xs 360 77' project

[harakirijasper]

Greetings all,

First off, incredible site. Hats off to all of whom contributed to this site.
I’m currently working on restoring XS360 1977. I bought this from my friend’s uncle. Though I wasn’t certain I was capable of restoring the bike, I couldn’t help leaving such an awesome bike left out to rot…. And that’s how I got this bike.

The bike has no spark and as I was going through the electrical diagram and checking each part, I realized that the cam on ignition advance cam is worn out. It’s so worn out that no matter how much I turn the cam the points are not making any gap.
From what I can tell, this could prevent the spark plugs from producing sparks… right?
Does anybody know if the cam/ ignition advance unit from other XS models would fit on 77’ 360?

This will be the first of many project until I can get this bike running

Thanks in advance!

 

[xschris]

Yes the xs400 and the xs360 sohc uses the same points and governor. Did you set the points? If it is bad I have a good used one that came out of a good running bike I can sell you for cheap.

 

[harakirijasper]

hey xschris, thanks for the response.
I have yet to set a points. Because of the wear on the cam, i cannot bring the points to where there's a gap. i was planning on doing that after i replace the parts....
unless of course i'm doing it wrong? i got manual and the book and did everything it said.

that sounds great! how much were you thinking? i found one on ebay for 20 bucks + shipment but i'd very much rather buy it from someone who is dedicated on yamaha xs.
also, you from upstate? im NY around kingston area.

 

[xschris]

I live by watkins glenn in the finger lakes. How does $14 shipped sound, paypal only.

 

[harakirijasper]

thanks xschris for helping out!

so here's another question.
according to many of the posts here fuse box is infamous for failure and i think i should replace it (mine has original and it's pretty grimy.) i tested it and they seem to be functional, but does anyone have any suggestion? should i buy the same parts or upgrade something else?

 

[xschris]

Just make sure your contacts are clean. I still have the factory ones in both of my bikes but a lot of people go with an automotive blade type fuse holder.

 

[harakirijasper]

I see. Contacts are clean and the unit passes the voltage test. I'll keep this on the bucket list for now. Thank you!

 

[JPaganel]

I replaced the fuse boxes in all three of my Yamahas. In two of them that got rid of electrical gremlins. On the XS400 the fusebox literally fell apart as I was leaving work one day.

What happens is that the metal the clips are made of gets brittle. Something about plating and the base metal, I think. They will be clean and shiny, but will lose springiness. Then they will crack either when you try to bend them to make better contact or just on a good bump. The ATO/ATC fusebox is $10 at most parts stores and prevents a major annoyance.

I used this:

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/d...&+holders_-1_-1&keyword=fuse+blocks+&+holders

 

[xschris]

Here is a pic of the starter cover seal.

 

[harakirijasper]

I replaced the fuse boxes in all three of my Yamahas. In two of them that got rid of electrical gremlins. On the XS400 the fusebox literally fell apart as I was leaving work one day.

What happens is that the metal the clips are made of gets brittle. Something about plating and the base metal, I think. They will be clean and shiny, but will lose springiness. Then they will crack either when you try to bend them to make better contact or just on a good bump. The ATO/ATC fusebox is $10 at most parts stores and prevents a major annoyance.

I used this:

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/d...&+holders_-1_-1&keyword=fuse+blocks+&+holders

thanks Jpaganel. I'll order this and replace my old fuse box.
i guess i need to dig up my soldering iron.

 

[226dark]

The bike has no spark and as I was going through the electrical diagram and checking each part, I realized that the cam on ignition advance cam is worn out. It’s so worn out that no matter how much I turn the cam the points are not making any gap.
From what I can tell, this could prevent the spark plugs from producing sparks… right?
Does anybody know if the cam/ ignition advance unit from other XS models would fit on 77’ 360?

I had a problem at some point (pun) where one was not opening (gapping) at all. Well.. the thing woudn't have worn out in a day. . so it turns out the heel of one of the breaker points was not in contact with and riding on the cam / ATU. so i just had to adjust that first to make sure riding on the cam, then adjust the gap.

 

[harakirijasper]

I had a problem at some point (pun) where one was not opening (gapping) at all. Well.. the thing woudn't have worn out in a day. . so it turns out the heel of one of the breaker points was not in contact with and riding on the cam / ATU. so i just had to adjust that first to make sure riding on the cam, then adjust the gap.

Thanks 226dark for advise. my cam on ATU is pretty worn (like 1mm thick scraped.) it looked like previous owner opened it, lost the gasket and lubrication dried off. not sure how long it has been like this (i guess it could be somewhere between a day to 35 years.) once i get the new one i'll def mess around with it.

by the way, what type of grease can i use to lubricate the cam so that this won't happen again?

 

[xschris]

First I clean the lobe then a few drops of oil ( I use same as what I put in the bike) on the wick every 300-500 miles.

 

[harakirijasper]

thank you xschris. I've been wondering about the wick actually... i'm not sure what previous owners did but it looks pretty grimy. is this something i can pull it off and wash?

 

[xschris]

Yes, but be very careful not to distort it because it is had to get back in where is needs to be.

 

[226dark]

I have a spare atu myself which i replaced with new, though reading this post maybe I'll hang on to it, ha. I do the same and just 2-3 drops motor oil on wick. Are those just plain impossible to find? I have an extra from who-knows-what kind of bike (from small town bike dealer who seems to have almost everything, including parts in stock for my bike!) I will have to cut to smaller size but mine is pretty worn and it is a careful procedure to remove and replace the thing without damaging it. I was thinking maybe the inner (hard) felt from a piano hammer might work if it came to that

 

[arfstrom]

My album has the info for what i have. The sales clerk stated that a call to their 1800 number, and they will ship it to your place. let me know if anyone wants it. (it might be listed in the album. Tobie
http://www.xs400.com/media/albums/342/

Oops on a fuse block, I had picked up.

 

[226dark]

A bulky fuse block compared to others I've seen but looks like you made it work out nicely. The ground wire that you have to the battery box bolt, i prefer on surface of the battery box then screw the bolt down on top of the wire.

 

[harakirijasper]

> xschris /226dark
thanks for the advise. i'll see if i can clean it without damaging it. i'm sure it can' shrink or expand too much either... piano hammer huh? i'll see if i can find it my friend's music shop.

>arfstrom
i dont have any welding tool, i guess i'll have to find something that'll fit on my original mount. tho, i've always wanted to mess with a blowtorch.

 

[harakirijasper]

Hello all,

My XS360 and my bike finally recovered from the hurricane sandy (4 ft of water in garage) and finally got back to start working again.
Got carb cleaned up and some parts cleaned and frame repainted, basically playing with my favorite toy.

Last year i couldn't get the sparks at all, i got that figured out but came to a screeching halt when i realized i can only get spark from one side at a time.
Tested the coils, caps, cables, and plugs, here's what i discovered.
When i kick i would only get spark from the right plug, but when i switch the negatives out of coil (orange and grey) the spark only come out of left.
According to the diagram these are going into condenser. From what i've read from this forum i should test kick it without condenser connected and see if it sparks....
in any event, if anyone has any idea how i can troubleshoot this, i'd greatly appreciate it