The thing that ya mentioned at about 9:50 in the video, the 454 LTD and the Vulcan 500 never really caught on here in the States. Most people went for the bigger faster bikes when these were being sold here. I only spent a small amount of time with a 454 doing a tuneup on one back in the early 1990 and the test ride after before turning it back over to the costumer. Just in the test ride it made want to have one. My opinion is that when they were being sold most people looked at the 454 part and didn't realize how fun and quick these little bikes are.
Yea I was surprised at how dead any current conversations were about the bike. Luckily there was still old/archived info to be found, and I'm glad that the owner's of those sites continue to host it. I quite enjoyed the 454 in my limited riding experience with it!
I had this bike when I was in the Navy back in the 80s. Rode it all up and down the east coast. Really enjoyed having it. People told me it was too small for the highway. Wrong, it would do 75-80 all day long. Mine had a custom paint job - emerald green with matte-gold pin stripes.
I never got the feeling that this wouldn't be just fine on the highway. I understand some small displacement bikes aren't going to be comfortable there, but this doesn't fit that bill at all. Granted, I never had it on the highway, but if the engine is as comparable to the EX500 as my research lends, then I can't see how it'd be an issue. I think it's a pretty cool bike. Thought about actually offering my neighbor to buy it from him him but I've just got too much shit and too many projects already.
I owned the 85 in the 90’s. It was horrible on the freeway. Way too hard on the engine at 70MPH. I would only take secondary roads. Which is better for riding anyhow.
Bought one brand new back in the day. Loved the bike.....smooth and good power. Comfortable. Kind of a compact chopper-ish style. Fat back tire. If you could find a nice used one you'd have a nice bike. And no worries riding the highway or interstate. These things run. Was told by the dealer the engine was 1/2 of a 900 Kawasaki. They're were fast, really fast.
Absolutely stellar! I recently picked up an ‘88 simply because the price was right. I’ve never heard of a 454ltd/en450 in my life. I have little motorcycle knowledge and also found the forum to be dead silent with almost all of the recommended links on parts used to be (now 2022) unable. Videos here on YT fall under the same sector. Thank you for providing us with current content.
Nice to know it wasn't just me running into the lack of information on the internet. Hopefully you picked one up that doesn't require too much work, and you're able to get right onto the road!
Back in 2011 I had a 1989 model in Black and was totally original and immaculate. Loved the turn signals that cancelled automatically and I think they worked off the odometer with some kind of mechanical relay and also the Headlamp warning indicator that glowed very dimly if your headlamp bulb was working but if your headlamp bulb failed, the indicator would go much brighter to let you know. A couple of my friends kinda mocked the bike on its looks but I loved it and was very quick off the mark and would do just a tad shy of 100 mph flat out and had a lovely riding position. I later learned that the engine was basically half a GPZ900R engine, hence the 454cc as the GPZ motor was 908cc.
Hah, the self cancelling blinkers on Harley's drive me insane! I signal my intentions well in advance, and the Sportsters I grew up on cancelled soo early. I didn't dig too far into how these ones actually worked since I was pretty certain it was some type of relay under the seat and I didn't want to spend more of not-my-money. Your friends can mock it all they want--it's fun as hell to ride. I was legitimately surprised at how much I enjoyed myself! Thanks for sharing your experiences with it.
nice thorough video, I bought one at a garage sale to part out and my son fell in love with it. I have to admit it has a pleasing aesthetic. Probably be cheaper to look for a running one but this is the one he wants because the previous owner blacked it out and debadged it.
Maybe it'd be cheaper but I think the one you have will mean more. That's awesome he fell in love with it--hell get to learn about what makes these bikes tick!
Great video and very informative!...9:40 is exactly what I've been feeling for the past 2 years or so with getting info on this bike and that there's not a big community. I have an 85 454 ltd and it's been running pretty hot...then a few months ago I heard a big pop and planning on replacing an exhaust gasket...watching this video I feel like I know my bike much much better than I did before
Good luck with the '85 Adam. Hopefully you're able to get it resolved quick and easy. If you're running real hot, I'd definitely recommend draining the coolant and inspecting it for rust like I was running into. I wish I could comment on the "pop"--but your guess would be better than mine.
I *always* wanted one (cheap little ultra-reliable belt-drive runabout) but could never find one in good shape & at the right price. Gave up for years... finally found one last month! It hadn't run since 2010 but thankfully had been parked in a garage, I drained out the tank & float bowls, pumped up the tires, and ran it around the block: works fine! I dumped out the coolant and checked the valve lash, same thing, everything was within spec but I went ahead & tightened them all up to minimum lash. The old coolant came out bright green & looking fine, but it smelled weird so I changed it out. I bought the locking tool box that mounts on the seat back (somebody else parting out another 454), I'm going to capture the geometry & 3d print a better version.
