Looks like I will be building a 250R

[rigger]

I am going to be getting a 250R, or at least most of one from just right down the street. My neighbor has almost everything extra from building his current 250R for me to build another one.

It will end up being a very long term project but I think it will be fun.

I have alway been a woods rider so I think I will end up building to be a goods weapon.

Any thoughts on building it up for the woods from you guys that have done it would be great.

Thanks.

[mxduner]

dude, 310 powervalve with the right pipe and c-leigh porting... need i say more:D

[rigger]

That just sounds mean.

I think I am going to try and keep her a littel milder than that though.

I had read somewhere that a 265 kit, at least I think it was a 265, was a good way to go for a woods rider looking for a little more than the stock motor output but keeping it reliable too.

But I guess I need to see what I end up with for a motor in the future too. No much sence in making plans for a motor that I do not even have yet.

[All250R]

Originally posted by rigger
That just sounds mean.

I think I am going to try and keep her a littel milder than that though.

I had read somewhere that a 265 kit, at least I think it was a 265, was a good way to go for a woods rider looking for a little more than the stock motor output but keeping it reliable too.

But I guess I need to see what I end up with for a motor in the future too. No much sence in making plans for a motor that I do not even have yet.
The difference between a stock motor and one that's not pretty reliable can be sizable.

[rigger]

I have had plenty of 2-stroke bikes and relying on them was never an issue.

With a 250R, are there any weak links in the motor that need to be taken care of? Is the only way to keep it trusworthy to keep it stock or can I pump it up a little? I mean just a little to make it more fun to ride but not so much that she turns into a time bomb.

I don't know tons about 250Rs so I will be doing a lot of reading and asking questions as I find time and money to build my project. And who knows how much fabricating I will be doing to put her back together. It looks like I will be able to find about everything on ebay. It is nice having my neighbor right down the street. He is a load of info on the 250R and what it takes to build one up. He has tried about everything and knows what works and does'nt. And his R is about as sweet as I have seen.

First thing I need to do is bring her home so I can make a real list. Right now she is right down the street. It just has not made it into my garage yet.

[All250R]

The stock configuration is built for unsurprising power and reliability. The main differences as a starting point and comparison between the TRX and the CR of contemporary years which I had a builder tell me was about 10hp difference are largely the following:
head design
intake (carb, reed tract)
pipe
porting

The point is that with some basic bolt-ons you can make a factory reliable engine that has noticeably better power than the stock TRX.

Weak spots for you to go through first are all the maintenance items that you're not 100% on in the entire bike. Bearings, seals, and all grease points, fluids, tires, chain, sliders and sprockets.

When you're inside the engine, there are several ways to measure the crank to tell if it's good, bad or can be rebuilt or not. The (honda) manual helps you figure this out but requires a couple special tools. Examine the gears, look for cracks and large chunks missing from shift dogs and shift forks. Check the clutch basket and spec all fibers and plates. If the original springs are in there, they will need to be replaced to bring back clutch feel and reliable engagement. Cables are nice to replace and bring a new feel back to the controls.

The only really unreliable piece that I would say is the result of a design issue is the counter balancer left side bearing holder and the 2 long bolts. The bolts like to snap after many hours of vibration and the ears on the holder I've heard will eventually crack as well. 2nd gear takes some hard hits from misshifts with bozos revving the engine (me included), missing the gear and popping it in before the engine settles. I wouldn't call it a weak spot, but it takes a lot of abuse and tends to be the gear that fails when one does.

A lot of this work is totally unglamorous and doesn't contribute to power. However, your 20 year old quad will be back in the 21st century ready for many more years of reliable 2stroke service once you have these items nailed.

Here is a little bit I wrote on buying a trx which helps you spot some trouble spots in the chassis and maybe a couple other points to check out too if you're interested.

http://www.all250r.com/UsefulContent/BuyingATrx/BuyingATRX.htm

Good luck! :)