thats_a_five

If you don't want to have that problem again, put some anti-seize paste on the threads before reassembly.

Don't confuse front end weight with front end geometry. Trail comes from front end geometry. The trail comes from 2 factors: 1) the offset from the centerline of the forks and the center of the axle. 2) the angle of the head tube. You are correct that you want less trail for trials. Many people cut and reweld the frame to get more head angle, and as a result, less trail. You asked for ""simple mods" that can be done to the Reflex to make it a far better bike." I don't consider cutting and welding the frame to be a "simple mod." By moving the forks up in the triple clamps, you increase the angle a little bit without having to do any cutting and welding. This will decrease the trail a little and improve its turning ability. Some people use longer rear shocks, or move the shock mounts, for the same reason: to raise the rear of the bike, to increase the fork angle / decrease the trail. Lighter front end does make the bike easier to wheelie but also reduces grip on turns. I did move the pegs down and back on my bike and it made a huge difference in stability and reducing the top heavy feeling. That can be done with offset pegs. I cut and welded new brackets and fitted larger pegs.

I don't know your bike exactly but most forks have some sort of pinch bolt, or nuts, that squeezes on the head of the axle. You have to loosen them first to be able to loosen the axle itself.

Asimo, check the other thread you started about you bike. Bikes that sit for long times, often develop problems from water in fuel, varnish inside carbs from evaporated fuel and clogged jets from oxidation of the metal inside the carb.

The symptom you describe "rev out and start" sounds exactly like a fuel supply problem. When 2 strokes get lean, they rev up quite high and then stop. Things that can cause this: 1) Plugged fuel tank vent. 2) Plugged or dirty fuel filter in tank 3) Plugged or dirty fuel tap in tank 4) Plugged or dirty in line fuel filter - if fitted 5) Plugged or dirty fuel inlet filter on carb 6) Sticking fuel float and needle in carb 7) Plugged or dirty jets or fuel passages in carb. 8) Bad fuel with water contamination You said that the spark looks weak but the plug is always dry so spark is not likely to be the problem. Clean everything again. Especially the carb. Complete strip and soak in solvent or ultrasonic cleaning. Blow through all the passages with compressed air - forward and reverse direction. Pass a thin copper wire through the jets. hold the jets up to light and you should be able to see light through the hole. Clean the starting circuit (choke). Check or replace all the rubber parts. Refill with new, known good gas. Let us know how you get on.

That's great to hear. I hope the crooks get some jail time.

Fuel gets to the plug from the carburetor.

Yes, I still have the lights and speedo on my TLR because I use it more for trails, plus I have real trials bikes. Street legal tires usually have some DOT info molded on the side. Real trials tires usually have "Off Road Use" molded on the side. You can easily tell if the rear is street or trials by comparing the rubber blocks to the space between them. Street tires have spaces much smaller than the blocks. Competition tires have almost the same size space between the blocks as the blocks themselves.

Comparing my TLR200 with my '74 TY250, the TLR: is more top heavy (bad) has a longer swing arm (good) has a higher seat (bad unless you are tall) has less fork angle (TLR not as steep as TY) has more clearance under frame Not to mention 4 stroke vs. 2 stroke. Simple (and cheap) mods: Slide the forks up in the triple clamp to increase fork angle Move foot pegs down and back about 1" each way (welding required) Smaller front sprocket If using strictly for trials, remove lights, gages, and battery Remove funny plastic snorkel from top of airbox Some people recommend advancing cam timing about 6 degrees and replacing carb with Chinese one from eBay. I have not done this yet. You do have rear trials competition tires, not trials universal tires, right?

Make sure you run your rim locks. With very low pressures, sometimes the tires will slip off the rim. At least with a tube you can refill it on the trail (I carry a very small bicycle tire pump). Also, don't put a nut on your tube. The tire will slip around the rim over time and if the tube has a nut, it will tear the stem out of the tube. With no nut, as the tire slips, you can see the stem being pulled sideways and then reseat the tire before the tube tears.

Sounds like it is time to just replace the pads. I have used EBC, Galfer and OEM pads. No specific recommendation.

The rotors are mounted with several screws to the hubs, right? Remove the rotors, clean all the "teeth" on the rotor and hub, then put a bead of silicone seal on the "teeth" then reassemble. Let the sealant cure for a couple hours before riding.

Are you sure the petrol smell came from the oil, not from a nearby rag or petrol can? Do you still have the drain oil? Is it in an open or closed container? Open container the petrol would have evaporated by now and there would be no petrol smell. Some transmission oils have very different smell from engine oil. Don't confuse the trans oil smell with petrol.

