84 FJ1100 barn find resurrection

[jdvorchak]

I found this mostly complete 84 FJ1100 on Craigslist last week for $600. So it followed me home (in the trailer) so I had to do something with it. First order of business was to check the oil and it had some in it. Then I pulled the tank and moved the air cleaner back a little and hit it with some starting fluid. I heard it run on all 4 so I knew I had a runner.



Both front master cylinders were pretty corroded. A few minutes in the sand blasting cabinet and some "Roll Bar" paint and I think they turned out good:

[jdvorchak]

I pulled the carbs and un-ganged them for a carb dip soak for a few hours each. They weren't that bad! Only the idle jets and starting circuits were plugged. New O-rings and put them back on the bike for the first test with gasoline. After I filled the carbs, with my IV aux tank, the bike started easily and ran on choke. When I was bench syncing the carbs I may have guessed wrong and have idle screws closed too much so it won't idle with choke off.



Safety wired the fuel petcock, which appears to be working and not leaking!



Comments welcome..

I never liked the way they look while I'm working on them:

[jdvorchak]

I don't know if you can see it but the clutch cover is cracked and leaking where the brake pedal hit it. A little white squiggly line visible just above the pedal pad. Obviously from a mishap one of the PO had. When I had the pedal off, to remove the rear MC from cleaning/rebuild, I straightened the pedal. It was right up next to the clutch cover.

I have a new gasket on order and one of my sons is a professional welder. I'll see if he can weld the crack.

[jdvorchak]

What the clutch assembly looks like


Inside of the clutch cover. The big thing in the middle is called a "breather". I've never seen anything like it. The crack/hole is in the lower right:



A closer look at the damage



What the damage looks like from the outside:



I'm sending it to work with my middle son. He is a body man but has a custom motorcycle shop across the street. He said he'd take it over there and get their take on it.
Wish me luck because I can't seem to find that cover anywhere.

[Pat Conlon]

Wish me luck because I can't seem to find that cover anywhere.

If that aluminum deforms under the heat of welding, you will not get a gasket seal.

There some on eBay right now. I counted 5 but here are 3:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-XJR-1200-1300-FJ-1200-Engine-Clutch-Case-Cover-/252718353147?hash=item3ad7300afb:g:nY4AAOSwEzxYdPmO&vxp=mtr
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-XJR-1200-1300-FJ-1200-Engine-Clutch-Case-Cover-/262912213675?hash=item3d36ca02ab:g:Nh4AAOSwWxNY2RWn&vxp=mtr
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-XJR-1200-1300-FJ-1200-Engine-Clutch-Case-Cover-/252767316541?hash=item3ada1b2a3d:g:GWYAAOSwTuJYoF8B&vxp=mtr

Did you ask Randy @ RPM? I'll bet he has something.
In addition Bob W has quite a few FJ parts for sale:   http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=16433.0

Just trying to help.

[Sparky84]

Wish me luck because I can't seem to find that cover anywhere.

Isn't this what your after

http://rpmracingca.com/proddetail.asp?prod=OuterClutchRing

[FJmonkey]

The cover will weld up just fine. The trick is getting the contamination out of the crack. I learned this from Randy. Dino oil will burn off to carbon and the weld puddle will reject it. Synthetic will not and just weep out making it difficult to fuse the material. A good welder will fix it for you.

[red]

Inside of the clutch cover. The big thing in the middle is called a "breather". I've never seen anything like it. The crack/hole is in the lower right
I'm sending it to work with my middle son. He is a body man but has a custom motorcycle shop across the street. He said he'd take it over there and get their take on it.
Wish me luck because I can't seem to find that cover anywhere.

jdvorchak,

If you want to get a welded repair on the crack, your best bet in to have a patch fully welded over the crack on the inside, to seal in the oil.  The patch is welded onto clean, smooth metal then.  On the outside, fill in the crack with welding material, then power-sand smoothly, for appearances.  That is what an ace welder did for me, with excellent results.

[ribbert]

.

[Troyskie]

What the clutch assembly looks like

Is that part of the wire retainer dangling out below the clutch basket?

[jdvorchak]

What the clutch assembly looks like

Is that part of the wire retainer dangling out below the clutch basket?

No. Actually that is part of the gasket that was dangling. The camera angle makes it look thin like a wire.

[jdvorchak]

If you want to get a welded repair on the crack, your best bet in to have a patch fully welded over the crack on the inside, to seal in the oil.  The patch is welded onto clean, smooth metal then.  On the outside, fill in the crack with welding material, then power-sand smoothly, for appearances.  That is what an ace welder did for me, with excellent results.

I'm not a welder but I understand what you're saying. Welding a patch over the crack would be a challenge. The metal is actually pushed in from the outside so it sits very proud of the surface. If I tried to beat that back down level I'm sure it would just break off and result in a great big hole.

One of my sons is a pro welder and one is a body man. The body man came by and said he would take it to work. There is a custom racing motorcycle shop across the street that owes him a favor. If it can't be repaired I'll buy a new one now that some members have pointed out a couple of options.

[jdvorchak]

Waiting for a battery and to get the clutch cover welded I decided to do a little aluminum polishing. I should have done some more "before" pics.

[Pat Conlon]

With polished aluminum, it seems like you're looking into the soul of the metal.

Nice work! 

[Sparky84]

Waiting for a battery and to get the clutch cover welded I decided to do a little aluminum polishing. I should have done some more "before" pics.

They look so Good, how did you get them so shiny?

Cheers Alan