74 Honda XL 350 - The Turd

xb33bsa said:
bitchen totally dude you could build a motoe track in the nayboors yard eh ?
is that case a familiar piece ? great that you got bike running and its not knocking or clanking always a big relief in my book
the runninng issues do you have an foam element wrapped on the wire cage ?
new honda or at least japan made points and condenser ?
the advancer working smoothly ?
and yes timing light must be used to set it correctly while running
a spare stator cover with a window is titty la ritty for this
definately need a hanger, like just aft of footpeg
a can support strap should only be relied to steady the weight of the can you need something to stop the sideways vibration

Yup thats the case. No foam element just yet and the cover still off the airbox, haven't gotten around to sticking it back on. New Japan made points and condenser, advancer was disassembled and greased up good. New NGK plug cap on there as well.

I'll weld on a hanger once I get this other stuff straightened out before any real riding.
 
the sputtering is a lean condition not rich ,lean misfire creates a sooty plug
needle clip does not effect starting
try wrapping duct tape around that screen to see what happens if the air is slightly restricted
leave it about half covered the open parts at the rear
 
Taped up the air filter cage. Should help for now, got some filter foam coming early next week. Fires up pretty easy now, after I spent about an hour kicking it over with the stator unplugged wondering what was wrong, LOL. Good news is that rubber grommet isn't leaking anymore.

Put a timing light on it, got it dialed in to fire right on F at idle, but at 4k nowhere close to the advance marks. I don't trust the timing light I was using so I'm going to check it with another light before I take the advancer apart.


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that is nice work,i like the bold lettering
you will need to look at the advancer something is keeping it from full.
nothing with the timing light it is literally impossible for it to give you a wrong reading, if it works, if it is flashing, its good,thats all
 
Thanks fellas.

@xb - My issue was with the light itself. It was not flashing on each fire of the plug and was making it difficult to read.

When setting timing with a light, it is my understanding that at base timing the advance on the light should be set to 0 degrees. Then, when checking timing @ full advance, the advance on the light must be set to the correct advance angle put forth by the manual (which in this case is 8.5 degrees)
 
advCo said:
Thanks fellas.

@xb - My issue was with the light itself. It was not flashing on each fire of the plug and was making it difficult to read.

When setting timing with a light, it is my understanding that at base timing the advance on the light should be set to 0 degrees. Then, when checking timing @ full advance, the advance on the light must be set to the correct advance angle put forth by the manual (which in this case is 8.5 degrees)
no no double g dam no :-\ :mad: ;D
its been a while but that is not how to use that function just use it and leave it on zero like it was a timing light with no extra functions
pretty sure you tricked yourself into playing chicken with yourself and lost
tough to do but i do it often
 
Got it. I will put the light back on and do it the right way later this week. After getting the FA50 running and finishing up crank seals on the RD it's time to get back to business on this thing.

I made a couple of paper templates and cut/glued some UNI foam to make a filter element. I used hot glue to hold everything together, and cut the pieces a bit small so it would be a snug fit.

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Slapped a coat of silver on the headlight bucket. Patching some holes on the ring and mending up some rotted spots on the headlight and ring. I'm using the stuff that came with the bike for now and will probably end up grabbing a new bulb down the road.


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i bought a few of these they have the 6 volt bulb and fit well

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-CHROME-SIDE-MOUNT-5-3-4-6V-HEADLIGHT-ASSEMBLY-HARLEY-DAVIDSON-CUSTOMS-/401114275220?hash=item5d64461d94:g:dXYAAOSwZAtXJgf-&vxp=mtr
 
I cleaned up the stock bucket and I'm going to use it for now until I'm ready to upgrade. Can someone explain the purpose of the 10w 3.61 ohm resistor in the wiring diagram?

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advCo said:
I cleaned up the stock bucket and I'm going to use it for now until I'm ready to upgrade. Can someone explain the purpose of the 10w 3.61 ohm resistor in the wiring diagram?

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The resistor is to compensate for the difference between high and low beam headlight power. The lighting coil puts out 35 watts which matches the 35W high beam draw. The low beam filament is only 25W so the resistor in the low beam circuit burns off the excess 10 watts. Without the resistor the low beam filament gets incinerated quickly.The stock resistors are scarce and hard to come by. Not sure where to find a generic that will handle the power and heat.

-Bill
 
spurlock said:
The resistor is to compensate for the difference between high and low beam headlight power. The lighting coil puts out 35 watts which matches the 35W high beam draw. The low beam filament is only 25W so the resistor in the low beam circuit burns off the excess 10 watts. Without the resistor the low beam filament gets incinerated quickly.The stock resistors are scarce and hard to come by. Not sure where to find a generic that will handle the power and heat.

-Bill


Thanks for the info Bill. I figured it was something of the sort. I believe I still have the stock resistor, I wonder if there is any way to ensure it is working properly.

Do you recall where and how the resistor is mounted? It was so long ago that I disassembles the headlight bucket. I noticed from the parts fiche there is a metal bracket used to mount the resistor as well.
 
Been a while since I've made any real progress but here's a small update. I cleaned up the gauges, replaced a couple bulbs and reinstalled them. Put on a set of KTM brush guards I grabbed at Barber for a few bucks and some repop stock mirrors.

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Started to bend up the luggage rack. I like the initial shape. I'll bend up a cleaner version, add some cross members and weld some stays on it so it's removable as well.

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Wow, that looks great, looks factory. I'd like to eventually make one for my XL, what size tubing did you use?
 
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