BBB's XL500 Street Tracker Project

[bayoubikebruiser]

I just swapped for an '82 Honda XL500S that was taken down to "Mad Max" it cosmetically before the project was abandoned to storage/dust. I fired it up and worked the deal. This is what it looked like as I rolled it out before firing it:

The idea is to make it look like this:

I have a ex-flattracker friend who's gungho on this project and has some parts connections, so this'll be something fun for us to do through the coming months. I'll post updates here if there's any interest.

[Mike38]

Good choice of a bike. Good luck on the project. I'd be interested in seeing the finished work.

BTW, the bike on 4strokes.com would be a bear to ride. The seat pad is missing!

[bayoubikebruiser]

.......but you'd still swing a leg, wouldn't you, Mike? C'mon now, 'fess up. I know I would if I had the chance! That is one sweet ride, or will be when it's done. Mine will be substantially less uppity-bux, but it'll get the wheels rode off it, too!

Thanx for the kind words!

[Chris_from_Oz]

Wow, that street tracker looks awesome. I dunno what they used for the forks, but i've had visions floating around in my head for a while now, about an FT500 with RGV250 USD front end, fat laced Excels etc. Maybe when I clear out a few current projects? Good luck with yours, i'd like to see update photo's when you get underway. ?

[dudleyscrf]

I'm looking for a dual-sport to do the same right now too or an XS650 Yamaha to make a street track. Have fun with the project. Hey do a search there is a guy in Cali that put a Xl600 in a older TZ250 rolling bike. He has a lotta great info on what can be done the the motors a lot of parts are the same in the XR/XL 600, Ft500 and that gb500. I guess the Xr600 crank wil work white bros. has one that will make the bottom end very durable. He also had the flywheel turned down and removed about 3 puonds of weight !!!

[bayoubikebruiser]

We speak fluent XS650!!!!!

We're making another Street Tracker out of the blue one. We have alot of fun screwing together bikes and cars......

Check out www.650motorcycles.com !

[dudleyscrf]

I have already been there!! pretty cool site. Did you see the guys street tacker XS650 I think it's at either 650 motorcycles or mikesxs or 650 central. The yellow down on the list maybe no more than a third of the way. I really like the idea of the radian swingarm also looks like he used a barnes type knock rear wheel set up. I'm not too sure how those knock racing ones work , well what bothers me is what you do for wheel bearing sizes or is it some machine work!!?

[bayoubikebruiser]

I have a bearing supplier here that can get me just about anything with a day's heads up. I think the longest he took to match given ID and OD was a week one time. I love the guy. I may have to machine a bit as I'm going to swap front ends to pick up disc brake. I have another friend who does machining for me, otherwise these franken-bike projects would be out of my price range.

I got everything I'm getting with this Honda out at the house tonight. I am missing only tires to put the bike back on the road in stock config. My street tracker leanings,though, mean I'm a slave to the depth of my cosmetic diversion. The deeper I go, the longer it'll take.

I intend to build this up over the summer months and sell the Motard in the fall once the street tracker is up.

Bliss. ?

[CharlieT]

Well, here's the FT500 streettracker I just finished up over the winter. Basically very similar frame to the XL.

[bayoubikebruiser]

Suh-freakin'-WEEEEEET!!!!!

[Chris_from_Oz]

Well, here's the FT500 streettracker I just finished up over the winter. Basically very similar frame to the XL.

Nice work! ? I especially like the seat/tail section. Did you fab' that, or is iT off some Other TyPe of bike?

[CharlieT]

Its an XR750 'glass seat from HotWings Glass. Can't seem to find his website, but he does sell his seats, etc on ebay on a fairly regular bassis.

