New (To Me...Sort Of...) 1981 Honda ATC 185S

[CaptHamster]

Hey everyone, just giving a quick little intro.

I have the great fortune to own this beautiful Honda ATC 185S that's sort of new to me. It's new to me in the sense that I haven't paid any notice to it ever, despite the fact that my parents have owned it since '82 or '83 and it's been sitting in the garage untouched since when I was born (in 1992...yes, I'm only 18.)

My parents bought the ATC from a friend probably a year or two after it was new. It's all original and they used it occasionally in the 80's and a little in the 90's, but since then, they covered it up, parked it in the garage and left it. So, the other day, after trying to grab something that was stacked on top of it and glancing at the bright red gas tank and big sand tires, I thought..."Hey, why not?" and pulled it from its resting place.

Since I know my parents will never touch this thing ever again, I figure I might as well bring it back to life and give it some use. So I suppose my first question is...what's it take to get her to come back to life? I work on cars fairly often and have resurrected a few from the grave, but this is a different beast...I know that changing the oil and gas (and probably new tires) are in order, but beyond that, I have no idea...so I was wondering if the experts here could help me out! Anyone have any tips or tricks or advice for me on getting everything back up and running? I don't plan to jump on and ride dunes or anything, it's probably going to get some very light use in some dirt, while I learn how to ride these...other than that, it's going to be fun!

Thanks guys, and I hope you like her!



P.S. - There's another trike on the side of the house that I can't get to, and I can't figure out what it is...but it looks like another fun project! I'll keep you posted...

[hoosierlogger]

honestly, that is a perfect example of a BEAUTIFUL machine. Do not flip it over, roll it, or beat it up in any way. It is rare to see one in that condition un-restored.
I would dump the gas, change the oil with good atv oil, Take the carb off and give it a good thorough cleaning. check the air cleaner box for mouse nests and anything else that should not be there. You should be good to go then. I wouldnt change the tires if they arent badly cracked and hold air.

[coolpool]

Wow what a nice original machine. I think you touched on everything you'll need to do to get it going; although the carb may be gummed up from sitting if it had gas in it. A new plug wouldn't hurt. After that, check to make sure the brakes operate as intended and the chain is lubed and adjusted. Try it out on a fairly flat surface to get the feel for the handling at first. Have fun and take care of it....oh and ride it!

[Vealmonkey]

A good place to start would be to get yourself a honda shop manual for your trike. They are invaluable to help you keep up repairs and maintenance. The rest is sort of common sense. Brakes need adjusting. Cables need lubed. Front and rear wheel bearings need checking for rolling resistance and excessive wear. Chain needs lubricated and adjusted to the correct tension. You have a spark plug that needs gapped and periodically replaced. You have an ignition that needs to be checked and kept in proper timing. You have valves that need to be adjusted to maintain the proper valve lash. You have oil to change and a filter screen to clean. You have lights that may need periodic replacement. And you have painted surfaces to wash and occasionally wax. But yourself a nice helmet and make sure to wear it, especially just starting out. There is a clutch to be adjusted as well, even though you don't have a clutch lever to use, because the clutch is tied into the shifter, so as you move the shifter up and down to engage the gears, it operates the clutch, so you have a semi automatic clutch. Don't put your foot down in turns. Be cautions as trikes can wheelie and flip over on you if you are not careful. Also in turns, you'll want to lean into the turn. Take your time and learn the basics. Once you learn the basics, then you can start going faster. Have fun. Ride safe. Wear your helmet. Best of luck with your new trike.

[motoman1012002]

nice and clean 185 welcome to the forum

[Taiser]

Very nice...clean the carb, new gas, new oil and I bet she fires right up...might want to put a teaspoon of oil in the cylinder and pull it through slowly too, just to make sure nothing is stuck!

[CaptHamster]

Thanks for the help everyone!

Tomorrow a friend and I start work on 185S, and pull the other one out and see what its deal is...

Better pictures and maybe another trike to follow soon!

Also, generally speaking, how much would tires for these run? I'm sure the current ones hold air but they're somewhat lopsided and have a couple plugs in them, and I'm not too confident they'd hold up very long.

[rdlsz24]

Nice 185s! You can download the service manual here. Right-click, save target as: http://www.oscarmayer.net/atc/manual...ice_Manual.pdf

If you dump the old gas, clean the carb out and change the oil I'm guessing that thing will start right up. I've bought some in way worse shape that weren't stored indoors and got them running.

Rob

[CaptHamster]

Hi again everyone!

Yeah, yeah, it's been too long, but I'm finally back with more pictures of the 1981 185s. I also, just today, pulled out the other ATC...turns out it's a 1983 ATC 185s.

First things first: the '81 runs and drives very well! I was surprised to be honest. Didn't take too much...some new gas, new oil, air in the tires, and presto! It was pretty much good to go...haven't really ridden it much at all yet, but I don't doubt it's ability to work just fine.

The '83...well, there's good news, but there's already many problems. The good news is that the '83 seems to be pretty original...from first look at least. Fenders aren't in too bad of shape but the gas tank is a little rough. It also has a front suspension (not sure if original? correct me if i'm wrong in saying that some '83s came with front suspension...) Oh, and it still has the original little tool bag under the seat. Speaking of seats...the seat is completely destroyed.

Bad news? The '83 has been sitting outside, covered by nothing more than a tarp, since 1985. Meaning, it hasn't run in 26 years. The good news is that the engine isn't seized up, nor are the wheels or transmission. Everything seems to roll and move pretty well. But, while in the process of changing the oil, the nut on the bottom of the engine (the 23mm one for draining oil) broke when I tightened it back down.

I guess my question is, where the heck can I find one of those nuts tomorrow? Are they a pretty common deal or are the unobtanium or something? Please help me out...I'd really like to get working on the '83 tomorrow. Also, I'm pretty sure the carb is gonna be majorly gummed up after 26 years of sitting. Is it worth pulling off the carb and cleaning it up or just throwing $40 at it and getting a new one?

Thanks for all your help guys...I'm trying the best I can to get two more relatively unmolested survivors back out and riding!

Also, here's some pics! First few are of the clean '81, last few of are the dirty '83.

[matt86200x]

You have 2 very nice machines there. The 83 is not bad at all maybe a seat cover and a good cleaning. In 2007 i bought my first trike a 82 185s and to this day is more reliable than any of my bikes.

[jb2wheels]

WOW! My first trike was a new 82 185s I bought in 82 with saved up paper route and gift $$. My best friend had an 81. We rode the wheels off those. We even used to put the same foam grips on 'em. Those were fun times!

The best part is - you have 2! 2 are always better than 1 because you and a friend can ride.

To me it's always worth cleaning the stock carb first.

The big oil drain cap/bolt is the same as the valve adjust covers and you can still get those new if not on ebay cheap.

Have fun!