Graphics attempt one.

My search for the shroud graphic for this model year bike has turned up empty.  I have found several for the KX250 but they wont transfer to the 125, also found some for the 1987 model but I want to stay with original model year. Granted I strayed from stock form with the wheels and the DG pipe but those things could have been changed out during that time period if you had the cash to do it then.  So I took a stab at recreating the graphic on my own.  Here is how it turned out.
I had several of them printed just for use on the #2 bike and I wanted a replacement.  Well I was not that happy with the results.  First the vinyl was not as thick as they said it would be and they didn't put the clear laminate over the top that I asked for.  Then the blue color came out looking purple, that is not really the printers fault. it turns out the dark blue on my computer screen is actually a royal purple.  Other then that the fit is great, the green matches great and the design is spot on.  I will be trying again though with a different print company, trying to find some place local that will use the .9mill thick stuff with the lam covering.  I also put the designs into a different program instead of photoshop that is supposed to yield a better color representation and allow the print company to die cut the finished product so I don't have to cut it out myself.

I went ahead and put on on the #2 bike just because I have it. It fits good and even on that faded plastic looks pretty nice.

 

Second Ride

As stated in the "First Ride" post I had a 13t front sprocket and a 48t rear on the bike when I did that ride.  I have been working on making the second of my 86 KX125's run....I'll restate that, run better.  Really I tore everything down on the bike, fixed and or maintained any parts that were in need and re-assembled as any good dirt bike guy would do.  I did find some extra stuff in the carb that really shouldn't have been in there so I was pretty sure that it was going to run much better then when I brought it home..... Welllll it didn't. That actually surprised me, I was sure that it just needed the carb cleaned out.  To fill you in on what it is doing, it just has no get up and go, very little on the bottom end of the power range which is typical for a 125 but it wont pull through the mid range and just starts sputtering and spitting and has nothing on top cause you can't get there.  Figured it has to be the carb is clogged up. By the way it has 12t front and 48t rear sprockets.  The only other part that I thought might be the problem was the power valve set up.  Now it is actuating properly but if the PO disassembled it and didn't get the alignment marks in the right spot it could be an issue.  From the outside looking in it seemed fine and was assembled the same as the one on my first restore KX but since I didn't take the valve out only took the cylinder off, something could be wrong.

All this to get to taking the #1 KX for its second ride.  I started to question whether I had #1 put together correctly and if it would run good on the top end.  I decided to swap the front sprocket to the 12t (I had a new one for it). and give it a run. 
WOW!  That bike rips!  I was very happy to discover that the #1 KX runs really good, It snaps to attention and flat gets to rippin right away.  I spent about 10 minutes on the bike just playing around and making some fast runs across the property before putting it away with a big smile on my face.  Always nice to know that your long hours in the garage paid off.

So back to #2, that ride put my mind at ease about the power valve being wrong as when you take the covers off of the left side of the cylinder you can see that the valve is in the same position on both bikes.  Back to the carb.  I decided that maybe there was still gunk stuck in the main jet or the ports that feed the main jet.  I tipped the carb on its side and pulled the plug off the bottom then pulled the main jet to have a look.  330 main.  Then it hits me,  #1 bike has a different size main in it.  check the book it says it should be a 370. I pulled the main jet out of #1 bike and sure enough it is a 370.  Don't know why I did this but instead of putting the 370 in bike #2 and taking it for a spin just to test it out I went and put it back in #1 and went and ordered a 370 for #2.  So in a couple days when the Jet shows up (should have it by the weekend) I will go test it out and let you all know if that fixed it.  Hopefully that is the only jet or needle that got changed from stock, the numbers on the rest of those things are soo small I don't think I can read them. 

First Ride.

