Is it the crank seals?

[Twilight]

So my 250r started up idled until I gave it gas and was smoking white clouds. After I gave it gas it still smoked white, but would die if I let off the gas. On the 2 strokes I have done it is the crank seals when you rule out the carb, gas/oil mix and the fact its been sitting.

I let it run for about 4min and still smoked white and still wanted to die when letting off the gas. The oil in the bottom end has been there since 1993 and hasnt been ran so I was wondering if that could be the cause? Never dealt with anything that has sat for that many years.

I would like to hear any advice from any angle, worst to best. if needed tomorrow I can take pics of the machine running with the smoke.

[yamaha_ripper98]

2 strokes have sealed crank so I dnt think that the gear oil has anything to do with it but I would change it lol that's a bit old may have thickened up over the years

[Daddio]

White smoke is usually a sign of coolant burning.

It could be a head gasket?

[Twilight]

Checked top end and coolant level, all the same. Should I run it longer?

Also, how do I know how much oil to put in the bottom end? I saw the oil check bolt, do I just fill until it comes out the hole?

[Daddio]

Checked top end and coolant level, all the same. Should I run it longer?

Also, how do I know how much oil to put in the bottom end? I saw the oil check bolt, do I just fill until it comes out the hole?

Yes. You might try running it longer. I have seen 2strokes that have been sitting for a long time that ended up having extra stuff in the crankcase that ,if you run it for a while, clears up.

I am more of a car tech than a bike tech and with a car if you see white smoke it is from coolant. Blue smoke is oil and black smoke is fuel. With a water cooled 2stroke it may be different. We only have aircooled stuff in our garage.

[Twilight]

Yeah ive had coolant leaks in a CR250 my friend had, it DOES look like that, but on on that bike there was a loss of power and you could see the coolant level drop. I will run it longer and just keep gas'in it. I am still wondering why I need to keep throttling it to keep running.

I'll try putting new oil in the bottom end and making sure the gas is right... hope thats it. =\

[2quicktecate]

hey man i'll help you get it running and give you my coil if your fenders are decent. i can clean out your carb and tune it. the 250r i just got smoked bad till i ran it for a while... then i cleaned the carb and aran a tank full of good gas and race oil and she flies

[2quicktecate]

you can bring it over tomorrow afternnon if you'd like

[Daddio]

If the carb is leaking fuel into the crankcase when at idle or when not running you will end up with a lot of extra smoke and possibly a machine that doesn't want to idle. If it were the crank seals you would see a change in the oil level in the tranny.

[Twilight]

2quick, got your PM, my girl went out to take pictures. Tomorrow im selling my beloved 350 odyssey, but I wouldnt mind coming over and we can both take a look. He will be here at 11am, so around 1pm i should be good to go

Anyone recommend good oil for the tranny?

2quick, you can also just have the fenders man, youve been a good guy and I dont think they are worth much.

[2quicktecate]

sweet, thanks. don't sell the oddessy!!!! what are you trying to get for it?

[2quicktecate]

i had one when i was 12 i miss it so much

[Twilight]

I paid 2300 for it, said he would give me 3000 for it. Figured I can get a good trailer and a dirtbike with the money

I have my Pilot and she just doesnt get ridden. Almost mint aside from one fender, watercooled with a OEM Honda kit, side mud guards, nerfs, windshield, some other crap like works and modded airbox.

More torque than Pilot big time.

[Twilight]

Heres the pics;

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0134.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0135.jpg

[2quicktecate]

its alot better than mine... do you have a front by any chance?

[Twilight]

no front, the extra was just a half fender, lol. haha now that I look at it, its not so bad, just really dirty =P

[2quicktecate]

we'll i have a dr appt. at 8:00 am so i gotta get to bed. let meknow tomorrow if you want to bring your trike over and tinker on it... talk to you later bro. also do you have a case splitting tool for my kawasaki?