You have that backwards. The black tube is the slow one and the white is the fast turn. 1/2 turn for full throttle with black, 1/4 or 1/3 turn to full throttle with white. Finer control is up to you and your wrist.

I installed a small tachometer/hour meter on my bike. It has internal battery and one single wire to wrap around the spark plug wire. I connected the wire at the coil end and put some silicone glue to keep the wire secure. Self adhesive velcro on back of case. Simple install. Case is plastic so put it in a safe location. Enter this into eBay search "Digital Hour Meter Tachometer" to see the same unit I use.

If you are looking for the original switch, they are getting very hard to find. Best idea is eBay. If you are handy with an ohm meter and soldering iron, you can probably adapt one from a different bike. Good luck!

So many people confuse gas/oil mixture with being "rich." Being rich is the condition of having too much fuel in the air mixture. This can be caused by many things: incorrect jets, needle position or improper air/fuel screw setting, dirty air filter, plugged exhaust, etc. Adding more oil to the fuel actually makes the fuel/air mixture more lean. Dadof2 is correct in saying this plug is fuel fouled, not oil fouled. That plug can be reused after a good cleaning. When riding 2 strokes, I clean the plug before every event. I also carry a spare plug and a small wrench on the bike in case it fouls. That doesn't happen often but a fast plug change can get you back riding and finishing the event.

Mark, any updates on this?

Sounds to me like it is time for a thorough cleaning of the carb. Check all the little passages and jets, also and inlet or in-line fuel filters.

The gloved hand works OK on 2 strokes. Be careful of doing this on a 4 stroke. I burned my hand on the end pipe of my 4RT earlier this year when loading up the bike at the end of the day after taking my gloves off. I don't like to use wire or zip ties on the throttle cable. I put a small dab of silicone glue on the outer part of the throttle cable when I assemble. It is enough to keep the cable from backing out of the housing but not enough to prevent using the technique described by Mokwepa.

Your dad a very skilled craftsman. Beautiful work. Thanks for sharing these pics.

Mark, I have a couple ideas for you. This will be easier with a helper. Reassemble the flywheel, etc, leaving the plastic cover off and the spark plug out. Make a socket drive that you can chuck into an electric drill or even a rattle gun. Click the bike into gear and give the crank a spin with the drill and watch the back tire to be sure it is turning forward. If not, reverse the drill motor direction so you know you are spinning the motor in the right direction. With that setup you can crank the motor continuously which is much better than the kick starter. Then click the transmission into neutral. With fuel turned off, and in a darkened area, attach the plug to the wire and clamp the plug to ground it so you can view the spark and not have to hold it in your hand. Then crank the engine with the drill motor and look for consistent spark. With the plug out, the engine should spin easily and the spark should be equally timed. Then take a hair dryer or heat gun on low to medium heat and while one person is spinning the motor, direct the heat behind the flywheel toward the stator / hall effect sensor. As things heat up, watch the spark. If it cuts on or off, you have found the fault. If not, move up along the wires to the coil, heating as you go. Go all the way to the plug if you have to. If the spark cuts on or off, you have found the fault. If it sparks consistently, then try freezing things by shooting Freon on R12 onto each of the electronic items one at a time just like you did with the heat. At some temp, an intermittent part will fail and the spark will stop. This is why you want to direct the heat and cooling to only one item at a time. You could also do this with the spark plug installed and the fuel on. This will require a stronger drill or rattle gun to spin the motor against the compression stokes. Just be ready to pull the drive off the crank bolt if the bike starts. Then if it does continue to run, continue the heating / cooling until it quits. Good luck and keep us posted. Bill

Sometimes you can "test" a hall effect sensor with heat. Take a hair dryer or heat gun and slowly heat the sensor, trying to run the bike at different temps. This worked well for finding intermittent sensors in some Ford and Mazda cars. No promises here, but it may help. Just don't get it so hot that things start to melt! Good luck

I dab on whichever side I am falling toward. I don't see the logic of dabbing on the left if I am falling to the right. Or, I just dab with my face.

It sounds like the valves do need adjusting. You can tell if it is TDC of the compression stroke by holding your finger over the spark plug hole and rotating the crank. Compression stroke will push your finger away. Exhaust stroke will not because exhaust valve will be open. Hard starting is a symptom of valves being too tight on a 4 stroke. Adjust the valves with cold engine at TDC of Compression stroke. Clearances per the manual for my '05. Valve clearance: Intake: 0.12 ± 0.03 mm (0.005 ± 0.001 in) Exhaust: 0.30 ± 0.03 mm (0.012 ± 0.001 in)