Hell yea man, sounds like you found a good one! And sounds like you're well-prepared to be able to fix any issues that pop up. Old coolant always smells pretty gross after a decade or more. Just a heads up, those valve clearances tend to tighten with time as opposed to loosen. At least it's more consistent tightening with shim under bucket style. I've seen all kinds of odd instances on locknut rocker style valves though. If you set them within tolerance though, you're good to go and rip.
The transmission in my dad's EX500 (which I'm assuming is very similar if not the same) is also very nice. That positive neutral finder thing through me through a loop though, hah.
My buddy has an 89 and he said it just needs some carb work. He said it spills gas after riding for a while. Told me 450 and it’s mine thinking about buying it off him. Your vids are definitely convincing me.
For $450, I'd say give it a shot. There's gonna be a few stumbling blocks, but you'll get it together and it'll be fun once it's done. I'm guessing the float valves in the carburetor just need a nice cleaning and/or replacement. Make sure that the floats aren't damaged (punctured). If you already know it's running, you're gonna be good to go.
I have the same bike and the same problems haha. I did a valve adjustment thinking that would get it to start but I think I must have been on the wrong stroke because it's even worse now. Guess I'll tear it all apart again. Some block off plates would be good though, I'd love to get some of that crap out of the way.
I'm actually working on an EX500 literally right now (peeling apart the failed vacuum petcock). I installed block offs on this thing. The PAIR is way more in the way on the 454 you got though. I don't think the valve adjustment should make it too much worse unless it's wayyy off. Hopefully you get it resolved soon. Good luck!
@@matttriestodothings Yeah those petcocks are god awful! I've rebuilt it like three times and it still leaks. I'm about ready to just zip tie a rag to it. My only concern is there is that one vacuum line and I don't remember what it goes to. Should be easy enough to figure out though. Where did you get your plates from? Or did you make them? I think I messed up the timing. The Cams were way off so I reset the timing. Like I said though I think I was on the wrong stroke so I probably put the timing way off. When I tried to start it last time I worked on it it turned over but wouldn't start but didn't sound bad. So I definitely fudged it up. Not a big deal, just MORE work.
@@ybor363 The plates I bought were from 6Sigma on ebay. Kind of a ripoff for what they are, but not so much that I went with trying to figure it out myself at $38 delivered. "I'm about ready to just ziptie a rag to it"--lmao. haha, I so feel you there. If I wasn't working on this current bike for someone else I'd probably be replacing it with a manual one. The cams were actually off? That seems kinda wild because if you get more than a tooth or two off, I think you're going to end up banging valves into the piston. Just make sure you're careful and spin the engine over manually before using the starter. I always clench my asshole tight the first time I touch the starter button if I've pulled a camshaft. Luckily you (should) only need to adjust the valves and leave the cams in place. One thing I'd wonder about is whether the cam chain tensioner on the bike may be bad because idk how else it could have jumped a tooth. I know that in my research of the EX500, the #1 mod people said to do was change the cam chain tensioner to the 1994+ design since the early ones can fail and back out. The two vacuum nipples on the carburetor rack go to 1--the PAIR system and 2--the vac-operated petcock.
@@matttriestodothings Yeah I'm not really sure, The engine would only turn so much and then it would get too hard to turn anymore. I think I read somewhere that the starter will only let it move so far? I'm not exactly sure but yeah it cranked ok before but now it's really noisy. Not like bent valve noisy but definitely not good. I've read tat about the tensioner too but this one seems to be really strong. I tried to adjust it and I couldn't even get it to back out so I just left it. Plus the chain is nice and tight. I think I just must have been on the exhaust stroke instead of the compression stoke or vice versa. I've done that when replacing a distributor on my truck too lol. Never said I was a good mechanic haha. Yeah $40 for a couple pieces of metal is a bit much for me but I suppose it's worth not having to hassle with all that stuff anymore. That's right, so I should just be able to plug one of the carb breathers right? Or would it be better to use a Y connector and connect both to the petcock?
@@ybor363 cap the vacuum nipple. You can get a 100 pack of various sizes from Menards or Amazon for $6. Those are fine. I'm actually admiring the handiwork of the previous owner of this bike... They *tried* to delete the pair, and kinda did. The tied the breathers together and tied off one of the vacuum nipples with what looks like a water balloon and ziptie. They complete forgot you have to plug the air box tho so kind of defeated the purpose, but their head was in the right place! Hah
Underpowered Purple Rain Machine is probably what this bike is going to be called now! hah I just re-upped my Evapo-rust supply. Finally exhausted a full 5 gals. Got 4 more to replace it with.