[2quicktecate]

my old motor was like new just had shiftng problems and would like to split the case to see what went bad. it shifted like an automatic sometimes and would pop out of gears all the time

[Twilight]

i actually might at my place in cle elum, i can give my friend a call tomorrow and she can look =)

call ya tomorrow if i get a chance.

[Twilight]

I dont have your number =\ thought I did, but some guy named Pat answered. Oops.

'Sold my FL350, bought it for 2500, got a good 3 years of riding on her, sold for 3000, with a lil cleaning and work.

I wanted to cry when we loaded it up, was my first offroad toy that was actually MINE

Also, Got new oil in her, gonna clean out the gas tank and run it 32:1 with some amsoil. Hopefully the 250r will do better. I would still like to hear advice on it?

[Twilight]

Alright, same results =(. Anyone else have ANY ideas? I will start a tear down...ugh next weekend probably.

[2quicktecate]

my number is 253-304 6977. amsoil is the worst 2 stroke oil ever... i went riding today and my damn rear bearings locked up and chewed up the carrier.

[Twilight]

Damn dude... that blows =\ I have always ran amsoil in my Pilot and 350. What do you reccomend for the R?

Little late today, but next weekend I may have saturday (up to 3:30pm) free..

Loving the overtime at work. Im gonna get a dirtbike, probably a CR250 =)

[2quicktecate]

amsoil isn't your problem, but all my buddy that work at bike shop and build extreme 2 strokes say it's totally garbage. maxima super m is good and inexpensive, and i like castor for bikes without a powervalve, and if it's not too cold out. castor seperates from fuel at low temeratures

[Twilight]

Hmm weird, every shop I go to say amsoil is the best. Oh well, different tastes for different people.

Still wish i could have an idea on what to look for. I guess i'll go by my own 2 stroke engine diagnosis and go with the crank seals. If thats not it, then i'll look for another problem.

[2quicktecate]

let me know if you want help.. and i'd love to get that fender from you... mine hs sheet metal scabbed to it everywhere..

[Twilight]

lol, consider it yours =)

[2quicktecate]

sweet man, i'll do what ever i can to help with your trike or if you ever need parts i have just ask. can't wait to go riding with you. it's hard to find a hard core rider than can keep up with me in the trails. i race a built to the hilt ltr450 with my 250r and did really good against him. had him by 5 bike length's till about 5th gear and he slighty pulled by me. he offer to buy the 250r after we raced a few times...lol.

[Twilight]

Well I was able to keep up out at Tahuya, so hopefully I can ride with you. Never done a 250r threewheeler thou... only time will tell =)

Thanks for the offers man. I just asked some of the Pilot guys and they all said that trans oil leaking from the seals means the seals are to blame and creating the white smoke.

Bottom end is getting tore into now.

[2quicktecate]

cool, i guess they could of dried out after sitting so long...

[Twilight]

Yeah... sucks. I'll get some pics of the smoke.

Its weird, if I just barely run the gas, its fine, no weird noises or hiccups...but as soon as I let off, dead.

Hopefully crank seals arent a ***** on these

[Twilight]

Looks like I have to split the cases by the manual, can anyone confirm this?

[Twilight]

And heres the pics;

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0142.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0141.jpg

[yamaha_ripper98]

i have always split cases to do crankseals and i always replace crank bearings when im in there may not have 2 tho

[Twilight]

:( :( :( :( :( :( Ugh I really dont want to split the damn cases, I hate doing that.

[2quicktecate]

that sucks. are you sure you cant dig the seal out with the clutch cover off? it seems like you can, i don't know for sure but i would do a search on her and find out..

[Twilight]

Doing a search says I can, but I didnt see any of the symptons mine is having. Guess i'll just have to hope thats what is wrong.

