flyday58

Mellow greetings all, Does anyone know the normal behaviour of the charge light on the CS5? Mine will stay out above about 1800 rpm, but my manual says idle should be 1050-1200. Anything below 1800 and the light comes on and the engine falters slightly till the light goes back out above 1800. The manual states that cut-in should occur around 1700 or 1900, depending on what page you are on. Does that, by inverse logic mean that cut-out occurs at the same point? I keep the idle at 1900 or so to keep the light out but the manual says that's way too high. Any help or ideas as always is greatly appreciated.

Got it sorted? I've got a CS5 and would be interested to know what you came up with.

Hey Dave, welcome from a fellow WellaRD er.

Um, four-ish. Also looking at a 1971 Suzuki T500 and a 1967 Suzuki T20 X6 Hustler that the gentleman I bought the R5 from has. He actually owns 12 of the latter, all sitting in a shed gathering old age. Here they be: The R5 had only been sitting 2 years since the owner died. He had 18 cycles when he passed and his widow is finally selling them off through the fellow who has these. I saw a listing on ebay for a 1967 Honda Superhawk, saw that it was only an hour from home and dropped the guy a line asking if, by chance, there was an R5, RD350, or Honda CB350/360/450 in the bunch. He replied that he had an R5 and that we could make a deal, so I went up there and was hooked. It took very little to get it running - fresh oil, carbs cleaned, cleaned the tank with Deox-C that I had shipped from the UK, and just cleaned 2 years of dust off it. I've already put almost a hundred miles on it, just so much fun to ride. I have one small leak to sort, I think from the counter sprocket shaft, and then should be good for awhile. Sad story about the previous owner. He loved bikes, obviously, and had invited Dan (the seller) to a meet and race in Kentucky. Everyone stayed in the guy's caravan (5th wheel to all you Gringos) and went to watch when the gentleman raced. Dan was taking pics as he cruised by, when about 50 feet past him the man went limp and crashed. He was dead when Dan got to him, but the paramedics said he was dead before he even hit the ground. Massive embolism. Gone just that quick. But he loved the races and was doing what he loved when he passed; hope I'm that fortunate when my time comes.

Honest, they just keep following me home. Disregard the typical Southern U.S. yard debris. Recent tornado. 1971 R5B

No damn vids this time!!

I can't get past the fork in the garbage disposal bit.

Looks like this one is solved. She absolutely had to be timed with a dial and timing light, with the head removed, per the book. No kick-back now, and runs and idles like that fabled beast in the land of Honiley. Lots of 'Puff'ing too, God bless the two-stroke!

Beautiful example, like a smaller version of my CS5, which ain't so big herself.

New definition of junk, eh mates?

Paul, you know what? I...you...oh hell, never mind.

Sorry to hear it, but at least it's the dead of winter. Best time to have down time. That way you won't, or shouldn't be, tempted to rush it to completion.

Um, yeah...but back in the day on my then-new 81 IT175. It was February in Mississippi, which means floods and chilly weather. Was out riding in the soggy bottoms of a local bog with 2 magicians in from of me, 1st one on an RM125, 2nd one on a big KX. They must have been magicians because somehow they made it all the way down the flooded dirt road, a distance of around 100 feet, water flying off the rear wheels like a racing boat. Well, can't very well go around, can I? The gauntlet has been thrown down! What a Weasley I'd be to wave off. So into 1st we go and blast into the torrent. Couldn't be that deep if the Cojones Brothers made it through. Weeeeellll...the Cojones Brothers dug a right deep trench in the deepest part of the stream, and guess who buried, er sank, their nearly-new IT up to the seat? It was around 45*F that day, man was I cold. But the worst was the popping and pinging coming up through the water from the engine. When it started to bog i killed it right away, jumped off and started trying to pry the rear wheel out of the muck to try and get it pushed out of the water. Cojones Brothers? Gone, ne'er to return. So was on my own. Figured the bike was done for. Pulled the air filter out, drained the water from the airbox, wrung out the filter, then cleaned evrything as best I could with rags my riding buddy had, once he found me. Put it back together, expecting to have to push it 2 miles out of the bog to where my truck was parked, but gave it a kick anyway. Fired right up! Unbelievable. What a bike, I loved that thing. Rode back to the truck, loaded up and went home for a thorough cleaning, lube, and oil change. Yet another item I wish I still had, what a fun bike that was!

Yer bugger! 'Tis just the same, but my shop is nearly as big as the shark cage from "Jaws" so no room to work, let alone store the 3 scooters I've got. It was easier to purchase one than try to bodge one together. My meter was basically doing the job but was a Congressional pain to keep the leads in place. Right on both counts Paul. Got it back together today. Put on my heaviest-soled boots and gave it a go. Started up on the 2nd kick with no kick-back. I was too chicken to shut it off and try again, but I will try tomorrow before breathing easier on this one. I also used the past TDC position for cranking/kicking, seemed to work well. So for now, yippee! And Amy MacDonald is crooning "This Is The Life" on the stereo, what a deal!!

