My wife's 1986 Honda atc 250 SX rebuild and redo

[pipeline triker]

My wife has been riding a 1983 200s that is all redone for that last year or so and decided she wanted something with rear suspension also. She has small hands and has a hard time reaching and pulling in the clutch lever on most things. so we were in the market for a fully suspened auto machine. We have a 225Dx but that is not really what she wanted. I was going to finish to convert my one 84 200x into an auto for her. I then found an 86 250sx on craigslist. It had been on for 11 minutes, I was already the 3rd caller. Turns out I kinda know the guy, I have a vintage snowmobile bussiness and he had bought some parts and stuff from me through the years and knew me from vintage shows. He said he would hold it for me and if I wanted it it was as good as mine. The next day we drove a little over an hour in a snow storm to go look at it. It was rough, for sure, but ran perfect. The guy got it from his buddy who bought it new in 87 from North Honda in Menominee MI. He went on to tell me how when it was new it was flipped over and that is when all the plastic's got broke. He also told me how it only had between 10 - 15 tanks of gas run through it since new, would have been less but the tank started leaking.
The battery was dead so the guy flipped the kickstarter out and it fired up on the second kick, now pouring rain instead of snow. He lived in town so I could only ride around his yard, but it ran great and had tons of power. it was in alot worse shape though than he said so I got him to knock $50 off even though he had 20 other people that wanted it.

[Thorpe]

Very cool... She will love the SX. They are great rikes!

[Brockey]

Awesome. Make sure to post up some starting pics.

[pipeline triker]

The only cable that was decent was the thottle. There was no front brake,cable, lever or nonthing, because some one told his buddy when it was new that front brakes were dangerous. We loaded it up and drove home. My wife was so happy even though the thing looked like hell. When we got home I unloaded it, one kick and it fired right up. i backed it up into my barn, which is nice and clean and mainly for snowmobile storage but I do some work up there as well. I forgot to take some pics of it before I started tearing it apart. I will try and get ahold of the guy I bought it from and get a before pic. lots of packages from ebay and other places and it is now coming together nicely. I did nat have to go into the engine at all. it got all new cables, brakes, bars, grips, fenders, I have an amazing seat cover coming, the tank will get repainted and all new decals, the PRM six pack rack that is amazing and very nicely built, a narrow front aluminum rim and Kenda front max tire(these are supossed to be here by end of next week. All blue hoses and vent tubes, and a bunch of other things that I am forgetting. Everthing on it is repainted, polished ,new or all of the above.

[110 atc]

SX's are nice trail machines, wish I wouldn't have sold mine. Post some pics if possible. Karl

[pipeline triker]

it is really starting to look like a trike again. now for the pics.
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/JDX43-19-11016.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/JDX43-19-11017.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/JDX43-19-11018.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/JDX43-19-11019.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/JDX43-19-11020.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/JDX43-19-11021.jpg

[pipeline triker]

The rear fenders give an idea of what it looked like. My wife said Bride of Frankenstein. http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/kriss1986250sx4-2-11006.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/kriss1986250sx4-2-11005.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxgoingtogether3-30-11001.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxgoingtogether3-30-11002.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxgoingtogether3-30-11003.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxgoingtogether3-30-11001-1.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxgoingtogether3-30-11004.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/kriss1986250sx4-2-11001.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/kriss1986250sx4-2-11002.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/kriss1986250sx4-2-11003.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/kriss1986250sx4-2-11004.jpg

[pipeline triker]

The battery at one time leaked acid all over and caused a lot of damage. We found a place in California that had completely sealed batteries for the 250sx so that is what we got. So far with the cost of the trike all parts and the stuff that has not arrived yet, I should be able to keep the total cost just under $1000. i think that is pretty good for a trike that will be better than new when done. Also the bars are aluminum and are very nice. they are Tusk, atv bend, a guy on ebay has them for $36 shipped. Anyone needing a grab bar or something for on of these. The PRM sixpack rack is great, looks nice and is very soild yet light, and I thought a bargin at $85 shipped. The rusty old chrome sixpack racks on ebay are over $50 and they look nowhere as nice. We are going to use the steel back wheels probaly for now. but it will get aluminum rears very soon.
This is it for now, hope you guys enjoy my latest build.

