Another new bike.

Ok, I think I've become CarKid.

We picked up an '83 XL250R a few years ago, as it was the right price, and I was outgrowing my XR 80. It's been used periodically (once every six months-ish) since then, but never a main bike in the family.

Now that I've finished outgrowing the XR 80, this is my main bike. I've already rebuilt the carb, replaced the air cleaner, been through the electrical system, drained and cleaned the gas tank, changed the oil, changed the spark plug, cleaned everything, and adjusted the chain.

The only things left on my list are the back tire and the turn signals. The back tire is a very conservative DOT rated one, which is fine for the road, but is horrible in the FL sand. Since this bike will see 80% off road use, I'd like something with tread to get through the soft sand. Laws don't matter, as we know the local cops, and there is no inspection in Florida. Recommend me a tire! (Front was new when we bought the bike)

As far as the turn signals, the P.O. removed the fronts (quite cleanly, I might add). This caused the rears to not blink, so I pulled them off, too. We've broken them off before on the trails with Dad's bike, so I figured they would be gone one way or the other, and turn signals that don't blink are useless. Florida law doesn't require them. Is this acceptable/smart?

Lastly, it's mechanically sound now, but it looks like crap. The tank has a huge dent in it, the paint is all faded, and the decals are all fading. How do I make it look better? Can I pull the dent out of the tank (It's right in the upper left corner)? The other thread has me considering Rhino Lining the tank and other body work, has anybody done this? Any other ideas?

I haz the ADD.

I think we need pictures.

That bike should run forever if taken care of. May need to look at universal plastic to replace existing plastic. Clarke made replacement plastic tanks as well as a few others. They may still be out there in small quantities. Turn signals, look for flush mount sport bike for the rear and short stalk ones for the front. For the gas tank, look at an oversize plastic if you have any inclination to ride on the street for any distance.

My third bike was an XL500R when I was Thirteen as I spent more time starting it than my father. I got rid of it when it abused me more than i abused it. My current bike is a XR400R that has been made street legal

Tommy Suddard wrote: Ok, I think I've become CarKid. I haz the ADD.

Thats a compliment right?

around here, it certainly is.

Tommy Suddard wrote: Lastly, it's mechanically sound now, but it looks like crap. The tank has a huge dent in it, the paint is all faded, and the decals are all fading. How do I make it look better? Can I pull the dent out of the tank (It's right in the upper left corner)? The other thread has me considering Rhino Lining the tank and other body work, has anybody done this? Any other ideas?

Standard dirt bike damage, in other words. Getting the dent out of the tank might be possible but it'll be hard work. I'd be careful trying to pull it out by welding anything to the tank, both for obvious reasons and because you don't want to pull a hole in it either. I think most pros - if faced with a tank that absolutely needs restoring - go in through the bottom of the tank or the "saddle" over the top frame tube. But then again you're talking about cleaning it up well enough to be able to weld it, plus it's a lot of work for potentially questionable gain.

There is a method that supposedly works (I haven't tried it) which is to measure the tank volume, and then - taking into account the 'volume growth' of water when it freezes, fill it with just a little more water than you need to fill the whole tank with ice. The additional volume of ice is supposed to push out the dent or accidentally reshape it in a way you don't want it reshaped.

Personally, I prefer the "keep an eye on fleabay for a used tank" method.

Tommy Suddard wrote: I haz the ADD.

Yeah, I've got "look, shiny bike" syndrome as well. But I need to finish three restorations in three months first so I can get the bikes crated up and shipped to the US first.

"so I can get the bikes crated up and shipped to the US first." What the hell? Your having more than one, shiny type motorcycle thing shipped to the US? And why is this not in a thread?

I've three of them (1968 Moto Morini Corsaro Super Sport 125cc, 1 of approx 100, 1974 Laverda SF2 and a 1976 Moto Morini 3 1/2 Sport). The reason they're not in a thread is mainly because the bikes are scattered around England. The frames and engines are in my garage but some bodywork is still with a friend of mine who's respraying it.

A suitable thread will be started once they're all back together. But here's a teaser of what one of them looked like before I started working on it:

Trade?

Sorry, no . It took me years to find one in that particular combination (disk brakes/wire wheels - only made for about 18 months).

You can occasionally find the later cast wheels models or the wire wheels/drum brake models in the US if you keep looking long enough. One of the reasons I'm bringing this one with me.

Okay, pixxors!

That dent looks like it's going to be very hard to remove - as mentioned above I'd look for a used one on ebay. A lot of them were red so I doubt that it'll be that hard to find one.

Looks pretty good for a dirt bike of that age otherwise.

