OK, I'm going to keep it. What spares should I keep around?

[Kismet]

The 1980 110 is being perfectly reliable. I know this is not the way life REALLY works, but I'll pretend it is going to be fine for the time being. The tires are (excuse me) tired; one has a patch on the sidewall and they are checkered.

Reading through as many posts as I could, it seems the least expensive back-up for a leaking tire is a set of inner tubes from eBay. I'm old and I'll be going very slowly and turns will be in pastures and in low gears, so I'm not concerned about pulling rubber off the rim or wearing out the tread. So...heavy-duty inner tube set should be kept on hand, right?

I'm going to pull the forks out a bit with a come-along; they have been bent back so the tire footprint is about 1.5-3 inches (hard to tell, exactly) closer to the engine. A nice person on the forum indicated the bend does not affect the steering much at the slow straight-line speeds I'll be going. If I'm wrong, please let me know.

I'm not going to replace the front fender, I cobbled some lexan to fend off mud and what little water this machine will see. Put a hacked up cycle rack in front to bungie stuff to. It is solid, if not pretty.

I've got an original gas tank, which I've rinsed out with a rinse of dairy farmer's Milk Stone Wash, used to clean out the pipes that carry the milk from the stanchion to the milk tank. I hosed the gas tank out afterwards, shook it, let it dry a bit, then put rubbing alcohol in and poured that out. Should be as rust-free as I can get, with out relining it. As it stands, the machine has some aftermarket dirt-bike plastic tank on it which is ugly, but works. It is suitable for now.

1980 is a magneto engine, and 6v electrical. I can see some wire ends, but don't know quite how to tell if they are getting juice when I have it running.

Obviously, I am trying to get a functional 3 wheeler working to save old legs from walking up and down pastures at the lowest costs. So I am still poking around to find a simple and inexpensive light to see the farm lane at dusk and (rarely) at dark. Some nice person found an original head nacelle on eBay, but with shipping, it would be just under $50, and I'm squeezing dollars here.

So..summarizing: Are inner tubes on hand a good idea? Should I have any other parts on hand? Will 2 inches further out improve or not make any difference to the steering use I will put this to? Is there some inexpensive LED light, I can hook up to the front of the three-wheeler?

I am very grateful to have found this site, and for any responses I get. Thank you.

202942

[350for350]

I'm pretty sure that no one makes a 6v led light, but I could be wrong. If you don't try to mess with the inner tubes, you could try some tire sealant. A lot of people like Slime brand. I tried it once and it worked great for about two years. After that, I'd have to put air in every week. Now this was in a bike that only got ridden on the weekend. I now use a brand called Amerseal. That seems to work far better to me. Others may have different experiences or have Other brands to try. The Amerseal is also A LOT cheaper that the Slime. If you use a sealer, I'd put in a whole 32oz bottle. Just my suggestion.

[Kismet]

OK, so 1980 110 is being a trooper; starting even down to single digits temperatures once I got the formula down. "Don't touch anything except the pull starter, take your time, and oh, make sure the kill switch is correct." :) No smoke in exhaust.

Got a front fender for it and a headlight from a 1977 atc90 which is missing the switch. As it stands, a 4.5v Rayovac hand LED handlamp does a nice job for lighting the trail ahead at moderate speeds. I've got it suspended so it doesn't take direct contact bumps, but is held in a stable position.

I haven't pulled the forks forward as yet, but that is not involved, just takes gumption on my part.

Gas tank is ready to go, but the cobbled tank on there works just fine for the time being. I haven't lined it, but once I make sure I've got it leak-proof, I'll probably get the $25 liner stuff. Spring project for me.

The bad part: I'm old and the front end really rattles my bad shoulder. Balloon tires notwithstanding, it is tough on a surgically repaired shoulder.

So now...found a guy who has a 1985 200s in fair shape, with a working headlight, decent looking tires, easy (he says) simple starting, and front end shock absorbers for a little over $500 (and a bit of a drive).

I've got about $400 into the 110 over the years, $200 of which went into the wrench who straightened out the carb issues and some electrical problems last Fall.

What do you think? Money's tight, but those shocks on the 200s are VERY attractive and the tires look better than the ones on the 110 (which has 6 lug-hole wheels and 22x11-8 tires...not found in a couple of web searches.) The 200 has a five speed tranny, as opposed to the 2 stage 4 speed on the 110. I'm most often driving in the lower gears.

But from a meets-my-needs perspective, the 110 is sufficient, and proven.

Then again, seems to me I could get my money out of the 110, and the 5 year newer, more powerful, shock-absorbed trike would ultimately be a cheap upgrade.

Yes? Anything I've forgotten?

(squeezing nickels sucks)

[scrambler250R]

I don't think $500 is too bad depending on what your definition of fair is. But if it has good tires, starts easy(cold) & doesn't smoke I'd say it's worth it. End the end, 1, 200s fit an adult better, 2, more power is nice to have & useful(even if your not a speed demon), 3, 200s are just as reliable as 110s when maintained. 4, The questionable suspension on those 200s is still WAY better that the zero suspension on the 110s! I think you would be happy with the 200s.

[Kismet]

Thank you. I shopped a lot and ended up with a 1984 200M, in nice shape and decent tires. Then drove it a bunch on frozen ground and snow-covered frozen ground. Then we had the thaw, I took it out to the melted ground and prompted ran over a .38 caliber sized snapped sapling stub with the front tire.
Took it to the shop, and $62 later had a patch inside and a new inner tube. One and one half miles on that and I had the front flat again...this time on asphalt. Back to the shop and now await the fixed repair. They said that THREE plugs wouldn't fix the puncture. (I honest-to-gawd did not even feel the puncture occurring.)

I'm hoping, big-time, that it can be fixed.

MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE RANCH, one of the wrenches asked about the 110. I told him I was thinking of selling it for the $375 I have in it. He said he'd let me know when pay-day came around...next Friday.

The patch and repaired tube ought to take care of the 200M's front and not leave me stranded on some ATV trail (Never been on one before and don't know what to expect.)

On the fence on selling the 110, even though the prospective buyer approached ME.

Your thoughts, gentlemen?

Thank you.