Total Newbie, Picking up my 81 XS400 on Saturday

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dasfinc

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Let me start off by saying I got my M-class license like 2 years ago, and had a Suzuki 500ES for all of a month before having to get rid of it when I moved to an apartment.

I now live in a motorcycle friendly place, and wanted to get back onto a 'starter' bike and ran across an 81 XS400 at a dealer that they were reconditioning. I liked the style, and the price, so I shelled out for it, and will be picking it up on Saturday.

I believe is a Special (As it has the stepped seat?), and is black on black with the alloy wheels

NewBike_zps326481e1.jpg


They are replacing the front fork seals, both tires, and cleaning/checking the carbs and bearings, and doing an oil change

After poking around these boards, I also asked them to double check the clutch cable as it seems to be a fairly common issue.

Anything else I should keep an eye out for? any tips for all season riding (Gear and bike maintenance wise? I plan on being on this almost every day that its not completely dismal out here in the midwest (Northern IL).

Also, where should I pick up a cover for it as it will be outside during the winter.
 
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Hi and welcome to our forum. That is a nice looking Special. It looks complete and correct. When you buy a cover, look for one that breathes, it will cost more but is much better than just a dust cover as some of the cheap ( read non breathable material) ones are called. Some cheap covers promote condensation.
 
Nice bike! How many miles are on it? If you don't mind me asking how much did the dealer want for it? BTW welcome:)
 
Specdog said:
Hi and welcome to our forum. That is a nice looking Special. It looks complete and correct. When you buy a cover, look for one that breathes, it will cost more but is much better than just a dust cover as some of the cheap ( read non breathable material) ones are called. Some cheap covers promote condensation.
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Any recommended places to order one? What you said is exactly why I'm kinda looking for someone to 'hold my hand' and just tell me what to buy as I know a bad cover can ruin a car/bike.

xschris said:
Nice bike! How many miles are on it? If you don't mind me asking how much did the dealer want for it? BTW welcome:)
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just over 15k on the clock, dealer wanted $550 for it 'as-is', I paid $950 total out the door for them to recondition it (so replace the tires with brand new ones, check bearings, and replace the nick-nacks that it needs). Includes 90 day warranty (which was surprising), and obviously tax/title/plate/reg.

I have a huge man-crush on the Honda NC700, but am too novice to drop that kind of coin and then fear dropping it due to inexperience. I wanted a more 'traditional' style bike as the sport bikes aren't really my thing, and this bike happened to pop-up at a local dealer while I was checking out new bikes. Found this site, didn't seem to be a bike to avoid, so I pulled the trigger on it.
 
The NC700X is also on my list of bikes to consider in the future. But in the mean time, you will enjoy your Special. The simplicity and reliability is hard to beat, and the performance is good enough to put a smile on your face. The light weight makes them easy bikes to handle and learn on.

$950 on the road is a decent price, especially considering how good a condition it is in cosmetically! Please just ride and maintain it! Many new members here introduce themselves with a "build" post that starts with stripping, cutting, and hacking their bike. Usually without it being running. Your bike is a rarity these days...
 
16VGTIDave said:
The NC700X is also on my list of bikes to consider in the future. But in the mean time, you will enjoy your Special. The simplicity and reliability is hard to beat, and the performance is good enough to put a smile on your face. The light weight makes them easy bikes to handle and learn on.

$950 on the road is a decent price, especially considering how good a condition it is in cosmetically! Please just ride and maintain it! Many new members here introduce themselves with a "build" post that starts with stripping, cutting, and hacking their bike. Usually without it being running. Your bike is a rarity these days...
Click to expand...

I'm a big gear head as far as cars go (I've owned a Small block V-8 swapped 98 Ford ranger, and a small block ford V-8 swapped 97 BMW 3 series, countless swapped hondas etc), but being back at an apartment (trying to sock away to buy a house instead of rent), I wanted something I could enjoy without screwing with, and felt that a motorcycle fit the bill nicely.
 
If you still can you should have them check the Clutch push rod seal. They are a PITA to replace properly and if it was me, i would rather a dealer do that fix then myself.

Other than that, anything else is fairly easy to accomplish, and relatively cheap and available (other then a headlight replacement lens.. dear god do not break your headlight! lol)
 
Recreateme said:
If you still can you should have them check the Clutch push rod seal. They are a PITA to replace properly and if it was me, i would rather a dealer do that fix then myself.

