So going by the forum rules I must post here in this subforum because I'm one of the new guys on the block. Some of you may have seen my intro thread and the picture of my new to me 200es I got in a trade. She is in fairly decent shape for being a 30 year old machine but needs some small things here and there to bring it back to its glory. Well, small things turn into big things real quick when you start looking for parts that haven't been made for decades. I'm too committed to turn back now though!
Here is a list of the bad...
-Top end is leaking oil slightly from the head
-Exhaust is rusted beyond repair and has a patch welded on that is leaking on the pipe
-Oil needs changed
-New spark plug needed
-Carb needs adjusted, bogs down the harder you accelerate
-Foam air filter is nonexistent
-Brake light not working
-Rear brakes are VERY sticky
-Front tire won't hold air for more than a day, rim is bent pretty bad
-Fairings are cracked but repaired in multiple places, no fading though
-Front and rear racks have slight bends in them and needs a good paint job
-Fuel tank is clean but slight indentation in the rear
-Factory stickers are half gone and there are other junk stickers added
First thing I did was change the oil and clean up the screen. This proved to be my first headache as I didn't have any 24mm sockets to drain the pan. Trip to lowes I went! I guess any time you can justify buying more tools is a good day though I figure! Picked 10w-40 4 stroke oil for motorcycles from valvoline and sprayed the oil screen down with brake cleaner and topped her off with fresh lube.
Next, removed the NGK Iridium plug it had in. It was extremely blackened and looked very wet. I picked up two standard NGK plugs so I had an extra on hand and gave the beast a new spark in life.
Carburetor was next. Without taking it apart I first tried adjusting it. Fired it up, couple turns of the knob and purred like a kitten! Done, for now.
Air filter issue comes next. Decided to order a K&N replacement filter due to the bike only running with the screen and no foam filter. OEM filters weren't an option either. I did check out the UNI filters but decided to spend more on something I know will last longer than this old girl. Wasn't sure how the K&N's were going to fit but went at it anyway. First thing, I wasn't very pleased with it and I think the UNI's would have the same issue. The trouble is this. The stock filter was supposed to slip over the screen core and clamp on the intake end. The other end would have a hole in it so the screen core nut would be exposed letting you screw the whole assembly onto the air box bracket. This air box bracket is the only way the whole unit stays in place inside the air box. The K&N had no such hole in the one end to allow this to happen. I wound up sliding the new filter onto the core, clamping it on(which the opening of the filter was oversized by about an eighth inch) and slipping the assembly into the intake hose and wedging the bracket in the back of the air box with the bolt pressing against the plastic end of the filter. After screwing the air box cover back on it seems to be pretty secure but I'm not too sure if the filter unit will wind up slipping out of the intake hose over rough terrain. I may be taking the K&N back and looking at other options.
And now my latest project. Fixing the issue with the front wheel not holding air. Took the rim and tire off the front and took a spare tube I had up to the local honda shop to put a tube in it and fix it. Yea, not as simple as it originally sounded.(sensing a trend here) After installing the tube at the honda shop they noticed it STILL wasn't holding air. WTF! Apparently the tube was the right size for the tire, the valve was not in the right location I guess and was on a bind. Ok, I figured instead of messing around with it I would just put a new rim on the front and be done with it. YEA RIGHT! After looking through all the books and files he could pull out at the parts desk we gave up trying to find a single rim with even the 4x150mm bolt pattern let alone one that was 9x9. Great, ebay time. There are about a half dozen rims on ebay that would fit but all were in terrible shape and for 50-60 bucks I wasn't having it. Now what? Found some sweet new 3-6 offset rims I could put on the rear, use one of the old rear rims for the front and I'll still have a spare if I need it! Rims will be here Wednesday. I plan to paint all three rims gloss black and was toying around with the idea of doing the hubs and rings in red. Don't know yet...
More to come!!!