78 xs400

[m3ch]

well guys, i decided to do a cafe style bike.........shes a 78 xs400(of course)

got her last year for 250 bucks as a none running bike, previous owner said all it needed was an ignition, she took it out to get a new key made for it or something, she said it had "clean" title (which i found to be not true) someone had an alcohol violation while on it. Well, i bought a new ignition from ebay tossed it in and fired up (after 2+ years of sitting) road her around all last year with the only thing being done to it was a different seat and spark plugs. time for some pics
here where she started at


fixed my seat up a bit

fast forward to this year




i ordered a new tail light, going to be making a seat, i put on lower bars, and i think bigger rear shocks........alot more to come

 

[m3ch]

well started on my tank the other day

Ignore the garbage, spring cleaning


annnnnnd the last one for today, the f#cked up oil filter plug, any ideas how to get it out?

 

[sly409]

Good looking bike! all the chrome and aluminum looks pretty shiny from your photos.

As for the oil plug maybe try welding a long metal rod to it. Thatll give you extra leverage to break it loose too. I used some vice grips to grab onto mine but then again mine wasnt as chewed up as yours. Be sure to blast it with some pb blast or something and let it soak before you try to tackle it.

 

[phate]

Nice bike but are you sure it's a 78 I mean my 80 looks exactly like that. I am by no means a bike ID-er but just thought I'd ask. As for the bolt I've tried everything the only thing that worked was welding on a nut. Welcome

 

[Scorpio1963]

Man the chrome is amazing on that bike.Welcome here.

 

[m3ch]

yeah, all the chrome is good, the bike has 18k on it right now, it had 16 on it when i bought it last year, the only thing i got around to doing was the seat (before i knew what direction i wanted to go) im going to put some knee dents in to the tank and see how that turns out
also yeah on the title is says it is a 78, but it also say "RS400"

 

[m3ch]

reviving an old thread, but oh well

she did good all last year, changed the oil, dropped my phone in it and it ran even better (who would've guessed!)
now i think its time to start making that seat before i pick up another project (maybe, got a lead on another bike not sure what model but guy said its the same thing)
some other things to do : get some clubman/drag bars get that oil plug out, get a new oil plug. need a gas tank bolt, cut and weld a bar under the seat, touch up the frame, a couple more coats of paint and clear coat on the tank..........just some small stuff some pic will be up whenever i get the time

 

[Tombo]

How is the running condition? Have you done anything with carbs/intake/exhaust?

The reason I ask is because the right side header is blued. This is common to these bikes, it seems, but it shouldn't happen, because the head pipe is actually sleeved (there is another pipe inside the chrome pipe). The bluing of this pipe would indicate that the bike ran lean for some time (long enough to get it hot a bunch of times to make the pipe blue).

Check the plugs!

Bike is in great shape, looks awesome. Does look a lot like an 80 to me. a 78 would have the boxy tank style, unless it was replaced

 

[xschris]

Good to see your still at it Tombo it's a 78-E they where the first of the xs400's to have the teardrop tank and rounded engine fins.

 

[Scorpio1963]

What does the title say on the bike does it give a year and could that be a typo about rs400?Good luck getting that all straightened out if you haven't already.

 

[xschris]

The "rs" would be a typo it happens a lot. I had a chevy s-10 that on the title it said s-14 as long as the vin# matches the frame it's all good.

 

[m3ch]

it actuallly runs just fine, had no problem with starting, i do need some new plugs (after last year) and wires/coil packs things, i never really understood what exactly they were, it ran lean on that one side when it was cold but after it warmed up it was fine.......but she sat for almost 3 years when i bought her, no idea what the previous owner was like, the one who sold it to me was a female who was selling it to me for her aunty, who signed the title over to her husband who she was going thru a divorce with, he never filed the title thus i ended up with it, she wanted it gone and sold it to me for 250 bucks with no key because she took the ignition out to go get a key made? no idea why but it was good when i transfered the title over except the alcohol violation her uncle got on it

but since i have a little more wrenching experience than i did when i bought her i plan on doing a few little things

 

[bcware]

The "rs" would be a typo it happens a lot. I had a chevy s-10 that on the title it said s-14 as long as the vin# matches the frame it's all good.

Yeah, my registration says I ride an xs500, but that simply isn't the case

it actuallly runs just fine, had no problem with starting, i do need some new plugs (after last year) and wires/coil packs things, i never really understood what exactly they were, it ran lean on that one side when it was cold but after it warmed up it was fine.......

In the simplest sense the coil acts like an amplifier to make the spark stronger. Look it up if you want an explanation with fancier words

Clean the carbs a few more times, then clean them again, and then synchronize them.

 

[m3ch]

Clean the carbs a few more times, then clean them again, and then synchronize them.

yeah, thats what im going to do just a few more months of cold...........and then i can finally get back to working on her, cause you know, no garage..........ive been counting the days i get excited every time i think of a bike and think i cant wait till it is warm enough

 

[Scorpio1963]

i cant wait till it is warm enough

After being stuck with low temps in negative 0`s Im sick of it.I hope febuary is warmer than this January its been one of the coldest winters we had around the lakes region in several years

 

[xschris]

Where are you summer?

 

[Tombo]

(it's here in san francisco.) Record highs, record sunshine, and if it continues like this, it'll be the largest drought in california history. You win some you lose some, I guess.

 

[xschris]

And we have the coldest winter in many years

 

[m3ch]

looks like its going to be 29 and snowy tomarrow then back down to single digits, maybe ill fight with the snow tomarrow and take a few pics of what she looks like now, she looks a bit different than the last photos i uploaded
*ediit*
found a pic from my facebook this is what she looks like now, the mounting place where the blinkers use to go is what im probably going to be removing, she has no passanger pegs, or turn signals

 

[m3ch]

well, now i need to figure out if my plug hole is stripped or not i went to start it up and i noticed air comming from the plug area, it could that it was just loose