open to suggestions, need some advice

[Kevin McCutcheon]

I recently obtained an 81 xs400 with intent of customizing or modifying for a project. Upon initial inspection, engine turns over and seems to have compression. Carbs were said to be dirty and in need of cleaning (surprise..) But further inspection shows that I can only obtain the first three gears. It will not shift into 4th or continue up through from 3rd on. Checking the oil, it seems it has either been emptied or is non existant to say the least. Should I bother to see if I can make it run, or tear into it and find out what is wrong with the gears. If I tear into it can I expect something as simple as a bent fork or an even bigger project. (may be I won't know till I get into it.) Open to suggestion, throw me some ideas. Is or should it be a junk or a wallet shrinker. I wanted a mechanically sound machine, looks like it may be more. Thanks ahead for your input.

 

[bcware]

I suggest you spin the rear wheel as you shift up; you can't shift up all the way unless the transmission rotates a bit. Most motorcycles work this way.

First bike?

 

[EJ8TrapKing]

I just bought my first bike and it's an 81 xs400sh and love it but engine is not running right. Only time and patience will help me through this, or I can just sell the motor and buy a new motor. Any thoughts? How much would a new engine cost compared to rebuild?

 

[xschris]

They don't sell "new" xs400 motors. But you can find a good used ones from time to time. A full rebuild it not cheap and parts are often very hard to find. If yours is beyond basic repair then find a good used one.

 

[EJ8TrapKing]

Thanks for the advice, but I just cleaned the carbs last night and now my bike runs, but I think idle is off.

 

[Kevin McCutcheon]

I suggest you spin the rear wheel as you shift up; you can't shift up all the way unless the transmission rotates a bit. Most motorcycles work this way.

First bike?

I will give that a try. No it is not my first bike, but it is the first one I have bought with the intention of some kind of project. I wanted to find out if it is worth putting the time into or not. If the gears don't work it could be a bigger problem than I can fix. I appreciate your suggestion and will give it a try. Do you know if having no oil would cause the same problem. I did discover some oil on the floor, a couple of drips, this morning and there is no more oil left in it. So, I will be looking to find the leak as well and repairing it. If the last owner was truthful he told me he was riding it last summer but had carb issues and didn't know how to fix it. He did alot of cosmetic work so I am hoping he knew his limits. Thanks for you input.

 

[bcware]

Low oil probably won't prevent the tranny from shifting; it would just wear like crazy if it were run at real speed. If you're just messing about it should still work. Still, fill it up with oil. It's a good idea to keep everything lubricated even when you're just turning things over by hand.

But yes, if the bike is on the center stand just rotate the rear wheel in the direction the tire would go in if the bike were riding; it should find the higher gears.

 

[Kevin McCutcheon]

Low oil probably won't prevent the tranny from shifting; it would just wear like crazy if it were run at real speed. If you're just messing about it should still work. Still, fill it up with oil. It's a good idea to keep everything lubricated even when you're just turning things over by hand.

But yes, if the bike is on the center stand just rotate the rear wheel in the direction the tire would go in if the bike were riding; it should find the higher gears.

Thank you for that information, gave it a try and have all the gears. 1 down, five up and then back to neutral. I did put some oil in it first and I see no leaks. will check the floor in the morning. If this goes well then I will try to clean the carbs and see how she runs. If all is good to there I should be able to start my project. Thanks again, it is nice to have a reminder sometimes when you havent worked on one for a long time.

 

[bcware]

I've dealt with this before when I first started out; I just forget that finding all of the gears when the bike is static is not something anyone normally does when they're riding a fully functional motorcycle.