Triad

This is the engine fitted, the exhaust and carb in place. I found a guy who's got a MAR 350 partially broken in parts in his garage but doesn't seem happy to sell the kickstart lever etc. without the whole engine block. 🤨 I still need the kickstart lever and the 2pins Motoplat coilpack to try to start it... from there I'd at least know for sure the engine works and could start looking for a better clutch cable, rear brake cable, silencer etc.

I guess no "modern" bike has a similar lever? The fact it's on the left side makes things harder anyway.

Hei guys, got some good news for a change... Checked and the intake diameter is 36mm like on the other engine, so I was able to fit the carb manifold to the cylinder. Also found out the cylinder will take the Explorer exhaust, the flange is removable and in its place I fitted the Explorer header. So thankfully won't have to look for different exhaust/carb. Have found a guy breaking a MAR 350, so I should be able to get an original Motoplat coilpack... but can't say if the kickstarter lever will fit.

Thanks, if the "stator" is broken I think I'll simply abort the project and will try to cut my losses... found a guy here in Italy who's breaking an Ossa MAR 350 but don't know the production year... was the MAR still around when they changed the teeth of the levers on the engine block?

Today I was away so couldn't check the gear lever and the exhaust compatibility... will try to do it in the weekend. Hopefully I'll find a solution for both

Uh, forgot to ask: the bigger shaft on the kickstart lever is on the enduro models only or it was also on other models and depends from the production year? I mean, the Gripper/Yellow etc. have this same bigger lever shaft?

Uhm... I think I'll invest the money for the coil, as I'd need it anyway. But the rest is definitely more expensive and harder to find. I'll check the exhaust later today and will report back... thanks a lot for the advice, I've been toying with this project for a year now and taking a short ride in my yard would already mean a lot to me LOL

The carb was fitted on a rubber manifold, no bolts... but yeah, it's smaller. Didn't check the exact diameter but I'd say it's something like a 24-26mm maybe? The biggest problem is that I'm missing the kickstarter lever and the coil... I could at least know if/how the engine runs if I had them. Is there anything that will fit when it comes to kickstart lever? Maybe from a newer bike from another brand? It's clear I'll have to gamble and buy a Motoplat coil without knowing if the engine runs, but for those old lever sellers tend to ask pretty unreasonable money and they're not easy to find. Even a borrowed one would be ok, I'd gladly pour more money into the project if I knew for sure the engine runs OK.

I didn't pay enough attention before buying the new engine, the owner didn't know much about it but... even the gear pedal is different? About the exhaust, I see they have a similar flange... maybe the Explorer one will fit? If I have to buy all these parts with the risk of the engine non even being completely fine I'm screwed big time.

Uh, so the coil integrates parts of the CDI? Damn, in this case won't work. Can I test the rotor/stator without a working coil? Today I finally managed to literally kick the engine in place, only to find out my kickstarter lever won't work... different shaft. 😭

Uh, forgot to ask a very important question: with the Explorer I received a Motoplat coil but it's the single pin version. I also bought on amazon a 2 pins "universal" coil... will the engine work with it or it absolutely requires the red 2pins Motoplat unit to work?

Thanks a lot! Yeah, I tried to "open" the mounting brackets a bit by hammering a round piece in but still won't go in freely. I think I'll remove some material from the casing as the frame side brackets aren't exactly ultra-thick... So I'll need a different intake manifold? Might probably find a silicone one on Amazon, maybe... but my priority is to see if it has spark and runs. If it works I'll gladly put some work into it, but due to my previous bad luck I'm a bit skeptical

Well, the original Explorer engine turns but it takes a lot of force... probably a seized bearing on the bottom? Also not sure the Motoplat works, as it requires 500rpm to make a spark and there's no way to make it turn that fast as is. It's been outside for years, I think, so rust might be the issue... and the reason for being there might have been a broken Motoplat unit (no spark)? No way to know for sure. The "new" engine was stored on a shelf with the inlet taped, and the guy told me it was bought from a reputable seller, so IN THEORY it should run. I plan to make the engine brackets slightly thinner as they're massive, while the frame brackets are already thin. I'll have to measure them, but as I said I'm now worried other parts might be different and I might find out the hard way.

Yeah, I plan to measure the old engine "brackets" with a caliper and compare them to the ones of the "new" engine. I didn't pay attention to it before buying, silly me, but from the shape of the right side cover I'd say it comes from the enduro version... who knows what other differences there are. The carb inlet is bigger, can only hope the exhaust flange is the same.

Hello guys, last year I've got a 1973 Explorer with a semi-seized engine. Managed to find another one that should be in working conditions but the owner doesn't know which model it's from. I tried putting the engine in, it looks the same when it comes to frame brackets but it doesn't fit... it's like it's slightly thicker than the stock one where the engine meets the frame in the swingarm/filter area. Also noticed the right side sprocket cover is different (longer)... any idea? Is it better to slightly file the engine bracket or the frame?