Vintage Dirt Bike Q & A

I just bought this bike and it starts on the first kick and runs pretty good, but after about 10 minutes of running it will just die and not start again. I rode it last night and it died and I could not get it started again but it fired right up this morning. Does this sound familiar to anyone? Also when shifting to 2nd it will skip and go to 3rd if I'm not real easy when shifting, do I need a new gear? Please help I am really excited to get it going. Thanks for any and all advice,
Ryan

Your Coil is bad, take it to a shop for verification. When an engine dies or won't start hot, it is almost always the coil.

Thanks, now what about my gears?

I an not a tranny expert, but try this web page.

http://www.angelfire.com/ab/motorcycle/troub.html

then click on the appropriate section

good luck, fixing a tranny means you probably will have to split the engine main case. If you are going to tackle something like this I would reccommend a few things:


1. By a shop repair manual
2. By special tools needed (in manual) for job
3. find a neat clean area to disassembly the engine
4. label and store parts upon disassembly
5. Make it a weekend project, otherwise parts are lost!!!!

Good luck

My 73 CR was jumping out of 2nd. it wasnt the gear but was the shift drum. Thats the shaft that controlles the shifting forks which in turn moves the gears back and forth.

I believe a worn dog on 2nd gear would make it pop into neutral. A worn shift fork would probably prevent the gear from fully engaging and eventually cause wear on the dog. If you remove the case on the right side you will find linkage with a couple of springs to the shift drum behind the clutch basket. May want to check for damage in that area. You can do that without removing the engine from the bike. You'll need a gasket set before doing any of this. I have heard complaints of the shift lever being too strong on the early Elsinores. The impact from a fall has to transfer somewhere. That shaft continues through the engine to the linkage mentioned above. I only mention this because you'll have to open this side anyway if you decide to split the case and inspect the transmission. Make sure youÌre comfortable with this level of work and have a clean work area before opening anything up. If your seals haven't been replaced now is the time to do it. Any second opinions out there? Also have you checked your fuel filter? Any rust or dirt will be collecting in the screen in the petcock. Also could be a bad condenser.