New Guy, New to Bikes, Looking for Answers - Page 6

95C1500 · 10-15-2016, 11:39 PM

Well, I bought it. The gre one (silver actually). I offered him $800, he countered with $850, we agreed and he signed the title and a bill of sale. That's the short version.

Here's the slightly longer, more detailed version. I drove an hour this morning, meet the guy at 11. I pull in to his apartment complex and see him and his friend standing outside by the bikes. The black one is torn apart. I asked him what the deal was and he said it was a basically a parts bike for his main one (the silver one). So it turns out, the black one didn't have a key or side plastics. 45 miles, been wrecked and had a brand new front tire/tube/wheel. But because there wasn't a key, there was no way to start it up. So I ruled that bike out right away. We move over to the silver one. It's missing a mirror, a reflector, the side plastics were removed, no battery. So he tries to kickstart it. He kicks and kicks and kicks and nothing. Finally it fired. It seemed to idle okay. He goes to rev it up a little and it bogs down and dies. So he kicks and kicks and kicks and gets it started again and it bogs down and dies. So I've lost all interest at this point. I was ready to leave and never look back. But he asked if I'd help them try to figure out the problem. So we take the carbs off both bikes, wipe them out with our fingers and inspect them. All seems well so we swapped them and put them back together and the throttle gets stuck. As in, once its moved through the 1/4" of free play, it just stops. It won't twist any further. So we try the black bike. Same problem. So the sellers friend messes with it while the seller and I talk about the bikes, riding, bikes in general basically. After dropping the little C clip (E clip maybe) about 5 times, he gets them working again. So the seller kicks it and kicks it. Still bogging down. So at this point I'm thinking it needs to be rejetted, the fuel mixture needs to be messed with, idle needs to be messed with, etc... So after a while of standing there awkwardly, kind of pissed that I wasted my time), his friend pulls the tube running from the air box to the carb. The idle changes. It sounds a lot better. He revs it a couple times, then really revs it once. No bogging whatsoever. So he takes it around the parking lot, comes back, I hop on and go for a short ride. All seems well. So now we know the problem, now we need to try to track it down. Still not planning on buying at this point, but I'm starting to see it as a possibility. We pull the seat, pull the airbox lid and what do you know. Air filter is covered in oil. I think I remember reading/hearing that that's vcaused by overfilling it with oil. Which he said he did. Said he changed hte oil ysterday and put the right amount in this time. No wonder it wouldn't run for shit. So we replaced the filter for the one on the black bike, while it was off the seller did the airbox mod (which I still need to add a screen to), and we put it all back together. I go for another ride, wwe talk for about an hour and a half. I asked him to bring out the new battery so we could make sure all electrical worked. So healdights/low/high/turn signals/brake light/killswitch/ignition, electric start all worked flawlessly. When I used the electric start, it started immediately. Nothing like kicking it was doing so that alleviated a lot of my doubt. Then I bring up the topic of price. I told him, I understand why he priced it like he did, but I just couldn't pay that much knowing I could go get a brand new bike with 0 problems for a couple hundred more. So I told him I'd give him $800 right then and there. He told me if it was someone else who hadn't stayed out there for almost 6 hours helping them work on the bikes and talking, he wouldn't even consider it. But he said if I'd give him $850, I could have it. So I grabbed the VIN, went to call the titling office, and they're closed. I trusted the guy for the most part, but you can't be too careful. So I asked him to show me the title and I checked to make sure the VIN, plate number and owner info was the same as well as that it was a blue Texas title. Everything checked out so I'm 99% sure I won't have any problem. That 1% comes from me being a worrier haha. So for $850, I got the bike, a new mirror, a new reflector, a spare tire and tube and some kind of lock that I probably own't use for the bike (might use it for my bicycle on campus). So he signs the title, and a bill of sale, take his plate, and we drive down the road to a hill so we can load the bike (I sold my ramp when I sold my dirtbike). 10 minutes later it was strapped it and I was headed home.

