opinions please

[jsantapau]

time to knock the dust off the bikes.

finally I found enough parts, cheap enough, to get my 94yz250 up to snuff.

old scenario 96 cylinder,long rod kit, used vp c12, 32:1 with yamalube 2r. ignition set at .8 ridden mostly at higher elevation in cooler dry weather(pocono mountains ne pennsylvania

been reading alot about residual oil in the bottom of the crank, I never had a puddle of oil,maybe I spun the engine fast enough to keep it cleared but never loaded enough to have a catastrophic failure or perceived maintenance issue .

new scenario would be going to a 94 cylinder,and pump gas in florida hotter, sea level, sand and humidity. am kicking around the idea of bumping up my oil ratio to 24:1 so my jetting is going to be way whacked.

is 24:1 reasonable or am I reading and worrying too much about residual oil?(the real question)

I am going to increase jet sizes a couple to be on the safe side and work down, would I expect the main jet not to be as radical a difference as the pilot ie main 2 sizes bigger pilot 4 from c12 to pump? Would just going back to stock jets be safe enough for break in and go from there or do I bump everything up 6-7 steps and buy a carton of plugs and a roll of insulation from home depot till I get it narrowed down.

 

[YZ__rider]

Man...you are going to get alot of different opinions on this mix ratio topic. From my personal experience, I think anything under 30:1 is excessive (notice I didnt say too rich...thats an epidemic) Of course, as you understand, a bike can be jetted for almost any ratio. I would run 32:1. Ive known people that have ran 32 or 40 to 1 with many many hours on their bikes.

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

I ran across a belief that if you have like 1/4" of oil left over in the bottom of your crank, you are getting enough lube. A worn engine will leave more residual oil. I do not believe their jetting or the engine was up to par. 18:1 provides the best power, but it has to be jetted for each change. Stock yz250 would be fine for stock jetting break in. I am pretty sure all my bikes will run 20:1, majority rules, and I am not mixing different ratios! Vintage Bob

 

[jsantapau]

yz-rider
well I didn't want to open a can of worms with the "what oil ratio do I run" question.

"I ran across a belief that if you have like 1/4" of oil left over in the bottom of your crank, you are getting enough lube."

that is the target of my question, I do not have a collection of oil in my bottom end, yet I do not believe I have a maintenance issue.
Although I never took hour meter and maintenance schedules to a rule, when I did ride(play riding, race to the barstool at the end of the day type of thing) a lot, say every Sunday, I would not use an hour meter to time my top ends but more of a "if my bike doesn't start by the 5th kick lets find out why" repair schedule. At the most it was rings 1/2 way thru the season and a piston almost religiously at the end mostly as a feel good factor for the next year. The bottom ends I would rebuild myself every 3 years, the cranks I would build a little on the snug side of whats allowable and rebuild when it started getting on the loose side of allowable.

now a bottom end rebuild every 3'rd piston may seem a lot but every 3 years wasn't breaking my bank and the connecting rod clearances never got out of allowable,which I guess is altering my idea of reasonable life.

 

[Porkchop]

Heck what world did I exist in, in my 97 cr 500 i ran 50:1 maxima. 7 seasons,
4 pistons, same crank & ran like a raped ape! :yikes:
In my old CZ 380, it had a drain plug in the crank case, to get rid of the excessive oil that could accumulate in there.....

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

Heck what world did I exist in, in my 97 cr 500 i ran 50:1 maxima. 7 seasons,
4 pistons, same crank & ran like a raped ape! :yikes:
In my old CZ 380, it had a drain plug in the crank case, to get rid of the excessive oil that could accumulate in there.....

It tells a lot about maintenance and riding habits Porkchop. You did not get a trophy for running the 500 long and lean, did you? A 500, the lean and long is no where as crucial as if it was a 125! I would still bet another racer would shatter the 500 piston in a month running that lean. And it would have made a lot better horsepower! Live and learn. My 480 will spew 20:1. Vintage Bob

 

[Porkchop]

Help me out here V- Bob, are you teasing me, punishing me, or commending me?
Bring the 480 out to jawbone & we'll go on a ride & find some hills with the kiwi & an assortment of the unusual suspects.....(aka a " Himalayan D. March") :p
P.S. I could meet you next Aug 1/2 way at Yuray or Tehelluride Co. & we'll go for a spin in the Rockies..... :debil:

 

[jsantapau]

Heck what world did I exist in, in my 97 cr 500 i ran 50:1 maxima. 7 seasons,
4 pistons, same crank & ran like a raped ape! :yikes:
In my old CZ 380, it had a drain plug in the crank case, to get rid of the excessive oil that could accumulate in there.....

hey Porkchop,

Thanks for replying, I am lackadasaical when it comes to any form of a log book or maintenance record but probably was overzealous in parts replacement.. I changed the parts out "before I needed to so I would never have to" philosophy.

on your 500 do you remember having a puddle of oil collecting in your bottom end? The last bike I ever had that had a puddle in the botttom end was the bike right before I figured out there was more circuits than just the air screw in the carburator :yikes: that is going back a bit.

 

[Porkchop]

That's a good philosophy, you will do more riding than walking that way. I have found that any 2 stroke that sits too long with out being run will get a puddle in it. :yikes:

I'd yack more but I gotta go work, normal start is 6 am, for my crew & i today, 10 am, yuck! A whole bunch of bang bang ...(gun fight) with rain pissing on a set today, inside, without getting the floor wet..... :bang: :rotfl: :yikes: :ohmy:

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

Porkchop, everything but the punishing part. BUT, fair is fair, spring is coming, it really should! Vintage Bob