Plastics and Shifter ?'s

[94hardbody4x4]

Plastics and Shifter ?'s (PICS)

Hey all, new guy here with a few questions. This Friday (15th) I'm buying a 1994 KX80 bored to a 110 for $220. It starts first kick and has aftermarket handlebars. No rear brakes(no disk for anything, just the bracketry and foot lever) and the plastics are quite scratched. The shifter is also broken off and the threads look badly stripped. This is basically something to fix up and throw in the truck so I dont have to haul me 4-wheeler around 24/7.

Soooo...Now the questions.

1.) Most importantly, how do I go about fixing the shifter? I'm hoping there no need to split the cases. If the threads really are too stripped to remove it, it looks like there are 4 bolts that hold on the carb and 6 for the side cover. Is that all I need to remove this or what?

2.) Where can I find decent plastics. I dont need anything special, I just want new green plastics for it to shine it up a bit. I've been searching for sites but nothing from this year is comming up.

BTW, nice site. I've been searching for a good dirtbike forum and this is the only decent one I've been able to find.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Bump...I'm going to tack weld the shifter on for now. I believe there is a seal in there for the oil so I'll be sure to dowse it with water and keep it cool.

I still need plastics though. I keep finding all these great places but they'r ein Europe.

 

[2strokerfun]

Bump...I'm going to tack weld the shifter on for now. I believe there is a seal in there for the oil so I'll be sure to dowse it with water and keep it cool.

DON'T do it. You'll ruin the splines and have to split your motor to replace the shift shaft or cut it off to remove it later.
Just go out and buy and new shifter and bolt it on. They are only about $15-20 for a fancy one. They shift lever should strip before the shift shaft.

 

[ghunter]

You can try here for plastics:

http://www.denniskirk.com

Their website sucks, but they DO have a large selection.

 

[76GMC1500]

If the splines on the shift shaft are bad, replacement shift shafts aren't very expensive. They are somewhere in the neighborhood of $25. They can be replaced without splitting cases, you need only remove the right side cover.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Well, thats what I was thinking. The shifter is broken clean off up to the splines. Theres about 2"-3" max of the shaft still there. From a quick glance it seemed as though I'll I needed to do was remove the 4 bolts that hold on the carb and then take off the 6 bolts holding the cover on. However, I'm not sure if removing that cover would be considered "splitting" the cases. But the guy who owns it now still has the rest of the shift assembly so I'll see how far I can get with it.

I'll be buying it in 2 days so I'll have better info then. Mabey get some pics.

P.S.-Thanks for the site on the plastics, thats EXACTLY what I was looking for!

 

[2strokerfun]

Once you put a weld on there, you won't be able to pull it through the bearings and will have to split the cases to remove the bearing with the shaft.

 

[76GMC1500]

I'm not sure what is going on. It sounds like your shifter is broken, but the shift shaft is still intact. You wanted to weld the shifter back together, not weld it to the shift shaft. That's ok, but I would suggest just buying a new one. If you pull the bolt out of the remains of the shifter, the remains will come off with just a little prying and jiggling.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Ok, well heres the deal. I picked the bike up today and the shifter was already welded on and THEN broke off. The splines are to stripped to attatch anything to. I order a new shifter shaft, oil seal, and two gaskets (clutch coer and I believe the case). I dont know anything about dirtbikes(I'm a 4-wheeler guy) and certainly not 2-strokes. But the bike starts up first kick everytime and runs strong.

It seems that the shifter goes into the case, not the actual clutch cover. I've got a few mechanic friends so I'll see what the deal is with it. Also, the front forks are leaking when fully compressed. I saw the seals online for about $6.00. Whats involved in changing these seals? Remove and disassemble the entire shock?

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Well, heres the pics I got while slacking at work. Notice the fuid from the fork seals and the shifter situation. Any ideas???

 

[dpaxson]

well I could be wrong here but It looks like someone put a rear wheel on that has drum brakes, but I can see that the bike had disk brakes originally so I don't know what you're gonna be able do do with the wrong kind of wheel/brake setup. thats still a pretty amazing deal for the bike though I wish I could find a bike that runs for 220. good luck with the new bike! :)

 

[76GMC1500]

So it is in fact the shift shaft that is broke. I would go ahead and replace it, along with the seal. I'd figure around $40 in parts including the gasket for the right side engine cover. That wheel, that has to go. Keep an eye out on FBay or something, small bike wheels usually go pretty cheaply on there. You'll need the rear brake caliper as well. Those are harder to get used and expensive from a dealer. That's the fattest pipe I've ever seen on an 80.