now that I have the bike, there are a few things that need to be addressed.
1) Dead battery. I dropped it off at O'reillys to get it charged. I'll pick it up in the morning and see if it works. If not, I'll be buying a new battery.
2) the mirror was broken off, He tossed in the one off his parts bike. I need to put that on tomorrow.
3) The color. It looks decent in pictures (I like the color but the execution is poor. There are spots where you can still see the original color (blue). I will respray it at some point (maybe a dark grey or something)
4) Oil change, fork oil change, lube the chain, etc... basic maintenance. Speaking of maintenance, how often are the spark plugs changed on these bikes?
5) left grip just slides off. Need to glue it or replace with a different set.
6) bike was dropped, clutch lever end broken off. Do they make short levers that work on these bikes?
7) bike squeaks when suspension cycles. I hate anything I ride or drive to squeak. Any know areas that squeak or even solutions to the problem? I used fluid film on my truck leaf packs and it worked great. For 3 months it was squeak free. Sprayed some more and it was gone after a trip around the neighborhood.
8) The bike needs to be cleaned. Bad. It's dusty/dirty. I don;t plan to do much offroading with it so I want it to look nice.
9) That damn shift lever. So short. So uncomfortable. I need a longer one asap
19) I'd like to do sprockets and a chain. But I want to get a good feel for the way it performs stock before I change them.
11) carb tuning. I think I've decided to keep the stock carb and just replace the jets
12) Hand Guards. Always liked the look. Not to mention the added protection.
13) needs a kickstand spring. Right now it's held on by... you guessed it. A bungee cord
14) One of them fancy digital clusters. The speedometer doesn't work (needle broken off and it just spins in circles as I rode it)
15) float in the gas tank needs to be replaced since the gauge doesn't work

It's not perfect, it needs some work and modifications, but I feel like I got a pretty good deal and I expect a lot of great, cheap fun over the years.

If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking through until the end! I'll, make a video of it and what I plan to do to it next week at some time and post the link for you guys to see. Better pics tomorrow as well

chuck · 10-16-2016, 06:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 95C1500

Well, I bought it. The gre one (silver actually). I offered him $800, he countered with $850, we agreed and he signed the title and a bill of sale. That's the short version.

Here's the slightly longer, more detailed version. I drove an hour this morning, meet the guy at 11. I pull in to his apartment complex and see him and his friend standing outside by the bikes. The black one is torn apart. I asked him what the deal was and he said it was a basically a parts bike for his main one (the silver one). So it turns out, the black one didn't have a key or side plastics. 45 miles, been wrecked and had a brand new front tire/tube/wheel. But because there wasn't a key, there was no way to start it up. So I ruled that bike out right away. We move over to the silver one. It's missing a mirror, a reflector, the side plastics were removed, no battery. So he tries to kickstart it. He kicks and kicks and kicks and nothing. Finally it fired. It seemed to idle okay. He goes to rev it up a little and it bogs down and dies. So he kicks and kicks and kicks and gets it started again and it bogs down and dies. So I've lost all interest at this point. I was ready to leave and never look back. But he asked if I'd help them try to figure out the problem. So we take the carbs off both bikes, wipe them out with our fingers and inspect them. All seems well so we swapped them and put them back together and the throttle gets stuck. As in, once its moved through the 1/4" of free play, it just stops. It won't twist any further. So we try the black bike. Same problem. So the sellers friend messes with it while the seller and I talk about the bikes, riding, bikes in general basically. After dropping the little C clip (E clip maybe) about 5 times, he gets them working again. So the seller kicks it and kicks it. Still bogging down. So at this point I'm thinking it needs to be rejetted, the fuel mixture needs to be messed with, idle needs to be messed with, etc... So after a while of standing there awkwardly, kind of pissed that I wasted my time), his friend pulls the tube running from the air box to the carb. The idle changes. It sounds a lot better. He revs it a couple times, then really revs it once. No bogging whatsoever. So he takes it around the parking lot, comes back, I hop on and go for a short ride. All seems well. So now we know the problem, now we need to try to track it down. Still not planning on buying at this point, but I'm starting to see it as a possibility. We pull the seat, pull the airbox lid and what do you know. Air filter is covered in oil. I think I remember reading/hearing that that's vcaused by overfilling it with oil. Which he said he did. Said he changed hte oil ysterday and put the right amount in this time. No wonder it wouldn't run for shit. So we replaced the filter for the one on the black bike, while it was off the seller did the airbox mod (which I still need to add a screen to), and we put it all back together. I go for another ride, wwe talk for about an hour and a half. I asked him to bring out the new battery so we could make sure all electrical worked. So healdights/low/high/turn signals/brake light/killswitch/ignition, electric start all worked flawlessly. When I used the electric start, it started immediately. Nothing like kicking it was doing so that alleviated a lot of my doubt. Then I bring up the topic of price. I told him, I understand why he priced it like he did, but I just couldn't pay that much knowing I could go get a brand new bike with 0 problems for a couple hundred more. So I told him I'd give him $800 right then and there. He told me if it was someone else who hadn't stayed out there for almost 6 hours helping them work on the bikes and talking, he wouldn't even consider it. But he said if I'd give him $850, I could have it. So I grabbed the VIN, went to call the titling office, and they're closed. I trusted the guy for the most part, but you can't be too careful. So I asked him to show me the title and I checked to make sure the VIN, plate number and owner info was the same as well as that it was a blue Texas title. Everything checked out so I'm 99% sure I won't have any problem. That 1% comes from me being a worrier haha. So for $850, I got the bike, a new mirror, a new reflector, a spare tire and tube and some kind of lock that I probably own't use for the bike (might use it for my bicycle on campus). So he signs the title, and a bill of sale, take his plate, and we drive down the road to a hill so we can load the bike (I sold my ramp when I sold my dirtbike). 10 minutes later it was strapped it and I was headed home.

