Question about reeds and rad valves...

[Trackburger]

I have an 85 250R, It has been bored 0.20 over with a ported head, LRT head pipe and FMF silencer. the carb is origional as far as I know, and I have no clue what size jet is in it.
Anyway.....
The question I have is how do I know if I have just reeds, or if a rad valve has been installed. I dont know much about either so any help is appriciated. The bike seems to run okay, but bogs sometimes at WOT. I would like to replace the reeds as a precautionary measure anyway, even if thats not the problem, but not sure what I need to do this. Are there different sizes??? Best brands??? If I have a rad valve (what is this anyway?) will that matter as far as ordering new reeds. I'm sure for you experts I probably made myself look dumb with this thread, but as some of you can probably see I don't know anything about reeds and what not. Thanks in advance for any help!!!

Oh,....I use it mostly for trail riding, no racing or dune climbing or anything. not sure if this matters.

ooppss.....1 more thing..... How often should these be changed??? is there a time frame, or just when the go bad??? How do I know if they are bad??? Thanks again!

[x.system]

Heres a good pic of a rad valve, http://www.yaskyatv.com/prod/spt/in/brv.html

It replaces your stock cage and boot and gives better flow.

Its a good idea to check your reeds when you buy a used two stroke, reeds are probably the most over used part and don't get changed very often. Depending on what you have for a cage will determine what reeds you will need to get. If you mostly ride trails any common reed should be fine for you.

On a two stroke you need to check your plug often for proper jetting. If yours is stumbling at WOT more than likely you have the wrong size main but its probably not that far off. For an everyday trail bike I would jet it a little rich just to stay safe.

Do a search on jetting and you will find tons of information about the subject and how to do plug chops.

[Trackburger]

okay, thanks for the info. I will take a look at mine when I get home, I think mine looks like that, but not positive, I guess my best bet is to take a pic of mine and post it up on here. I need to really take a day and mess around with the jet sizes, and take some plug chops. I changed tire sizes and noticed a big difference in the overall performance of the bike. speed, sound, shift points....everything. I'm sure that may have some effect on it as well. Thanks again.

[Wickedfinger]

The bike seems to run okay, but bogs sometimes at WOT. I would like to replace the reeds as a precautionary measure anyway, even if thats not the problem, but not sure what I need to do this

That is not usually a sign of bad reeds - a wierd pulsing at WOT maybe, but the bog is probably rich jetting. Hard starting is the most common problem with worn reeds. Depending on hours I would change them every year or so no matter what. Boyesen Rads can be a little different from year to year or from which year they are manufactured. Some say Boyesen on them, some just have a "B" logo, some have nothing. Usually though, they are made from a shiney aluminum so they stand out from the rest of the intake. Also, if you are running stock exhaust and airbox .... you would typically see your main-jet being 1 - 2 sizes smaller than stock because the Radvalve passes the charge much better than a stock cage (its in Boyesens directions to drop it lower).

[Trackburger]

It starts on the second kick, runs great, idles fine, everything is good, it just bogs and putters at the top end on a wot run. I can feather the throttle a little and it helps, but not as crisp as it should be. I looked at mine last night, and I think it is the origional set up. Guess I'll just have to take it apart and see what the real deal is. I just didnt want to order new reeds and then find out they wont work when they get here. Thanks for all your help!!!