My horrible tri-z luck

[Rigaman]

I have had a HUGE string of bad luck with Tri-z's. I dont know why, but when I go to look at tri-z's for sale, I always overlook things. Its like I get into a trance and just dont look. I just bought a tri-z in pieces specifically for the motor. got it home, and the clutch cover was cracked straight through, with a nice big weld across the right case.

My first Tri-z I bought had a big weld on the right case, and was missing a bolt hole for the clutch cover, so it never seals up right. Cant screw in the bolt at all because the hole was broken off and welded without the threads in it.

Second Tri-z I bought had a bad motor with a jug that was ported and cracked across the whole intake part of the jug. And the bottom where the oil drain hole is was all messed up so it wouldnt hold oil.

This Tri-z came with an extra motor that.. Of coarse had a HUGE weld in the right case where the kicker is.

So now I bought an 86 motor online. I haven't received it yet, but after the guy shipped it, I noticed the top of the bolt hole in the right case where the bolt behind the kicker cover goes was snapped off.

So this brings me to yesterday. I found a Tri-z on Craigslist. Guy wanted not too much for it. Had no plastics. Original tires which led me to believe it wasn't beat up too bad in its almost 30 year life. Rear shock was blown. It was in the back of a storage unit. as a roller, and a couple boxes of the parts.

I got the boxes out. Alot of the stuff looked good. I asked if I could take the motor out of the storage unit and look at it. I looked it over. My friend that was with me looked it over. But the guy who was selling it all was rushing me pretty bad. So He said.. we cant get the roller out right now. But if I left a deposit I could take what I could grab, and pick up the roller the next day. I gave him a $200 deposit, which was half, and he let me take the motor, and everything that wasn't attached to the roller. Headlights, all wires, levers, motor, etc. Everything but the wheels, shocks, frame, and swing arm.

The second he leaves I pick up the motor and see oil on the ground. Oh great. Look at that. The clutch cover has a split on the under side of the kick mechanism. Across the whole thing. And there is that infamous weld in the right case.

Oh YAY!! My freaking luck. Got it home and felt sad.

He said it was a fresh rebuild from a year ago, with a hour of break in on it. New crank, bearings, piston, sleeve, etc. And he tore it down to powder coat and "restore it"

I looked down the plug hole, and there was a good amount of carbon build up on the piston. Hour my ass.

So I took the reeds out to look down in the cylinder and see the piston. Piston looks good actually, but for some reason the sleeve sticks out a couple millimeters on each side of the intake. So its either not the right sleeve, or whoever had it before the re-sleeve opened up the intake all the way around, so I am pretty sure the air flow going from a nice flowing intake to BAM 90 degree angle sleeve in the way is going to be kind of crap.

I really hope I can have some better luck with finding good tri-z motors and parts. My buddy got 2 tri-zs with no real issues for $50 each!! One was a good running 86 with an 85 motor, but not cracked up at all... And the second was an 86 in boxes with a great motor.

Let me hear if any of you guys have had as bad a time as me. Do you guys come across tri-z's with welded up right cases? I have gotten extra cylinders that are usually wrecked too. Someone usually tried porting it and went too far.

[Bryan Raffa]

you gotta be able to make something nice out of all that!!!! Good Luck!

[3 Wheel Drive]

Sounds like you need to slow down a little bit, it's good to be picky. Good things come to those who wait.... These are not as rare as some may think. I passed on quite a few machines even some with a load of parts.

You can always part them out, hindsite is always 20/20.

[manbearpig]

DEF:insanity- repeating the same processes over and over expecting a different result :crazy:

no trikes with a honda emblem nearby? :wondering or just a bunch of really bad z owners?

[badass350x]

Agreed on building a nice setup out of what you have already..

[RubberSalt]

" My first Tri-z I bought had a big weld on the right case, and was missing a bolt hole for the clutch cover, so it never seals up right. Cant screw in the bolt at all because the hole was broken off and welded without the threads in it. "

Tap out the hole. or drill it through. put a bolt in in and a nut on the other end :) wont be as pretty, but it will hold.

If you get a case that doesnt leak on the right side, I'd recommend welding it up, it sounds like they are very prone to breaking there. >.<

[03 ORANGE SHEE]

Maybe some of the billet I keep sending your way will help make the build go a little better!

[ps2fixer]

The Tri-z I got from my dad had the entire kickstarter missing (broke off). Sold the top end (good) and bottom end (not so good) to members here. Only yamaha 3 wheeler I had, and probably the last, I prefer honda by far, even though my first quad is a yamaha 350 warrior 1999, but the thing is worn out now (beat to death), and basically needs everything lol. Been slowly working on building my 2nd quad a 1987 trx250x, since I can ride that on the road, can't with my ATCs :(.

Why not buy just the right side cover somewhere for the crazy price i'm sure they bring, and get your self a good machine going how you want, instead of the tons of parts machines that all have the same parts bad lol.

[Rigaman]

Im not looking for people to tell me how I rushed into things, and how I should hold off for nice ones. They are not rare. But when you can trade a 225dx that burns oil for a tri-z with an extra motor, frame, and most of a second one, I am going to do it. Or pick up a perfect tri-z with a cracked clutch case for $300, I am gonna do that too. Its not about how much I spend, or if I am getting screwed over... Its about how many bad ones there are out there.

I have built a few nice tri-z's with all my stuff, and I am in the process of building one more. The first one I really rushed into, but I dont regret it one bit. It had issues, and I spent alot, but everything on it was in perfect shape except the case weld. It had a brand new top end. New bottom end bearings, crank, rod, etc It runs like a gem. I just keep expecting to find a nice case, and they never have them. It seems like everyone selling their tri-zs get them as hand me downs from their neighbor, beat the piss out of them, and sell them. I guess 90% of the old bikes for sale are usually not too great. But there is that 10% that are.

