razorback Posted June 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 I picked up some engine ice today, removed the rear water pump hose clamp and drained what looked like diluted ice. Flushed the water pump and filled with fresh ice and buttoned her up. So easy. The one bolt tank removal it nice! Rode some short steep sections until the fan kicked on then rode different terrain that would make the fan cycle on/off. It was still spitting a little fluid every now and then after 20-30 minutes of riding then it got too dark to ride. I'll keep an eye on it tomorrow now that I'm more comfortable with behavior. Appreciate the advice guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sting32 Posted June 26, 2012 Report Share Posted June 26, 2012 (edited) Dammit Razorback, Im jealous as heck... I forgot I promised to check, but you described same as I know is on dad's bike. BTW, you should just trade me your 11, raga for my 10. It is just a little bit softer than the 11, which IMHO is 4-10 times quicker than the regular pro models, I havent had luxury to ride any 2012 models yet, though... What you bought is, the most advanced and "hot" powered version of the Pro 300 that the factory will sell to general public, or at least that Gas Gas imports for the consumers, to the USA... it is setup for TRIALS with some expensive (if bought seperately) & neat optional parts, like a 3 way adjustable rear Reiger shock. Plus the whole bike extra light, has special Raga (he's the Gas Gas Factory rider) parts, and specs for pipes and lot of things... This raga version of these bikes cost more than the normal, and slightly more than the "racing" model, partially because it is a preview to the "12 models, with special "raga" selected parts. To be honest anyone could ride it, but really it is for advanced riders to appreciate some of those parts that are not "normal", but NOT totally unusable for novice riders, well kinda... it is like giving your Dog the most expensive and best tasting t-bone steaks from a prefered restaurant. The dog isn't really going to appreciate, in fact my take or experience is, some times that fancy preperations those fancy places do, upset some dog's stomach. To the dog, it is food, or meat... and he will lick his butt right after that anyhow, all that fancy stuff is wasted on poochie. if you know what I mean. I have been wanting one so badly, after I got to ride my dads... Maybe I get a shot at one of the 12 raga's this year... So, I think you should know where you are... you just more or less bought the fanciest raciest advanced Gas Gas trials bike, The raga was snynomous to "prototype" for the public to buy/see... What is sad to me, is you are trying to make it a "honda Trail 90" which sounds more like what you need where you are at, working on Bicycle paths? I mean the 74 and up models have those big ol racks on the back, that come in handy... and well I have tried to be funny, and all of that is, since I have not read you posting about competitng with said "2011 Raga" you have. and I swear, Im not trying to be any kind of ass, about saying that, just how else does someone explain that I dont need a ferrari, then try to make a Prius like car out of it? with lotsa bucks i guess.. Im sure this will draw some flames, but I cant rewrite the whole thing, most of it was in fun from my end, so have fun with that ferrari Razorback. Edited June 26, 2012 by sting32 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sting32 Posted June 26, 2012 Report Share Posted June 26, 2012 (edited) Thanks for the tips but It turns out that the radiator was low in the time it took to run a little more than 1 tank of fuel through it. That's not normal, is it? I was able to put 4-6 oz of distilled water in the radiator and the fan now cycles on and off while at idle. It cycled 3 times in the first few minutes but the over flow is spewing coolant in spurts. Every few seconds it squirts out several drops of coolant. Is this normal until a balance of fluid/pressure occurs? The oil looks great so water is not getting in the crankcase. Where else could the water go? already posted the smarty pants post, but to help with this water missing/overheating, Did you remove the head for any reason yet? if you have NOT done any work on this bike.... You better check the jets in the carb compared to your riding altitude... if you bought a bike from high altitude, like denver''s altitude and higher, but ride lower, like kansas or whatever (below 3000ft), you will burn the motor up pretty fast, especially if it is hot outside, running it lean with high altitude jets. Call lewissport, and ask. after you find out what altitude you are at. I dont know where you are. tell them where (and altitude) they should be able to not only get you the jets, but at minimum tell you what jets you should have. I have jets for riding below 3000ft, like Kansas is 1000ft, and smaller (leaner) ones for going to colorado (5000- 8000ft). That a first guess anyhow, & dont ask me how I know this can happen, OK? LOL. Edited June 26, 2012 by sting32 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorback Posted June 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2012 Great posts. I made the mistake of reading them at work this afternoon and was chuckling to myself in my cube when a couple of my co-workers came in asking what was so funny. If I were to buy a brand spanking new Gas Gas Pro today, which cost about $7500, I would not hesitate for a moment to spend another $1000 to get the better components. I bought this thing used so I suspect I spent about an extra $500-$750 on the Raga over what I would have spent on a used '11 Pro model. In the scheme of things, the difference is really not that much. I spent almost that in gas to go pick it up! I figure I'll keep this bike for years so I wanted something that didn't need a lot of mods. There were two things the Raga had that I knew I wanted which justified the difference. One was a real tubeless rim. I'm 6'5" and a big boy and figured the better rim was the ticket. I've done the rim conversions and hate them. The second is the suspension. I've got a stable of bikes and I know about good suspension and adjustability. The better the suspension, the better I like it and the more I ride. Trust me, even though I'm not hoppping rocks and doing acrobatics on the bike, I can appreciate the differences in components. I competed in a few trials competitions as a young man but there were very few trials guys in the 70's so I found myself doing woods riding, enduros, hare scrambles, etc. I suspect that is a pretty common story. It's what my friends were riding so I happily followed that route just to ride every weekend and have fun. Many dirt bikes, street bikes and decades later, I had a back injury that kept me from riding bikes for a little over 2 years and I missed it terribly. I'm just starting to get my flexibility back and getting back in shape to do some riding again. I live in a rural area of Arkansas where there is NO flat ground. Every trail is cambered, straight up or straight down. Making a mistake on my mountain bike or muni cost me several days of recovery if I put my foot down the wrong way so I decided to buy a trials bike that I can ride slow, build new trails, get some exercise and be able to step off if I get into trouble. So far it's been working out great. I can only ride it about 15-20 minutes a day but that time is pure heaven. So in reality, I bought a trials bike as a tool for my physical therapy Plus I've spent more money on the medical industry in the past two years then if I had of bought a brand new Raga... so really, I got a deal on my choice of exercise equipment! As far as not competing, I'm probably a year away from doing any level of competition. If there was at least ONE other trials rider within 300 miles of me, I would consider attending events and possibly riding at the novice level but as it stands, I have to go to a surrounding state to ride with other trials riders. Since I can't ride very long, it's just not worth it right now. The good news is that my "honda 90" changes can easily be reversed when I'm ready. Oh, and about my jetting. Appreciate the tips. When reading the plug, it looks like I am pretty close. The bike came from TX and we are about the same elevation give or take a few hundred. I have already ordered a few jets to play with so I should get it dialed in soon. Apreciate the posts, they were fun to read. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copemech Posted June 27, 2012 Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 There are a few riders out your way and an occasional trials event. Mostly north-west AR and seem closely related to the group in the Tulsa area.(NEOTT) I think the club is ATR, or Arkansas Trials Riders. Have you had a look? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thats_a_five Posted June 27, 2012 Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 If you are still spitting water, here is an idea. I had the same issue with my (much older) Gasser. I found that if I filled the radiator completely, it would spit a little at a time until the level was not visible in the rad. So, I would refill and it would spit again. I was concerned about the water spitting so I rigged up a small plastic bottle as a temporary overflow tank. What I found was it would spit about 2 oz then stop. If I poured that 2 oz back in the rad, it would spit about 2 oz again. If I did not replace the 2 oz it would not spit. My conclusion is that it was just creating some room for expansion. So I stopped worrying about it and stopped refilling the radiator so often. I have also removed the overflow tank and on the rare occasion when I do top of the radiator, I let it spit the first ride and its all good after that. Problem solved. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorback Posted June 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 There are a few riders out your way and an occasional trials event. Mostly north-west AR and seem closely related to the group in the Tulsa area.(NEOTT) I think the club is ATR, or Arkansas Trials Riders. Have you had a look? It doesn't look like there is an Arkansas trials group anymore or at least it is not active. I found a website that was the group I think your talking about and none of the web pages had been updated for a couple of years. I sent and email to the webmaster and never heard back. http://www.winterscycleshack.com/index.html NEOTT is the closest to me in OK (they are the 300 mile folks I refer to) and have a night time meet in July that I may try to attend. I bet they will know some AR riders. There is MATT up around Kansas City which is 6 hours away and they have a 2 day event in Sept that I want to attend as I have family in KC so that would be cool. If anyone from AR rides, ping me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorback Posted June 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 I was concerned about the water spitting so I rigged up a small plastic bottle as a temporary overflow tank. That is a great idea. It still spits just a few drops every few seconds when I stop riding and let it idle until the fan stops. The fan has cycled every time now so I think it's alright as others have said but a modified nalgene bottle as a temporary over flow tank would really help ease my mind. I think I'll rig something up this weekend. Appreciate the idea. Also, I'm STILL waiting on parts so no updates on mods yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jse Posted June 27, 2012 Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 Razorback, You've probably been on our website http://www.neott.com/ and we're on facebook also. The night Trial is a hoot and you'd have a lot of fun (the TV coverage link on the website gives an idea of what it's like and I'm the old geezer in the green Ute Cup shirt). Send me an e-mail stoodleyjon@gmail.com if you have any questions. If you go to the event, ask for Jon Stoodley and I'll get you set up and signed in. I help all the new riders and if they are first-timers, take them out personally the first few times and get then started on the right foot. We take good care of our riders... Concerning the medical issues, I'm 70 (and had spinal surgery) and still out riding whenever I can, in part because I've taken Yoga for 13 years (along with several other NEOTT members who are class champions), not the showy pretzel bending stuff taught by a triathelon-entering, 20-year old buff physical trainer that likes to "feel the burn", but a teacher that works on flexibility. It's the best activity I've found for Trials riding and although some riders will poo-poo the idea, it's kept me upright and on the pegs and still enjoying riding. Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorback Posted June 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 Hi Jon. Yes, I've been to your site and am going to try and make the July 28th night trial. It sounds like fun without the heat of the summer sun... hum, I wonder if my neighbors would mind if I put up stadium lights on my 6 acre tract I've heard that iyengar yoga is good for back issues by my PTs. I may look into that. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jse Posted June 27, 2012 Report Share Posted June 27, 2012 Iyengar is the type I'm in, my teacher uses it with other stretching exercises. Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sting32 Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Hope you figure out why the water level is getting too low, IMHO if it is NOT above the cores (visible in the tank below the cap) I would sort of be worried. the new bikes dont have chrome/nickel plated exhaust that would turn blue if ran lean (and got hotter) wich helps in knowing about some lean problem. Be sure to say Hi, I ride with NEOTT occasionally, it is quite the drive, and they are great bunch of guys, down there, including JSE, hehehehee... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jse Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 I heard that......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorback Posted June 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 (edited) If you are still spitting water, here is an idea... I rigged up a small plastic bottle as a temporary overflow tank. Brilliant! Gatorade, it's what the Raga craves It got dark on me tonight but I'll find out how much fluid it's spitting out tomorrow with this contraption. Whoo Hoo! Edited June 30, 2012 by razorback Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copemech Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 Jon, have you seen Keenan lately? Is the ATR doing anything? Who else was it over there accross the border? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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