@@matttriestodothingsLess back pressure lower temperature better cylinder ventilation. Im building trike now and im sure it will be hot. Good gas scavenging going to keep 454 cooler. More coolant, more oil, should be good.
Yep. That's what I found in my couple of weeks of guardianship of this bike. You need to fill in some blanks yourself. And maybe compare it to the en500 and ex500 as I'm told many things are similar.
@@torensoul Unfortunately with bogging down like that, the first thing you're going to want to do is pull the carburetor because you'll be able to eliminate so many variables. Bogging down around 50mph could indicate a potential fueling issue but more likely an issue with the main jet/needle circuit. So I'd want to inspect the carburetor slide diaphragms and be certain that the main jet and pilot jets were not clogged. Can you rev to high RPM from idle?
@@torensoul That's when the slides should be lifting up and into the transition from pilot circuit into needle jet. I'd bet it's a restriction on either the main jets (clogged) or there is a tear in the diaphragm(s) that isn't allowing it to lift properly. There are certainly other possible culprits, but the first bit of troubleshooting advice most will give is to give the carburetors a thorough going through and cleaning them. Too many variables with dirty carburetors. I'd also verify that the air filters aren't totally clogged. One of them that I pulled out was full of nut shells from animals making a nice little granary silo inside.
I really couldn't tell you. Haven't seen my neighbor in a few months. I hibernate during the winter. If I had to guess he either still has it or gave it to his son. Hopefully I'll find out soon.
The thing that ya mentioned at about 9:50 in the video, the 454 LTD and the Vulcan 500 never really caught on here in the States. Most people went for the bigger faster bikes when these were being sold here. I only spent a small amount of time with a 454 doing a tuneup on one back in the early 1990 and the test ride after before turning it back over to the costumer. Just in the test ride it made want to have one. My opinion is that when they were being sold most people looked at the 454 part and didn't realize how fun and quick these little bikes are.
Yea I was surprised at how dead any current conversations were about the bike. Luckily there was still old/archived info to be found, and I'm glad that the owner's of those sites continue to host it.
I quite enjoyed the 454 in my limited riding experience with it!
I had this bike when I was in the Navy back in the 80s. Rode it all up and down the east coast. Really enjoyed having it. People told me it was too small for the highway. Wrong, it would do 75-80 all day long. Mine had a custom paint job - emerald green with matte-gold pin stripes.
I never got the feeling that this wouldn't be just fine on the highway. I understand some small displacement bikes aren't going to be comfortable there, but this doesn't fit that bill at all. Granted, I never had it on the highway, but if the engine is as comparable to the EX500 as my research lends, then I can't see how it'd be an issue.
I think it's a pretty cool bike. Thought about actually offering my neighbor to buy it from him him but I've just got too much shit and too many projects already.
I owned the 85 in the 90’s. It was horrible on the freeway. Way too hard on the engine at 70MPH. I would only take secondary roads. Which is better for riding anyhow.
Bought one brand new back in the day. Loved the bike.....smooth and good power. Comfortable. Kind of a compact chopper-ish style. Fat back tire. If you could find a nice used one you'd have a nice bike. And no worries riding the highway or interstate. These things run. Was told by the dealer the engine was 1/2 of a 900 Kawasaki. They're were fast, really fast.
I think about this bike every once in a while. I hope my neighbor ends up giving it to his kid and I see it riding around every so often.
Absolutely stellar! I recently picked up an ‘88 simply because the price was right. I’ve never heard of a 454ltd/en450 in my life. I have little motorcycle knowledge and also found the forum to be dead silent with almost all of the recommended links on parts used to be (now 2022) unable. Videos here on YT fall under the same sector. Thank you for providing us with current content.
Nice to know it wasn't just me running into the lack of information on the internet. Hopefully you picked one up that doesn't require too much work, and you're able to get right onto the road!
Back in 2011 I had a 1989 model in Black and was totally original and immaculate.
Loved the turn signals that cancelled automatically and I think they worked off the odometer with some kind of mechanical relay and also the Headlamp warning indicator that glowed very dimly if your headlamp bulb was working but if your headlamp bulb failed, the indicator would go much brighter to let you know.
A couple of my friends kinda mocked the bike on its looks but I loved it and was very quick off the mark and would do just a tad shy of 100 mph flat out and had a lovely riding position.
