New owner of an XS400 Maxim!... now what?

[Yamahajesus]

Greetings!

I registered to the forum a while ago when I was hunting for a bike, and jumped on the opportunity and picked up my very own 1982 XS400 Maxim! Unfortunately, I then lost my job and while in undergrad couldn't give the bike the attention it deserved. Well, II graduated, got a good job and now's finally the time to tackle the bike. It has some pretty dorky stickers from the PO's kids, but I'm pretty excited to transform this bike into the cafe racer I've been dreaming about.

Some more pictures are in here -> https://imgur.com/a/8mNoQ

My goal with this bike is to turn it into a cafe racer, with this glorious bike as its template: http://www.motorcircles.com/bikes/espresso-racer/

Right now, since the bike has been sitting for a few years in a garage, I'm focused on:
1. Cleaning EVERYTHING.
2, Getting a new battery and some sparkplugs to see if it still runs (it did when I bought it 2 years ago)
3. De-rusting the fuel tank w/ vinegar
4. Figuring out how everything is attached and how to move everything around.

It looks like this bike is a little more complicated with wiring than I first expected, so trimming it down for the cafe racer look will be interesting. Also, I didn't notice right away, but the suspension is a single column in the middle, which doesn't keep with most of the cafe builds I've seen.

I've been expecting a sharp learning curve since I don't have a ton of vehicle experience, Any insight on what to do or examples to pick apart would be greatly appreciated!

 

[DARKMIDKNIGHTWARRIOR]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[16VGTIDave]

Welcome!

Looks like you have a decent bike to start your build from. You may find that turning a Maxim into a cafe is challenging as it was definitely designed as a cruiser. Not saying it can't be done, just that it is going to take a lot of work and many parts will have to be changed. Such as the wheels, tank, bars, seat, and rear fender. Doesn't sound like much, until you get to it...

Have fun and keep us posted!

 

[LuckyEight]

Welcome. I can't even imagine turning it to a café. The front end is too high, the rear end is too low...frame looks too difficult to be modified... As Dave said, it's a challenge and it will be a long way...
So good luck and fingers crossed...

 

[iamunique127]

Welcome to the forum. Looks like you have a decent bike. I look forward to see how you make out.

 

[xschris]

Welcome to the forum

 

[Yamahajesus]

Thanks to all of you who pointed out the obvious flaws in my objectives. Doing some more digging around in the bike, I've decided it probably won't be worth it work-wise to convert this bike into a cafe style.

But, that doesn't mean she'll be sitting in the garage! I'm cleaning the carbs in a few days and that should be a lot of fun(?) if it goes well. Other than that, I'm waiting for the local shop to get a new battery in (should arrive tomorrow) and to exchange out the plugs they sold me. The plugs listed in their system for the xs400 didn't match the plugs I had in the bike in the first place. I probably should have just brought them in but w/e. Nothing a quick visit back won't fix.