[2quicktecate]

i just searched it for you too and you can without splitting the case. there's a seal puller you can get on ebay or sears. my friend says you can screw a couple drywall screws into then and tug them out, i don't know if i recommend though. good luck on resolve your problem, i really love my new 250r. it doesn't have the low end grunt like the tecate but it has mass high rpm power..

[Twilight]

Mine looks like it has the 87 crank which gives it a more low end pull. From when I rode it around shortly, gave it one helluva pull O_O coming out of the corner without shifting

[Twilight]

So I did a compression test, 160psi, about 10psi lower than spec, this is while the engine was cold.. Just did a double check so im editing my original post. So this spark plug has about 4 hours on it from what the owner told me... anyone see something off?


http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0146.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0147.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j27/TwilightOfHeaven/ATC%20250r/DSC_0148.jpg

[2quicktecate]

plug looks ok, look really new.

[Twilight]

Thats just it, looks new. No signs of it running like a 2 stroke, if it was the oil from the crank case, would that be burning off the carbon?

[2quicktecate]

talked to my buddy, and he says that a really bad dried out crank seal could have trans oil sucking through and causing your problem. 160 psi. cold doesn't seem to bad too me..

[2quicktecate]

the plug on my 250r looks like that too. does it smoke right when started? my friend said the pipe and silincer could be full of old oil.

[Twilight]

Yeah it smokes when started also. Thought as first was because it sat for so long, but after riding it around and it not stopping I knew something was ****ed.

Any place here in WA to get tubes and tires? Need some new ones for my 250sx.

[2quicktecate]

i usually order from bikebandit or check ebay. if you don't mind used tires my friends at northwest sand toys have all kinds. also discount can get them too

[Twilight]

Yeah I dont mind used at all. Left work early to go riding, the road was 6in of snow and closed...lol

Oh well.

I ordered the crank seals...

[Brad200X]

It sounds like a head gasket to me. My KX125 sat for 19 years and it didn't start smoking white until it blew the head gasket. Crank seals; you'd see it leaking on the stator side if they are bad, unless somebody didn't replace them as a pair. Just my $.02. Hope you figure it out.

[Twilight]

Good point! So, I know nothing in the bottom end was replaced except the clutch. If I pull the stator side, you sure i would see oil?

I'll give it a look. Thanks! That totally did not cross my mind!

[Dirtcrasher]

It sat so long your just asking for trouble..... Look at your past posts and problems with numerous models - do you really want weird problems, leaks and failures with a great machine you paid so little for??

The crank seals can be done CAREFULLY without splitting. I'd also change the waterpump seal, inspect the WP bearings and make sure the clutch isn't falling apart. Changing the headgasket and new fluid won't hurt either.

Honestly, crank bearings never sit in oil in a 2 stroke.... They are dry until they are running. Do as you wish but the 250R is one of simplest motors out there and with a manual, you can split it and freshen it up for under 250$ including main bearings, ALL seals, rings and gaskets.

I'm not you, but it's certainly what I would do.................................

[Twilight]

My thing is DC, is that I have never had luck with a bottom end of an engine. All my problems with other models *except my damn 200e* was for a main reason of neglect in the past and that I dont know 4 strokes. A 2 stroke I do know quite well and i doubt this is as bad as my pilot engine was.

The right side case has had the waterpump seal, sider gasket, clutch and clutch springs replaced and was all done in 2000 when he attempted to start it and revive her. We went over the history on the phone a couple hours ago when i got off work and this is what I know;

It did start smoking after the top end was rebuilt, he only got one ride on it before it stopped sparking and he parked it. Told me he tried a coil off a parts bike and it didnt work, so he gave up and parked it. Engine has 8 hours on the new rebuild as fast as being ran. Always ran it 20:1 with honda oil and nothing else.


Im asking for opinions on what it can be. I will rebuild this whole engine if I have to, but dont want to unless I have to. Plus if I learn what is causing this, I can go after that problem first.

Compression good
Spark consistent
carb clean
32:1 mix
Will not idle
Smokes white smoke
Does not foul plugs

So DC, based on that, what do you think it is? I dont have a clue.