I later learned that the engine was basically half a GPZ900R engine, hence the 454cc as the GPZ motor was 908cc.
Hah, the self cancelling blinkers on Harley's drive me insane! I signal my intentions well in advance, and the Sportsters I grew up on cancelled soo early. I didn't dig too far into how these ones actually worked since I was pretty certain it was some type of relay under the seat and I didn't want to spend more of not-my-money.
Your friends can mock it all they want--it's fun as hell to ride. I was legitimately surprised at how much I enjoyed myself! Thanks for sharing your experiences with it.
nice thorough video, I bought one at a garage sale to part out and my son fell in love with it. I have to admit it has a pleasing aesthetic. Probably be cheaper to look for a running one but this is the one he wants because the previous owner blacked it out and debadged it.
Maybe it'd be cheaper but I think the one you have will mean more. That's awesome he fell in love with it--hell get to learn about what makes these bikes tick!
Great video and very informative!...9:40 is exactly what I've been feeling for the past 2 years or so with getting info on this bike and that there's not a big community. I have an 85 454 ltd and it's been running pretty hot...then a few months ago I heard a big pop and planning on replacing an exhaust gasket...watching this video I feel like I know my bike much much better than I did before
Good luck with the '85 Adam. Hopefully you're able to get it resolved quick and easy. If you're running real hot, I'd definitely recommend draining the coolant and inspecting it for rust like I was running into. I wish I could comment on the "pop"--but your guess would be better than mine.
I *always* wanted one (cheap little ultra-reliable belt-drive runabout) but could never find one in good shape & at the right price. Gave up for years... finally found one last month! It hadn't run since 2010 but thankfully had been parked in a garage, I drained out the tank & float bowls, pumped up the tires, and ran it around the block: works fine! I dumped out the coolant and checked the valve lash, same thing, everything was within spec but I went ahead & tightened them all up to minimum lash. The old coolant came out bright green & looking fine, but it smelled weird so I changed it out.
I bought the locking tool box that mounts on the seat back (somebody else parting out another 454), I'm going to capture the geometry & 3d print a better version.
Hell yea man, sounds like you found a good one! And sounds like you're well-prepared to be able to fix any issues that pop up. Old coolant always smells pretty gross after a decade or more.
Just a heads up, those valve clearances tend to tighten with time as opposed to loosen. At least it's more consistent tightening with shim under bucket style. I've seen all kinds of odd instances on locknut rocker style valves though. If you set them within tolerance though, you're good to go and rip.
That transmission is what got me to favor Kaws since the early 80's.
The transmission in my dad's EX500 (which I'm assuming is very similar if not the same) is also very nice. That positive neutral finder thing through me through a loop though, hah.
My first bike in California 85 Fort Ord 🤘😎🔥
Hell yea man. They're cool machines!
My buddy has an 89 and he said it just needs some carb work. He said it spills gas after riding for a while. Told me 450 and it’s mine thinking about buying it off him. Your vids are definitely convincing me.
For $450, I'd say give it a shot. There's gonna be a few stumbling blocks, but you'll get it together and it'll be fun once it's done. I'm guessing the float valves in the carburetor just need a nice cleaning and/or replacement. Make sure that the floats aren't damaged (punctured). If you already know it's running, you're gonna be good to go.
I have the same bike and the same problems haha. I did a valve adjustment thinking that would get it to start but I think I must have been on the wrong stroke because it's even worse now. Guess I'll tear it all apart again. Some block off plates would be good though, I'd love to get some of that crap out of the way.
I'm actually working on an EX500 literally right now (peeling apart the failed vacuum petcock). I installed block offs on this thing. The PAIR is way more in the way on the 454 you got though.
I don't think the valve adjustment should make it too much worse unless it's wayyy off. Hopefully you get it resolved soon. Good luck!
@@matttriestodothings Yeah those petcocks are god awful! I've rebuilt it like three times and it still leaks. I'm about ready to just zip tie a rag to it. My only concern is there is that one vacuum line and I don't remember what it goes to. Should be easy enough to figure out though. Where did you get your plates from? Or did you make them?
I think I messed up the timing. The Cams were way off so I reset the timing. Like I said though I think I was on the wrong stroke so I probably put the timing way off. When I tried to start it last time I worked on it it turned over but wouldn't start but didn't sound bad. So I definitely fudged it up. Not a big deal, just MORE work.
@@ybor363 The plates I bought were from 6Sigma on ebay. Kind of a ripoff for what they are, but not so much that I went with trying to figure it out myself at $38 delivered.
