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66 model in Midwest. no affiliation.  https://www.facebook.com/groups/1553233251641230/permalink/3614150932216108/

like, the most 4 stroke thing ever. last owner a good friend, decided these were ok, and they were for about a year, but they finally gave up the ghost. and he had the head off...    either way, all sorted now with some mechanical jack-assery. also fixed a nagging leak on the LH side of the motor.




took it out the next day, did 132 ish miles, was really good (admittedly fixed leak on motor after 1st ride and second). it had gotten bad enough was getting on the rear tire..   yes, i've been avoiding it. 

air in the cyl to keep valve from dropping in. c clamp tool used totally wrong. 












'barn fresh' seals.   




and the next day:



yes, a scruffy 74 350 was on that ride.

this has been along term bike for me, the old build thread was on the OLD board. i wont bore anyone w all that, but, this was a florida basket case. and, its one of the only bikes i actively sought out to get after owning one 25 years prior.

it was def not a restoration candidate, so i went a bit creative w the appearance. and, its been a great bike over-all. there have been nagging leaks here and there and the biggest issue is (was) the suspension. the front ends on these were just DISMAL. the brake, even though it was a drum, was actually ok, but the forks damping was basically non existent, they flexed (34mm!) and the external springs were just weak. and, i could never get the collars to stop seeping fork oil. i had had enough, so i procured a GT550 front end (1st year disc model) and went ahead and swapped. had the lowers glass beaded, then vapor blasted along w the upper tree, the spacer, etc.

3D printed some badges for the caliper, and some gaiter mounts. new BT46s as well. the improvement was very notable.

also, since the turn signals had to be remounted, (the disc upper tree doesn't have the provisions), i used some spare R5 ones i had (mounts) under the fork cap and emulated the stock location. used k&s aluminum signals, and had to machine spacers in the back ones to kick em out a bit and use a carbon bolt (since the TS holds the grab rail on).

the stock stuff thats good will be used on the 71 i just got, since its missing  the rear signals and the front wheel is in need of help.
 











.

not mine, seems reasonable ish.

https://www.facebook.com/share/16TvrHnrTA/

So Barney, my 70 R5, has been kicking around since about 2011 or so.  It was pretty rough when i got it but always ran weirdly strong. 
tis was when i first got it running way back at the old house.



i didnt do much w it for a few yrs, but then after i got divorced i went full into making it a rider. replaced crank seals and all the normal stuff, but never split the cases NOR did i ever pull a cyl head. didn't need to, deepest i went was a clutch replacement. compression was always good so f-it.

the last few yrs, after doing a bunch of slow cosmetic upgrades over the past 10 years, and forks/swingarm bushing, etc, all the maint stuff, the motor was getting noisier and noisier. Not really top end noise but at 27K  on the bike and no signs it had ever had the motor out, i planned on a lower end rebuild a few mos ago.

bought a vitos crank, a gasket set, seals, etc, all the normal stuff. its a very early one so maintaining the original cases were important to me.

I pulled the top end down and it was still on a 64mm bore, but had later non dykes oem pistons in it, and they measure perfectly, so , as unusual as it is, i left the top end alone, just cleaned it. ( i was fully prepared to rebuild it... but no need) so at some point somebody had done the top end ( i knew it had been off by the witness marks on the head bolts)





However, the crank shaft  had def spread, it was almost 2mm out width wise and was pushing on the outer bearings pretty good, they were roaring when it ran and that's the noise i heard.



the vitos cranks are very well built, and there's rumors they come w cheap bearings etc. NOPE.



so, since its an early motor, there were def some casting difference, quite a bit actually. i wont show most of them but the inside is pretty clear vs a 73 RD350 case. (which i stole the 6 speed out of to put in the r5). the rd was mush more refined a casting. no worries the 73 rd motor i had was already apart as it also had a bad crank. 

r5 motor:


rd motor:


cases cleaned at local coin op carwash. used S100 and some brushes. want edo keep original finish, why they weren't blasted.



