Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

Is there a simple way to disconnect the governor arm from the carborator? I've removed the bolts that hold the carb on but it won't slide off (It needs cleaned big time) because the of the linkage to the governor arm (wire rod and spring).  The shop manual says to remove one of the two screws that hold it on, but I'm not sure which one should be removed or what will happen to the governor if I do remove them.  I have heard that governors are really hard to adjust and I was trying to avoid that agrevation.  I've labels the two screws "A" and "B"  (one of them is really a bolt).

Yeah, saving the old bikes (cars & other historical stuff) is a rewarding thing for me.  Those old RDs were the orignal sport bike.  All the high tech crotch rockets of today are riding on the coat tails of the RDs.   They changed motorcyling as we know it.

I don't have my manual here.  It's at camp.   I'm under the impression that the belt fed lubrication is in addition to the oil galleries that push oil to the head/valve area.  Could possibly be redundancy  to protect components if a gallery gets blocked.  Who knows?  Maybe just a sales hook.  Worked on me!

These are some nice bikes.  When you find them are they is mint shape like this?  Do their owners share an appreciation for their technological accomplishment or do you see something that they don't?

I saw a motor like the brown one you have shown posted on craigslist recently.  The guy selling it said it would be a good go-cart power plant.  But I wasn't buying.  

Underdog wrote:

Q: "When you find them are they is mint shape like this?"

A:  No.  The red RD400 is the one that I fully restored.  It was shamefully abused and in terrible condition.  Spent several grand and hundreds of hours of work to make it look like that.   The purple RD350 is a very well kept example but hardly mint.  It's all in pieces right now as I begin it's restoration.  I'll post some pics as I go along...

Q:  "Do their owners share an appreciation for their technological accomplishment or do you see something that they don't?"

A:  Hard to say for sure.  Can't really speak for the previous owners.  Some would like to restore the bikes but don't have the money or wherewithal to do it.  Others don't have a clue of what they  have.  Just an  old  motorcycle getting in the way in the shed.  There are a many however who fully appreciate these machines for the true icons they are.  Guys who have either owned one in the past or just plain motorcycle enthusiasts with a knowledge of their history  covet these machines.  I've seen examples of restoration and modification of some of these old rockets that is truly impressive and worthy of praise.  Some guys just keep riding them with little or no attention to restoration.  Basic maintenance and that's it. 

Re the go cart power plant.   If it's from either an RD350 or RD400, it would make an excellent go cart engine.  In stock form they make around 40 h.p. at the rear wheel.   With a little massaging and a few bucks,  somewhere around 60 h.p. can be realized.   In the hands of a skilled racer, it would be a great engine.   If one is not familiar with the "light switch" power delivery of a pipey two stroke, it would be a handful to say the least.  

When you are restoring a bike like this how do you clean up the corrossion that forms on the aluminun cylinder head?  The aluminum sometimes gets a white film and bumps on it.  Is there a chemical that can clean this corrosion up? Or do you just live with it?

The guy I bought my Yamaha snowblower  owner's manual from had this bike that he was trying to get rid of.  

When I have air cooled cylinders that look like that (oxidized),  I usually get them bead blasted then paint them with black engine (heat resistant) paint.  Painting the cylinders black actually improves heat dissipation.  However, do not have them powder coated.  That method leaves too thick of a layer of paint and will actually inhibit cooling. 

Is that an RD200?  Sweet.  That baby looks mint.  With the front disk brake I'd guess it's probably a '76 to '78 I have one of those too in very good condition.  If you can get that bike cheap ($1000.00 or less),  and you're into bikes, I'd scoop it up.  What was the owner asking?   Here's a pic of my '74  RD200:

Is that a Magnesium jug or Aluminum....That pitting looks like Magnesium..

Friiy

The cylinders are alway aluminum.  Occasionally you'll find a magnesium ignition cover or other component cover but not cylinders.  At least none that I've seen.

This Yamaha is blowing snow. It still needs some fine tuning and adjustments.  The skids/shoes and scaper bar are not correctly adjusted.  The governor will sometimes over-rev the engine. I'd like to test the compression to see if that's an issue.  But overall I can see why these swowblowers have developed somewhat of a cult following.  Very easy to turn the tracks on snow (one hand). 4th speed in forward is a nice walking pace and the 2nd reverse gear partially makes up for the fact that you cannot roll this blower backwards in neutral.  I'm running it in a low-mid throttle setting (in 2nd gear) in the video in a heavy windblown snow/sleet mix that sat for 2 days. You can tell by the spotlight that I need to increase the throttle.  But its at high throttle that I get the over reving governor.  If I go into a big snowbank it revs up just fine but then when i clear the snowbank the rpms don't automatically drop back down. 

Is it hard to test for compression?

http://www.vimeo.com/2604216

Testing compression is very easy as long as you have the tester.  Canadian Tire sell a decent unit for around $50.00.  If you don't have plans to use it much, they might loan you one to use. 

Always test with a cold engine.  Take out spark plug, put in the proper sized fitting for the tester into the spark plug hole.  Using your electric start, crank the engine.  On each compression stroke the gauge needle will jump to the next reading.  Watch the needle until it no longer responds (increases).  Once it is at it's highest reading, that's what your compression is.  Make sure your compression tester connections are good and tight and try to use as few in line adapters as possible. That will reduce opportunities for leaks.   

Can I just assume that the reason the governor over-revs the engine rpms is because of a compression issue (pistons/rings/cylinders)?.  Does " changing the rings" entail a great deal of effort/work/experience?