[jays375]

Wouldn't happen to be looking to adopt a son?Looks really good,nice work.

[Thorpe]

Lookin good!

[pipeline triker]

i have 2 sons already and only one atc 70, kinda lookin for a blue zinger. the rear shock looks so nice also beacause I had to go through it. The mounts were froze and the bushing was seized. i had to machine a new bushing and get all new hardware. Yea my wife is really happy with how it is turning out also. We went to our local DNR on Monday and registered it and my one Yamaha that I have had for almost 10 years, just never leave the yard with it. Trails here all open May 1st, so it has to be done by then. i have to strip the tank, put a liner in it and prime, paint ,and install the decals. i had a # of bolts that were either broke off already or broke when we took it apart. Had to drill them out and retap all of them. Those footpegs bolts are some hard bolts that is for sure.

[bcredneck]

what kind of sleds you hiding i love old sleds

[wisconsinite]

that sx is looking good, i'll be watching for you out on the trails this year! gonna look prettier than my sx, im afraid :(

[pipeline triker]

Wisconsinite, you need to get ahold of me when you go riding. you are welcome to park in my yard and leave from here. my one buddy got his schedule at work switched around and he now has Sunday and Mondays off, so we will be going on some monday rides also, 29 days till trails open.
bcredneck, i have a vintage sled bussiness and have over 500 sleds right now, also 100's of engines on shelfs. I will put some pics in the sled forum later. I have everthing from alouette to yukon King and lots in between. achaully i sold the Yukon grizzly so the highest letter ones would be yamaha's, those are not rare so next in line is a 1970 Wildcat super e. That one is stupid rare.
for on the sx today i got the battery put in and hooked up and started working on the tank. the tank is awful, rusted through and super thin in the right front corner and super small pin holes all over. I have a 85 tank that is in alot better shape on the inside but beat up pretty bad on the out side. i think I am going to use the 85 tank. Fun,fun.

[wisconsinite]

yup, i'll have to do that. couting the days down myself, just gotta get a clutch and chain/sprockets for my z. rear suspension is all fixed, can't wait to get on the trail and see how much better it rides.

[pipeline triker]

i have been working on the tank alot. i will try and post some pics of it later today. i almost have it ready for primer. The front wheel and tire have not come yet so we are hoping it arrivies today. We got the seat cover yesterday and it is amazing. One of the nicest seat covers I have ever seen.

[thestud25]

That looks like it is coming along well. Do you have any before pics? I like the blue handle bars.

[viking]

Hey Pipeline i DIG yer post and trike Dude Good work it looks good..
And by the way i collect old skidoos aswell..
i have
10 old elans
2 olympiques 68 and 1973
1967 nordic
3 skiroules
4 trikes
2 old 350 honda cb vbikes
a bunch of old yotas
and the list goes on!!

[pipeline triker]

Well i had major trobles with the tank. the 85 had many holes as well, not as big and it is soild though. We got the holes sodered up and the tank ready. I did use the 85 tank. I wanted to take a pic before I started staiting it but my camara batts were dead. The tank is now final sanded, lined, and I will be painting it and putting on the decals today.
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11005.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11006.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11007.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11012.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11014.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11016.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11018.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11019.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11023.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11034.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11036.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/krisstruck250SXtankBoysgrandpa4-8-11035.jpg

[pipeline triker]

We got the front wheel and tire, and the seat cover all on now. The thing looks great. I painted the steel rear wheels white till we get new ones. All thats left is I have to hook one cable up yet and get the tank done, and then put the rest of the decals on. We also made little mounts to put the registration stickers on, they mount on the fork tubes. There is no way I was going to put the reg. stickers on this tank.

[Tippmann98]

Make sure you post a finished picture!

[AtcFactoryRacer]

Wow amazing job! I like the blue tank decals on the 87 models. My advice to you is when you get your repo decals for the tank apply them to the tank when the base coat is dried, and then clear over them. The reproduction decals, depending on who makes them, often use cheap glue and will peel off when you wash the trike. If you clear over them they will never peel or get worn or faded.