On a whim I took the KX out of the garage and went for a spin. It was really nice to ride it since it has been in the garage and in progress for a year now.  It was only a little 5 min. shake down ride then back in the garage to tighten things up and yes there were a couple things that came loose.  I also found that I don't really like having the 13t counter shaft sprocket on it, I will try the 12t the next ride out.  It also has a 48t rear sprocket when stock was a 47 so I am basically 4t up from stock so it runs out of power on top pretty quick.

Need Graphics

I am in need of a graphics company or someone that can make graphics for this 86 KX125. I have an original shroud that is in pretty good condition to use as a template.  If you know of anyone or you can help me out please use the twitter link at the right or robmx29@gmail.com and get in touch with me.
Thanks.

Track Day!

To Date this build has taken one year. Not quite complete but getting very close.

We went to the local track today (Washougal MX) for some summer ride fun.  The KX went along to get a whiff of the air outside the garage.  I was very tempted to take a couple laps on it, but I resisted. I want to get it fully done, graphics and all before it gets ridden.  Then we will see, I still might not ride it, all show and no go, even though it seems to run pretty good.  Its just so pristine I don't want to scratch up the frame and cases.  The bike got some attention which was nice even though we were not in a high traffic area, mostly guys that have been riding for a long time and know what era this bike came from, some younger guys that enjoy working on older bikes stopped to talk about it to.

Donor Bike = New Parts

 Yep its been a while. Ive been doing the work in the garage but most of it is on the weekend bikes since it is ride season and ride season in the NW is short.  I did however pick up a donor bike not too long ago and have been going through that one and taking the better parts for the restore KX and putting the other back over on the donor. Have not yet decided if the new donor will be a keeper and rider or a part it out and recoup some of my cash.  Parting out was the original plan but it is possible to make this one a runner so we will see. 

This is the donor, I had already removed the seat and tank at this point.

The tank is rough on the donor but I think it can be restored to look as good or better then the one on the restore KX. the seat needs a new cover, the fenders are shot, the side plates are possible restore parts and the front plate has been replaced with new.




This is the rear brake hose I had in place on the restore bike. The original cover was discolored and in bad shape so I removed it and just left the black hose exposed as it looked good just like that.  The front hose guide was broken and I was just waiting on finding a new part to replace that with. You can see the guide only has one screw holding it in place.






Here you can see that I used the hose off the donor bike and also the hose guide, now it looks more like the stock parts when it was new.

In this shot you can see that I finally got my hands on a mud flap, This part was proving to be very hard to find, thanks to my new donor I have one that is in very nice shape.  After cleaning this up and putting it on the restore KX I found the one that came with it when I brought it home, It is rough but will work well enough on the donor for riding around.

Its Not done But it Runs!

I got the clutch all sorted out the other day and finally had a chance to put it all together ( thought that would have happened last Sunday.....Nope) so here are some photos of it and a short Vid of it starting.

The sound is not very good because I had supercross playing on the tv and it was louder than I thought.  What I said at the beggining is that I was actually starting it for the second time but the first time was only 30 seconds before.  It took 4 kicks for it to fire up and the carb is really close to where it needs to be. 

Here is the link for vid. I started this project in August of 2011 so to this date it has taken 11 months.
I have ordered a couple new to me side panels and they should show up in the next week or so. Now I will be down to hunting for Graphics and a mud flap.

Finally Clutch Problem resolved.

This is the concave washer. Its not a huge cup but it is there.

Finally resolved the problem with the clutch hub nut popping the threads off at under 30 ftlbs.  There is a concave washer on top of a spline washer that i am guessing is supposed to be somewhat of a lock washer that just puts pressure on the nut to keep it from spinning.  Personally I like the fold over washer set up better.  So I was putting the concave washer in with the top of the cup toward the nut.  There is no direction in the manual or that I could find online that says which way it goes.  Well I ruined two of the nuts then turned the washer over so the cup of the washers outside edges contact the nut then torqued it down...Boom, it works.


 I also purchased a new to me clutch basket that was in much better condition then the one that I had. As you can see in the photo the edges of the new basket have very little wear on them compared to the photo in the last post showing the old unit. 

