[shutting engine off in emergency]

Haha,

Im sure that sounds worse than it is..

I store my bike at my mates workshop where we can ride on some rough ground and get into some forestry quite near. sometimes while waiting or warming the bike up, just up and down his yard, i've seen people step off and the bike keeps going (not full throttle) with rider running after it

looks quite funny but not when its heading towards your car.

(personally i think my bike gets on better without me)

[shutting engine off in emergency]

I doubt it. When 2Ts are on full throttle the mixture in the barrel self combusts. It's similar to dieselling.

I reckon it would have a much better chance than a normal kill switch as it would be activated much quicker as you've usually fallen off the bike before it starts auto ignition

i think i'm going to fit 1 this summer, will definately prevent a few nervious moments when mucking about doing wheelies, stepping off and the bike carrying on without me

usually heading towards someones car

[Mornin' all (another new guy)]

yeh choke should point straight up when fully on

and yeh the clutch drag/ sticking is something to be aware of.. had a few interesting starts when i 1st got the bike

i normally just ride around abusing it (throttle brakes and clutch) untill it free's off !!

the way above ^^ sounds a bit more controlled and probably a bit nicer on the bike:)

[shutting engine off in emergency]

Does anyone use a lanyard kill switch?

was looking at a mates racing quad and thought it would be quite usefull on the trials bike, would maybe even stop it getting to this point of running on

[What Can Cause Overheating?]

well the fuel should be alright, its the same mix that my mates gasgas is running and theres definately mix as its coloured, and had just filled up.

the bikes are stored in a mates workshop so you never use a random can, but we keep 3 5L cans mixed up for the trials bikes, though its probably nearer 50:1 as thats what the sticker says on the bike (noticed most people on here run 80:1)

from the rest of the suggestions,

the exhaust is slightly creased so could be a restriction, probably quite gummed up to as its mostly slow put putting about that the bike does

so will clean it and try and straighten it or drill an extra hole to make sure theres no restriction (new exhaust will have to wait)

ignition, i dont trust the stator, the bike can be a real pain to start when cold (fine warm) and ive always thought weak spark

so will probably get this rewound while the bikes in bits (not 100% sure if its needed but i dont trust it)

fuel starvation (running lean), will give the carb a good clean out and once over

whats the easiest way to set the carb, ie how do you tell if its rich or lean?

banjo - what do you mean by plug readings??

in general the plug has been pretty black, but only had it off to clean it when the bikes been reluctant to start (though the day it went bang it started really easy)

thanks for the input guys, the cylinders away to get replated so will be a couple of weeks untill i can get it back together

[What Can Cause Overheating?]

Hi

i've got a 2003 sherco 290

its used mainly for put putting about off road with the occasional blast to try and clear it out,

but a few times i've given it a hard run up the hill

on the last time giving it a fairly hard run (top gear up hill) it cut out, bump started it and it started to rattle a bit. so stopped, engine looked hot (steam coming from wet mud and stuff) but checked it had water and fan was working.

so carried on (oops)

it then cut out a few times (really should have stopped) before it stopped completely with a cloud of steam between my legs (looked like the top of the head) bike had no compression so pushed it home (luckily mostly downhill)

on a previous hard ride, i had noticed the exhaust was slightly creased and was getting hot (the plastic heatshield was melting onto my boots) but bike was working fine

since it stopped, i've stripped the top end off it and the piston and barrel are badly scored, the piston is as bad that the piston metal has gone over the rings holding them in, so no compression. all the gaskets and seals seamed ok

when it overheated there wasnt any steam or water from the radiator cap so guessing that doesnt work and how it got pressured enough to blow past the head seals

so getting cylinder replated and new piston, should run fine

but why did it get so hot???

had water

fan was working

pump looks ok

running the same fuel as my mate in his gasgas

would a creased exhaust cause that much heat build up in the engine?

sorry for the essay but thought i'd put in the background

any ideas???

[No Spark?]

cheers for the replies

will be a week or 2 untill i can get back to it (stored in a mates workshop)

i can probably borrow parts of a mates 200cc sherco about the same age, both blue plastic

so guessing the electrics should be the same

also how hard is it to get the stator out?

[No Spark?]

Hi

I've got a sherco 290 from about 2002 or 2004 (cant remember which)

its not starting as there's no spark?

i dont know much about bike mechanics or their electrics, more used to working on cars

i managed to figure out theres power coming up the yellow wire and cant find any obvious faults in the wires or connections

any ideas what the most likely cause is or how to test coil etc?

cheers