charliechitlins

It's a trials bike, mate. Ride it up the steps and park it in the kitchen!

First put some fresh gas in it. Then start it and warm it up. Then ride it. While you're riding, you'll never notice the cases.

I once cleaned one with an oxy-acetylene torch. Set the insides on fire with a dirty flame (not too much oxy), then switch off the acetylene and just pump oxy in to keep things burning, Great pest control. BTW...I have a free-standing vise OUTSIDE my workshop

I've seen (but never used) a wheel-building jig. It holds the rim and puts the hub in the center. I suppose if you could find or improvise something similar, you could just measure from hole-to-hole.

Little marks on the adjusters are useless. They only work in a perfect world where all machining and welding is perfect, all jigs are brand new, frames never tweak and swingarm bushings never wear.. When the sprocket teeth run right in the middle of the chain, the wheel is aligned. You could line the rear wheel exactly up to the front with string or straight edges, but then your sprockets probably wouldn't align and would wear prematurely. Maybe the World Round guys need this perfect alignment, but I'd rather preserve my chain and sprockets.

When I was more involved in road bikes, I always used the cheapest pads. I found that anything added to the material (usually bits of metal) added longevity but reduced friction (braking). I worked on Harleys, which have the worst brakes on earth, so every little bit helped. I don't know about Kevlar. It may well be strong, long-wearing and have a high friction coefficient. And Jon... That's exactly my take on the heating/quenching: the process changes the temper of the disk and/or possibly the pads depending on their composition. Especially the "and/or possibly" part! Well...it's a rough, vague, general, ballpark estimate of what I guessed.

Fill the tire, get the rear wheel off the ground, squirt some soapy water on it and look for bubbles. And...at the risk of sounding like an a-hole...this is unbelievably basic mechanical stuff...if you don't know it, you really need to hang around with some experienced riders and have them help you with your bike. You could easily have stuff wrong (or stuff could go wrong) with your bike that could hurt you (or your bike) very badly if you don't know how to recognize that it's wrong.

You need to ride the bike around for a minute or so dragging the front brake, then squirt the rotor and caliper with a hose. Make sure you get the rotor hot enough that it hisses when the water hits it. If all your parts are in order, this will get you your brakes back. I don't know why it works, but it totally does. I had an '01 that I updated to the 4-pot caliper. It's a bolt-on and it's a nice update, but not totally necessary.

I'm a crappy rider, but I really like the 200. I'm comparing it to the Sherco 290 I had for years. It's a bit jumpy/snappy and I miss Sherco's silky smooth power delivery (I also miss Sherco build quality, but that's another story). The up side is that it just feels so light and flick-able. Moving the wheels around is so much easier. The bigger engine is a little more forgiving, like if you let the revs drop on a big climb, but I seldom miss the extra power. Actually...I'm starting to think that most sub-expert riders would pick up fewer points on a smaller/lighter bike.

Boyesen's (sp?) are the way to go in a TY350. I think there is a Honda one that fits...some year CR250 maybe. Check with Stoodley (JSE on this forum). He has a very sweet TY350 that's he's spent years perfecting. I think he bought it new in '86, when he was 14

I would probably crash in that mud if the rock wasn't even there

Yup...the winning answer is...they're good until they're not. If they leak, replace them. The rubber boot/gaiter thingies work great. They seldom really dry out, though. Good idea to take them off on the bottom now and then and get some air in there. Fork tube chrome is tough stuff, but it will rust eventually.

The 7 seals of the Apocalypse!

Isn't North East on the bay? Try marinas. Here's a link to a website that tracks where to find ethanol-free fuel. It's not all up-to-date. My link

Water pump seals? Crank seals? Fork seals? Harbor seals? Easter seals?

When a coil is going tits-up it will often cut out when it warms up, after a few minutes of running.

Sorry to hear that. I think gasoline formulas are changing so much that it's getting impossible to stay on top of additives. And ethanol is a total clusterf**k in just about every way. I guess the answer is to head to the airport for some ethanol free fuel.

A good TY350 brings 1000-1300 in these parts. They are a great bike. I thought I outgrew mine...skill wise... I really regret selling it.

If it has a remote reservoir on the rear shock, it's an '86. I think everything else is the same.

Check with Caswell in Lyons, NY. I've used his plating kits and they are totally sorted out and work great. I've heard great things about his tank sealer.

The bike runs great! I think it has some hard miles....ridden hard and put away wet...but not many. Looking forward to getting her out in the woods.

I think it's a BPR5ES

Time to break out the old flame wrench. Heat and penetrating oil. Plenty of both.. Vibration helps, too. If you have an impact gun with a low setting, get the heat and oil in there and keep the gun on for awhile and that will really help the oil to penetrate.

Not being a wiseguy here, but... Did you check the fuel tank vent?

Tidying up the wiring is good, but it probably wouldn't help a problem that doesn't occur right from start-up. I know this is a long shot but...do you have an in-line fuel filter? Is there any metal on it? Is that metal resting on the head, cylinder or exhaust? Also...check your fuel delivery. A float bowl that isn't staying full enough could cause a problem that wouldn't manifest for a couple minutes...or when the engine is under more load and requiring more fuel.