now that I have the bike, there are a few things that need to be addressed.
1) Dead battery. I dropped it off at O'reillys to get it charged. I'll pick it up in the morning and see if it works. If not, I'll be buying a new battery.
2) the mirror was broken off, He tossed in the one off his parts bike. I need to put that on tomorrow.
3) The color. It looks decent in pictures (I like the color but the execution is poor. There are spots where you can still see the original color (blue). I will respray it at some point (maybe a dark grey or something)
4) Oil change, fork oil change, lube the chain, etc... basic maintenance. Speaking of maintenance, how often are the spark plugs changed on these bikes?
5) left grip just slides off. Need to glue it or replace with a different set.
6) bike was dropped, clutch lever end broken off. Do they make short levers that work on these bikes?
7) bike squeaks when suspension cycles. I hate anything I ride or drive to squeak. Any know areas that squeak or even solutions to the problem? I used fluid film on my truck leaf packs and it worked great. For 3 months it was squeak free. Sprayed some more and it was gone after a trip around the neighborhood.
8) The bike needs to be cleaned. Bad. It's dusty/dirty. I don;t plan to do much offroading with it so I want it to look nice.
9) That damn shift lever. So short. So uncomfortable. I need a longer one asap
19) I'd like to do sprockets and a chain. But I want to get a good feel for the way it performs stock before I change them.
11) carb tuning. I think I've decided to keep the stock carb and just replace the jets
12) Hand Guards. Always liked the look. Not to mention the added protection.
13) needs a kickstand spring. Right now it's held on by... you guessed it. A bungee cord
14) One of them fancy digital clusters. The speedometer doesn't work (needle broken off and it just spins in circles as I rode it)
15) float in the gas tank needs to be replaced since the gauge doesn't work

It's not perfect, it needs some work and modifications, but I feel like I got a pretty good deal and I expect a lot of great, cheap fun over the years.

If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking through until the end! I'll, make a video of it and what I plan to do to it next week at some time and post the link for you guys to see. Better pics tomorrow as well

The squeaking is coming from the bone dry swing arm.Grease it

GeneralTso · 10-16-2016, 10:10 AM

Well that was a fun read this morning, just read the whole thread haha. Congratulations on the bike, I couldn't stop until I saw how it all played out lol.

Nice truck too by the way!

Azhule · 10-16-2016, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 95C1500

4) Oil change, fork oil change, lube the chain, etc... basic maintenance. Speaking of maintenance, how often are the spark plugs changed on these bikes?

Upgrade to a NGK or Denso Iridium plug and you wont have to worry about the spark plug for several years

95C1500 · 10-16-2016, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chuck

The squeaking is coming from the bone dry swing arm.Grease it

Thanks! Will do!

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeneralTso

Well that was a fun read this morning, just read the whole thread haha. Congratulations on the bike, I couldn't stop until I saw how it all played out lol.

Nice truck too by the way!

Haha glad you enjoyed it! Thak you. I hope it looks nice, it's the reason I don't have more money in my bank account right now lol

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azhule

Upgrade to a NGK or Denso Iridium plug and you wont have to worry about the spark plug for several years

Haha will do! I planned to anyways. I just wasn't sure if it was every 500 miles, 5000 miles or 50,000 miles lol

So good news and bad news. Good news is, I love the bike. Once I get the quirks worked out and get it painted and cleaned up I'll be a lot happier. I definitely see potential in this bike.

The bad news, I picked up the battery from O'reillys this morning. Tossed it in and started the bike. It worked great. Went for a ride around the neighborhood, come back and wash it (key off since I stopped the bike), go to start it back up and I can hear it try but it just stops after half a second. So just my luck, I need a new battery. On top of that, I noticed that the odometer doesn't work -_- So a hawk cluster may come sooner rather than later

chinatoys · 10-16-2016, 01:12 PM

Congratulations on the new bike. I ended up picking up a Hawk with 300 miles on it a month ago for $500. It was a little rough but now I feel like I got a great deal. Of course I've already put about $300-$400 in it for upgrades. Real swing arm bearings, shock, carb, clutch, air filter, bars, mirrors, led bulbs, chain and sprockets, etc. It adds up fast.

