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My son and I built a1980 XS400 Cafe Racer a few years back that hasn't seen much use since he's been away at college. The cafe build included installing pods and converting to Iridium BPR7EIX plugs with (IIRC) a non-resistive plug connector on the original plug wires. He's recently moved home...

So, since this spring, our 2 year old cafe bike will not start without starting fluid. The carbs were meticulously (and I mean meticulously) cleaned and rebuilt during the build 2 years ago (completely dissassembled and cleaned, replace idle mixture needle o-rings and throttle shaft o-rings...

The gaiters I purchased and installed less than a year ago have already split into 2 pieces around center. I purchased them on ebay from a now forgotten vendor. I guess sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Any recommendations on where to purchase quality gaiters that might last more...

Ever since finishing up the build of our 1980 XS400 (around 10K miles on the odometer) cafe racer in the late spring we've (my son and I) had an annoying problem: as the rear wheen spins the chain will vary from reasonably tight (a little too tight) to fairly loose (maybe a little too loose). It...

We just received a pair of 0 Ohm plug caps from ebay and I plan to install a set of Iridium BPR7EIX plugs. Any suggestions on gapping the plugs? Standard for BP7ES is .7 to .8 mm.

On our recently completed cafe racer, upon startup when you pull in the clutch and shift into first gear the bike lurches forward and dies without ever letting out the clutch. I adjust the clutch using the cable adjustment at the hand lever, little by little until it stops lurching forward. At...

Last sumer my son caught the bike bug. Since he was attracted to the vintage cafe style rather than the modern streetfighter look, for Christmas he got a 1980 XS400 Heritage Special I picked up on ebay for $440. Needless to say it was pretty rough and barely ran. Although luckily, his Dad (me)...

I have been having a few problems converting to LED turn signals in that the LEDs would not flash and all 4 LED turn signals would light at the same time. The flash failure is a well known problem cause by the high resistance of the LEDs not drawing enough current to activate the stock flasher...

I just finished rebuilding the front Master Cylinder on our father/son cafe project (better the bike stops fast than goes fast) and am getting no pressure that I can see. When I pump the handle the brake fluid pumps into the reservoir. The cylinder seemed in reasonable good shape and I polished...

I am currently building a cafe style bike based on an XS400 with my son as his first bike based on the bike pictured below. We've already modified the rear geometry by moving the rear shock upper mount points onto the fame rails approximately 3 inches lower than the stock mount points...

My son and I are in the teardown phase of our cafe build and just pulled off the front forks and triple trees. Before the teardown there was a distinct thunk in the triple tree swing. It seems someone had been in there before and neglected to install all the ball bearings (one ball bearing is...

I'm getting started on building a custom seat pan for my cafe project. I have found a design I intend to mimic and it is made from sheetmetal. I've read through a few posts and have seen pans made from everything from 12 gauge to 22 gauge in everything from stainless steel to aluminum. Anyone...

I'm trying to dynamically time my bike and I follow instructions to pull the alternator cover to access the timing marks with a strobe light. As I loosen the bolts holding the cover on, around 2 quarts of oil pour out. I just picked up this bike and cleaned the carbs and got it running. Even...

The original slide diaphrams had a small tab on the outside rim of the diaphram that fit into a cutout in the carb body to orient the slide during installation. Replacement diaphrams do not, at least not the ones in my carbs. Unfortunately, I did not note the orientation of the slide prior to...

Gentlemen, I've recently acquired a 1980 XS400 that I am planning to use as the basis for a father/son cafe build project. Although I'm well experienced in auto body, painting, welding, car mechanics (I've been rebuilding high end insurance wrecks as a hobby for 25 years) and bike mechanics...