After only owning and riding Harleys for the past 26 years I recently acquired an 88 650 Savage. Already named her Little Misfit because she don't fit in at my house at all. She is going to be a starter bike for my wife and my boys to learn to ride on.

A little back story. Neighbor up the street owned the bike that belonged to her late daughter. It set on their back porch for about 6 years. They know I tinker with lots of things so they asked me if I wanted it. After we settled on a price (FREE) I finally went up and rolled it down the hill to my house. Surprisingly other than the paint the rest of the bike was in decent shape. I actually aired the front tire and hopped on and costed down the hill to my driveway. Brakes even worked.

Haven't started it or even tried yet. Have to pick up a battery and I am going to go through all of the fluids and give it the once over first.

What seems to be the allure of these little machines and is there anything I should make sure of before I try to fire her?

That looks a lot nicer than mine, and it only sat for a year or two.  The allure, for me, was that a guy was selling one for almost the exact amount of cash I had in my pocket.  I thought it would be a cheap ride to work and I bought it.  I fell in love with it because it's so easy to work on and customize.  They're like the 10/22 of motorcycles.  One of the pros can advise you better than me, but all I did with mine was drain the old gas and oil and soak the carb in seafoam.  It started right up and hasn't coughed or hiccupped, since.

Rust in tank ?
I would pull it off and at least swish some gas around a bit to see what comes out.
Change the vac and vent tubes on the carb.
Pull the float bowl and check for crud ... if bad, then remove the carb for a tear down.

I wanted a bike that was a single cylinder, air cooled, carb....all the stuff easy to work on and durable.  I plan on riding this bike a long time - so I didn't want radiator hoses, fuel injection and fancy stuff that was hard to repair and could leave you stranded with no chance of a quick repair.

I really like the way the big single runs on the local back roads.....and it can be made into a bike capable of interstate travel (gearing changes help).

Thanks for all the replies and insight so far everyone.

I am certainly going to give it a mechanical once over before I try to fire it. Change all fluids and look the fuel system over. If she runs ok I'll change the tires (dryrotted) then i'll tear the forks down to change the seals and fluids, check all the bearings and scrub the crud off of all the aluminum. I'll go through the rear as well. Get her mechanically sound then teach the wife and kids to ride on her. Once they get comfy she will come down again for the cosmetic side.

Since the exhaust isn't stock, it may pay to post your jet sizes if you do strip the carb. I'm no expert and I ride strictly stock, the experts here say that re jetting is necessary after an exhaust mod. Be sure to buy the correct Raptor petcock, someone will post the correct part number, as there are several variants and some are a little small. The Shinko 140/90 rear tyre is a popular choice on this forum as is a certain grade of Shell Rotella engine oil. The experts will tell you which one.

justin_o_guy2 wrote on 05/22/14 at 22:14:16:

Thanks for the info.

Basically the wife will have all the comfort she needs. LOL it's her bike to learn on.

As far as the neighbors go I don't sweat that much. They all love me. I rode a 97 Ultra with straight pipes for a couple years and now I have a 86 EVO bagger with a Thunderheader. I've been there for 22 years so they pay me no nevermind.

I'll look into the petcock early on. I hate vacuum operated petcocks anyhow. As far as the cam chain tensioner she only has a little over 4700 miles on the clock but I will check it out none the less. I know what a cluster the cam chain tensioners are in the twin cams and i don't want any issues with the little lady getting out and breaking down.

Thanks for the welcome.

Hi Midee, MPesc from Rome, Italy  

I also ride an '88, keep in mind it should be a 4-speed, so don't go looking for 5th gear  

Mine came with narrow drag bars, they're great for splitting lanes & cush but stiff when you ride slowly around the neighborhood.
Maybe 20", maybe less.

The buckhorns I see may look nice, but I don't know how well they may be received by the family, they keep the wrists  and elbows in a  position which is slightly uncomfortable to many people.

I changed my bars to 32" drag bars, also known as speedway bars, and they're extremely comfortable.