[pipeline triker]

got the tank painted today. What a mess, the paint I had got decent stuff to, was junk it would not flow out right and ran like crazy, I think it either froze our is just a bad batch, the paint shop said to bring it back. Had to let that all dry and sand it off. I then went to town and got a differant paint and sparyed that. My wife applied the new decals. I have some pics of it being done and her decaling it. I will post them tommorrow, it is kinda late now. It turned out real nice though. My wife can not hardly wait to ride it, even more so now that it is almost done.

[atc350xer]

Wow amazing job! I like the blue tank decals on the 87 models.
Actually, the blue decals are '86. '87 had blue/orange,
Nice job on the SX... looks great!

[pipeline triker]

Just put the tank on WOW does it look nice. I will put up a few pics. had a crazy day yesterday my youngest son cracked his head open, so we got to sit at the ER for a while yesterday.

[wisconsinite]

bummer, hope he's alright. something how clumsy kids are, ain't it? lookin forward to seeing the new pics, and doing some riding this summer. have you checked out the race track in gillet yet? the website says they're going to have open riding most saturdays this summer.

[pipeline triker]

bummer, hope he's alright. something how clumsy kids are, ain't it? lookin forward to seeing the new pics, and doing some riding this summer. have you checked out the race track in gillet yet? the website says they're going to have open riding most saturdays this summer.

Yea he is OK, we were unloading a load of hay into the one barn and right as a bale was standing on end and starting to fall over he ran at it. Sent him sailing about 5-6 feet and hit the back of his head on some rough concrete. I am good friends with one of the head people with the atv club that does the park and my wife went to school with the lady who kinda runs it. X-file and me talked last summer about going and haveing a few 3 wheeler heats, but never did. I guess those free ride days are pretty decent, hardly no one goes so you can rip it up pretty good, and not have to worry about lots of other people.

[pipeline triker]

We have this sx almost done, all that is left are the decals for the fenders. the rear maiers fit kinda crappy but what do you do. I have not put gas in it yet as it has been crazy cold here and the longer the liner can dry the better. I would still like to find a headlight guard but can not. Here are some more pics, some of the paint,my wife doing the decals and then cleared.
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone001.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone002.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone003.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone004.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone005.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone006.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone007.jpg

[pipeline triker]

None of it cleared, pic did not go through. My wife loves this thing. I have the best wife, she enjoys riding and chose this trike over a newer Polaris 4x4 with a plow. We are really happy with how it is turning out, lots of time but I think it is worth it. We are still going to put alluminum rims and nicer tires on but these rears are brand new. I really like how the front tire rim combo looks. the seat is so amazing in person the pics do not do it justice. there is 4 layers of clear on the tank and it turned out great. http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone022.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone024.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone021.jpghttp://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/mbsdirtbike/250sxtankgoatsSXalmostdone023.jpg

[MrPretty]

That looks fantastic man, that front wheel looks great!

[nickvanorman]

i love the red white and blue paint scheme! makes these things look so cool. hopefully mine will look that good whenever i get around to getting new plastics, tires and brakes for it.

[tri-Z ripper]

TOP NOTCH. That came out beautiful! Also my friend would just die seeing your barn! he is also a vintage snowmobile junky and has as least 50 machines himself! old johnson's and such! Nice build keep up the good work!

[pipeline triker]

Well we put gas in it yesterday for the first time, turned on the gas, put the choke on and hit the starter button. it fired right up, no leaks and ran great, seems a little cold blooded. it was 44 degree's out and we had to let it idle with the choke half on for about 4 min. before we could take it off. not the worst. Once warm you barely get the button pushed in and it is running. My wife loves it, she was all bundled up, winter gloves and all for the first ride. She had to go up and down the road as there is snow in the yard again. It has a lot more power than I would have thought, but with 10-15 tanks of gas since new it is not much past broke in. The handling with the narrow front tire is amazzing on road and off. We still do not have the rest of the decals on it yet, it has been super cold here.

[wisconsinite]

i was right, it makes my sx look like a big turd :(. seriously though, looks great. i have the same tires on the back of mine, great in snow and mud, but they dont slide very well. how are the tusk bars? i was gonna get a set for my tri z.

[110 atc]

Wow, forgot about this thread, very nice work!

[ironchop]

that seat is sweet....trike looks great