RD350LC resurrection

[Mullna]

I do gman! Itching for the sweet sweet sound of ring ting ting ting.

I'm heading to the in laws Friday. I just want to start it for 10-15 seconds.

I've never heard an rd350lc in the flesh. And I know once I do it will take my motivation to a whole new level [emoji1]

Of course I'll change all the fluids first. A bit of 2T down the spark plug hole. New spark plugs and a tank of premix

Just thought does the battery just run the lights. Not having a battery wont effect the bike starting will it?


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[JonW]

your call, but really I wouldnt... youtube is full of vids of bikes starting and running, get your fix from that, and save the extra wear on your one... just my 2c of course.

yes, will run sans battery....

[ged]

Yeah, go on! I doubt we'll stop you anyway.

Your probably up for a rebuild before it's good for the road anyway, but just be aware that you'll be potentially doing that sooner rather than later and if you snap rusty rings and score bores etc, your up for a bomb.

Put fuel filters in line if the tank is suss. The carbs will be full of goo and muck. Drop the float bowls as a minimum and clean them and check that the float needles work. Carb cleaner might help but is just as likely to push obstructions further into jets and airways.

It's been 20 years since I had an LC, but from memory a CDI ignition needs some volts to generate a spark so they'll start with a dull battery but will struggle with no battery? The battery in it will be sulphated up and either open circuit or short circuit. I'd put a 12 volt source of some kind in there.

Good luck.

[JonW]

I just dont really get why someone would put all new fluids in a bike just for 15secs of running... but Im a rebuilder I guess, and my mechanically sympathetic view prevails...

Video the running if youre going to do it... you can post it here and play it back over n over when the rebuild gets you down... which it will, TADTS (as they say in Lotus circles).

[ged]

I think we have the benefit of age and wisdom Jon and I wouldn't do it myself, (at least without popping the top end first), but I remember being full of youthful bravado and I'm now thankful for the lessons it taught me, but I guess I had to learn a lot of that the hard way.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger......

[JonW]

Thats no doubt true Ged, We have all been there along the way I guess LOL

I just hate the idea of causing yourself more work later. Rebuilds are tough enough without that, and Ive seen more n more on the US car shows now that they wont start an old clunker of a 4 stroke even, which most would do if they just want that 'extra impetus' at the start of the build. It seems they strip and clean/replace bits first. You need to fully rip the motor apart anyway, so its not like youre saving anything by knowing it runs. you prove the electrics perhaps, but thats it.

Of course with a two stroke with its old crank and hard seals it invites a lot more woe... and...

One thing I would do is have a way to stop it before you start it i case it wont stop. sounds silly but... Either be prepared to stuff a rag in the airbox or bang it into gear with the brakes nailed. Hard rubber parts let air into the system and it can take on a life of its own. After 15 years of sitting letting it run 'on its own' at full pelt with no way of stopping it til the fuel in the carb is gone can become messy very quickly. Ive had 2 MT250s do that to me over the years. Pulling the spark plug cap makes no difference, switching they key neither. They are sparking cos of compression and heat, all they needed was a sniff of fuel and all the extra air they were getting to sing along flat out. I have skid marks on my garage floor from the locked back wheel still being driven by the flat out motor hitting it when the clutch went out... trust me, its not only the garage floor that gets marked when this happens, its scary as hell and only a cool head will stop it before it blows up.

Ive now got a good ear for this awful scenario. A skill I hoped never to gain... If its idling away ok, and then even imperceptibly starts to climb little by little on its own, switch off immediately. If you let it climb it will start to climb faster n faster, and by then its dieseling and its too late to use the key/plug wire...

[ged]

I'm trying really hard not to laugh Jon! Sorry, the image is priceless. Not much fun at the time I'm sure.

Yeah, I know what your saying. When it leans out, it can run away.

I've never 'dieseled' a 2 stroke, but I have run a 2 stroke diesel backwards! I spent some time years ago driving a biggass boggie drive GM 2 stroke diesel water truck in the Pilbara. I'd backed dowpn a ramp to pick up water out of the river, but as I went to pull away up the hill loaded, it stalled and momentarily rolled backwards, thus starting the 2 stroke process in reverse! Ooooh. Not good

[JonW]

haha, thats brilliant, sharing stories means I get to laugh at your misfortune, in a good way, too

The funniest thing with the first MT was that it was a farm bike, and the cylinder and cycle parts were caked in thick dried mud. After 10secs at full chat, that all came off... I was sweeping it up from far flung places for weeks

[OzzyElsie]

Many moons ago I had a diesel diesel away on me, not that I knew at the time but I put 2 and 2 together after the event.

I was on the expressway in a Mazada E2200 diesel van at about 110-120kph. It started to pull away and run on even with my foot off the throttle. Of course I put the clutch in - bad move. It just reved away and was about to grenade itself about 200mm away from my left knee, not good.

'This is not good' methinks, so the clutch came out, the revs went down but the speed went up. So I left it in gear and stood on the brakes. Marginally effective but gradually the brakes won the contest and the speed came down. At about 60kph it went back to behaving normal.

I failed to mention that the whole time it was laying a smoke screen that in thickness and volume would have done a WW2 destroyer proud - and there wasn't a car behind me in sight.

When it went back to normal throttle response the smoke screen vanished.

So tonight's prize goes to the first correct answer that explains the cause.

[ged]

Hmm. Nearly stumped Ozzy....

Poor old E2200 would have been red hot at 120kph after a while, so same issue as Jon, pre ignition through heat and compression, but if the rack in the diesel pump was closed, it had to be getting its oil from somewhere else.... Did it get so hot it sucked sump oil past the rings???

[ged]

So tonight's prize goes to the first correct answer that explains the cause.

So what's the answer?!

[gman]

Any updates in the bike mullna?

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[OzzyElsie]

So tonight's prize goes to the first correct answer that explains the cause.

So what's the answer?!

At high vacuum high volume (i.e. is high revs on a hill) the suctions causes the slides to tilt just a little, but enough, to catch an edge at WFO and the spring will not force them closed. Back at idle and blipping the throttle evrything is back to normal.

The early RD had a similar problem. The official solution was a retro fit of taller slides with taller carby tops, heavier slides, by been made out of lead, and chrome plated for smooth.