Is there a bigger piece of **** than the pw 50?

stu182

~SPONSOR~
Dec 11, 1999
90
0
I have had this bike for my son for 5 months and nothing but problems....... Bought it new, Right after warrenty went up problems, get hot shuts off, gets wet shuts off, Ride 5 hrs change rings ride 10 hrs chg piston, Everytime my son rides it i have to tear it down and and fix something. This bike hasn't changed in 20 yrs you think yamaha could fix a few of the bugs it has. How in the hell are you supposed to race a pw50 stock when the damn thing woun't make it around the track without having probs. Only way to get one to run decent is to mod the hell outta it then your gonna blow it up or melt it down. Just seems to me these bikes wear out way to fast when you put a decent rider on one. Not to mention the junk foot pegs, weak frames, 1 inch suspension travel , paper thin graphics that a water hose can blow off,and lack of a foot brake,(i have a bycycle that has better brakes)Yes i know its a starter bike but come on.. Is it just me or what?

Yes i am writing this after coming in from working on it for 4 hours to no avail.:mad:
Doohhh..!! this isn't the flame board:think Can u move this for me okie.?

Tired,mad,broke,and confused..
 
Last edited:

Patman

Pantless Wonder
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Dec 26, 1999
19,765
1
Wow guess every bike factory puts out a lemon once in a while. You and Yamamoto should hook up and swap horror stories ;)

The PW50 I had for my son was bought well used and ugly as sin (white/pink/purple). The previous rider was now 10 and still riding it! We crashed it like it was for 4 months then over the winter I made it in to a 1998 model with all new plastic, gripper seat cover, tires tubes, brakes, clutch shoes and epoxy frame & wheel paint. The top end was fine, ran it another two years and sold it for $300 more than what I paid for it so I broke even. Could have kept it another year but I was afraid my son was going to totally trash it riding it pinned all the time.
 
D

Dr.billZ

Member
May 15, 2000
194
0
I bought a YZinger(an old PW-50). It ran great. I got rid of it because I thought it was dagerous for a beginner, due to the fact it will do about 35mph with my fat butt on it. IF a kid froze and held the throttle wide open, I shudder to think of the consequences. I got my kid a Z-50 and left it in 1st gear until she was ready for more.
Sorry te hear you are having so many problems.
 

JWW

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Apr 13, 2000
2,527
2
Not sure about the 50's but my sons PW80 was great. The only problem was with the exhaust pipe. When the bike fell to the left it would land on the silencer. It eventually cracked.

It was a 92 that I bought used for 700.00. Ran it for 2 years without any maintenance:ugg: and never had a problem.
 
H

hondaman28

Member
Nov 1, 2001
10
0
I feel your pain!

If you aren't happy with the PW, DON'T BUY A KTM SR. ADVENTURE 50!!! I have had many problems also (just look at my post "Lemon Law"). The only difference is that I paid $2400 for my son's machine! So maybe mine isn't a bigger piece of crap, but a more expensive piece of crap! Hope you get your son's bike figured out, because I know how frustrated kids can get when their bike continuously breaks down and can't go riding even one time without problems! And their frustration bleeds over to the father! So trust me, I feel your pain! Also in Ohio.
PS. Don't buy a bike in Reynoldsburg, Ohio!:scream:
 
C

Chris Orndorff

Member
Oct 14, 1999
75
0
Sorry to hear about all the problems you're having, but...this is one of the most bulletproof bikes around. Sounds like you're using it for something it was not intended for, and when you buy a bike some things are obvious up front, like limited suspension, rubber foot pegs, lack of a foot brake, etc.

I have owned a total of three PW-50s and one PW-80. All have been great, but used within the parameters they were designed for (trailriding/playriding).

About the only mods I've done is to clean up the jetting and gotten more air to the carb.

Good luck!
 
W

wfodbiker

Member
Mar 27, 2001
118
0
My '94 PW50 is still running fine. My nephews' 2001 KTM 50 JR Adventure has had more than its share of problems. Funny thing, my 10 year old niece on my PW easily smokes my 7 year old nephew on his Katoom.
 
Y

Yamamoto

Uhhh...
Apr 3, 2001
349
0
I can help ya

I have a lot of things to a pw50 to really make it a die hard bike.

Fisrt off the wireing sucks and you will need to go over ever electrical connection with Marine liquid ele.tape

the foot pegs, take the stupid rubber off and have a exaust bracket cut and welded around to make foot pegs.

where do you live? if in Florida give me 4 hours on it and it will never stall again.

the choke is the pilot ajustment on this bike and I have done so many of them I can have it tuned before you stop scratching your head.

The carb. is nothing like the 2s that you probably know, you will notice that it will run stronger just by getting the choke set right, a good way to tell is if there is any flop in the choke lever that that means that the pilot is just about shut closed and that could be your over heating problem because the engine needs fuel for cooling as well as air.meaning air cooled.

once you set the choke/pilot you can then set the screw for top end.

P.S. before you start make sure that you have the Idle screw to where the bike will not idle.