[Mosh]

I agree with DC..
For the price you paid for it,pull the engine down and refresh it top to bottom..

Seal kit 30 bucks
Gasket kit 30 bucks
Rings if that is all it needs(since top end is so new) 20 bucks
Crank bearings 30 bucks
Reeds 40 bucks
New rod installed would be about 140.

300 bucks and you are done..Other wise you could horse around with it for months and get fed up with it..

250R engines are simple..

And throw that POS 85 carb in the trash and get you at least a PJ34 from the quad, or even better yet a PJ36 from a newer 250 2-stroke dirtbike.
Those 85 carbs were junk!

One last thought..Have you cleaned out the pipe and repacked the silencer and cleaned the carb?

20 years of that junk old school 2 stroke oil at 20-1,tends to gum up the exhaust..

Dont subject yourself to be another guy constantly working on their machine.Do it once, do it right, and ride it for a few years with no worries.

[Twilight]

Im at home with a 2 stroke. Both my Pilot, 350, 250's, Gyro's were not running right, and with one refresh through all the engines they all still work like brand new.

I have not repacked the silencer, or cleaned the exhaust. Carn has been gone through and replaced float, needle, jets and seals.

As I said, i will do it all if I have to, but WHATS THE POINT, if I dont know what is causing this RIGHT NOW? Thats what I want an idea on. I want to know what causes those symptoms so if it ever happens again. I WONT be going through the whole engine on any bike replacing everything internal.

This is a learning experience for me, Why do it all and learn nothing, when you can learn something?

[Twilight]

Oh and this 250r has a flatslide carb, its not stock..

[Dirtcrasher]

Thing is - How many posts do we see with this type of smoke, this revving to the moon, this leaking fuel and on and on and on.......

2000 is still 9 years ago of sitting.

NO 2 stroke main bearing is happy being dry for even a couple of years. Yeah, so what, you get it running and everything loosens up and you have more problems......

At the least I'm willing to bet it needs new main bearings and seals. A 60$ Vesrah gasket kit won't hurt anything and allows you to ispect everything as you dive into it.

BELIEVE ME - I'll say that 20% of people that call themselves a "mechanic" should and can actually split a case. The rest need to let someone else do it........

If you want to hear "change the head gasket" or "replace the right crank seal" then I'm the wrong guy to reply to you (read my sig :D)

Thats not my "school". I'm putting myself in YOUR shoes, you got it cheap, it's in nice shape and it needs to be gone thru. OR, add it to the list or perfectly good machines that people sell because they can't figure something out!

"It won't spark"

"It don't catch"

"It breaks up"

BLAH BLAH BLAH, thats just some of the crap we all hear, here at the lovely land of 3WW!!

I'm not close to you, if I were I'd tear into it and rebuild it for you, then you can eliminate mechanical components as the problem.

Look at the fricken knucklehead that said "it needs a stator or a CDI...."

Do you want him to reply again?? see where I'm getting at my friend!!

[Dirtcrasher]

I have much MORE respect for a person that says "I can't split a case" than the idiot that tries to help a friend and ruins his motor. I did it when I was 16yo, I told a kid with an XR100 that I could rebuild his topend and I didn't read the manual or ANYTHING and I bent his valves and walked away...... - that was a mere 8 years ago or so and I can admit it!

That was one of the 1st times that I knew, I had NO IDEA what really needed to be done......... and I felt terrible for ruining that kids motor. At least I can admit it and sometimes you have to F-up to learn!

It needs mains and seals at the least, the barn find I found needed mains too and I was chicken to put them in

Thing is, people say "pump down test" but I mysely have a different theory upon that. Pressurizing a system in that direction helps the seals to seal. What really happens with worn seals is the vacuum pulls oil through the seal, it's not always necessarily forcing air out, in extreme cases it will though. Look at how seals are made and you may think about how when pressurized from one end the actually swell and help seal it but show me a pressure test (aside from running it) that shows how it can leak INTO the crank.

