The XL600 thread

[BajaDoug]

Just bought a 86 xl600r. 3 rides and today the bike got stuck in 5th. Had to put it in the truck to get it home.

[Reposado1800]

Originally Posted by Carter Pewterschmidt

Nice pictures man, you can't deny that the 86-87 bikes had just about the coolest paint scheme ever applied to a bike.

The red white and blue brings out something special on a Honda. Not sure why but it does. The VFR800 and the new CBR250 look absolutely stunning in that paint scheme.

[bdcorrigan]

We just might have to try to get all the XLs in the Portland area together here this summer!

[sh0rtlife]

Originally Posted by bdcorrigan

There is one more but the guy bailed on us

I should have giving you a call, next time you will have to join us.

not like you dont have my number LOL....course if you were getting WAY out into the dirt and grass id have to pass ...then again..i had it out on icepacked snow and went down a few times LOL...im not afraid of my tires in the gravel or anything else but in the mud and grass they are SCARY!!! ...i really REALLY need to get myself a second pair of wheels to mount up my nobbys on

Originally Posted by bdcorrigan

We just might have to try to get all the XLs in the Portland area together here this summer!

i would be game...or as game as i can be lol.....would be sweeeet if i can get my liil bro his on road lic before hand he can ride the xl500 lol

[mcma111]

Originally Posted by sh0rtlife

..i really REALLY need to get myself a second pair of wheels to mount up my nobbys on

I have a rear wheel available if your interested.

[georgej]

The previous owner of my XL600 spruced her up a bit by painting the engine and other parts black.Engine looks good,but he also painted over the carbs,battery,wiring etc. I know I have to get that paint off the carbs,but what about the rest of it?Is it ok to run her with everything covered in black? Should I replace the wires? She runs fine and makes no strange noises.
George

[sh0rtlife]

Originally Posted by georgej

The previous owner of my XL600 spruced her up a bit by painting the engine and other parts black.Engine looks good,but he also painted over the carbs,battery,wiring etc. I know I have to get that paint off the carbs,but what about the rest of it?Is it ok to run her with everything covered in black? Should I replace the wires? She runs fine and makes no strange noises.
George

you can actualy leave it on everything it wont hurt anything.....may not be the prettyest but t certainly wont hurt anything...if/when you want to go stripping paint citri strip is what i would use on the carbs..the engine imo would be best left alone unless your rebuilding it.....the wireing forget about it....as for the batterybox etc citri strip is fine on it too...i used it on my entire xl500s except the engine..someone had tryed to camo up the bike very badly

[mas335]

I spend no time on this thread and am not up to speed on the XL600 bike but I have a idea that might work with some of your help.

I purchased a 88 NX650 Honda ( this makes my third ) but it has been greatly altered suspension wise, ugly, and it is Titleless but the engine is fine.

My question is will a NX650 engine fit in these XL600 bikes? I am sure someone here has tried this so I'm thinking rather than spend time and energy solving the NX issues I may look for a trashed or dead XL600 and put the NX engine in it? Anyone need a set of WP Extreme forks and KTM wheels for their XL600?

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

I love the looks of the later XL600's in white, it would go well with my Transalp. Thanks

[Carter Pewterschmidt]

Originally Posted by mas335

My question is will a NX650 engine fit in these XL600 bikes?

No at least not the top end. The XL has two carbs that are spaced apart and in that space the rear shock goes through, right in between them. The NX engine or any single carb air cooled Honda single the carb is in the middle and will be in the way of the rear shock when fitted in the XL frame.

[mas335]

well that settles that doesn't it? Thanks.

[mcma111]

Yep

[Schrauberklaus]

But
with a special made Intake Rubber that mount the 2 XL Carbs on a single Intake RFVC Head you can fix this Problem.

[HeadTrauma]

There are ways to scab together adapters, but it's all likely to perform worse than either OEM setup.

Originally Posted by mas335

My question is will a NX650 engine fit in these XL600 bikes?

It will if you mix and match a bunch of parts, but is otherwise not a direct (or easy) fit. You would need to put the XL's entire top end on the NX bottom. Then comes addressing the electrical system to accommodate having only an e-start or use the XL's kickstart parts in the NX, which means splitting the cases.

[sh0rtlife]

moddifying for E start only requires 2 wires to a button, a start relay and a wire to teh relay and off the relay to the starter...so thats simple enuf...

anything will fit if your willing and capable of going the extra mile

[Pablo83]

Originally Posted by mas335

will a NX650 engine fit in these XL600 bikes?

The NX has the same engine mounting points as the XR650L (all years) and the XR600R ('87-on, I think), and it should just be a bolt-in substitution on either of these bikes. The carb is the same with the NX and XRL, but intake routing is slightly different. Outside of the engine, nothing much else is compatible between the NX and the other bikes.