Other than that, anything else is fairly easy to accomplish, and relatively cheap and available (other then a headlight replacement lens.. dear god do not break your headlight! lol)
Click to expand...

I actually gave them a status call as they were still working on the bike, and asked them to check on t hat as well.

Since the bike has a 90 day warranty despite being so old, I figure they have no reason to not double check this sort of stuff now.
 
Thats actually pretty awesome that they gave a warranty lol I would have paid extra to get one on my bike haha

When you get it, ride it around A LOT and check the spark plugs to see how they are burning, you should see if you have oil, or carbon or dry or whatever by the way they look.. Google will help you decipher what the tips look like and what it means.

This way you can call them up and say "My bikes burning oil, you're gonna need to tear it down for me and replace all my seals! UNDER WARRANTY!" lol

I wish i could do that, i have so many little issues it would be worth it because after riding if a bike your going to get a bunch of new stuff pop up :p
 
As the price of the bike is so cheap, I don't believe they would even bother selling it if it was burning oil badly enough that its noticeable, so I'm not really worried.
 
Hi and welcome to the Forum. You have a great 90 days to look forward to.

My advice would be to promise yourself that you will always wear gear, even on a hot day. It doesn't have to be fancy or expensive - I got all mine used on Kijiji (like Craigslist) - jacket, gloves, boots, pants.
Always wear boots that are high enough to cover the "lateral malleolus" (the round bone -tip of the fibula- on the outside of your ankles. With low-cuts you will need skin grafts after even a minor slide. Always wear leather or armoured gloves - no need to get skin grafts for a minor fall. Jeans or pants with hip pads, and jacket covering forearms and elbows - same reasoning.

And if you are approaching a blind or unfamiliar corner ALWAYS assume there is sand of gravel in the middle.
After a 36 year hiatus, I started up with an sr250. I practised daily on paved residential streets and was feeling pretty sure of myself. Then one day, I reversed my usual route thinking it would be nice to see the scenery from the other direction. I made a left into a small street I had previously only turned out of and was admiring the new view rather than looking at the road in front. Instead of cutting the corner on the clear track people use when exiting, I ran right over that little triangle of sand and pea-gravel in the middle. Even at less than 5 mph, I went from admiring the view to laying on the ground in an instant.
Scuffed my H.D. boot on top of my lateral malleolus, wore half way through a thick leather gardening glove (my excuse to buy M-C gloves), and wore a small hole in the ballistic nylon mesh covering my hip pad.
No holes in me though - I suffered nothing which need medical attention or even a band-aid.
While I felt embarrassment for my (lack of) riding skill, I felt oh so wise about wearing the gear.
. . . . .
bth_owl.gif
 
I agree, I read somewhere that leather will hold for about a 150 feet slide, the motorbike-specific textile gear will hold for about 100 feet (also enough for 99% of sliders), kevlar biker jeans about 30 feet, normal denim jeans about a foot, and bare skin about half an inch
 
Thanks for the input everyone!

As far as gear goes, I actually picked up:

S700 Shark Helmet (Has the 'built in' sunglasses, which from my brief time riding in the past I'd imagine will be extremely nice to have)
FirstGear jacket
FirstGear gloves

And already have some very nice Timberland boots that are rather heavy duty but still comfortable (and cover my ankle completely).

All that is really left is I'll need a set of pants, which unfortunately are rather expensive, and I'd rather not buy used. I plan on crossing that bridge as soon as possible, but confess I will ride with Jeans until then. As its getting cool outside, I'm sure I'll be picking up a pair far sooner than later.
 
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dasfinc said:
.... All that is really left is I'll need a set of pants, which unfortunately are rather expensive, and I'd rather not buy used ...
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I wouldn't worry about any stigma with used - very often they are sold be people who quit early or get fat.
If it's cleanliness that concerns you, the synthetic pants with armour are fully washable and go on over your regular jeans anyway.
Rather than risk it, how can you not buy something like this and then be warmer and safer?
 
Good Luck. I just picked up an 82' same model. yours is in much better condition though:). I've only been able to ride once, but this bike is pretty cool!
 
Still on course to pick it up in the morning, Just spoke with them.

Carbs are cleaned and balanced, fresh oil change and plugs, air filters were already good.

He is going to pop the cover off to see about taking a look at the clutch cable seal that was mentioned earlier.

Still needs to do the fork seal and tires, but all the parts are there, so he just needs to rock on through it.
 

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