Again, were jumping ahead of everything. Is water making it's way in through the HG or the water pump seal??

Who knows?? I'm just telling you how I feel on this if it were my trike!

GOOD LUCK!!

[Twilight]

Okay, so lets say I go through the engine, and it does it again in a year, or my Pilot does, or a friends bike does. Would YOU go through the engine and replace it all again, when you could have tracked down the problem in the first place?

The difference I guess between me and you, is that I want to pinpoint whats wrong, not just redo the whole thing and call it good. The answers I get here are ENTIRELY different then what I get on other sites or from friends I know that have worked on bikes.

From what I have seen on past bikes this is what runs through my mind

Leaking head gasket- Lean condition, no idle or high idle, would be the reason for the clean-like plug. Leaking headgasket with even a little coolant leaking in causes white smoke.

Crank seals- Only know from my pilot, but when the seal went out the smoke was white with a hint of black mixed in, would idle, but poorly and saw a loss of power. Oil from bottom end was making it smoke like a chimney.


Or for all I know it could be a case seal that went out. I'll go one step at a time, everytime I do something new, i will put it together and see how it stands. Once the problem stops, i'll be at peace in my mind and know what to look for when/if it happens again.

"Thing is, people say "pump down test" but I mysely have a different theory upon that. Pressurizing a system in that direction helps the seals to seal. What really happens with worn seals is the vacuum pulls oil through the seal, it's not always necessarily forcing air out, in extreme cases it will though. Look at how seals are made and you may think about how when pressurized from one end the actually swell and help seal it but show me a pressure test (aside from running it) that shows how it can leak INTO the crank."

Yeah leak down tests can be decieving, ask my coworker with his cr250 that ended up cracking up the piston "it held 5lbs over night" :rolleyes:


I do appreciate the word for thought DC, and trust me, its not falling on deaf ears. For me, its just one step at a time until I find the culprit. Even after that...well my service honda order has all the parts for a rebuild (if all the parts are still available)

[Dirtcrasher]

The difference is that it has SAT for a long period of time. And like most Honda's, it's running on dried out crap........

Do you want to ride it for awhile or for as long as you own it???????????????

Everyone is in too much hurry to ride, thats the biggest problem.

Other than that, keep the post going and let people tell you it's the stator, CDI, WP seal, bad kickstarter and the air filter or whatever........................

I promise not to say I told you so, fair enough??!! BTW, I'm known to LIE!

[Mosh]

Well good on the carb then...

Here is the deal.I see what you want to do.You want to know EXACTLY what it is making it do this...

Ok so say, you tear it apart,then find it was just a head gasket, or crank seal.
You put it together, the smoke goes away,and then you just say well great.
I am running the Crap out of it..

6 months later, the crank bearings give out....
Then where are you at????
You are out the time and money for the first fix,becuase you have to go back through and re fix something else.

I still agree with DC...
Anything that sits for that long, is bound to be on borrowed time...

It isnt that hard to test these things..
Pressure test the cooling system with the proper tool.
If it dont hold pressure,than a head gasket is possible..

But with the seals, once again I agree with DC.

Vacumn pulls more force on a seal,than pressure does.
I have seen this on car engines.
I have a tool that draws vacumn.
I have tested cars up to 18 psi with no drop down in the gauge.
But then I put 24 inch vacumn on them,and then the vacumn gage drops off.

And here you are fighting a no idle, heavy smoke issue,with a unknown flatslide carb...

What jets are in the carb?

Your info for diagnosis is somewhat vague reading thru this post.

