I think a few guys on the forum know I have two MT250s... one is a runner and the other is mostly whole, but is in pieces as a restoration... What I have found interesting is how many parts are still available for these bikes, even the specific parts, not just the ones used on pretty much all 70s Hondas. Athought that is also goo as i bought keys for both these bikes from ebay by using the numbers on the barrels. And they were cheaper than having keys copied locally, if i had had them. mental.
Ok... 'The runner'... or 'Swamp bike' as it's been referred to by my wife... in fact its super original and even has the tool box, and its lid... and best of all actually has most of the original tools inside! what it doesnt have is looks... hmm... its obviously been left outside for a long time and yet it runs pretty well for an old clunker... So my plan is to use it as a woods bike then restore it later, I have a bunch of NOS parts for that resto including a holy grail... a NOS tank! eeek.
So to get it ready for a bit of bush bashing Ive been swapping some parts around... I removed the front wheel and fitted an alloy rim version probably from an XL250 once id cleaned up the brake parts. Fitted a good used MX chain on the the old sprockets just to get it working and also fitted a part used modern MX tyre which was hard work to get on but works better than the cracked original. The rear brake cable was rusted solid so I fitted a better one that i had, and at the same time also fixed the bent brake pedal with a better one. I also realised the frame was missing the rear brake pedal stop and made one up and welded it on. Now that stop is a stupid design if ever i saw one... one hard bash on the pedal from a rock, another bike or anything really and the thing taking the brunt of the force is a tab welded to the frame that is affixed in the direction of the force, no wonder so many are missing... once the stop is gone the magnesium outer cases get trashed from the pedal rubbing and digging groves, sigh... Also fitted better front forks that arent pitted and hence not leaking with every pump of the front suspension... they need gaiters for them really, and i also dropped their oil and fitted 146ml of new oil (100ml of 15w and 46m of 10w) and added a 2cm spacer in each of the tops. Found it had no oil in the engine... and the 2T oil was gummy, which clogged up the filter in the tank and meant the oil pump wasnt working much, cleaned and put new oil in the 2T tank and filled the engine with ATF. Also found the kickstart would work for a bit then slip, which made starting a nightmare of skagged ankles or kick backs when you were worried it would slip, yet it didnt and the engine caught, grrr.
So, dropped the oil (always the plan after a few runs anyway) and changed to a new set of pawl and spring from my spares. Carb was gunked up and even after 2 cleans it still doesnt shut off when the float rises. so i run it up the driveway by turning on the tap, filling the bowl and then turning the tap off again. there is a quite a lot of fuel in the bottom of the carb it seems... LOL I need to fit a spare carb really, just need to sort that out as i have one... Also fitted the rear wheel of the same set of XL wheels but need to clean the brake and swap to a non cracked tyre now i know it fits ok. Lubed the failing airfilter and it starts and idles and runs pretty well now...
And... also changed the foot rests to some i had lying about for a DT200R which fit pretty well. much better than the standard rubber things we got here. To be honest with oil in it, a newish lubed chain and lube in the wheel bearings the whole bike is much easier to push round than when i got it and it now starts pretty easily and idles well. not bad at all for what started out very rough. I still have things to do before i use it in anger, but its a great start for only a few days of messing about.
how it looks today...
The other bike is more of a set of parts. I actually got it as what we call here 'a roller', ie a whole bike with no engine, but its now back down to parts again as everything was finger tight and was obviously screwed together to sell it at some point. The restoration work looks 'older' to me and many parts have been redone well but the chrome and the spokes etc now have small amounts of discolouration and rust in places and they tyres have cracked. The grease in the steering bearings was solid as well. so at least 10 years old, maybe more. It will be nice when its done, and its a shame that someone spent so much cash on this project doing things like the bodywork and the powder etc and then walked away from it without getting it finished. Sadly it came without the rebuilt engine as im sure there must be one out there that the same guy did. But, I do have 6 (or is it 7?) other engines to choose from.... LOL The rear shocks are nice Koni units, but are too short... any ideas on lengthening these anyone?
So with this bike Ive started on the engine, found a set of half decent cases that had a locked gearset and started ripping it apart. ordered up new gaskets, bearings and seals and picked through the loose engine parts i have here to find good gears and shift parts and clutch etc. Should be ok once its back together... wish me luck!
Some of the high(low?) lights...
Really nasty sludge in the cases from emulsified oil and water, which actually has rotted through the magnesium outer case under the clutch!
rusted clutch... luckily i have another set...
The swing arm had been powdercoated without taking out the bushes or the collar and once they came out you could see why... they were trashed and rusted solid and I expect this work was done pre internet, so the guy was probably told the parts were NLA by his local dealer and just figured he wouldnt bother, hmm... Ive tracked those parts down and ordered them up to do this properly of course.
The resto bike will be great when its done, but its future is uncertain as I dont need two MTs LOL. We'll see what i think when its done I guess.
_________________
MT250 with CR250 top end & Bassani pipe... almost fully restored.
See more of my motorbike builds at
my Honda MT250 and Yamaha RD and RZ website, 2Smoked.comIf you like watches, check out my websites:
DeskDivers.com &
PloProf.com
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
