1985-87 Taurus 650 by ODG (Argo)

[MattDragontamer]

So the project you see here is a Taurus 650 made by ODG (Ontario Drive and Gear LTD.) from 1985 – 1987. It runs a 16HP (656cc) Briggs & Stratton Engine with a rear sealed gear driven (not shaft or chain) differential/transmission that has Hi/Lo/Re/N. It was built for power, not speed. First impressions of the Taurus would lead you to believe that it’s just another trike, but after taking off the fenders and
taking a good look at the inner workings, it’s clear that this trike was leaps and bounds ahead of its time.

So, to start off… the original condition pics!



And now for the teardown…

I pressure washed the whole thing, getting all the loose paint, mud and whatnot off of it.
I then cleaned the fenders with wash and wax soap, and started giving the chrome and
other metals a good scrubbing.



The starter's Bendix gear is gone on it, so I looked it up an ebay and found that the there is a newer
version of the starter for the 16hp engines that has the same interface plate. So I ordered that and a carb rebuild kit, because as you can see the carb
looks like it could use a good overhaul. The soft rubber and gaskets have gotten hard and might not be working right, so a rebuild should ensure
a smooth running carb for the next while.

[MattDragontamer]

It lives!

Pete and I got the engine running Monday night(06-12-2013). It took a little while to get it going, but once the fuel pump started to work again
(after a quick cleaning of the carb and pump) it ran like a champ. Almost sounds like a Harley D.





So the next thing I did was pull the battery cables, clean them and wrap them in electrical tape to seal up the drying out rubber.
To finish things off, we set the rear hub in a solution of 50/50 Power Steering fluid and Acetone. So we will let it soak over night and
see if we can get the hub off tomorrow. Supposedly the acetone eats the rust and garbage in the threads and the power steering fluid
lubricates. We will see how it goes...



So I finally got a chance to continue working on the pain in the butt hub tonight.
So to keep it short, the soaking might have helped a little, but it came down to putting the three claw pulley puller,
for even pulling power on the end of the axle and hub, and a six foot rod held by Pete lined up on the back of the hub
and a 10 pound sledge held by me whacking on the end of the rod.
For the first few hits, nothing happened, but after that the pulley puller fell off showing that the tension was being lost.
So after resetting the puller and whacking again, the hub finally started coming off.
So that was it for that, I will work on the cleaning and painting of the axle tomorrow night.
We started working on removing the front axle tonight, we got it moving, but the end with the rod hole in it seems to be stuck.
So we sprayed some penetrating oil and left it with that for tonight.



Finally the starter had arrived. This new starter is a bit different than the original, but according to the listing, it's made for this engine.
Everything seems to fit ok, so I will see about starting it up tomorrow with the starter.
I then continued on fixing up the rear axle area. Those pics will be posted tomorrow.
I left it tonight with the oil drain plug open to get as much of the old oil out.



I received the carb rebuild kit the other day... so tonight was clean the carb and install new kit.
Here is the result... not much to see, but if you can picture a 1/4" think layer of 27 years of mud caked on the carb,
you will see that it's quite clean now.

[MattDragontamer]

Other than that, here are some shots from different angles...

[honda200xguy]

Wow that's unique nice project

[MattDragontamer]

Ok, so I flew back home to Ontario Monday June 24th. Slept at my aunts place in Mississauga and headed out to meet Ken Sills and his Taurus inventory.
Ken's place looks like any other place in the farmlands east of Toronto... old, quiet (except for the damn trains flying by) and relaxing.
My first impressions of Ken where a little mixed, he is an old man with next to no care in the world.
But after introducing myself and chatting with him for a while, showing him my work thus far in the rebuild and my intensions for the Taurus,
he started to open up and we started to chat about the Taurus and it's history.
After that he pointed to his barn and said; "well let go see what we can find for ya".
The walk to the barn was quiet, I was looking around for some old Taurus frames in the high grass... but nothing. He keeps a clean yard.
So we walk to the barn, make our way to the back and open the slider door.