95C1500 · 10-16-2016, 04:32 PM

It sure does. There's a few upgrades I feel are necessary (carb, cluster since mine doesn't work, paint, etc...) and that alone will be $200.

BlackBike · 10-16-2016, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chinatoys

Congratulations on the new bike. I ended up picking up a Hawk with 300 miles on it a month ago for $500. It was a little rough but now I feel like I got a great deal. Of course I've already put about $300-$400 in it for upgrades. Real swing arm bearings, shock, carb, clutch, air filter, bars, mirrors, led bulbs, chain and sprockets, etc. It adds up fast.

Real sa bearings and all the rest , almost real honda like. Making it Bulletproof.

Opps ,Excuse me , the cabal says we should not use gun analogies

A cabal is a group of people united in some close design together, usually to promote their private views or interests in an ideology, state, or other community, often by intrigue, usually unbeknown to persons outside their group.

95C1500 · 10-17-2016, 04:56 PM

I made thread for my hawk specifically. I'll keep the technical and questions here and just post progress and pics in the other thread
http://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=17650

95C1500 · 10-19-2016, 06:17 PM

The link for the rear sprocket that most people get is out of stock, they said it could be up to 4 weeks before they get them back in stock. So I'm just double checking because it's what I do. This one would fit right? Same part number, different seller.
https://www.amazon.com/JT-Sprockets-...pe=motorcycle#

10-16-2016, 10:10 AM	#78
GeneralTso Join Date: May 2016 Location: Middle TN Posts: 312	Well that was a fun read this morning, just read the whole thread haha. Congratulations on the bike, I couldn't stop until I saw how it all played out lol. Nice truck too by the way! __________________ 2005 Kazuma Cheetah 200 (Swamp Thing)
	0