"I'm about ready to just ziptie a rag to it"--lmao. haha, I so feel you there. If I wasn't working on this current bike for someone else I'd probably be replacing it with a manual one.
The cams were actually off? That seems kinda wild because if you get more than a tooth or two off, I think you're going to end up banging valves into the piston. Just make sure you're careful and spin the engine over manually before using the starter. I always clench my asshole tight the first time I touch the starter button if I've pulled a camshaft. Luckily you (should) only need to adjust the valves and leave the cams in place. One thing I'd wonder about is whether the cam chain tensioner on the bike may be bad because idk how else it could have jumped a tooth. I know that in my research of the EX500, the #1 mod people said to do was change the cam chain tensioner to the 1994+ design since the early ones can fail and back out.
The two vacuum nipples on the carburetor rack go to 1--the PAIR system and 2--the vac-operated petcock.
@@matttriestodothings Yeah I'm not really sure, The engine would only turn so much and then it would get too hard to turn anymore. I think I read somewhere that the starter will only let it move so far? I'm not exactly sure but yeah it cranked ok before but now it's really noisy. Not like bent valve noisy but definitely not good. I've read tat about the tensioner too but this one seems to be really strong. I tried to adjust it and I couldn't even get it to back out so I just left it. Plus the chain is nice and tight. I think I just must have been on the exhaust stroke instead of the compression stoke or vice versa. I've done that when replacing a distributor on my truck too lol. Never said I was a good mechanic haha.
Yeah $40 for a couple pieces of metal is a bit much for me but I suppose it's worth not having to hassle with all that stuff anymore.
That's right, so I should just be able to plug one of the carb breathers right? Or would it be better to use a Y connector and connect both to the petcock?
@@ybor363 cap the vacuum nipple. You can get a 100 pack of various sizes from Menards or Amazon for $6. Those are fine. I'm actually admiring the handiwork of the previous owner of this bike... They *tried* to delete the pair, and kinda did. The tied the breathers together and tied off one of the vacuum nipples with what looks like a water balloon and ziptie. They complete forgot you have to plug the air box tho so kind of defeated the purpose, but their head was in the right place! Hah
Its a smooth underpowered Purple Rain machine, basic transportation. I keep a 5gal water jug full of evaporust.
Underpowered Purple Rain Machine is probably what this bike is going to be called now! hah
I just re-upped my Evapo-rust supply. Finally exhausted a full 5 gals. Got 4 more to replace it with.
Original exhaust have terrible gas scavenging. Y connection is adding up to 5hp.
5hp would be pretty damn substantial. Like 10%. I wouldn't doubt it though. Big gains on things were happening during that time period.
@@matttriestodothingsLess back pressure lower temperature better cylinder ventilation. Im building trike now and im sure it will be hot. Good gas scavenging going to keep 454 cooler. More coolant, more oil, should be good.
❤
I just bought this bike and i cant barely find anything on it
Yep. That's what I found in my couple of weeks of guardianship of this bike. You need to fill in some blanks yourself. And maybe compare it to the en500 and ex500 as I'm told many things are similar.
@@matttriestodothings yeah, mine won’t go past 50 and bogs down. Do you have any idea what it could be? I’m thinking it might be the carb
@@torensoul Unfortunately with bogging down like that, the first thing you're going to want to do is pull the carburetor because you'll be able to eliminate so many variables. Bogging down around 50mph could indicate a potential fueling issue but more likely an issue with the main jet/needle circuit. So I'd want to inspect the carburetor slide diaphragms and be certain that the main jet and pilot jets were not clogged.
Can you rev to high RPM from idle?
@@matttriestodothings okay, I’m not sure from idle, but it won’t go past around 6000
@@torensoul That's when the slides should be lifting up and into the transition from pilot circuit into needle jet. I'd bet it's a restriction on either the main jets (clogged) or there is a tear in the diaphragm(s) that isn't allowing it to lift properly.
There are certainly other possible culprits, but the first bit of troubleshooting advice most will give is to give the carburetors a thorough going through and cleaning them. Too many variables with dirty carburetors. I'd also verify that the air filters aren't totally clogged. One of them that I pulled out was full of nut shells from animals making a nice little granary silo inside.
Is for sale?
I really couldn't tell you. Haven't seen my neighbor in a few months. I hibernate during the winter. If I had to guess he either still has it or gave it to his son. Hopefully I'll find out soon.
How much$
Good question--it's not mine, so I'm not sure. I haven't bumped into my neighbor in a while to find out if he's decided to sell it.
Can you fix mine too lol 😆
hah, I think I'm done taking on other people's project's Chris. I need to finish some of my own first.