel tank.......as is often the case with me , should have left well alone  

Looked a bit damp in a couple of places but no leaks or smells but a couple of prods with my screwdriver soon made three big holes - why dont I just leave things alone   So will have to make with some epoxy putty until I find a tank that is better than mine .

Air filter looks like it has been in there since the bike was built so more expense there and I have a rear tyre on order .

Was some good news today though I got my shiny indicators from Paul  

Better get on - holes to fill !!

Update - ok holes filled so while that was drying had a look at the valve clearances ........one inlet a bit tight and I think the RH exhaust must have had twice the clearance it should - all reset to the Honda latest spec ( bit wider !) - fitting the last valve cover I find it wont tighten - was a bit loose on removal - threaded part had cracked away from the top hex............ , seems bike has more to fix on it than before I looked at it - not my fault - honest !  Off to scan ebay for Valve covers .........

[guest564]

fitting the last valve cover I find it wont tighten - was a bit loose on removal - threaded part had cracked away from the top hex............ , seems bike has more to fix on it than before I looked at it - not my fault - honest ! 

Thats quite common and is a result of overtightening them, use a new O ring each time and be gentle with them.

[guest833]

Bojer- what are the tappet settings so i can amend my book?

My black xbr project is nearly finished but the top end is a bit tappety/ clacky

http://s621.photobucket.com/albums/tt292/JohnSimpson/black%20xbr%20c%20reg/

Will be for sale v soon (or now if you want it) with 12 months mot- First £1000

Cheers

John

07990 810934

[Bojer]

Well you know I am new to these but the settings I had originally were inlet 0.1mm (0.004") and exhaust 0.12mm (0.005") - the revised ones I have added to my manual are inlet 0.15mm ( 0.006") and exhaust 0.19mm (0.008") .

So I'd expect it to unfortunately make your clatter worse ?

Received the bits today thanks .