Ready to put the covers back on and fill with oil. 

I might get to start it up today.!!

KX125 Update

Yes it has been a long time. Spring time is an interesting time of year, everything outside wakes up and demands your attention so there is not much time to spend in the shop working on those winter projects.  The good part is I can spend some quality time riding the dirt bikes that I work on during the winter.  That is after all the maintenance is complete around the property.  Funny thing about owning enough land to have your own practice track, you spend more time working on it then practicing on it. Enough about that.

Since the last post there actually has been a few things happening, I was able to purchase a new front tire for the KX

And Yes I found time to put it on.  I went with Bridgestone 404/403 combo front and rear.

This is the very worn clutch basket, you can see the grooves next
to the plates in the vertical slot.

I also was thinking a lot about the clutch because the basket is very worn and was concerned that it would not work correctly, as well as when I put the clutch back in from the original inspection I didn't torque it down because I knew I would be back in there before starting the motor.  Another reason for concern was when I took the clutch out of the CR125 (www.cr125project.blogspot.com) that I am also working on it had a bend over lock washer on the clutch nut and I did not recall seeing anything like this in the KX and thought that there should be one.  I looked at parts details on line and to the best of my reasoning I figured one of the two washers that was in the detail would be the lock, the one closest to the nut would make sense.  Right?  NOPE.  Yes I took it apart again before ordering said washer and there were two washers already in place, one was rather concave the other flat, I ordered the washer in the parts detail anyway, only $3.  It was the concave washer and that is supposed to lock the nut with 60 ftlb of torque, OK. So when I got it I thought huh, I have this already, I used the new one just cause I bought it so why not.  Here comes the bad part.  Upon putting the clutch assembly back together, (still with the old basket) I went to torque it down almost getting to 60lbs and the nut gave out!!! Stripped!!!  Turns out that I think it was stripped before and had just enough thread to get about 40 to 50 lbs on it then pop off.  There were no shavings or any popped threads on the spindle, this is why I think it was already half gone.  Any way, this nut is not available from Kawi any longer so I went a searching, It is a 16mm x 1.0 jamb nut.  Its not impossible to get but you do have to special order it from a hardware dealer, I used Tacoma Screw products. Cost only $3.5. It is not the jamb nut size but there is plenty of room on the spindle plus I will have extra threads to grab on with. 



Photo of the clutch side of the motor, the spindle with the new nut
sticks out of the center.

Alright well I have ordered a new to me used clutch, the photos look like the wear on the basket is minimal compared to mine especially, so when that arrives in the next week or so I will carve out a little time one evening and try to reassemble this half the motor.  I have also ordered a new expansion valve cover that showed up today and was in worse condition then the one I had, hate it when that happens, also an ignition cover, hopefully that is in good shape and I can replace the squished one that I have on the bike now.

A Shot of the ever growing fleet, YZ450f, RMZ250, KX125, CR125 on the bench
in the back. You can see my Trey Canard Jersey hanging on the back wall
on the right.  AAHHH that's what I call a Man Cave.

Rear Tire and Sprocket

The rear of the bike is almost ready to go. I received a couple more parts this week so I mounted them up.

I ordered Renthal black 48 tooth sprocket for the rear and a stock size 12 sprocket for the front.  I received the correct one for the rear but the front one was shipped wrong.  So That part will have to go back.



I decided to go with the Bridgestone tires so I ordered a M404 100/90/19.  It looks really good all mounted up.

I also ordered a Renthal R1 chain to complete the set up.  The sprocket that is on the counter shaft in the bottom photo is a 13, it is new and I will probably run it also just to see which I like better the 12 or 13.  From what I remember about gearing adding a tooth to the front is like adding 3 to the rear.  If that is not right let me know.
I still need a rear chain guide, the swing arm chain sliders as well as a mud flap. I found and ordered a chain guide today, it doesn't look to be in the best of shape but I think it is some thing I can work with.