[CharlieT]

No wonder I couldn't find it. Got home and found the bookmark I had.....it's hotwingglass, no "s" on the wing.

http://www.hotwingglass.com/

[dudleyscrf]

Looks great charlieT!! I'm actually going to look at an 82'FT500 sat morning. Guys asking $1500 it got 8100 miles on it and he bought it from his boss , He has a honda collection so he already fixed all the usually problem stuff on it. I'm just questionin the street tracker ability of the bike, I've done my home work on all the hop up suff for xr500 piston , cams , valves, some say to remove the balancer because it doesn't do much any way. got exhaust ideas. The good thing is it already has 18rear and 19 front. I guess vf500r and f2 and f3 front suspension goes right in, but want to use dirt track tires. I'll have to figure out a rear disc set up , found a pic with a different swingarm on it was boxed shaped, won't mind the f2or3 front but would have to have the top triple drilled for bar clamps too.

[CharlieT]

At $1500, should pretty much be a mint condition. Bought mine in the early '90s for $400 and it was probably a 9/10. Haven't realy done anything at all to the engine. With the FT engein and its rather week electric starter, be careful about pumping up the engine much. Heck, I knew a guy yrs ago that ran the very similar XR500 engine in a framer...581 kit, cam, etc, etc. Broke the kick start shaft twice and finally went to bum starting it! Bumping up the compression is very hard on the electric starter on the FT.

I was pleasently surprised in the increased pep it had when got done with the conversion. Ditched the stock airbox assembly and just have a small cone filter in there now, also went with the old Jemco open megaphone ( did install a baffle in the "y" pipe section of the headers), a bit on the loud side, but it revs like it never did before with the stock airbox/exhaust. Have considered putting a mild cam in it, but as it is now, it buries the tach past 8000rpm before you even realize it. Also, getting rid of the stock seat/fender, cutting off the tail secton of the upper frame loop and various other little items...rear foot peg mounts etc, adn pitching that stock muffler took off a noticeable amount of weight. Didn't weight it, but I would guess going from the heavy stock muffler to the little Jemco alone probably shaved off 20-25lbs!!!...plus it sounds real sweet. I'll have to get around to weighing the bike one of these days, but I wouldn't be surprised if it lost over 40+ lbs.

I've got an old front wheel, spoked, that I think came off a CB750 that has the same rotor mont bolt pattern and was thinking of putting that on, but haven't been able to come up with a spoked rear wheel to match. Probably won't do much of anything to the front end. Yeah the brakes don't match up to sport bike brakes, but for the level of performance of this mid-30's hp thumper, they seem adequate. Would possibly conider it if I found a great deal on a complete front end assembly. But this is a budget tracker. Throwing in the cost of the bike years ago ($400), I probably have about, oh, $700 invested in it.

[CharlieT]

BTW, digging deep back in my memory banks about removing the counter balancer......from what I recall it let them rev up really quick, like a 2/ almost, but I seem to recall without it, they had a tendency to eat crank bearings. Of course we're talking a full tilt race engine, but might want to ask about that from a more knowledgeable source than me.

[Chris_from_Oz]

No wonder I couldn't find it. Got home and found the bookmark I had.....it's hotwingglass, no "s" on the wing.

http://www.hotwingglass.com/

Thanks, I thought it looked familiar. ?

[dudleyscrf]

Hey CharlieT where do you get the Jemco megaphone, also you use the rest of the stock exhaust up to the muffer and did you remove the baffles that were inside the header pipes.I also read on line you can swap the XR500 head just use the studs from the Xr also heard about the bump in compresion does make the e-start useless lol.Also heard that if you call White Bros. they still have the cams and valves and exhaust still avalible.

[CharlieT]

Here's the contact info for Jemco, no internet site. The megaphone I used was one he actually custom made for us for a CRF450 we had on our Superkart.

Jemco Exhaust Systems

1919 Blalock Rd # B

Houston, TX 77080-5401

Phone: (713) 461-3834

Can find some performance stuff here:

http://www.thumperstuff.com/FT500.html

Can't remember, but it was either Megacycle or Powroll that still lists cams available for it on their website.

I just left the pipe-within-a-pipe set-up in it. Got another header I was thinking about cutting up, possibly playing around with dual pipes. But that's another rainy day project.

[dudleyscrf]

Sweet thanks!! I have an 03' Crf450 I have a CHM pipe on it, and still have my stocker, maybe I can use the stock muffler, idea!!! How are those karts with the CRf motor , Been looking to see where they run those.