82 maxim xs400j bobber.....

[reegs]

Almost finished, this site has been super helpful! thnx everyone for the info, i'll try to post up some pics.

i've been messing around with some black exhaust wrap, i only have 25 feet. rear fender is just about done, i cant wait to ride this thing it actually sounds pretty badass for a little 400!

 

[reegs]

heres a few pics from the last couple of weeks!

I bought this bike for $500, it seemed to run fine......i didnt even have a 'learners license' . it appears to be bone stock 1982 xs400j maxim, Tom selleck, Burt Reynolds or even Prince came to mind looking at this thing in its stock form.

 

[reegs]

haha, I was so busy and pre-occupied for this build that i didn't put any pics up until now! when i wasn't wrenching in the garage i was online finding parts or reading about other guys who did similar builds. heres a few more shots, like i said i can't say enough about how helpfull this site has been.

motor came out super easy! the easy out kit in the pic has paid for itself time and time again! 90% of the time the LH (or reverse) drill bits do the trick for removing all the stripped and broken bolts.

 

[reegs]

having way too much fun messing around with this bike! i should have been counting how many beers its taken so far lol!!

decided to build a 'fake oil tank', i've seen it on a few xs650's. i didn't show the paper templates i used, which made everything a breeze! its way easier to bend/cut/reshape paper templates than sheet metal! its starting to look like a bike again!

 

[reegs]

heres a few more, showing some progress!

started mocking up the rear fender, its from TC bros their 6" trailer fender. the profile wasn't quite the same as my wheel so i had to do some zip cutting and welding. added some tabs to the drop-outs that i had tapped out to take 5mm allen bolts, and tapped out 2 more holes in the fender right behind the seat. seems super rigid, i'm pumped!

 

[reegs]

some more pics, wrapped the headers, got some wiring done waiting for 'egg' signal lites to show up. been out for a few short rides with open headers...... thinking i'm going to fab up some drag pipes with baffles. hoping it will tone down the noise abit.
anybody have any info or experiences with drag pipes vs glasspak stuff i'm all ears!
this is my first street bike so im just winging this so far....lol!

 

[bentwrench]

This is what happens when I work too slowly on my bike. Looks awesome, and almost exactly like what I'm trying to make mine look like. Except I've dropped my bars to clip ons, and my engine is much, much, MUCH dirtier than yours.

Looks great!

 

[reegs]

thanks Bentwrench!
i put together some 'dragpipes' with the 'lollipop' adjustable baffles, went for a rip they are alot better than open headers!! i have the washers at 90 degrees just over an inch from the back of the 18" pipe, painted 'em flatblack of course.

I am having signal flasher issues tho, read some stuff here that im going to try in the am. blinkers worked fine, rewired and installed some 'egg' old style signals from Licks and no flashers.....
i will compare bulbs, hmmmm

 

[bentwrench]

Yeah, I'm stuck on the flashers too. I'm onto potential solution #3, and will do a write up if I can ever get them working.

 

[bentwrench]

Oh - good idea from this site. Remove your centre stand, and just keep it and the bolts in your garage (where you'll need it. Just finger tighten to use, lube the chain, etc.) Drop the weight and the ugly thing for when you're out rolling around.

 

[cherokeedad]

Sweet bike man I like it very clean looking

 

[reegs]

thnx man!
I got my 'egg' signal lights working without resistors, etc.
I ended up using an EP-34 electronic flasher relay and got it to work!!
blinkers are working, but are not 'self cancelling' i guess....(82 xs400j maxim)???

Several flashers and one blown 10a blinker fuse later got it. I ended up having to run a wire from either the brown or brown/white to a ground on the frame....this bike had 3 wires, the brown, brown/white and a green(ground). The EP-34 is a 3 prong flasher, so i made 3 long wires with one end female (into relay) and the other end with male connectors(into the harness plug). One of the wires had an extra wire spliced onto it, which must go to ground. For some reason this works....lol, whew!!
wish i took some pics, but wasn't sure what i was doing....

 

[reegs]

hey Bentwrench,
read some of your posts on jetting, thats what im upto right now.
I'm running emgo intake pods, straight pipes@18" with 90 degree lollipop style baffle an inch from the end of the pipe.
Put some new plugs in and went for a rip around town, pulled the plugs and they look pretty white hot and way too clean.
should i even bother messing with the airscrew and needle clip or just order some mains and go from there?
i'm pumped to finally ride this thing but will be choked if i lean it out!!

 

[reegs]

So i'm just finishing up my bike, dealing with some jetting and afew minor details. This project has been super fun and i'm anxious to track down another bike already!

I could have done this build a bit cheaper, but i ended up tearing into this thing way more than i had intended. I'm at about $1400 including the cost of the bike. I caved and bought new tires, one blew out while i was handling it in the shop. They are 30 year old tires after all!!! I splurged on the seat too, $160 for a Rich Phillps seat made the bike look alot less 'backyard' for sure. Also the price was due in part to all the shipping and duty i paid to get everything shipped from the US.

Thanks again to everyone involved in this site! there are so many helpful people and so much info its awesome. I bought this bike less than a month ago and there is no way i could have done some of this stuff without the info i found hunting around this site.
Cheers to this site, and everyone contributing!

 

[reegs]

A few more 'finished' pics, sorry abit stoked i guess!!

 

[dimore]

Bike looks awesome.
I have the same exact bike and I am turning it into a cafe.
What are the the tires you got? They look nice. I am going to use them for my build.
Also, What did you use to paint the stock rims?

 

[reegs]

thnx dimore!
The tires are Bridgestone spitfires, i had to hunt down a set with the white letters. the p/n will have (RWL) in it, for raised white letters. I had to go up a size in the front, and am glad i did as it looks a little beefier. 100/90/19, stock is 90/90/19.

as for the rims i sanded them abit, mostly cleaned and roughed them up with 220 grit. Duplicolor paint is what i used, i primer, then just a satin black. I've also had good results with Krylon paint. all rattlecans of course!
good call on the cafe build and good luck! I didn't actually ride this bike until after the build, but i am wishing i did a cafe with this bike. It likes to be revved up, and has pretty tight gear ratios. good choice with the cafe, it will be super fun!

if you have any probs or questions i'll do what i can to help!

 

[dimore]

Thanks man. I will let you know how it goes.

 

[reegs]

looking for a ss shorter front brake line, anybody have any info? thnx

 

[bentwrench]

Try calling these guys: http://www.apexbrakes.com

They're in Toronto, and custom make brake lines. Quite reasonable prices - the price list for custom lines is buried in their website.