Motorcycle Repair: yamaha xs650 1973, yamaha xs650, ebay

Question
Michael,
I have been loooking for some time now on ebay for a '70ies yamaha xs650 to fix up some.  I found one that looks real good and will go for less than $200.  Everything seems good except that it only runs for 10 minutes or so and then quits.  The guy said that the "stator" may be cracked but they did not do anything to fix it or even look at it closely. I am interested in it, but i have no idea what a "stator" is.  Could you shed some light on that for me? Thanks a bunch.  The ebay decscription is Yamaha 650 XS Great Condition, N/R, Special   -Gregory Landis

Answer
Greg,
   The problem you are experiencing could be any number of things and to assume it's a "cracked" stator w/o removing the cover, removing the stator and inspecting is a bit premature.  In the event that it is after all, the stator you would most likely want to get a used one and swap.  These parts can be expensive or unavailible because of age.  It sounds like you may not be up to the task of repairing all the ailments that will come with a bike of this age, there are many things that could adversly effect the preformance AND SAFETY of the bike.  If you plan to use the bike as a learning platform and restore it somewhat while spending a considerable amount of money and time then more power to you.  If you need some transportation and plan on paying someone else to do the periodic repairs you may want to look elsewhere, it could prove to be very fustrating.

Let me know if you buy it and need to narrow down this specific problem you spoke of.

Mike