Becoming an addict... '85 Tri-Z

[HyKlas]

First the ATC 70 to relive my youth, then an '85 250r, and now an '85 Tri-Z... Always thought the Yamaha was a damn fine looking machine though, that split top tube design is just beautiful.

This one might sit for a little while since I have the cases split on the 250r. Maybe go through the carb and at least see if she'll fire.

Purchased from the 2nd owner, who really did a great job taking care of things prior to parking it a dozen or so years ago. Even has the license plate with tags that expired in 1988. No title but I think we'll be okay, even if I do have to lein it. Pretty clean though and it doesn't appear to have been monkeyed with very much.

Here's a teaser shot. The front fender is cracked so it's kind of goofy looking but he gave me a good one to go with it.


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[HyKlas]

Pulled the carb, pulled the float bowl, spotless... Even the pilot jet was clean. Shot some carb cleaner around, blew it out, wiped out the tank, added some fuel, and started kicking.

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Doesn't run well but it runs! Now to swap out fuel / vent lines and check on the cooling system. Clutch doesn't work either... He said it was brand new but it's probably all stuck together. Oh well, the damn thing runs! :w00t:

[schlepp29]

I always thought the yellow tri z'triz's looked good. Nice find

[HyKlas]

Some of these plastics have seen much better days! I tried to start out with scotch brite but quickly realized I'd need to scrape the oxidation off with a razor first. Here's a shot of the first quick pass on one side...

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[schlepp29]

that definitely works followed by wet sanding and then polish with ultra fine cut.the tri Z has been the hardest for me to wet sand and polish in my opinion but you won't hurt it it will definitely look better

[schlepp29]

when you use a buffer with ultra fine cut like 3M or Meguiars don't concentrate on one spot too long with a buffer just keep moving around

[HyKlas]

Not going for perfection on this one. The oxidation is literally 1/16" thick so this stuff is too far gone to look amazing again. Scraped it down and melted it, going to follow with a quick polish to help even it out. Here's after using the torch...

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Here's another before and after on the rad shrouds...

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[schlepp29]

Clean rider quality, I like it!

[Outlaw #24]

A torch huh? I have the Oem Plastic of our Tecate and it is so badly oxidized that we have scrapped with razor blades and still where the sticker were is raised up a 1/16 inch. Heat will probably smoothen it out some making it easier to get a good polish to it! This unit will be assembled within the next few weeks.

[schlepp29]

I've seen heat guns bring a little bit of the color back

[HyKlas]

I used a small-ish butane torch to melt the top layer and smooth out a lot of the roughness and scratches. After that it needs a buff and polish due to the uneven appearance. Takes a light touch but works very well.

[HyKlas]

Instead of getting all new wheels and tires that will only fit this machine, I've decided to swap hubs instead. That way I can use all of my 4x110 Honda stuff. Is it true the TRX450R units fit on these? New ones are stupid cheap, like $45 each.

[HyKlas]

I'm full of questions with no answers... Does this silencer come apart to repack? I have the back cover off but can't see how to pull anything else...

[HyKlas]

Added another photo to the plastics above.

Here's a shot with it mostly back together. Engine is detailed as much as I'm willing and got the pipe repainted. Used VHT gloss black on the pipe and a satin black on the heat shield. Think it came out pretty nice. Still need to detail the front end and back half but tomorrow is a new day! New front tire incoming as well. Went with the CST Ambush 23x8-12.

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[El Camexican]

Nice job! :beer

Never tried a flame torch, but I have played with the heat gun. Seems you really need to know when its time to pull the heat away, or the color can darken a fair bit. I had some Yamaha yellow turn orange and some KTM orange turn redish while dicking around with the heat gun.

I don't know what your secret is, but I find that as soon as you see a gloss forming on the surface its time to move about 2 seconds ago and that if you work too small of an area you get blotches.

[HyKlas]

The blotches mostly come out with a good cutting compound then polish. I found it was a lot easier to control the torch than it was the heat gun. The gun just seemed to heat too large of an area far too fast and caused dimples.

If I wanted a like new finish, I wouldn't have used heat at all. For that it's best to start with 80 grit sandpaper and work your way up to 2000 wet then finish with a polish. Same as you'd do with a painted surface really...

[ironchop]

Added another photo to the plastics above.

Here's a shot with it mostly back together. Engine is detailed as much as I'm willing and got the pipe repainted. Used VHT gloss black on the pipe and a satin black on the heat shield. Think it came out pretty nice. Still need to detail the front end and back half but tomorrow is a new day! New front tire incoming as well. Went with the CST Ambush 23x8-12.

