$3,950
El Prado, New Mexico
Category
-
Engine
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Posted Over 1 Month
Up for sale is my 1986 Honda XL600R. I completely rebuilt this bike during the winter of 2012-2013 (about 1.5 years ago) and built as an adventure-touring motorcycle. At that time I also completely re-did the color scheme, changing it from red/white to what you see now, white/blue/orange. I have listed the mileage as 1200, because that is the miles I've put on the bike since the rebuild. The mileage showing on the odometer is 30,388, and the odometer works so I believe that is correct for the chassis. I went through ALMOST everything on the bike and either refreshed it or replaced it. I am a professional machinist and metal fabricator and, with the exception of the engine top end work, I did all the work myself. In this listing, when I say something is "new" that means it was purchased brand new during the rebuild. FRAME:The bike was stripped down to the frame and the frame was sandblasted. After sandblasting the rear subframe was reinforced to be able to carry extra weight (panniers, top case, extra fuel, etc.). The main cross brace across the top of the rear subframe (the brace which holds the seat) was replaced with 3/16" steel (the original was much less stout, probably .065" thick). Mounting bosses were also welded to the bottom rear of the main frame cradle to make mounting a center stand easier at some point in the future. Flanges were welded to the rear subframe to accept passenger footpegs in the future, and also to provide a place for the luggage racks to be supported. After all that was done, the frame was painted white. ENGINE / FUEL: The top end was re-done with a Wiseco 101mm high compression piston and re-bore to boot. A professional valve job was also done at that time. New cam-chain fitted. The stock carburetors were rebuilt with OEM Honda rebuild kits. The small cast aluminum arms which hold the carburetors together had broken so I fabricated stainless arms which now hold them together; they are stronger than stock. Throttle control cables (as well as all the other cables) were lubed. Fuel petcock disassembled and cleaned. Carbs are jetted for high altitude but I will include a few other jets to play around with. An oil cooler with custom-machined aluminum rock-guard was fitted, and is partially plumbed with aluminum hard-line and AN fittings. Period correct (!) Supertrapp muffler. Headers wrapped with fiberglass header wrap. SUSPENSION: The suspension is all stock. Front fork seals are new. Blue fork boots are new. ELECTRICAL: The CDI unit and the ignition coil are new replacements. The stator is a brand-new (this year) Ricky Stator. Ricky Stator stators are the top-of-the-line replacement units for the XL600R. New battery. All other electrical components are stock and performing well. LIGHTING: The front headlight has been replaced with a pair of 6" round lights. Night-time lighting is excellent. All turn signals, gauge lighting, dash indicator lights, tail lights, and brake lights function properly. BODY: This is where I did most of the custom work. The original fuel tank was painted in the new white/blue/orange color scheme. It is in good shape; there is one small dent on the front right side, a bit smaller than a dime. There is one paint chip on the right side at the edge of the seat. The original seat was reupholstered to match the tank in the same color scheme. The side panels, which were originally white, were re-painted white and 3M blue and orange adhesive sticker sheet material was applied. The white paint is scraping off the side panels in some areas but it's not too noticeable, as the plastic underneath is also white. The rear fender is blue and was originally from a Kawasaki KDX250, and has in integrated tail light. The front fender is from a BMW R100GS, painted white (originally black). Like most BMW stuff it is high quality, and does not buffet around in the wind. The front fairing, which houses the twin headlights, is custom fabricated aluminum. It is painted white and has the same blue/orange 3M sticker material as the side panels. The fairing also carries a short windshield, which is great on the highway. HANDLEBAR AREA: Handlebars are aftermarket Renthal aluminum bars. Grips are black Scott brand. Brushguards (barkbusters) are white plastic without aluminum reinforcements (I have been told the aluminum ones can bend and pinch your hand in a serious crash, plastic is preferable). Bars are mounted on Rox Risers vibration-dampening bar risers, a very nice item. Garmin GPS unit is mounted on handlebars in a custom machined mount which features a power switch (in case you want the GPS off), a USB port (for charging your phone or whatever) and a sun-shade (to reduce glare on the GPS) The stock speedometer is functioning, although a bit jumpy. It is, however, mostly blocked by the GPS, which is no big deal because the GPS has a more accurate speedometer on it anyway. Steering bearings were re-packed with grease. KLR mirrors. BRAKES: A good used front rotor was fitted and is in good shape; its got years of hard use still left. New front brake pads and new rear brake shoes were fitted. Brake fluid in the front brake system was flushed and replaced. TIRES/WHEELS: The wheels were sandblasted and then painted partially orange to match the bike color scheme. Wheel bearings are all new. Tires front and rear are Heidenau K60 Scout, with probably about 1000 miles on them (in other words they are very close to new and have tons of tread left). Tubes were replaced at the time of the new tires. PANNIERS/RACK: I custom designed and fabricated the pannier system, which uses Pelican 1500 cases on both sides. The pannier mounting system is integrated with the rear rack and is entirely fabricated from stainless steel tubing (and small amounts of plate). The goals for the pannier system were that it should be very easy and quick to mount and unmount the bags, and also that the frames should be visually unobtrusive. To that end I made the pannier frames in the shape of an L, as opposed to the more normal rectangle seen on most aftermarket pannier systems. There is also no cross-member that goes across the rear of the bike. In my opinion, those are measures that aftermarket companies take when designing these pannier systems which are intended to make installation easy and "universal", but they don't look good. I really tried to make this system better and I think I succeeded. The bags go onto the bike in about 20 seconds each and come off in 10 seconds. The Pelican cases are, of course, lightweight, crush-proof, and water-proof. The pannier racks are also easily removable, while leaving the rear rack in place. OTHER: Chain is new O-ring. Front fork brace is custom made by me. Air filter is new UNI (the best). There is a custom-made aluminum "tool tube" mounted below the headlights for carrying a tool kit. Fresh oil change ("fresh', as in: this week) Also has XRs Only oil temperature dipstick... nice! This bike was a lot of fun to build and a lot of fun to ride. I took it on one trip up into Colorado and it performed superbly. It was even a little bit faster on the pavement than the KLRs in my group! It has never been dropped or crashed. Bike starts on the first or second kick once you get the hang of the technique. There are videos on youtube which talk about how to kickstart an XL600R. An injury to my right heel has forced me to find a bike with an electric start and that is the reason I'm selling this bike. I am leaving the country for about a month on June 19th, so I will only be listing this bike once before then. It would be best for the new owner to arrange the shipping quickly after the auction is over, although I do have a good friend house-sitting while I am gone and he can help get the bike loaded if need be. eBay has a promotion going on right now which offers $399.00 flat-rate shipping on used motorcycles, which sounds like a pretty good deal to me! Please let me know if you have any questions.. and thanks for looking!