I just bought a complete 85 with all 86 plastics, and 86 front end for $300. I opened up the motor. It was the best one I have seen so far. No horrible port job gone bad. No pitting on the dome. Mating surfaces are all perfect. My problem is I will buy one, build it up so it rides great, and then have a 3/4 complete bike in parts left. So instead of selling those parts, I find another cheap machine and do it all over again.

I am just surperised at how many bad ones there are out there, and how many people cut huge corners to make something work just ok, instead of doing it right.

And yes I do have Hondas also. And yes. I have run into some broken ass Hondas too. haha =)

[RubberSalt]

Me and my brother do the same with yamaha blasters. It is impressive how people cut corners(literally!). We've got a cylinder with saw cuts into the cylinder near the bolt, the case studd was half loped off. It was in horrible shape.

we've built several off these little machines into hot rod beast. Keeping p with his trx 250r.. Or was :-p

In parts, we have enough to build 2.5 complete machines currently lol

[Rigaman]

Haha Ya thats like me. Every time I find a good deal on a tri-z, usually the person selling it has 2 extra frames, a pile of wheels that are pretty much junk, plastics, axles and carriers, gas tanks, swing arms, and a couple messed up motors. Its like a few generations of hand me down trike parts. Getting worse and worse as they get handed down from person to person. And usually they only want to get rid of all or nothing. So ya gotta take it all.

I will grab it all, and toss what is junk, and save what I can. Its just a shame to see a perfect cylinder have its sleeve broken from someone tossing it on the ground, or the mating surfaces with huge dings and marks in them. All from poor storage.

[Jcormode]

Yea rigs man I feel ya pain at the mo. when I was younger I used to bodge things together drunk and with hammers and drill things and cable tie things on and I've broke three casings blow up every bike I've ever owned. So I change tack and minted ever toy PROPERLY with genuine parts.
There not the best bikes in the world but when the correct parts are used in the correct way they do go well. And I'm still learning the hard way. Lol as you know.

[Mosh]

My first Z looked like this from the start. It came with a YZ 250 engine. I rounded up parts on the cheap, including a cracked clucth cover that was welded, actually ended up being stronger than stock. I split the cases and the YZ had a new rod on it, I swapped the left side crank out to a Z crank so I could run the lights like stock, honed it ,and re ringed it and ran it silly, for 3 years at TF, OTC races and Trails for over 3 years. It ended up being the best damn Z, I ever owned and rode and I don't think I had more than 1500$ into the whole thing when done. I sold it and the other guy rode it for a few more years. I don't know what became of it now. I miss it..
Don't get discouraged. Keep your nose to the stone, stay in touch with the right resources, and you will get it done..And stay away fro C-list..lol

[ps2fixer]

My first Z looked like this from the start. It came with a YZ 250 engine. I rounded up parts on the cheap, including a cracked clucth cover that was welded, actually ended up being stronger than stock. I split the cases and the YZ had a new rod on it, I swapped the left side crank out to a Z crank so I could run the lights like stock, honed it ,and re ringed it and ran it silly, for 3 years at TF, OTC races and Trails for over 3 years. It ended up being the best damn Z, I ever owned and rode and I don't think I had more than 1500$ into the whole thing when done. I sold it and the other guy rode it for a few more years. I don't know what became of it now. I miss it..
Don't get discouraged. Keep your nose to the stone, stay in touch with the right resources, and you will get it done..And stay away fro C-list..lol

Care to expand on the "right resources"? I always used Craigslist with fair results.

[sledcrazyinCT]

I have built a few nice tri-z's with all my stuff, My problem is I will buy one, build it up so it rides great, and then have a 3/4 complete bike in parts left. So instead of selling those parts, I find another cheap machine and do it all over again.

If you want to break that trend and sell some extra parts I have a basket case Tri-z I bartered for a set of dually rims and some landscape equipment. It was mostly complete but I will need some misc. stuff. I have a lot of honda ATC stuff no liquid parts if you need anything to help with your projects.

I work in Webster, you nearby?

[Mosh]

Care to expand on the "right resources"? I always used Craigslist with fair results.
"Expand" on right resources? Well anything around you can be a resource. Wheter it be, friends, information forums, scrap steel, parts resources, etc. Being resourceful, is taking anything around you and making it work to your advantage. Your parts interchange site for instance, would be a resource. For instance, I would feel better about buying a trike part off a forum like this, vs. buying it off someone who has that same part in a box of lamp shades and tennis shoes and empty beer bottles. I am sure you have gone after the C-list find, and walked up to some dive where you hear banjo's playing back in the dirt floor shed full of mice.:lol:
I advised to stay away from C-list for the sake of saving money and just finishing up what you have, with what you have to work with. It was a comedic joke, to break the addiction of buying stuff. While I have also had good luck with C-list, I have also had bad luck here and there. Whether you deal with some quack, that jerks you around, or waist time going to look at stuff that wasn't worth your drive. I have been there, and once you aquire 10 machines in parts, it becomes hard to get rid of them, or stop hording them.

[ps2fixer]

Ahh ok, I was thinking you was talking about a different site to monitor or something. Never really thought about using my atvinterchange site to buy stuff with, but I did think about making a craigslist style selling/buy section more based on shipping parts instead of face to face.

@OP

I didn't realize you were building machines from the parts, orig post sounds like you have 4-5 parts machines and none good to ride. As long as your not wasting a ton of money, or have debts, I would say keep going getting one built, then buy another to make another complete machine if you like it. If you can profit off it, that would be even more of a reason to do it.