aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
I'm looking into buying an '83 Suzuki RM125. The bike looks worn out from being nearly 25 years old obviously but it doesn't look like its ever been thrashed on or anything structurally damaged. I'm completely into the idea of rebuilding and fixing it up because it is something I really enjoy doing.

However, I was wondering if there are any things that I should look for that would be mucho $$$ to fix?

Thanks guys!
 

MXer666

Member
Jul 15, 2007
75
0
man i love to restare older bikes, the main thing is to watch out for discontinued parts. Critical parts like the crankshaft, connecting rod, bearings, all the nittygritty parts, the one part that makes the bike work can be discontinued. So before you buy the bike make sure u do a good run through with is mechanical state.
 
Jul 15, 2007
69
0
Rims prob need replacing. Hard to find. I say go mid - late 90's. You cant really tell how a bike was ridden by looking at it. It has prob gone through a lot of top ends and now needs bottom. Really inspect it, good luck.
 

MXer666

Member
Jul 15, 2007
75
0
oh and expect alot of down time with the bike, once you start tearing into things you find other things that need replacing but the Honda factory will need to manufacture your part then ship it out to your dealer. This could take a long time, so expect some parts to be on backorder for a while.
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
I hope Honda isn't making parts for my bike! :)

lol But I get what you all are saying... everything so far seems to be okay with it and parts still seem to be available to an extent.

E.G. the hard parts like the crankshaft itself, etc are discontinued however the bearings, bolts, nuts, odds & ends, etc. are all still avaliable.

I'm not expecting to buy it and tear it up... I'm expecting to buy it and tear into it! :cool:

I restored an '82 Jeep CJ7 a couple of years ago and I enjoy doing things like that... however the after market for Jeeps is like one thousand times bigger than any after market I've ever seen, lol.


Anyway, I'll let you guys know how it goes!
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
No I haven't but I'm planning on it for sure! Most of the parts I'm looking for I can still find for it... and the parts that are discontinued I'd either A.) Be able to check visually B.) Would keep the bike from running, or C.) Would fall off when I move it, lol...

So far it checks out okay, I'm going to do a more thorough inspection on Tuesday and then if that checks out I'm going to buy it the following week!

If I have any questions about the bike I'll post up! I will look into acquiring new rims though, that seems like it may be important lol.
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
If anything I'll probably just need spokes or the spokes tightened... the tolerance for new rims is only 2mm out of round though lol... So we'll see on that one...

At any rate, the guy dropped the price for me, seeing as the front shock busted an oil seal... looks like a front fork rebuild kit is in the works too lol...
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
Update for pictures... none are available ATM since my camera doesn't seem to want to work... lol (That and the fact I completely forgot my cellphone can take them, albeit quite crappy quality.)

So... with that being said I'm planning on picking it up on the 15th so stay tuned for pics and I'll be documenting the rebuild on it! (Also something I enjoy doing! :))

In the meantime if any of you care:
Aphelion79's Jeep CJ7 Page <--Click For Page

It will be something like that ^ :D
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
I have and it looks fine... I'll need about 150.00 in parts to get it running well... (rebuild the shocks etc)

Then another 200 for the exhaust and another 300 for rims (if the rims are needed but they ARE available though).


Now I've just gotta read up on Jetting :cool:
 

kx125412

Member
Mar 30, 2006
341
0
I did the same thing with an 82 RM125 it was fun for the 10 rides i got out of it before it exploded. I replaced everything except the bottom end and the main bearings flew apart and destroyed the motor. I bought a fox shock, re did the forks, cables, everything you could think of and it really wasn't worth it at all. They're fun old bikes but boy are they money pits.
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
Well I'm actually checking all of that myself anyway so it will be fine unless the casted case is broken. :cool:

Checking the main bearings and the bottom connecting rod bearing etc. are very high priorities in such an old motor!
 

whenfoxforks-ruled

Old MX Racer
~SPONSOR~
Oct 19, 2006
8,129
2
Merrillville,Indiana
The pics did not work,could be my firefox browser??? Rims can be straighted,spokes go to Buchanan wheels. The guy at vintage suzuki is pretty good to deal with. Seemingly you are going through with this adventure,and as a previous poster has pointed out,do not take the bottom end for granted! If it was me and the previous owner swore on his mothers grave that the bottom end was fresh, I would be a fool not to rebuild it!
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
No your Firefox browser is perfectly fine... its just I don't have any pics ... yet ... lol

I'll have it fixed up by next season for sure! :yikes:
(And yes I'm going to go through the entire engine especially bottom end! :))
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
Considering the year is nearly over I hope I'm not the only one :nener:

Once my backyard is no longer a mud pit I'll roll my bike out and snap some pictures for you all!
 

aphelion79

Member
Aug 4, 2007
40
0
Oil Fuel Mixture

What should I run the Oil mixture at? My Clymer manual shows it should be run at 20:1... most people on here like 32:1 and the guy I bought it from used 40:1.

I don't have an actual owners manual to use as a reference though :bang:
 

2strokerfun

Member
May 19, 2006
1,500
1
All the older bikes were supposed to be at or about 20:1. Using modern oils, however, 32:1 is safe and less costly. You may have to rejet a bit. If the previous owner(s) didn't rejet the bike, it will likely be jetted a bit rich. And 32:1 or 40:1 is actually richer than 20:1. First order of business is to take the carb apart and clean it and each jet in it very, very well. And make sure it has fresh air filter. When I picked up my old bike, it didn't even have an air filter on it. I was going to rebuild the engine anyway, or I wouldn't have even considered buying it.
 
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