Customizing a XL600R into a Cafe Racer/Street tracker to ride South

[QUOTE




So do i know where im going exactly? no

doe's it really matter?............no.

all i know for certain is that there is only one direction on my compass (for now) and its pointing South.[/QUOTE]

If i was put here on earth to be a practical functional, purposeful member of society... im a happy FAIL

Thanks, i checked the clearance before i packed it all on...

Hallo Herr Hans, Wie Gehts? Danke for your encouragement... I will be hoping to work on the seat when i get all the mechanics out of the way... it works for now..

Ha, i dont even have a shop manual, still waiting to pick it up from the guy i bought it from..
I made a friend here in LA, a young lad that has more XL's than cents in the pocket, he's the one helping...
Although that did concern me, im actually in the process of changing the cylinder head, rocker cover, clutch and stator gaskets with honda originals, they just arrived yesterday, so no more liquid gasket... or should i still use a little?

Dear magnetic, i am fine, the tip for the foam was for your next project. You are doing well.
Your whole thing remembers me to the XL guys from france or myself. My DR 650 SE is still running with over 75000km and i checked the valves for three times, changed oil five times and never touched the carburator. She is doing it right.
The most important thing for ever is the driving. Keep going...
Greetings from Hans.

Hey magneticsouth

good that new stuff arrived !! just use a little sealant on the top cover seal only (both sides) otherwise you will lose more oil than it will use in a lifetime

have fun I'll be leaving shortly too

Emile

wow! this is just amazing...
what you are doing is totally against all logic, useless, a waste of precious time and yet...

...this can only be define as the beauty of art.

you are the greatest artist in this forum and, some days, I wish I was a little more like you

Keep it up and the best of luck on this Artventure...

With these kind words, i will sleep sound tonight...

:huh


Im sure there was a back handed compliment in there somewhere

The look of the red single shock in a matt black body... mmmm

This is just a teaser, the engine is back out......

im waitting for the complete job !!!!!

wow this is fascinating ! Your reabuild sort of follows the same principals as my reabuild of the summerhouse last year: If it doesn´t work, so what the f-ck, it´s my time, i´ll just rip down what´s necessary and do it again...(another way)Nice! Subscribed

After 3wks of sweating, my title and insurance has arrived!! Mexico here i come! (Well if i can get this bike running)

Progres putting the engine back together has been slowed of late due to the guy which is supposed to help me meeting a girl :ddog.. i havent had any help for a few days but i'll post the developments of where im at..

Take note, i havent done this before.... dont judge.




My parts have arrived





another night at the office




top end off






clutch cover off




checking out the plates (not really sure what im looking for but good to see)



stator cover







cylinder head and gaskets off





daunting road ahead



this is where im doing the work, its a carpark under my friends condo... not ideal, but i try to keep it low key and stay outta ppls view.. most tools im using im taking with me, so if i have to i can take the bike apart wherever i may end up.

Not to bust your balls RZ Rob, but the XL was built to be a dual sport, the XR was Honda's true dirt bike.

Mr. South,

I have 2 XL600's and 3 old dual carb XR600's, and that friend you made in LA sounds a bit like me. When the time comes for me to take a trip far South, I'm planneing on customizing an old XL a bit and taking it. I've been wanting to see if I can track down some jets for some of the high altitude passes, and am in the middle of making the subframe removable to make it easier to get in there. I'm curious if you have any plans for when you may need to change the jetting, since it seems the jets are hard to find?

My brother has a machine shop, so I've considered having him make some, but I'm not sure there is a big market for them (but I'd probably have some extras made if/when the time comes). If you or your buddy know of a source, please pass it on.

Best of luck on your trip man!

Ride On Ride On!

No high altitude contingency yet, fingers cross is my plan....i was looking for needles and jets and found some performance carb kits on ebay, but didnt look too deeply into it of what was included, because of my time frame and the delivery time i abandoned those thoughts..

They did make a high altitude main jet (112) for the XL600R for up to 9800 feet, so they must be out there somewhere, Try calling a honda dealer somewhere up in the mountains?? If you have the time, im sure you'll be able to track them down..

Without a helping hand, i strapped down the forks to get the nuts out for a fork seal change..




New Ricky Stator




Replacing Gaskets feel like putting on a new pair of underwear.




torqueing down cylinder head bolts



almost there...

:eek1

Putting on the top cover, i got to tightening the last bolt and it was threaded

After consulting the oracle (My friend Daniel)
He got out of bed to bring out this tool.
I think people know of it as Heli coils? we made a new thread.



And left me to finish it off

Second line up...