Yeah, I've been watching eBay. Do you have any idea what model years use the same tank? Also, any suggestions for a replacement rear tire.

Oh, and I just realized something. I have no clue what kind of tire pressures to run in a bike. I've only ever had dirt bikes, which I ran 10 psi in for the sand.

I think they ran that style for quite a few years, but a quick check over on cmsnl suggests that you're looking for an 82 or 83 tank.

Sorry, not much of a clue regarding the tyre pressure for this bike. I'd start around 2bar (30psi?) and try to adjust, but it would probably be a good idea to find out what the manufacturer of the tyre recommends.

Hmmm...

bedliner paintjob eh? I was thinking mine might look good with the mad max look and had only brainstormed as far as rit Dye (and didn't think that would probably work very well...but who knows). I like the idea of the bedliner stuff. Heck...I could do the frame with it too.

Hmmm...thanks for the idea!
Clem

I don't think I would personal bother trying to fix that dent. Maybe touch up the paint. Anyways it looks like a nice bike

Thanks for all the advice, I think I'm gonna just touch it up for now, maybe a bedliner paint job later. I haven't dropped it yet, so let me get that out of the way, first.

BoxheadTim wrote:

That's perrrty. Forgive my bike newbishness, but that's what'd be considered a cafe racer, right?

Are there other, more common, bikes that have those kind of lines, only minus the rare factor, so that some poor shlub like myself might find/afford one? Or perhaps starting points that could be converted into one without needing tremendous amounts of fab to do so?

Those look like DOT trials tires, like the IRC TR-1 or Pirelli MT43. I'd love a set up here with roots and rocks, but they gotta suck down there. That front doesn't look terribly aggressive either. A lot of guys up here who need DOT tires like the Pirelli MT16 front and Kenda Trackmaster II 760 rear for sand (pine barrens, nj). I've heard good things about the Michelin S12 XC and new dunlop MX31's if you don't need DOT.

A good set of mirrors is more important than blinkers imo. I'm replacing mine with Dual Star under bar mirrors, fairly cheap and very hard to break with where they're mounted. Look into a set of bark busters to protect your hands too, you can get a decent set for ~$50 from Western power sports (WPS), try the thumpertalk.com store.

Rev, welcome to the dark side Join us at http://dotheton.com/index.php That Morini is sex-on-wheels! The first one I have ever seen, I would love an alloy/disc brake model.

ReverendDexter wrote: That's perrrty. Forgive my bike newbishness, but that's what'd be considered a cafe racer, right?

It would be if I built it at home, but that's a regular factory-built bike. So it's "just" a sporty 1970s Italian bike.

ReverendDexter wrote: Are there other, more common, bikes that have those kind of lines, only minus the rare factor, so that some poor shlub like myself might find/afford one? Or perhaps starting points that could be converted into one without needing tremendous amounts of fab to do so?

Well, Morinis are kinda rare but they are not that expensive. They used to be stupidly expensive when new but these days, they're a bit of an aquired taste and that keeps prices in check. This one cost me about $3800 in the pictured condition, but it looks like I'll have about $500-$600 in the tank when it's done as that tank was in pretty bad shape, even if it doesn't look like it. I don't think the prices are that much higher in the US, but I might be wrong on that. The main reason I'm bringing this with me is because this particular model is hard to find, not because it's super rare or massively valuable. They're also quite small - that V2 engine only has 350cc so you can kinda work out how big the bike is. At 5'11" I just about fit on it.

Similar lines? Depends if you squint a little . There are a couple of obviously similar bikes from Italy from the same period (like my Laverda, or some Ducatis) but they're probably more expensive. If you don't mind something Japanese with similar attributes but a four cylinder engine, I'd say a 70s Honda 400 Four would make a good starting point. They were massively popular over here in the UK but again I think not so much in the US. But something like a 500 Four or 550 Four with European bars or clip-ons and rear sets would give you vaguely similar lines.

The Kenda tires are pretty good, but pricing on them is approaching regular tire price now, so for a few dollars more, you may be able to pick up some of the bigger name stuff. The Michelins are very good.

What ever you buy, go with the more aggressive front tire, there is a BIG difference. Most of them are DOT (even a lot of the mx front tires), and being on the front, will last a lot longer. A Kenda 760, or Cheng shin on the back, with a Michelin S12 XC on the front would be a good budget solution.

Last year I put Kenda 270's on my KLX because I ride a lot of street, and dirt road, but every time I rode any did any aggressive trail riding, the front washed on me like crazy. Halfway through the season, I replaced the front 270 with a Kenda Millville sticky MX tire that I had in the shop. The difference was night and day, and it was still fine on the street.