Ever had that "Kid in a candy store feeling"?

Well, it took me a few seconds to realize what exactly I was looking at... let me just put it in perspective.
Everything is covered in old hay and dust. Row after row of old boxes with part numbers sitting on shelves,
stacks of tires against the walls and large metal caged bins sit silently to one side of the room.

After stepping Ken turns to me and says; "so you are looking for a front brake cable right?" - "yep" I replied.
He proceeded to walk over to one shelf and pulled out a cable. As he did so I FINALY realized what was all around
me...

Practically every Taurus Part.

I literally had my jaw wide open with disbelief. I just had to ask to make sure "This is all the Taurus parts?", "Yes" Ken replies, "most of it, most engine and
parts that Argo uses for the six wheeled buggies are not in stock here, so if I don't have it they will".

So I pulled out my list and started to name off the parts I needed. He proceeded to open his parts book and confirming the part. Then went
on to the box according to the part number, dusted it off and proceeded to open and pull out the NEW OLD STOCK.
After going over my list he said to look in the book and go ahead and find all the extra parts I would like, might as well while I am there.
I started to fill one box after another... I was thinking to myself, it's a good thing I brought a wad of cash with me... :/ This might make a while.

So I had a good book going here until the image link button froze by web page...
I don't really feel like writing it all out AGAIN... so I will just post my haul.

So sum it up, the price for the lot was SUPER Generous on his part.
And I am in talks with Ken to see about buying all of his stock to ensure the future availability of the parts.



And yes... I will be scanning those manuals for the forums...

I have only had about 1:30 to 2 hours each night to work on the Taurus after work, so progress is slow, but moving on...

The rest of the brake assembly came apart rather well.
Installed the new solenoid... works beautifully.
I put the new cables and levers on... and the grips.
Then proceeded with the front end.
And finished off with replacing the old decals and rivets.

[MattDragontamer]

So the last few nights I have f*cking around with getting the stubborn hub to slide on and off with ease. I had been using a
file kit to try and get it done... Well, after a few nights of filing I got fed up... I then remembered that Milwaukee sawsalls have
a heavy duty 1/8th bit that might do the trick to deepen the groves of the splines. So I ran to CT and bought a set... man they are not cheap
... and only come in a five pack. But anywho, after carefully inspecting and deepening the splines with the blade, I FINALY managed to get
the hub to slide with ease.

So the first set of pics you will see here is Metal rescue at work... I needed the bolts out of the original drum hub. So I gave it a good bath.
Good thing to... because it still took a wrench and a to get them off.
I proceeded to prep the tires for painting... sanded them down with wool and taped them off of the one side for tonight.
And painted them.

I then worked on the front assembly. Everything was fitting ok, until I tried to put the brake pads in... they are a little big.
I took the pads off and filed the flat part that sits on the swivel pin down about 1/8th on both pads. Seems to have done the trick.
I can turn the drum cover freely now with minimal resistance.

[MattDragontamer]

So not much to say tonight... other than IT'S ALIVE!!!



So the final set of parts got put back on... New taillight, the fenders and control panel.

[MattDragontamer]

ANNND Finaly.. the completed project.

[briano]

I like it. It's not everyday you see one of those.

[Dirtcrasher]

Great job and pics. That is one nice machine! But, judging by the background pics, you have a few nice machines!!!

[MattDragontamer]

Great job and pics. That is one nice machine! But, judging by the background pics, you have a few nice machines!!!

lol, well the little red 73-74 atc 70 is mine, the others are coolpools.

[82300R]

Wow. Impressive work. Thanks for sharing..

[D-dub]

Damn cool trike!

[Ghostv2]

Very cool story, very cool trike, and one piece of lost history your bringing back to life. Great work.

[MattDragontamer]

There might just be two more on the way o_o"