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

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?

Same for all models, they changed the gear and kickstart shaft sizes around late 1973

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

Triad, below is a link to a US company that specializes in electrical components for older bikes. Not sure if it will have the right one for you, and if not, it’s still a very good source to bookmark. I believe they make everything in-house so it may be possible to get what you need built. They also have a CDI, ECU Repair Unit also.

Good luck!

https://www.regulatorrectifier.com/

Edited October 17, 2025Oct 17 by RonH

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?

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.

The 350 MAR was produced from late 1975 so it has the later type shafts for kickstart and gear lever. It will be the same spline as the enduro engine, assuming no-one has changed parts on it at any time. Just count the number of splines and compare to double check

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

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.

Ok guys, managed to find a Motoplat coil and the right kickstarter lever for this engine. Also got a tank with petcock, but they're both pretty much trash.

I poured some pretty rich premix inside the spark plug hole and the engine came to life, with huuuuge surprise. Started but died after 1 second.

The second time I started it, lasted maybe 2 seconds. In the meantime I tried to put the tank in place with a hose going to the carb, but ended up badly with my cursing and fuel everywhere.

Today it started at first kick (!) and for maybe 8 seconds... I managed to twist the throttle a couple of times before the fuel into the bowl finished and it died... but it's aliiiive!

 

As you can see the carb is the Amal from the Explorer engine... should I get something more modern and better for the Pioneer engine? I read it had a 32mm. 

The guy I got coil, kickstarter lever and tank from, kindly sent me for free a rear brake cable and a broken gear lever (I'll have to find a way to make it work).

11 hours ago, Triad said:

As you can see the carb is the Amal from the Explorer engine... should I get something more modern and better for the Pioneer engine? I read it had a 32mm

If you are using the Explorer exhaust system, there is no advantage in using anything bigger than the 27mm AMAL. The Pioneer uses a bigger carby because it sucks a lot of air when it is on the pipe. The Explorer exhaust will mean that the Pioneer motor will suck about the same amount of air as an Explorer motor at full power.

Thanks... makes perfectly sense. I don't think I'll be on the hunt for a Pioneer exhaust, it would probably make more power up top but I plan to use it for "semi-trial" stuff at low speed, so it's probably better to keep the Explorer exhaust with the smaller carb.

I guess the cylinders are also different on the inside (bigger intake/exhaust ports)? I never worked on Amal carbs, so don't have any jet for it... hopefully the stock setting will work with the actual setup.

Don't know how to "repair" the gear lever. I could drill a hole thru and use a passing bolt, maybe, covered with a piece of hose for the time being? Or I could use two metal clamps to keep an L shaped piece attached on it?

I checked the impedance of both my Motoplat stators and it's about 32ohm (31.8). I'm having this weird issue... bike hard to start, then starts, works for a short period (1-5 minutes) and then starts bogging.

It's not fuel-related as there's still premix in the bowl when it dies.

Edited January 1Jan 1 by Triad