10-15-2016, 11:39 PM	#76
95C1500 Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 138	Well, I bought it. The gre one (silver actually). I offered him $800, he countered with $850, we agreed and he signed the title and a bill of sale. That's the short version. Here's the slightly longer, more detailed version. I drove an hour this morning, meet the guy at 11. I pull in to his apartment complex and see him and his friend standing outside by the bikes. The black one is torn apart. I asked him what the deal was and he said it was a basically a parts bike for his main one (the silver one). So it turns out, the black one didn't have a key or side plastics. 45 miles, been wrecked and had a brand new front tire/tube/wheel. But because there wasn't a key, there was no way to start it up. So I ruled that bike out right away. We move over to the silver one. It's missing a mirror, a reflector, the side plastics were removed, no battery. So he tries to kickstart it. He kicks and kicks and kicks and nothing. Finally it fired. It seemed to idle okay. He goes to rev it up a little and it bogs down and dies. So he kicks and kicks and kicks and gets it started again and it bogs down and dies. So I've lost all interest at this point. I was ready to leave and never look back. But he asked if I'd help them try to figure out the problem. So we take the carbs off both bikes, wipe them out with our fingers and inspect them. All seems well so we swapped them and put them back together and the throttle gets stuck. As in, once its moved through the 1/4" of free play, it just stops. It won't twist any further. So we try the black bike. Same problem. So the sellers friend messes with it while the seller and I talk about the bikes, riding, bikes in general basically. After dropping the little C clip (E clip maybe) about 5 times, he gets them working again. So the seller kicks it and kicks it. Still bogging down. So at this point I'm thinking it needs to be rejetted, the fuel mixture needs to be messed with, idle needs to be messed with, etc... So after a while of standing there awkwardly, kind of pissed that I wasted my time), his friend pulls the tube running from the air box to the carb. The idle changes. It sounds a lot better. He revs it a couple times, then really revs it once. No bogging whatsoever. So he takes it around the parking lot, comes back, I hop on and go for a short ride. All seems well. So now we know the problem, now we need to try to track it down. Still not planning on buying at this point, but I'm starting to see it as a possibility. We pull the seat, pull the airbox lid and what do you know. Air filter is covered in oil. I think I remember reading/hearing that that's vcaused by overfilling it with oil. Which he said he did. Said he changed hte oil ysterday and put the right amount in this time. No wonder it wouldn't run for shit. So we replaced the filter for the one on the black bike, while it was off the seller did the airbox mod (which I still need to add a screen to), and we put it all back together. I go for another ride, wwe talk for about an hour and a half. I asked him to bring out the new battery so we could make sure all electrical worked. So healdights/low/high/turn signals/brake light/killswitch/ignition, electric start all worked flawlessly. When I used the electric start, it started immediately. Nothing like kicking it was doing so that alleviated a lot of my doubt. Then I bring up the topic of price. I told him, I understand why he priced it like he did, but I just couldn't pay that much knowing I could go get a brand new bike with 0 problems for a couple hundred more. So I told him I'd give him $800 right then and there. He told me if it was someone else who hadn't stayed out there for almost 6 hours helping them work on the bikes and talking, he wouldn't even consider it. But he said if I'd give him $850, I could have it. So I grabbed the VIN, went to call the titling office, and they're closed. I trusted the guy for the most part, but you can't be too careful. So I asked him to show me the title and I checked to make sure the VIN, plate number and owner info was the same as well as that it was a blue Texas title. Everything checked out so I'm 99% sure I won't have any problem. That 1% comes from me being a worrier haha. So for $850, I got the bike, a new mirror, a new reflector, a spare tire and tube and some kind of lock that I probably own't use for the bike (might use it for my bicycle on campus). So he signs the title, and a bill of sale, take his plate, and we drive down the road to a hill so we can load the bike (I sold my ramp when I sold my dirtbike). 10 minutes later it was strapped it and I was headed home. now that I have the bike, there are a few things that need to be addressed. 1) Dead battery. I dropped it off at O'reillys to get it charged. I'll pick it up in the morning and see if it works. If not, I'll be buying a new battery. 2) the mirror was broken off, He tossed in the one off his parts bike. I need to put that on tomorrow. 3) The color. It looks decent in pictures (I like the color but the execution is poor. There are spots where you can still see the original color (blue). I will respray it at some point (maybe a dark grey or something) 4) Oil change, fork oil change, lube the chain, etc... basic maintenance. Speaking of maintenance, how often are the spark plugs changed on these bikes? 5) left grip just slides off. Need to glue it or replace with a different set. 6) bike was dropped, clutch lever end broken off. Do they make short levers that work on these bikes? 7) bike squeaks when suspension cycles. I hate anything I ride or drive to squeak. Any know areas that squeak or even solutions to the problem? I used fluid film on my truck leaf packs and it worked great. For 3 months it was squeak free. Sprayed some more and it was gone after a trip around the neighborhood. 8) The bike needs to be cleaned. Bad. It's dusty/dirty. I don;t plan to do much offroading with it so I want it to look nice. 9) That damn shift lever. So short. So uncomfortable. I need a longer one asap 19) I'd like to do sprockets and a chain. But I want to get a good feel for the way it performs stock before I change them. 11) carb tuning. I think I've decided to keep the stock carb and just replace the jets 12) Hand Guards. Always liked the look. Not to mention the added protection. 13) needs a kickstand spring. Right now it's held on by... you guessed it. A bungee cord 14) One of them fancy digital clusters. The speedometer doesn't work (needle broken off and it just spins in circles as I rode it) 15) float in the gas tank needs to be replaced since the gauge doesn't work It's not perfect, it needs some work and modifications, but I feel like I got a pretty good deal and I expect a lot of great, cheap fun over the years. If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking through until the end! I'll, make a video of it and what I plan to do to it next week at some time and post the link for you guys to see. Better pics tomorrow as well
	0

10-16-2016, 01:12 PM	#81
chinatoys Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 13	Congratulations on the new bike. I ended up picking up a Hawk with 300 miles on it a month ago for $500. It was a little rough but now I feel like I got a great deal. Of course I've already put about $300-$400 in it for upgrades. Real swing arm bearings, shock, carb, clutch, air filter, bars, mirrors, led bulbs, chain and sprockets, etc. It adds up fast.
	0

10-16-2016, 04:32 PM	#82
95C1500 Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 138	It sure does. There's a few upgrades I feel are necessary (carb, cluster since mine doesn't work, paint, etc...) and that alone will be $200.
	0

10-17-2016, 04:56 PM	#84
95C1500 Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 138	I made thread for my hawk specifically. I'll keep the technical and questions here and just post progress and pics in the other thread http://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=17650
	0

10-19-2016, 06:17 PM	#85
95C1500 Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 138	The link for the rear sprocket that most people get is out of stock, they said it could be up to 4 weeks before they get them back in stock. So I'm just double checking because it's what I do. This one would fit right? Same part number, different seller. https://www.amazon.com/JT-Sprockets-...pe=motorcycle#
	0