New static timing light came today, basically an on-off light that goes out when the points open. But I had to disconnect the condenser from the points for it to work, which requires removing the flywheel. With the flywheel off, I took a long hard look at the timing post bolted to the stator chassis, which you line up with a mark on the rotor/flywheel for points opening. I compared mine with several piccys on ebay. Turns out mine is bent. Alot. In the advance direction. My fault for not throwing EVERYTHING (assumptions) out the window when I bought this contraption. Don't know why it never occurred to me to check the post for straightness. It never looked right; I just never checked. So now I've got it timed like I want it, very close to the required 2.9mm BTDC. The head had to come off to mount the dial indicator properly, so I will clean and paint it before reassembling. My foot is still not 100% so not in a hurry to bang away at the kicker right now anyway. Will update when it's all back together again.

Yar, myne won't. But the neighbor may have one that will.

Agreed, I had a 77 XT500 that I came to loathe more than gypsum board and mitre joints, which is quite alot. It was my one and only excursion into 4-strokes, and I know that most of my dislike stemmed from not understanding the bloody thing. I used it around here in the woods and on trails, and the gearing was just bollocks for that purpose. Plus, when I invariably stalled it, I kicked and kicked and kicked and then kicked some more before finally getting it to spark back into life. By then I was so pissed (angry) and worn out that all the fun was gone. Hated that thing. I know now that I could have solved the hard starting issue by changing the timing chain, and a fiddle with the sprockets would have helped in the dirt. Kind of wish I had it back now! Aint' that usually the way.

Thanks, will try that if my foot ever heals. Couldn't get around to using thin paper tonight as the wifey is down for the count and had to make dinner, clean the kitchen on and on and on. Getting old is hell.

So you have to be a Moderator to get those cool tie-dye effects on your profile piccy? Using the marks on the magneto rotor and case has always worked just fine, except for this beast. I will try the cig paper pull bit; obviously using a multimeter doesn't work. I truly haven't been able to get a good solid indication of points opening that way; maybe I don't have the points properly isolated? I did disconnect the condenser wire at the points. My kicking technique is to stand on the right of the bike and kick hard with my left leg. My right leg is weak from a grammar school-age injury, so it can be hard to start even the little DT whilst aboard. Since this is a two-stroke, is there a preferable position for the piston prior to kicking to alleviate kick-back? Even with the decompression lever all the way open there's still a hefty bit of compression, and I have verified the the valve is, in fact, decompressing.

Been down three days now after the RT3 nearly broke my foot/ankle/leg/torso/spirit with a couple of vicious kick-backs whilst trying to start. Being a lazy American and with the 'fiscal cliff' just now narrowly averted by my government, I never sprang for a timing light and have gotten by on setting the points to their nominal clearance per the shop manual. Obviously this has not worked out very well, so have finally ponied up the dough for a static timing light. It is my fervent hope that I will find the timing set at something like 6 or 7 mm BTDC instead of the requisite 2.9 mm. Anyone had any experience with the RT/360 line in this area? If I can't get this sorted the thumper will be sold - broken bones for someone born in the 50s just ain't gonna fly. Will most or all of the kicking back disappear if the bloody thing's timed correctly, i.e., head off, 2.9mm BTDC, points just opening? I used to have a gen-u-wine strobe timing light, but sold it sometime after selling the last points car I owned. Must have been the 1969 Mustang. Wery similar to a DB9; you've probably seen them around.

Getting a new shop later in 2013 - it will come with the house I'm having built - and when I do I will finally be able to do this kind of work instead of letting my projects languish. My swingarm whispers to me, but I ignore it for now. Excellent thread, Paul.

Kev, (may I call u Kev?) would like to get together at the pub of your choice next time I am in the UK but having trouble locating twatsville on the map. No broken belts or chains over here, but may have a broken foot. Trying to start that goddamn beast bitch kicking-back ass mule, commonly known as the RT3. It's the only rider I have right now but until I can retrofit an electric starter (or hire a Hog driver) I'm not going near it. Damn it hurts Hope you all have a SAFE New Year's. Want to see ALL you guys and gals back here tomorrow. No exceptions!

Thanks, you guys are the absolute shit! In a good way of course!! I guess the is enough oil in the mix to prevent piston lock-up and lube the bearings. Guess I'll quit filling the crank gallery with oil every time I remove the cylinder. (Haven't, really. Well, not FULL, anyway...)

What extension? It's the same photobucket extension I always use. If I preview the post first, then I can post it, but if I try to post without previewing I get this error. All photos have extension 'jpg' on photobucket but also have 'IMG" at the beginning and end of the string. Don't know if that is a problem or not. Maybe the site is just getting wanky toward the end of the year?