Derestricting my TZR 250 3XV RS

[SouthCoastRich]

For info - the TSO site is listing 3XV's again 

http://www.tso.us.com/parts-book/yamaha/0250tzr250/3xv8/3_part_pages/e_01.asp

Also I can impart a useful rebuild tip for posterity - take the mirrors off... it saves head butting them all the time 

[SouthCoastRich]

Success. 

Nut extractor worked and the cylinder is free! Thanks Andy & Steve for that tip and a huge thanks to Steve for offering to help replace the mangled nut.

PV wiggled out just like you said Warwick, and the head came away from the barrel with the butt end of a wooden hammer. Really helpful to know these things I don't know.

I got the second head off too, bit nervous on the upper coolant flange, but the impact driver did it's job well.

First head cleaned up well, the upper cylinder head had loads of smooth carbon buildup, just goes to show how out of sync the jetting was. Marks on the lower cylinder wall, but nothing that can be felt.

The list of parts on the floor is growing..... I had thought about carrying on and getting the next cylinder off and maybe I could clean these up and maybe I could get them in the post to Martin - but stopped. Don't rush. Leave it, take your time & quit while you're ahead!

As Warwick says - put the kettle on 

[SeaR1ck]

Yes a rubber mallet/hammer is good to have. And I use my plastic hammer a lot.

Other useful tools bearing / race installer kit.
Blind bearing puller kit

[SouthCoastRich]

Yes a rubber mallet/hammer is good to have. And I use my plastic hammer a lot.

Other useful tools bearing / race installer kit.
Blind bearing puller kit

If this near disaster has taught me anything Rick, it's have the right tools. Using a non-impact socket on that nut... nearly bought the farm. Everything I'm looking at say "woooo NLA wooooooo" at me 

[Steveog]

Don't rush. Leave it, take your time & quit while you're ahead!

Yes. Wisdom for us all. It's always better to stop on a success, than lose sleep after ignoring your own good instincts.

Nice work, Rich.

[SouthCoastRich]

Don't rush. Leave it, take your time & quit while you're ahead!

Yes. Wisdom for us all. It's always better to stop on a success, than lose sleep after ignoring your own good instincts.

Nice work, Rich.

Thanks Steve 

[SouthCoastRich]

Top cylinder came off without dramas (right tools work better than the wrong tools).

Pistons, manifolds, reeds and top engine mounts all off.

Next steps... Clean up everything ready for posting barrels/heads/PVs to Martin77 

While that's going on I need to clean up all the threads on everything. Lots of white crusty stuff to get sorted from bolts, studs and threads in the castings. Then I'll think about splitting the case. 

[jamietzr250r]

Wow....

My bikes only had the carbs off and the fork seals done (fairing excluded) since I've owned it, that's it!!!!

[SouthCoastRich]

Wow....

My bikes only had the carbs off and the fork seals done (fairing excluded) since I've owned it, that's it!!!!

Thanks Jamie  I was planning on adjusting the chain and that would have been it... but I bought a needy example it seems!  My bad.

Trouble is... buy one that's been unmolested and most things rubbery will need replacing. Buy one that's been "restored" and most things rubbery will need replacing and previous bodges will need correcting. For example, my right hand engine hanger had an Allen bolt in there that was just finger tight. (you can spot it on the pic). Torque on the cylinder bolts was way too low on some and way too tight on others. It's just getting the right extension heights for each bolt but the previous previous owner clearly didn't.

So far I've had one bad nut (my mistake), a seized woodruff/keyway (previous bodge), two things were a lack of my knowledge (aint that the case), finger tight engine mount with the wrong bolt (previous bodge) and an unresolved clutch end-float, which I'm hoping is again a lack of my knowledge.

It's going ok actually. Looking at a big stack of (NLA) parts on the floor is unnerving but I reckon I could provide colour pics for the entire TZR manual engine section before long.

[thump566]

I tend to agree with you Rich. Examples can vary from unrestored (and often in need of varying degrees of TLC) to the totally restored (and even then, sometimes not having been done that well).

If you are fortunate enough to buy one from someone you know then in theory it should be significantly better. I wasn't confident enough to rebuild my engine last time but hopefully will be next time having read many of the experienced comments and threads on this forum including yours 

[SouthCoastRich]

the experienced comments and threads on this forum including yours 

I would count the answers on my posts rather than knowledge from myself - the forum's a bikesaver for sure 

Today was all about cleaning and getting everything bagged up for Martin. I also took the opportunity to try to learn some more about my bike, so I created port maps, measured ring end gaps and checked the heads for warping and squish band height.

Rings came out at between 0.35 and 0.38mm and everything got a good clean, and safely packaged up for SP tuning with matched PVs and head skim 

[Warwick]

If you are planning on re-using the old pistons and rings ensure that you keep each piston and rings together as a set, and mark the pistons according to the cyls they came out of (and will go back in to) of course. Also inspect the ring pegs very closely for signs of wear/erosion - the upper ring half-pegs especially.

Better to use new pistons and rings if you have any doubt at all about them, or don't know that they are very low mileage and the pegs look all good etc. of course.   

[SouthCoastRich]

If you are planning on re-using the old pistons and rings ensure that you keep each piston and rings together as a set, and mark the pistons according to the cyls they came out of (and will go back in to) of course. Also inspect the ring pegs very closely for signs of wear/erosion - the upper ring half-pegs especially.

Better to use new pistons and rings if you have any doubt at all about them, or don't know that they are very low mileage and the pegs look all good etc. of course. 

I'm reusing - depending on those ring gaps... 0.35-0.38 mm. I'll check the resources section, but these are Wossner pistons so unsure if that would make a difference?

Anyway, yes being very very careful. Rings went back on the same piston in the same position and the same way up as they came off. I do have new small end bearings, which I'll use. And they'll go back into the same barrels. The pistons are about 600 kms old.

Edit: Standard ring gaps from the manual says between 0.3mm and 0.45mm with a service limit of 0.8mm - so I'm good to go on those rings! 

[SouthCoastRich]

Oh, just to keep things the same side, I'm using red and green zip ties on everything that comes off, corresponding to red and green zip ties on the brake/clutch levers.

[AndyYam]

Success. 

Nut extractor worked and the cylinder is free! Thanks Andy & Steve for that tip and a huge thanks to Steve for offering to help replace the mangled nut.

PV wiggled out just like you said Warwick, and the head came away from the barrel with the butt end of a wooden hammer. Really helpful to know these things I don't know.

I got the second head off too, bit nervous on the upper coolant flange, but the impact driver did it's job well.

First head cleaned up well, the upper cylinder head had loads of smooth carbon buildup, just goes to show how out of sync the jetting was. Marks on the lower cylinder wall, but nothing that can be felt.

The list of parts on the floor is growing..... I had thought about carrying on and getting the next cylinder off and maybe I could clean these up and maybe I could get them in the post to Martin - but stopped. Don't rush. Leave it, take your time & quit while you're ahead!

As Warwick says - put the kettle on 

WooHoo! bet that was a good feeling when you felt that start turning. Wish you could bottle that haha