The Honda XL (and other vintage singles) thread!

I just bought a 1982 XL500 from a friend. It has been sitting for 3 years, but was regularly ridden before that.

It had good compression and spark when I picked it up. I drained the gas and oil and added new fluids. I cleaned out the carb and lubed/adjusted all of the cables.

It started on the second kick! It runs great, and I took it for a ride through the neighborhood and it rides and shifts great too!

The bad part:

Sometimes the idle hangs and stays high even after closing the throttle. If I 'snap' the throttle it will settle down to a normal idle. Doing a gentle roll-on makes the idle stick more often than really giving it a fist full.

I took the carb off again and re-checked and cleaned everything. Its spotless. The slide and choke move smoothly.

I tested for an intake leak, and there isn't one. There isn't an exhaust leak either.

The idle only hangs high somtimes, maybe 50% of the time that I stop. It will almost always settle back down to normal if I snap the throttle open then closed. It has the stock carb and the accelerator pump works fine. The bike is 100% stock (except for tires) and the carb is adjusted per the manual. The bike has 5,200 total miles on it. I live at about 1,800 feet elevation.

Any suggestions or unput would be greatly appreciated!! I cant figure this one out...

Sticky cable(s) (if a push/pull) or linkage not returning all the way back down to the idle screw. I lube my cables with actual cable lube(Motion Pro usually) not wd-40, it dries out and gets sticky. Otherwise the slide getting stuck inside. Lube all linkage pivot joints.

An air leak would always cause high idling, quick throttle snap would have no effect then because it is an entirely different issue.

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The cables are nice and smooth, and the throttle returns shut every time. I verified many times that the throttle wheel is resting against the stop.

It could be a sticky slide. I'll have to pull it apart again and clean/inspct the slide and top end of the carb. I only cleaned out the bowl area of the carb before. Thanks!

Something you might check is the slide linkage inside the carb. I had a big problem with a hanging idle on an XR650R and that's what it turned out to be. The throttle wheel was returning to the stop but the slide wasn't. There was enough slop in the linkage that the slide wouldn't return all the way down--blipping the throttle would get it to settle down most times. Big singles have enough vacuum to hold the slide against the bore--hence the hanging idle when play in the linkage is present. And it doesn't take much slop for this to happen.
I'm beginning to have this problem on my '95 XR600 and have purchased the linkage kit--just need to install it now.

Here is the solution




seen today in Saraburi/Thailand

I'm looking to buy this XL250… venture classics.com for about $2000. I'll have to travel from Ireland to Britain to see and purchase it, so it's a bit of a gamble and I'm no expert. I've ridden bikes for years, and had a go on a friend's XL250 and loved it. I'm getting on a bit and wonder what It's like to kick start. It'd be for me and my son to use on forest trails around us. + are there any major things to be aware of when looking to buy one of these?

I'd be grateful for any advice. Mike

Yup, I have an XT doing the same thing, it's annoying !!


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Yes it is!
What's even worse is riding a wheelie and your at the pivot point and chop the throttle but it doesn't go down as far as you were expecting it to! :eek1

Greeting good folks! So stoked to find this thread! Shades light to my XL185s restoration project!

I got my 83 XL185s 2 years ago, this is how it looks like when i first got it. Malaysia (where i live) has bad weather for motorcycles, it's in very bad shape, but it is in running condition when i got it.



after a good wash, the 'black' front mud guard turns out to be white


The engine had been dismantled, cleaned and polished the exterior, but not too sure what else should be replaced for a complete rebuild? Need your advice guys. =)

And also, does anybody happend to have the wiring diagram for this particular model? My wire loom is really messy, I can figure out most but not sure where the wires from the CDI unit should be connect to ...

any help would be very appreciated, thank you so much guys! Help me get my bike running please. =)

Hello Everyone,

It's been a while since my last posts with lots of hangups dealing with the old carb on this bike. I ended up going ahead and purchasing a new Mikuni carb and throttle kit from Dave at Xlint. It's all hooked up now, but as HerrDeacon mentioned, I should make sure that there isn't gas in the oil from the old leaky carb. So, I've got the oil draining now and am going to fill it tomorrow before I try to start her up.

I did somewhat of a chop job on the stock air box by removing it's holding bolts so that I could turn it inside the frame, and then using a dremel tool to cut the hole wide enough so that the new air filter fits through. Now I better not ride in the rain! I may fashion some sort of extension for this thing for down the road.

I also found a SuperTrapp exhaust on ebay for $129.00 and hooked that up... let's see what happens!

About to do a top end job on my CB/CL100, and am planning on changing the cam chain. To do that, I have to remove the rotor/flywheel. Can I just use one of the rotor pullers you can rent at an auto parts place, or does it take a special puller of some sort?

Its a special tool, don't use the automotive type pullers as you can damage the rotor. The special tool just threads into the center of the rotor until it pops off. They aren't that expensive, usually around $10. Not sure about the CB100 but on some of the old Honda's the rear wheel axle can be used since its the same thread as the rotor.

Ya, never use those gear pullers on a flywheel. Many good flywheels have been bent up with them , plus sometimes thecrank end gets mushroomed as well.

A local Honda dealer may have one also or just do it for you quickly (crooked ones will charge).


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I got the bike running (with some great customer service from Xlint for the new carb, might I add) and rode it around the block, which is a serious achievement since it was not doing so well with the old carb!

I bolted on the exhaust that i bought online, and there is smoke coming out around the header pipe where it meets the engine. Is there supposed to be a gasket there? The original flanges on the stock exhaust do not fit the new header. Anyone know about this?

Thanks!

There should be a gasket, usually like a copper crush ring between the header and head. If the muffler schematic doesn't link direct, open it up and you'll see it , item #3, http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/oem-schematic/1


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Use the rear axle - it's the same thread. I used a shifting spanner (crescent) loosely over the axle when it was threaded into the rotor and whacked it using a nylon-headed hammer. Obviously the whacking motion is away from the engine. Works just fine.

Have been scanning old slides and found this favourite of mine featuring my XL600 with grey import Paris Dakar kit.

Thanks, jjxtrider. The website link for schematics is awesome!