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How to Tell a Rat Bike From a Race BikeAug 04 '00 (Updated Aug 06 '00) Write an essay on this topic.There you are staring at the local classifieds and you see the perfect dirt bike for a decent price. You call the owner and you get the usual, “Ow… its in perfect condition, I only rode it once or twice.” Don’t believe this, here is a small guide of how to find out if the owner was telling the truth. This guide is based on Motocross bikes, YZ, KX, CR, RM etc.. I will go over the basic things you should look at on the bike before you drop your hard earned money on it. ENGINE When I look at a used bike, bring a compression gauge. Remove the spark plug and check the compression of the bike. A 2 stroke 80, 125, or 250 should have a compression of around 150. If it is lower then that, the bike needs a new piston and rings, $100 +Labor. Next start the bike. Slowly rev the throttle all the way to pinned. Does it ever sputter or run roughly? If so it could be as simple as carboration. When the bike down-revs do u feel a brutal vibration through the handlebars and foot pegs? This could be that the crank bearings are shot. Put the bike in gear and hold the rear brake down and let the clutch out until the clutch just bearly starts to move the bike. Does the clutch slip? If it does new clutch plates are in order. Look at the front and rear sprockets. Are they pointy or pitched in the drive directions. New sprockets are $50 and the chain has to be changed along with the sprockets. FORKS Push down on the forks, then look at the shiny slider. Does oil ooze out of the seals? If it does new seals have to be pressed in at a shop for $50. Look down the forks from the handlebars, are they bent or have dents in them? SHOCK Push down on the rear end. Does the shock squeak? Does it compress smoothly? If it doesn’t new linkage and swing arm bearings are necessary. There are four bearings down there that have to be pressed in at a shop. FRAME Lean the bike on its side and look at the frame for dents or bends. A new frame is around $500, but you can just tell the owner how much a new frame would cost, and just have a good fabrication shop splice a new frame pipe in for around $150. Look at the rims and make sure that they spin true, with no bends or dings. I hope that this guide helps you decide wither or not to purchase that bike in the newspaper. You can look over this bike and find out how much money will have to be put in it to the new bike.  |
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