[beets442]

[QUOTE=2quicktecate;706194]i just searched it for you too and you can without splitting the case. there's a seal puller you can get on ebay or sears. my friend says you can screw a couple drywall screws into then and tug them out, i don't know if i recommend though. good luck on resolve your problem, i really love my new 250r. it doesn't have the low end grunt like the tecate but it has mass high rpm power................... +1.... on the seal puller idea. Real easy to do. Drill two small holes 1/16th next to the shaft.. With a phillips turn the screws in til tight. I use two pair of side cutters, cause of the curve of them. Grip the srews closer to the seal and push on the handles one then the other, then both at the same time. Pops right out. Done it with cars, bikes, crank seals, cam seals. Beets

[Mosh]

Oh I will just add..
When a crank seal is sucking oil,,,YOU Know it...
They smell like ass.....

[Billy Golightly]

This sounds exactly like my 250R thats possessed. The smoke clouds are even of similar volume and shape :lol: Its frustrating, isn't it?

My plug looks different then yours, but I'll have to agree with a statement made above about the headgasket. Your getting coolant into the cylinder, and its steam cleaning the plug and everything else inside the combustion chamber. Only way possible for it to run and look like that without the piston being holed.

It could also have a bad crankseal. Are you losing oil in the trans? With that kind of smoke volume it doesn't take long for the fluid level to go down, trust me. I've also found in the past, the seal collar on the clutch side can be installed BACKWARDS. The deep end of the collar should be pointed OUT, AWAY from the crankshaft. If it is not, the splines leave area for the seal to be broken and oil be sucked into between the crankshaft spline trenches and the collar.

[Dirtcrasher]

Oh I will just add..
When a crank seal is sucking oil,,,YOU Know it...
They smell like ass.....


I guess that depends on who's ASS your smelling :lol: :w00t: :banned: :D

[Brad200X]

Well good on the carb then...

Here is the deal.I see what you want to do.You want to know EXACTLY what it is making it do this...

Ok so say, you tear it apart,then find it was just a head gasket, or crank seal.
You put it together, the smoke goes away,and then you just say well great.
I am running the Crap out of it..

6 months later, the crank bearings give out....
Then where are you at????
You are out the time and money for the first fix,becuase you have to go back through and re fix something else.

I still agree with DC...
Anything that sits for that long, is bound to be on borrowed time...

X2 If your pulling the thing apart there is no reason for you NOT to replace the crank bearings, and every bearing that's bad. All of the seals, replace those too. Sorry man I was speaking a little out of context earlier on the bad crank seals, as I've never had a bike that had bad ones, and that I didn't have to completely rebuild, so I don't know the symptoms.

[Twilight]

The difference is that it has SAT for a long period of time. And like most Honda's, it's running on dried out crap........

Do you want to ride it for awhile or for as long as you own it???????????????

Everyone is in too much hurry to ride, thats the biggest problem.

Other than that, keep the post going and let people tell you it's the stator, CDI, WP seal, bad kickstarter and the air filter or whatever........................

I promise not to say I told you so, fair enough??!! BTW, I'm known to LIE!

Why attack me? I NEVER said I was going to find the problem and that would be the end of it. Instead of starting something and making accusations, why not just ask questions? I said I wanna go through it piece by piece and find out what is doing it. I want to learn. I have all the components to rebuild this bottom end on order. Also im going to redo the head anyway with a 1989 cr250 head gasket, its copper and is thicker.

moshman- same thing. I never said I would rebuild only until i found the problem. I dont care if a engine is running great, on any bike you need to have it checked out and looked at. I like to hear opinions on what may be causing the problem. Again I am going to say, whats the point of doing it all, when you cant learn from it?

Nobody asked for info on the carb or what jets I used, if you want to know, just ask. I have no problems with that. From what I saw in the carb 48 main jet and the carb is PJ05AAAB. From the manual looks like the 86 carb

[2quicktecate]

i have had good luck with my 2 strokes that sat for ever, new gas and a carb clean and they run like a champ. did it have coolant or water in it. if it was straight water it could have corroded the headgasket

[Twilight]

has coolant and water. moshman was right about the smell... and this smoke doesnt smell like how the pilot did..

hmmm?