 

[2strokerfun]

Bike looks to be in pretty nice shape! Generally, you remove the clutch cover, remove the clutch basket, then remove the shifter lever off the shaft. Then you slide the shaft out and replace with new one. I can't really tell from photos, but if the old weld is still on the shaft, be sure and grind that area smaller than the original shaft so it will pull out without destroying the bearings. The main thing I worry about in these cases is damaging the bearings by trying to pull a jagged piece of weld through them. If that does happen, you will have to split the cases.
Fork seals are cheap and easy to replace. Good luck.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

It did not have disk brakes stock. In this year I believe they had drums in the rear. There seems to be some sort of bracket(missing) that connects the brake lever to the wire.

I ordered all the parts for about $64 from a local place(I know they overcharged but I didn't feel like waiting around to get these parts). However I got a new shift lever off **** for $8.00.

And whats wrong with the back wheel?

 

[dpaxson]

The bike couldn't have had drum brakes originally because it still has the rear master cylinder and brake line. If it had drum brakes there would be a cable attached to the brake pedal.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Ok, so I began looking at the bike again as I had it all torn down last night and I notices something. The place I ordered the parts from told me I needed the water pump gasket, oil seal, shift shaft, clutch cover gasket, and a case gasket.

But the water pump and clutch are on the opposite side of the bike. Unless this is the clutch cover....

Am I missing something here?

 

[76GMC1500]

You need to remove the cover on the right side of the bike. The shift shaft passes all of the way through the engine to the other side. The cover in the picture is the flywheel/ignition cover. You can pull it if you want and have a look inside, it won't hurt anything. It is a good idea to do every once and a while becauase you want to check for water or oil in there. Oil could be an indicator of a blown crankshaft seal.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Ahhh, ok. Cool deal. Like I said, I'm not familiar with these things but I'm taking my best guesses. You guys were right(ofcourse) about the rear wheel being disc originally. I baught a new tire, wheel, disc, and sprocket for about $30 today. I've also got a new gas tank on order as well for $10.00. Trying to do this as economically as possible.

Next problem......There seems to be some blown seal inside the motor. I know this is a common problem with older bikes but the coolant was milky. I changed it and put fresh stuff in there but I still need to check it and see how it's holding up. What seal is this that goes bad?

 

[76GMC1500]

$30 for a wheel with a disk is a great deal. You just need to find a caliper now. Before you connect the brake line to anything, flush it out extremely well as it's probably packed with dirt.

Milky coolant indicates water in the oil which is often the result of a failed water pump shaft seal or a perforated water pump housing. Small perforations can be repaired with epoxy. Many people also confuse milky oil (emulsified with water) with normal clutch debris. If the oil appears dark gray and has a fine metal powder suspended in it, that's normal. But, if the oil is opaque and has any tan or lighter shades of gray, that indicates water. Since you seem proficient your camera, you should take a picture of the oil and we might be able to tell you if it's water (bad) or normal clutch debris.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

I broke my home camera but I'll see what I can do tomorrow. I put new trans-oil in it the day I bought it but I'll check it as well. I still havn't checked the coolant yet but I'll be sure to give an update first thing tomorrow. I'll see if I can tear out the water pump tomorrow also and check for a bad shaft seal. Is it going to be noticable? Something obvious to look for? I've rebuilt car motors so I'm kindof comparing apples to really, really small apples, haha.

 

[76GMC1500]

Unless the seal is installed crooked or there is a large groove worn in the shaft, there is rarely visible indication of a bad water pump seal. There is usually a hole drilled in the case under the water pump and if the seal is bad, water will leak out the hole.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

Yeah, it seems that hole under the water pump has a broken off bolt in it. The previous owner was a friggen idiot. The coolant is still green and clean but then again, I havn't driven it alot lately. I can;t check the trans-oil because it's really low and nobody in town sells it on Sundays. I guess I gotta wait one more day.

 

[2strokerfun]

it seems that hole under the water pump has a broken off bolt in it.

Wow!! That is really, really amazing that anyone is stupid enough to do that. Wonder if he did it just to sell the bike. If he did, he is a crook and an idiot.

It's really a good thing he f'd up the shifter or you might not have discovered this until you seized the engine.

 

[Bunya]

Yeah, it seems that hole under the water pump has a broken off bolt in it...

It's possible that the broken bolt is for a drain and not a weep hole.

 

[94hardbody4x4]

I think thats most likely the case. The bike had been ridden long after that bolt was put in. It looks to be a drain hole because I see no other way to drain the rest of the coolant out of the motor and that seems to be the lowest point on it. It is leaking at the trans-oil drain plug however. There looks to be some kind of silicone or something around it. Not sure if it's stripped. I'll see once I get the trans-oil to fill the motor back up.

Question: Is it o.k. to use "2-Stroke motor oil" in the motor(not just gas tank)? I couln't find plain old trans-oil at the local Auto Parts Store, all they had was 2-stroke motor oil but I didn't feel confident buying it so I thought I thought I'd ask.