True That Wheel.

The Cheap way.

Zip Ties taped to the forks, give it a spin look for the movement and tighten as needed or loosen, depends on what way you need to move. I know not very informative but I figure you can figure it out if you have gotten this far.

Front Wheel Bearings

This is not so different from the rear wheel so Ill be brief.

I used a 30mm socket on this one, fits perfect.

Like I said, Ill be brief.  Put the cir clip in and press in the dust seal and BOOM! Done.

Wheel Bearings

Its been a while since I have posted anything here.  Shortage of parts will do that to ya.  I think everyone knows money is a little tight especially for fun projects.  I was waiting for the front wheel bearings to show up and I was going to do the front and rear at the same time but decided that I would just go ahead and put the rear ones in since it looks like the fronts wont be here till mid next week.

Here the photo shows the old bearing still in the hub with the new bearings on top and the wheel spacer that I took out from the other side.  Its a pretty easy process to change bearings.  This model hub has a cir clip that holds a bearing in on one side while the other one fits very tightly.  After removing the dust seal and the cir clip the bearing on that side lifts right out then the spacer and the other bearing can then be popped out with a long socket extension and hammer.

I first put the bearing in that needed pressed into place, a 32mm socket fit perfectly into the hub allowing me to tap the bearing in only putting pressure on the outer edges of the bearing.  There is a lip on the inside of the hub that the bearing seats against so you know when it is fully in place. After that the dust seal can be put in by hand.  These are sealed bearings so no extra grease is needed.

Flip the wheel over and slide the spacer into the hub, then the next bearing can be set into place. No hammer needed on this one.

 

Using snap ring pliers put the cir clip into the groove followed by the dust seal. Just like that your all done.

Lacing the Front Wheel

I received the parts a couple weeks ago from RAD Mfg. but its been super busy since then so I haven't been able to make the time to go out and put things together.  Well now it is cold and snow is on the ground, making the garage a might chilly and since I only have an hour or so to work no sense in putting a fire in the wood stove. So I will do what any other motorcycle enthusiast would do. Bring the project inside to the kitchen table.

When I put the rear wheel together it had been a very long time since I had attempted to string up a new rim so it was a bit of trial and error to get it all right.  This time I had a better Idea of where to start with the wheel set up and I went straight to work.  I will describe it in a bit more detail then I did with the rear wheel.
 First I slid in the spokes on one side of the hub making sure the top and bottom spokes laid in overlapping properly so they don't bind on each other.

Next I slid them into the rim making sure that each spoke hit the proper hole with the angle toward that side of the hub. I loosely put a nipple on each spoke just to hold them in the rim.

Next step was to lace each of the spokes through the other side of the hub and into the rim making sure to hit each hole in the rim with the proper angle as well as making sure the overlap of each spoke is correct. Don't want any binding.

Then with a standard tape measure I started to tighten the spokes up with just fingers and measured from the hub to the outside of the rim all the way around to center it up.  Also measured the offset of the rim while laying flat on the table and checked it against the measurement of the original wheel before I took it apart. I continued to tighten and measure until all spokes were tight with just fingers and made sure that each one was seated into the hub.  With all the spokes finger tight when I have time to put it on the forks and true and tighten the rest of the way it is already very close.  I don't have the new wheel bearings yet so I will have to wait for those as well as some extra time to get out in the garage and finish this up.

Front Fender & Brake Caliper

Today I was just fooling around trying to find things I could do in the garage, there are plenty of things still to be done but also many of them require the ordering of more parts and right now the budget is not allowing that.  Ebay sales have been slow lately.  I took the opportunity of a slow day to drill and mount the new front fender as well as the front number plate. Its starting to look pretty sharp.

I took the Caliper apart and cleaned out the old oil and bled the air out with new oil. Mounted the caliper up to the fork. I used the old brake pads, they have about 30% left on them, good enough for now.