[Billy Golightly]

One thing I've learned/noticed is, for some reason, coolant doesn't seem to go down nearly as quickly as you would think it does when its getting in the motor. I don't know how it doesn't, but it doesn't. Change your head gasket and plane your surfaces is my suggestion.

[Saul]

99% sure it isn't your problem, but - for shits and giggles I put a shorter/smaller needle in my 34mm PJ carb and fired up the trike and it POURED out clouds of white smoke identical to your pics.

Just 'throwing' that out there.

[Twilight]

Saul... I hope your not being serious, because literally. I took the old needle out that had a bend and put this one in, both LOOKED the same size

Know what size needle you have in yours now? Is yours a round or oval slide?

Billy, you are right about that. I will be checking it when my gaskets get here.

[Saul]

Saul... I hope your not being serious, because literally. I took the old needle out that had a bend and put this one in, both LOOKED the same size

Know what size needle you have in yours now? Is yours a round or oval slide?

Billy, you are right about that. I will be checking it when my gaskets get here.

I'm dead serious. When I saw your pics I was like 'holy trailprotrailprotrailprotrailpro - thats exactly what mine did!' - and my trike doesn't smoke clouds of white on the right needle - I go out and start her now and I get the usual puffs of blue but after minute or so it clears up.

When I put the shorter needle in and started it up it was INSTANT and HUGE clouds of white smoke that filled my garage in lss then a minute ten I shut it down and pulle the neeedle and put the proper one in.

As for my carb, I'm running a 34mm PJ Keihin with a gold needle stamped DEG.

Your needles may 'look' the same but double check the ID letters stamped on them to make sure. You have length, diameter and taper to consider - but mostly your length and diameter will be the biggest thing to check.

Again, more then likely it's NOT your problem but it's worth checking since you have a mystery carb and now a mystery needle in it too.

[beets442]

+1... on checking needles and head leak. I've had the same number needle not work either.The length and daimeter are right but the taper is off. Ended up putting the old back in. Never throw the old parts out. Good luck, Beets

[Twilight]

Im going to have to get a new needle another time to try that. My parts order finally came through, yay.

2quick, is there any place around here that has parts for the trx250r or atc250r? i dont know of too many shops.

[2quicktecate]

bent bike, my friends work at northwest sand toys and they deal with 250r's alkso south bound honda has some cool people that build r's and they have some parts in stock...

[Twilight]

Sweetness, thank you sir! I will give them a call tomorrow or Friday.

[Twilight]

have a number for northwest sandtoys?

looks like im going to lakewood probably, lol

[2quicktecate]

253-565-1040

[2quicktecate]

bring down that fender MAN

[Twilight]

i dunno where you live, lol

[2quicktecate]

i'm right next to lakewood. i could meet you or you can come over

[Twilight]

To test the headgasket theory could I run the engine without coolant? How long do you all recommend to be safe?

[Billy Golightly]

I replace them...

You could also modify a leak down tester into a coolant system pressurizer. That'd probably be one of the best ways to do it. Not sure what kind of pressure it should hold though, hmmm...

[Brad200X]

I replace them...

You could also modify a leak down tester into a coolant system pressurizer. That'd probably be one of the best ways to do it. Not sure what kind of pressure it should hold though, hmmm...

It shouldn't matter. If you see the pressure drop immediately, then you know there's a leak.

[Twilight]

how do you make one of those?

[Billy Golightly]

drill a fitting into an old radiator cap, and plug the overflow maybe? I made my leak down tester out of an actual radiator/coolant system pressure testor and it came with an assortment of adapters that fit radiator caps but its intended for cars and trucks and I doubt any of the ones I have would fit out application. Something would have to be fashioned up.

[Twilight]

alright i'll look into it tomorrow. Thanks Billy.

You ever solve your 250r woes?