Little bike - Big project. '80 XS 400 Special. NOW WITH PICS!

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dbarale

Active Member
Picked it up from Craigslist, 1980 "XS450 Special", never heard of a 450 so I assume it's a 400. It's got a drum front brake....
It's got it all, huge clear winshield, rack and sissy bar poorly adapted from something else, crash bars to match. Green moss growing on it, rotted tires and rusted out chain...
BUT it was only 100$ with clear title and keys, the engine is not frozen, the tank has no dents or rust inside and it's got an '06 inspection sticker!
My first thought is of course "Cafe!" but I'm also tempted by the idea of a tiny hack. Yup, XS400 side car! ;D

Sorry pics will have to wait until tomorrow, it's too dark out...
 
Re: Little bike - Big project. '80 XS 400 Special.

I've never seen, but I think there is an XS450.
 
Re: Little bike - Big project. '80 XS 400 Special.

glaz said:
I've never seen, but I think there is an XS450.
Click to expand...

It's too dark in that corner in the driveway to see anything on the bike right now but the vin starts with 4R500...
Interesting, what did I get there?
 
Re: Little bike - Big project. '80 XS 400 Special.

Does the title say something-550 on it? ;D

Who knew it was that easy to get more cc's out of a bike, haha?
 
Re: Little bike - Big project. '80 XS 400 Special.

glaz said:
Does the title say something-550 on it? ;D

Who knew it was that easy to get more cc's out of a bike, haha?
Click to expand...

The easiest re-bore ever! ;D

Anyway, here are the pics.

As she came out of the truck, not so pretty...

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The really nicely fitted luggage rack.

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And matching hwy bars:

Picture008.jpg


After about 30 mn it's getting dark but her future is getting brighter:

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And after removing the fugly seat I found out that the top of the frame is nice and straight and that I can shim the rear of the tank 1/2" so everything lines up nicely. 8) This makes me happy...

Picture012.jpg
 
So after sitting on it and getting a feel for what the bike wants, I think this one will make a nice mini-scrambler. Fork boots, longer shocks, ditch the center stand, fab an aluminum bash plate, higher exhaust and solo seat.
What do you guys think?

BTW I weighed the crap I removed and she already lost 42 pounds!
 
Yeh man, cool. What's your plan for the front fender? Keeping it as is, or hacking it down? Or ditching it altogether?
 
Nice find! I am guessing that the b**ch fell off by the position of the sissy bar, LOL. Looks better already with most of the crap removed and the engine looks pretty good. I would Cafe it, 400 might be a bit sluggish with a car on it.
 
Ya know, thinking on your scrambler idea...I think that'd rock!

You can nab longer forks from a wrecker off a XR200 that'll be a bit longer (think more travel) and definitely stronger. A set of longer shocks for added travel out back and some dual sport tires....

Damn! Now I'm all hyped up on building a scrambler too!
 
Swagger said:
Ya know, thinking on your scrambler idea...I think that'd rock!

You can nab longer forks from a wrecker off a XR200 that'll be a bit longer (think more travel) and definitely stronger. A set of longer shocks for added travel out back and some dual sport tires....

Damn! Now I'm all hyped up on building a scrambler too!
Click to expand...

I was looking at tires and found out that I can get Bridgestone dual sport tires in 120/90/16 and 110/80/18 that would probably work TW26 and TW40).
I like the idea of the XR200 forks, do you know what diameter they are?
The leading axle should also improve stability a bit, I would have to figure out a way to mount the front fender though. I'd like a shorty low fender like the new Triumph Scrambler.

I really need to get her running first, hopefully by the end of the weekend...
 
The XR forks(pre-81) are 33mm like yours, that's why I thought they'd work well for you. Damn....I'm really diggin the idea.....I really DON'T need another project..

hehehe

if you look in the tech section here: http://www.ohiocaferacers.com/
You'll find some valuable info on swaps...
 
Progress!

I hooked up a little sealed battery that I had laying around to test the electricals and..... nothing. No lights at the dash, completely dead. I traced it down to the ignition switch, took it apart, cleaned and lubed it, put it back together and there is life again!
After that I took apart the spark plugs boot thingies (I can't remember the proper name) and cleaned up the connections and the resistors, kicked a couple times and Iwas getting a nice, strong spark.

So I figured "What the heck!", hooked up the wife bike's tank to the XS carbs, open the fuel and started kicking.
On the second kick it burped, on the third it fired up! 8)

Of course one of the float valves got stuck and the left cylinder was soon dumping raw fluid into the exauhst, at some point that fuel ignited sending the baffle shooting down the driveway a good 15'.... LOL.
Next I'll be ordering a set of float valves and bowl gaskets and do a little cleaning on the carbs. I also need to do an oil change.

But there is hope for the ugly little bike! And these little engines like to rev up fast.
 
philos1 said:
Is that a Nissan Patrol in the background?

I have a soft spot for Scramblers too...
Click to expand...

Nope, that's my baby, 1967 Land Rover SIIA. It was my first car when I turned 16 and I have had it since then (I'm know 34...).
I didn't know that the Patrol was ever inported to North America?


Anyway, the Turd (that's the official name for this project) now moves under its own power! I cleaned the carbs and the tank and re-installed the chain after it spent a week in diesel then used engine oil. Still will have to replace it but it's good enough for around the bloc. It seems like the engine is quite willing to move the little bike. The handling with the crapy tires, lose steering bearings and shot swingarm bushing is.... let's say it's entertaining!

Now that I know that it's not completely dead the teardown and rebuild can begin.
This is what we're going for, on a smaller scale.

2008.04.25-DSC_0232-BS.jpg
 
Well there is progress but I'm going back to my original idea of a tiny sidecar...
Still to be done is the seat. It will be recut to a flat profile and recovered.

Actively looking for a cheap sidecar now. Total cost of the bike is $175 BTW.

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You're gonna really want different front suspension on that thing if you plan on rocking a sidehack.
Leading link seems to be the most stable, but I'm sure there's someone more knowledgeable on the subject that can pipe up.
Were it me, I'd dive into a scrambler build with no hesitation........hell you're 90% there already!

Toss on some old school motocross bars, rework the exhaust you have into raised pipes, some moderate dual sport tires and you're down to weight loss and details.

but that's just my opinion...
 
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