252597Looking good

Except for those fork boots. Those boots are bringing down the property values in the whole neighborhood.

Probably looked ok before you went all shiny everywhere else.

Fenders look great though

Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

[HyKlas]

Those are the rare factory orange fork boots man! Okay, I lied... Will have to agree 100% and that is on the list of to-dos. The forks are totally shot so I'm bouncing stuff around trying to figure on the best course of action.

New front tire is mounted and installed though. Glad to be rid of that cracked up 25" monster...

[Tri-Z 250]

Ok if your going to do the forks, which sounds like it's time. Most shops are $65 a leg plus fluid and seals. I would go the extra $100 mile and order Progressive Fork Springs. Stock is fine so don't feel obligated it's just the mod is worth it IMO. Oil weight is based on feel and style of riding you do. Get some guide from your suspension shop as to weight, I do a blend. There's a guy that sells New Rubber style fork boots on eBay. They don't match OEM but look, fit, and perform just fine, funny but I think he was out of Ohio. You have read over this post haven't you? http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/16277-parts-that-inter-change-with-TRI-Z-250
If not it's got good useful info

[HyKlas]

I have scanned through that one a few times, definitely a good read. A bit could be added to that thread since doing a bit of my own research as well.

My local place quoted me about $180 if I bring them the parts, oil, and forks off the bike. At that rate, I'll probably just figure out what seal driver I need and do it myself. Figure if I can do half the crap I do at work every day, I can rebuild a set of forks.

[Tri-Z 250]

No doubt if you got the right tools, it's not bad. Please add to the post any of your finds it's way better to refresh a Topic than creating a New post that may get lost. Keep in mind the rear shock...still very do able to cob one together, or go with something that fits and performs less. Axis, PEP and others can give you the best of today's tech for around $800. IMO once you've rode a Z with one, talking about dollars is pointless.

[ironchop]

.... Please add to the post any of your finds it's way better to refresh a Topic than creating a New post that may get lost....
.

AMEN TO THIS STATEMENT

For the life of me, I can't figure out why someone hasn't archived these interchange type threads into their own subforum location after all these years. It's a real PIA to find them if you don't remember the exact title, case sensitive spellings, etc when using the search feature here and these threads are friggin priceless. Searching for the OP is useless too most times. I tried to find Matt's manual depository thread the other day and I can't find it either. It's only a couple months old so this is VERY aggravating

That Tri-Z interchange, the Tecate interchange, numerous Honda interchange and component swap threads are invaluable to this place and separate this forum from all other online forums that give any mention to trikes at all



Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

[christph]

AMEN TO THIS STATEMENT

For the life of me, I can't figure out why someone hasn't archived these interchange type threads into their own subforum location after all these years. It's a real PIA to find them if you don't remember the exact title, case sensitive spellings, etc when using the search feature here and these threads are friggin priceless. Searching for the OP is useless too most times. I tried to find Matt's manual depository thread the other day and I can't find it either. It's only a couple months old so this is VERY aggravating

That Tri-Z interchange, the Tecate interchange, numerous Honda interchange and component swap threads are invaluable to this place and separate this forum from all other online forums that give any mention to trikes at all



Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

Agreed. At a minimum I think there should be separate sections dedicated to the more popular machines. So, if you have a question about the 250R, it goes in its own section. That way it is easier to find, and if you're just looking to read threads about your machine there's one place to go. Being biased towards the 250 two strokes I think each should have its own section, along with the 200X, 350X, etc. Some of the more popular utility trikes could also have their sections. I know currently there is the group section, but they seem to get very little traffic.

[HyKlas]

Find it better to spend the money on a quality tool and DIY vs handing the money off to someone else. Then you have the tool and a little experience for next time.

As per the threads... I always prefer to bump old ones with new info, especially if that's the #1 thread on a Google search of the subject. And yes, forum searches are generally garbage. I prefer to use something like the one below in Google.

Yamaha tri-z part interchange site:3wheelerworld.com


Using the "site:" identifier in the Google search bar is invaluable. Even works well for finding craigslist ads or completed eBay auctions beyond the 90 day limit. Just substitute 3wheelerworld.com with craigslist.org, ebay.com, or whatever site you're trying to search.

[HyKlas]

Got a set of TRX450r hubs and they fit reasonably well. Had to tap them on but no big deal. With those and the set of 9" wide, 3" backspacing wheels, this thing is 51" wide out back! That's a little much I think...