I'll be back
 

stu182

~SPONSOR~
Dec 11, 1999
90
0
RMjeff,,LOL..youthink im rdy for a pw-80?


My son rides hard and there are allota hills and creeks around here and for him to "trailride" with me is all he can do with it running crapy. But this getting hot and dieing thing has stoped that.

Yamamoto, Sounds like you know yur stuff, i could use some help. After tearing it down completely and trying to start it would start idle for 6-10 sec then die, any gas it would die. This is the new prob and im sure it will stall when he gets it hot again. Do you think choke and or wiring.I have had to mess with the start run switch many times . How do you hot wire it. i mean getting rid of the run start. And i would love to be able to send it to u but , ..Way low on cash now. How and where would i start to adjust the choke? And advice you have would be great. I have the oil injector disconnected. Other than that all stock. Run 32-1 yamalube.

Hondaman....I was seriously considering a ktm:scream: :confused:
 
W

Wraith

Do the impossible its fun
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jul 16, 2000
781
0
stu182, we also had problems with my sons pw 50 stallling when it got wet. But other than that it was a good bike to learn the basics on. He had it for a close to a year. Then opted to buy a new 2001 Husky 50 Sr. over the KTM due to price. I'm very satisfied with it, and with the dealer. The only real grip I've had with it was the magneto. After 3 months it went out. Went to the dealer with it and they replaced free of charge. They even had the part in stock. Took 5 minutes. :) Mabey I just got a good bike, made on the right day, by a happy worker. Things don't get produced in the factory to good on Mondays and Fridays.:confused: Check into the Huskys when your moving him up. Trust me. They perform very well.
 
Y

Yamamoto

Uhhh...
Apr 3, 2001
349
0
PW50 the saga continues

Ya know I never found a way to bypass that start/run/off switch but yet again I never got into it fully.

lets do it from the bottom and we will make this a tight bike.


Make sure the bike is DRY and maybe blow dry a few of the connections or use ele. wire drier stuff so that way you do not lock in any moisture, water is this bikes biggest bully. but we will soon end this problem.



Take all the plastic off,tank and all, find every connection, all but that start switch. and do the Marine liquid ele. tape stizzuff.

Another one of your problems is you have removed the Injector and started pre-mixing think about what that did to the air/fuel ratio. the more Oil you add the leaner your air to fuel ratio is and that again my friend could be the cause of an over heating situation.

In order to run with out the injector you first off want to be at a ratio like 40:1-50:1 and get a larger main jet as well as a pilot (larger Number jets)

the reason it dies when you give it gas is most likely because its lean or has a wet conection.

P.S. do not use No-toil filter lube on this bike. It will gumm up the jets.

Once we get through the Problems I'll work with ya to make it faster.with out a big expense.
 
Y

Yamamoto

Uhhh...
Apr 3, 2001
349
0
I type like a spode

If you would like I know I can give you better details via Phone

if you think A phone call is worth it I''ll throw you my number.
 
J

jalbert

Member
Jul 20, 2001
61
0
ready yamamoto

i just got done liquid taping all the connectors:cool: it's a 2001 i got it for my nephew (5 yrs old) and he loves it. never had any problems with bike;) but i was interested in your go fast tips:D exhaust,carb etc. thanks:)
 
L

LaRider20

Member
Dec 27, 2000
318
0
You could always go with the quick fix. Buy an XR 50. Better ergos, better suspension, lots more torque, etc., etc.
 
Y

Yamamoto

Uhhh...
Apr 3, 2001
349
0
Exaust, fffffff

remove the exause tip and cut the little torpedo shaped end off to about where the hole in the exaust tip is the same size as the spigot it self.

tools needed screw driver and a hack saw.

also there is a restrictor between the head and the pipe, discard that but keep the rubber washer type deal.

there is also a lower rear end get available and it helps alot, do you find your kid pushing with his feet to climb hills?
 
Y

Yamamoto

Uhhh...
Apr 3, 2001
349
0
I feel

for whats its made fot it serves it duties.

It a learning bike not a race bike, with this bike you can limit the throttle put training wheels on it, its light and mild manored for the learner.

Another small mod, is the kick stand its not needed and with it on the PW will get stuck in ruts.

so (STU) I suppose you did the water proof thing?
 

nephron

Dr. Feel Good
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jun 15, 2001
2,551
0
Stu, those are some great pics of your son. :cool:

I really liked the one with Watts---is that guy cool, or what? What a great life. I think he lives in a van, doesn't he? Just rides. What a great lifestyle.
 
Y

yzguy15

Sprayin tha game
N. Texas SP
Oct 27, 2000
1,271
0
I also think that they run better if you disconnect the fuel injection and just run straight mixed gas. My dad did that to mine when I was but a wee lad. We never had any trouble with ours either. We had it for about 13 or so years, went through 3 kids, and the only probs we had with it was the fuel injection, and like I said, my dad took care of that. Ditto on the good pics, you must be doing something right ;)
 
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