Yamaha XT500 Supermoto Special

1977 black xt500 extreme supermoto special is up for sale.
I built this bike from scratch over a period of about 12/14 months. I used only top quality parts to which absolutely no expense was spared. I have been building restoring or repairing them for longer than I can remember now. So I like to think I know my way around them. I not happy if its not cosmetically and mechanically right. All work was done by my own hands apart from some of the paintwork which is immaculate. This project build has cost me to date in excess of £7000/7500+ with 99% of bills to show this. here is a rough breakdown of what i. e done and used on this moto to make this bike a true one off special. where do i start? Engine.
First I totally stripped the engine to bits and set about getting some more power out of it. parts replaced that I can remember. pretty much all engine bearings. kickstart pawl. complete seal kit. new clutch fibre plates. 2nd gear. 3rd gear. and 5th gear. 3 selector forks and shafts also replaced due to wear and tear. the crank has a new heavy duty carillo connecting rod along with the bearing. sitting on the connecting rod is a 90mm 9. 1 compression Wiseco piston and barrell has a Wiseco 90mm sleeve also fitted. The head was dished to match the width of the new bore/piston taking it out to approximately 540cc. the cam is a Dave Newitt grind. (nice improvement). as new rocker arms were used including new half bearing tappet screws. also the rocker shaft mod was done so this makes it sound very quite (like new). the valves have been cleaned reground etc. new stem seals. the head inlet port has been ported to 36mm to suit the diameter of the new vm36 carburettor. the exhaust port was only lightly ported due to you cant do too much with it as the valve guide sits very close to the port exit. Wiseco head and base gaskets were used along with a new gasket set for the cases etc. Oil pump was replaced for a very nice one so no probs here. also along with the kedo oil cooler which is a needed improvement for a tuned engine. new barrel alloy sleeve nuts used and stainless steel bolts all over the engine were used. this is a reliable spec engine and not tuned to within an inch of its life. all parts for the engine especially the critical parts were all bought brand new and the rest were mint condition parts. so its pretty much a new engine to a point. (the pic of the red one in the last pics was the exact same spec engine as this one for which i bought the tuned topend off Dave Newitt. top xt man) the head on the black moto is very close to what Dave sold me with the exception of a je piston was used instead of the current wiseco. the kickstart was replaced for a new sr500 one. much nicer looking. new cam chain also fitted. points condensor etc. were replaced as a matter of course. the exhaust front section is again a Dave Newitt creation. big bore to which i made a y piece link pipe to take the two new carbon cans. sounds lovely and deep but not frightening.
the frame was stripped to bare clean metal. primed painted then laquered and finally polished very nicely. (it gleems) the front forks are from a mint 03/04 Honda xr650r along with a new billet anodised top yolk and a standard lower yolk. again off the xr650r. i used these on the red moto too as they work so well with masses of adjustment to suit any rider. the rear shocks are wilburs (german) top spec adjustable shocks 390mm. over £700 new. although this set was 2nd hand. one of the seals were replaced due to the seller not informing me of this at the time of sale. this has been replaced and is now perfect and works superbly with the frontend. wheels are again nice honda xr650r 17 inch supermoto fitment with new 120/150 pirelli rosso tyres. new tubes. stainless steel spokes. talon hubs and a renthal sprocket. all new sprocket bolts etc. i have fitted a lovely new motolanna ribbed swingarm. it now handles like its on rails along with the sprint steering damper so its also very stable at speed. new wiring loom. new switchgear. new lights indicators. the seat was shaped by me and lee the seat at viking vinyls covered it for me (nice job). tank was stripped and alloy chequer polished on the top and bottom. (time consuming to get this effect with no paint apart from the black paint) the effect is stunning in bright light. i got my pal to laquer and polish it. it looks mint mint! new sidepanels and mudguards all painted in deep gloss black then laquered. forgot to mention indicators and rear light are all led so no blowing bulbs. this all runs off a rex. speedshop 12v conversion kit so the lights work perfectly. i stripped the clocks and gave them a light refresh. the faces did not need changing. just a bit of red touch up paint and case painted. set to zero miles while apart. engine has now done approx. 50 miles and purrs. (mileage may go up slightly. when the rain stops!)fat taper handlebars with new clutch decompressor perch fitted. super powerful Brembo master cylinder fitted to a pretech 4 piston billet caliper. a new 320mm disc was fitted too. this has serious stopping power. the back brake was converted to disc still using the standard brake pedal and pivot mated to a disc slave cylinder. while i was at it. i fitted some new extra wide stainless steel footpegs. A genuine Yamaha new sumpguard was fitted after being chequer polished and laquered. chrome mirrors. billet throttle. fork seal savers. 90% polished complete stainless nuts/bolts fitted throughout the bike. renthal grips. stompgrip tank pads. finned generator. oil filter. and rocker covers. billet cam chain adjuster cover. and a billet timing inspection cover were used plus loads more. i can carry on with a list of approx. 3 to 4 A4 sheets with the parts i. e bought.
The cost of this special is not going to be cheap to the buyer so please don't think its gonna sell for silly money. the red one was valued by Dave Newiitt a few years back at £10.000. this black moto is quite a bit higher spec all round but i. not expecting to get this sort of money for it. if you had this custom built by a mainstream custom builder it would cost you considerably more than 10k. not forgetting my labour which doesn't even come into it. all parts were at cost too. so in some peoples eyes it may not be expensive? this bike is really only for the serious xt collector or enthusiast. although it has been built for everyday use. i build these more as a passion and a piggy bank. i. not a business so rest assured this isn't your slapped together project like some attempts i. e seen. this was built with love and attention to every single detail. i. confident it would win something at shows?? a couple of my previous projects have won 1st prizes at some events. (not shown by me but the new owners). i cant think of anything else at present. i know i. e missed plenty out so its worth coming to view it if you are genuinely interested.
Cash on collection. no exceptions. i have photographed the complete build which will be on disc. so you can see the work involved. if interested email via Motorcycles-for-sale or ring.

Forgot to mention that the carb has been rejetted.

For those that still like the enduro look. a standard set of Honda xr650r enduro wheels will fit straight on with a 17mm inner diameter sleeve in the back wheel. just to repeat myself.

Now done 120 miles on it and it sounds perfect. if these go wrong after an engine build. it would usually let go in the first 20 miles. so i. confident the engine is spot on.