r5 motor w new crank and rd trans (all of it) w new bearings etc


frame cleaned and touched up it was SUPER nasty under here.



cyls painted etc.



and all back together. way, way quieter, smoother, and the 6th gear is admittedly very nice.




keep in mind, this is a dead bone stock tuned bike, airbox, lid, etc. the ONLY thing different from stock is a vape cdi, set static to 1.9mm btdc. and a 520 chain conversion from EC from yrs ago. thats it.  and its one of my favorite bikes to ride.

cruised up I-77 70-75 mph easily not even wringing it out, hit 80+ a few times passing cars. this thing sbeen rock solid since its been finished.. 5+? yrs ago.

Met up W Dimas w his beautiful CBR, Matt and D. Old man donut and coffee meetup.

I liek to check compression on occasion, and figured it was time to check barney. Mind you, as -far as i know- its a bone stock topend, but it def has been off before. Ive had this bike since 2012 or so, and its always mechanically ran oddly well. It does have a bit of noise at cold startup, im suspecting a crank bearing is wearing, but its been doing it for 8 years.

I did change the crank seals years ago, but have never, i mean never, even had a head off. Heres why:





and, if it shows, a video  w a bore scope. To be honest, i wasnt sue what pistons it even had in it.. look to be cast, and i cant see an overbore mark but not sure.

https://2strokeworld.net/wp-content/uploads/70-R5/2025/70-r5-rhc.mp4

https://2strokeworld.net/wp-content/uploads/70-R5/2025/70-r5-lhc-cleaned-dome.mp4

the left cyl, i did use a dremel with a brush attachment and clean the center of the piston, so that bright spot was intentional.

the bore scope is a cheap klein tools one that just plugs into my phone, for like 40 bucks it does really well. (and fits in the plug hole).

So, its good, technically.

BUT, i want to freshen up the crank since.. it may be 55 years old now. also, take the opportunity to swap in a 6 speed ( i have all the stuff to do it a few times over)

This will also give the opportunity to vapor blast the cases and paint the cyls correctly, etc. 



Thurs:


 

Took out the YL1E, then the KZ650 today. Only got this pic of the KZ by the airport runway. was 56F and quite nice for a few hours.

 

https://www.kraemer-motorcycles.com/en/bikes/apx-350-ma?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR2HAw70U6WBPTb4HvqAYyFWKJjGLnLbbKsQ-iM6leswXvrB-zGgpiSIAz0_aem_bVRDgBVtT4gmYXh1_yXtEA

 

lights and a plate slapped on the back: dunkin time.    

traded in the XR150L for something a bit snottier.  air/oil cooled AND carbureted. 

as title states, I think I have both sorted. The plugins were messed up, and I have updated them. let me know if they are working from your end. 

Does anyone here have direct experience with a clutching bearing/over rev bearing that is rated for 10k plus? this is for the harris bike project. I have found some id have to modify greatly to make work, but looking for a general supplier.

classic 4 pt seizure on the 143 big bore kit. i think i maxxed out the duty cycle since I was wide open for ... 20-25 mins or so, air was cooler and a bit denser that morning.. and then this. didn't stick rings but it collapsed the skirt pretty good. rode it home, and decided to go to a bigger setup, 164cc, & a larger injector (about 185cc/,in rating vs the 140 of the old one). Rode bike home anyway. new cyl/piston/2 (diff size) injectors under 200 shipped from webike. New cyl also has oil cooler ports so getting one of those as well.  I probably have close to 3k miles on this setup as i ride it a LOT, so, whatever. lol.

No connection.

https://www.facebook.com/share/yxtPoYSGRxmav6Hu/

wasn't wailing on it too much.. but def a fun way to run errands. 

https://www.facebook.com/commerce/listing/1149676046106313/?media_id=0&ref=share_attachment

last one. the old ass go pro got a workout yesterday.   

  

with the cheap cyls and carbs 

another nice weekend morning, so  took the LC hybrid out. went the other direction, and stopped and saw dad. did abut another hour and 15 mins or so.  (went thru a tank plus). all rural open roads.