It's been a busy few weeks, but somehow I've been able to squeeze in a little bit of time here and there to work on Maxine. I ended up deciding to install the motor without the top end. It ended up going in fairly easy that way with some help from a 2x4 acting as a slide ramp.

 I also decided to update the fuse box. I was able to find a good 4-place spade fuse box on amazon for a decent price, that's smaller and has a water resistant cover. The only thing I don't like about it is how exposed the connectors are on top and bottom. I'll have to find a way to cover them up better in the future, but for now it will have to do.

With the bottom end in, I proceeded to assemble the top end: Pistons, Cylinders, Head, Cams, and valve cover. One thing that seems to intimidate myself and others is trying to compress piston rings to start the pistons into the cylinders for a 4-cylinder bike. I remember on another Kawasaki ZN1100 that I did, I had to have my dad help me compress the rings on one side, while I did the other, just to get two pistons started at a time! What I like about the XJ1100 is that the cylinders sleeves are tapered just right at the bottom so that I was able to position the pistons evenly at mid stroke with just enough pressure to support the cylinders. Then all I had to do was just center the rings on the pistons and the cylinders just slid right on without much fight at all! Props to Yamaha for a good design!   

My next task was the carburetors. I did a quick check and cleaning of the main and pilot jets before installing. The jets were all clean, but since it is such a chore to remove carbs, I wanted to make sure before installing. First I put the Air Box back in without the boots. Then I attached the carbs to the head. Next came the part that I dreaded, the air box boots. Last time I installed them it took me half a day! My boots were really hard, so installing them was a pain in the neck. I asked my Uncle  about a good way to soften carb boots. He told me to use brake fluid for a day or two, but no longer than that. I had some lying around so I decided to give it a shot. I just coated the boots inside and out with brake fluid and then put them in a zip lock bag. After a day, I was able to tell a noticeable difference, about as much as if they had been warmed up with a heat gun. I decided I wanted a little more, so I coated them again, and let them sit for another day. The next day, I cleaned the brake fluid off of them and went to install them. They were soft enough at this point that it only took 45 minutes to install them!

The motor is now in! Now all I need is a gas tank and some oil, and she'll be ready to go!





  

Hi folks, I'm new to posting on this site, but I'd like to share some of my experiences with my xj1100 "Mad Maxine" project bike. My dad purchased it when I was in high school knowing it had the notorious 2nd gear issue. My older brother attempted to diagnose the problem with no luck and left a pile of parts and bolts when he abandoned it. A few years later, after I graduated, I decided to take on the issue myself and attempt a top end rebuild. I bought a manual and started reading this forum for ideas. I quickly learned that this was no small task. Back then, I had never worked on a four stroke, so this was my learning experience. I was also still an impatient teenager so I made lots of mistakes throughout the original project. I must have tore into the engine at least 5 times in order to finally get a running specimen over a 7 month period. Once I got it on three road for the first time I experienced the comfort of the low set seat along with the white knuckle thrust running through the shaft. It was the greatest 7 miles on a road bike that I had experienced up to that point. It was then, at 7 miles, that a valve dropped into the number 4 cylinder and got hammer into the head by the piston. All of that time and money I had put into it felt like a waist! I parked the bike and moved on to other bikes and interests. 

Fast forward 9 years to last year. At this point, I was now out of college and in a house with room to work. I decided to resurrect my juvenile passion and attempt to revive Maxine from her fallen state. I ordered a new top end, (head, cylinder, and piston) and took my time to rebuild it properly. I followed every step in the manual from pistons to valves to timing and even added some black engine paint to the top end for a clean look. I also meticulously wend through the carbs to ensure that every orifice was clean and clear. After assembly I learned that I had no spark. I spent hours sorting through the wiring diagrams to chase down the electrical gremlins that had snuck in over the 9 years of sitting. I finally found a broken wire near the shifter going into the left side case. I soldered it back together and punched the start button. The moment I had been waiting 9 years for had arrived as I experienced the low roar of the big in line 4. After some tuning. I had a decent running bike, accept for an occasional skipping first gear. I put about 200 miles on it with short rides around town. The ride was just as I remembered it 9 years earlier, smooth, comfortable, and fast! I got an opportunity one Saturday night last September to go for a ride with a buddy. We made it about 15 miles down the highway when I all of the sudden hear a loud knocking followed quickly by the engine locking up. I rolled to a stop and my buddy told me I had dumped oil all over the road. When we got it back to my place, I noticed a 2" Dia hole in the front of the case. 

Again, I parked it until it warmed up enough for me to really look into it. I started into it this April after I found a replacement case with crank on ebay for a good price. After I removed the engine and tore it down, I discovered that the connecting rod on #3 and come unbolted. The results were the crank slapping the connecting rod through the front and back of the case also breaking chunks out of the sleeve and piston. All in all, not too bad. 

I then proceeded with the task of transferring everything over to the new case. In the process, I also decided to perform the DreMel fix to my skipping gears. Since i had the old set of cylinders from 10 years ago lying around, i also took the good sleeves out to replace my broken one with. The BBQ grill made quick work of that! After a few weeks of work on it between career and family, I am almost ready to install the motor back in the bike. I have painted the case black to match the top end and polished the covers to give the two-tone look. I will post pictures as soon as I find out how! I still need to install the top end, but I'm not sure if I should do it inside or out of the frame. Any suggestions? Long story short, I'm excited for round 3 on this beast, and I hope that are no more catastrophic failures!

Recap on the last few weeks of progress...

Here are a few of the remnants of the original engine. If you notice, you can see the holes punched in the front and back of the cases where I threw a rod in the number 3 cylinder.  

Here I have pictured the semi-assembled engine after a bit of work. I got a good crank with connecting rods with the case for a steal on Ebay. I transferred all of the internals from the old case including gears, shifting mechanics, clutch, and alternator. I also slapped on a fresh coat of paint on the case only to match a previous paint job that I performed on the cylinders. I had considered painting the side plates as well, but I wanted to see how it would look with the side plates just polished against a black case. I think I'll keep it that way since it seems to compliment the two-tone look on the head and valve cover. Next step is to touch up the frame and put the bottom end back in the bike.