Those of you who know me will already know what a comitted XT6 fan I am. I have owned many machines since passing my UK bike test on a Honda CB250N in 1980 but I can honestly say that NONE have been as much fun as my latest bike the venerable Yamaha XT600E !

The purpose of this thread is to ask for your opinions on modernising the thing. What's worth doing and what's not? My bike is a low mileage 1999 model in pristine condition. I recently binned the old rubber brake hoses and fitted HEL stainless steel hoses (at a cost of only £60). Other than that minor modification the bike is standard in every respect.

I wanted to ask you all - What other modifications are worth doing ?

Thanking you all in anticipation...
Neil

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Triumph Bonneville 800 (2004), Yamaha XT600E (1999), Honda XBR500 (1986).

Hi Kent,

I've done dozens of mods to my XT. But the most worthy changes are:

Renthal handlebars and bar risers
Acerbis lever guards
HID headlight
Uprated spark plug
WP fork springs
23 litre Acerbis fuel tank
Uprated rear spring
Aftermarket silencer (Arrow race with removable baffle)
Touring windshield
Spoiler by Touratech
Scottoiler Touring model
CRD bashplate
Hawker Odyssey heavy duty battery
Double sealed bearings for both wheels
Braided brake lines (as you've done)
HH brake pads
Folding gear and brake levers
Rally pegs
Airhawk bum saver
Heavy duty spokes
Heavy duty 4mm inner tubes
Scottoiler crampbuster

Purely for orgasmic value, I've added Excel rims, DID gold X2 chain, IMO 100r Sport computer, neoprene fork seal guards. Waste of money, but for giving the XT a rallye look.

If in doubt, call David Lambeth who has the knowledge plus new and used parts. As an example, Touratech quoted me £400 for the IMO Sport plus 5 hours labor at £45 per hour to fit it. DL quoted me £280 for a used one and 1 hour's labor.

Hope that helps, Disco

Hi,

Budget has kept my mods to a relative minimum, but to be honest, I can't think of anything I really want to do that I haven' already. That is:

Dave Lambeth bash plate (circa £110)
SW Motech centre stand (circa £90)
Acerbis 23 litre tank (£200)
Renthal bars (£30?)
Sheepskin seat cover (made from rug bought on ebay - £12)

I also have alloy boxes (Alpos, a bit under £400, including touratech rack) and a peli top box with home made rack (circa £40).

Apart from the luggage, my favourite mod is the tank, followed by the sheepskin. The bars are pretty much a necessity if you sometimes stack your bike (on or off road) as the standard ones are made of old shower rails.

Interestingly, I asked Dave Lambeth about uprating my rims and he reckoned that the standard steel rims are fine for normal adventure biking. The steel makes them easier to fix in the back of beyond too.

Matt

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http://adventure-writing.blogspot.com

http://scotlandnepal.blogspot.com/

*Disclaimer* - I am not saying my bike is better than your bike. I am not saying my way is better than your way. I am not mocking your religion/politics/other belief system. When reading my post imagine me sitting behind a frothing pint of ale, smiling and offering you a bag of peanuts. This is the sentiment in which my post is made. Please accept it as such!

Hi,

This is what I've done on my 98 85000 km
Well a good wind screen for trips,stainless downpipe the original will rust and let you down,centrestand to ease maintenance jobs,bashplate for real off road...
Rear carrier+top box... front mudguard extension


Gwel

Thanks Guys thats all very helpful information.

I really want to keep the thing as standard (OEM) as possible. The bike isn't used for long distance work so there is really no need for changing seat, tank etc... That said there are some modifications worth making to improve performance (of parts, NOT speed it goes fast enough for me already). Other aspects worth considering is safety and finally cosmetics (the look of the bike).

So far all I have done is changed the brake hoses for HEL S/S braided hoses. This has improved my braking by about 40% which is quite a big leap in terms of stopping the thing. I have also fitted a Splitfire Spark Plug which I was told to do by a mate of mine who told me they improve cold starting. To be perfectly frank I don't think it has changed anything in terms of starting the bike or indeed it's mechanical performance.

I have thought about getting rid of that HUGE hidious exhaust system ! It's an ugly heavy thing but I like the way it cuts down on noise (I'm not one of those who gets off upsetting people I don't know by loud anti-social exhausts). I wonder if there is an option which will keep noise to an absolute minimum? The question I must ask myself is - is it really worth spending £300 for cosmetic reasons alone?

My bike was purchased in Poland OEM by a Brit (NATO) Soldier in 1999. The bike annoyingly has KM clocks. I stuck a cheap and nasty sticker over the speedo to get it through the MOT. Is it worth fitting MPH clocks? Or will this cost too much? I understand that I can fit electronic clocks which will only cost about £60 or so?

So there you have it, I really want to keep it as OEM as I can but realise there are some limited improvements to be had...

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Triumph Bonneville 800 (2004), Yamaha XT600E (1999), Honda XBR500 (1986).

I know what you mean about the Splitfire. I have one on my XT and i've noticed no difference in power or cold starting. Cold starting wasn't a problem in any case.

Cosmetically and in terms of weight, i'd recommend an Arrow exhaust. Further, the Arrow is made from stainless steel throughout, unlike the Laser Produro, which has a mild steel inner. As for noise, that's subjective. I can't say as i notice the noise from mine, possibly because Thumpers tend to have a deep tone, which is soulful to my ear, and also because i don't rev the engine highly. AND you'll save about 6kg!

I've seen KM/H and MPH speedos for XTs for sale on Ebay, so put it into your Ebay preferences.

All the best

Hi,

My speedo gave up and I looked into getting a new one: £146! And those clocks are just made of cheap plastic. I got a trailtech vector which, with a little metal bracket I made for it, sits where the speedo used to. It doesn't really go with the rev. counter, but looks much nicer than the OEM speedo and was £60. It seems really well made too, although I've not had it long enough to give a proper review. The Trailtech Vapor has a rev. counter I think, so could replace both clocks. I think its about £70 - £80.

The only reservation I would have in removing the original clock is that it might affect the resale price.

Matt

__________________
http://adventure-writing.blogspot.com

http://scotlandnepal.blogspot.com/

*Disclaimer* - I am not saying my bike is better than your bike. I am not saying my way is better than your way. I am not mocking your religion/politics/other belief system. When reading my post imagine me sitting behind a frothing pint of ale, smiling and offering you a bag of peanuts. This is the sentiment in which my post is made. Please accept it as such!