New to Honda Z50... Engine dead. Help!
- Thread starter QRSamuel
- Start date
@power6994 for the cylinder I just bought a refresh kit for a crf50, and I will sell or give away the piston. It was the cheapest one I could find, hopefully that doesn't come back to haunt me. And I bought the old style piston separately.
Cylinder kit - https://www.ebay.com/itm/395598379915
Piston - https://www.ebay.com/itm/151679936687
Keep in mind I can't vouch for these sellers yet as my items haven't arrived, but the reviews look okay for the kit seller and good for the piston seller. The kit seller just looks like a drop shipper so beware I guess.
Cylinder kit - https://www.ebay.com/itm/395598379915
Piston - https://www.ebay.com/itm/151679936687
Keep in mind I can't vouch for these sellers yet as my items haven't arrived, but the reviews look okay for the kit seller and good for the piston seller. The kit seller just looks like a drop shipper so beware I guess.
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I'm just waiting for rest of the parts I need to arrive. The cylinder and timing chain kit have arrived. I'm waiting on the piston, copper head gasket, and valve stem seal (the exhaust valve on the 6v head I bought looks like it is wet with oil.). Unfortunately the gaskets sent with the cylinder kit are the wrong size (They are way too big, that's what I get for ordering the cheapest of the cheap.) however it's no problem as I will be using the copper head gasket. I'm not sure about the base gasket though, it looks kinda dodgy, it's cut way oversize and there's a gap in the seal between the base of the cylinder and one of the studs. Is this a bad thing? Highlighted photo attached.
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Okay, as per @-Nate 's recommendation I'm not going to use the suspicious gasket, I've gone ahead and bought a complete set of good quality ones, I needed some gaskets for the cylinder head anyway. Also, looks like I might be getting reproduction bars sooner than expected, as the throttle has crapped itself, whoever designed it is a person who I would like to have a good long talk with, what was the point of the internal throttle? To hide 10cm of the throttle cable inside the bars, while making it a pain to work on..? It's almost as bad as (maybe worse than) the needlessly complex cam chain tensioner... Anyway long story short it sticks open, and while new bars aren't a requirement I've decided to get a new pair when I do this job as I do not fancy having to pull off the throttle twice in the same year. I will also be getting one of those throttle return springs so this doesn't happen again. Just waiting for my next paycheck to come in before I order.
FWIW ;
I typically find the throttle problems are caused by the rock hard 40 year old grease, I use an industrial degreaser I get from SAMS CLUB and a long toothbrush to loosen up and remove every trace of the old rock hard grease, dry well and then use good quality short fiber grease and those weird throttles work like new again .
I typically find the throttle problems are caused by the rock hard 40 year old grease, I use an industrial degreaser I get from SAMS CLUB and a long toothbrush to loosen up and remove every trace of the old rock hard grease, dry well and then use good quality short fiber grease and those weird throttles work like new again .
I have a few quick questions about my bike. While test riding, I found the indicators horrible to use as they are mounted on the throttle side of the bike. Are the switches on my bike inverted from the normal configuration? Even if they aren't I'll probably flip them around if I can because it's not safe for me drive it with the switches like that.
My other question is about the gearbox, I can't find any documentation on it, and I don't like it very much either, but I can (will have to) live with it. The previous owner said it is a 4 speed, 4 down from neutral. So, N down to 1, down to 2, etc and you can shift from 4th to 1st with another downshift. I'm pretty sure he was correct and that arrangement worked when I was test driving, but I'll have to wait until the engine is back together to confirm. This would mean it's a rotary gearbox right? But I can't find any mention of a rotary gearbox in a Dax prior to the recently released 125 version. So has someone messed with it and installed an aftermarket gear assembly or one from another vehicle? Or am I missing something and it's stock?
My other question is about the gearbox, I can't find any documentation on it, and I don't like it very much either, but I can (will have to) live with it. The previous owner said it is a 4 speed, 4 down from neutral. So, N down to 1, down to 2, etc and you can shift from 4th to 1st with another downshift. I'm pretty sure he was correct and that arrangement worked when I was test driving, but I'll have to wait until the engine is back together to confirm. This would mean it's a rotary gearbox right? But I can't find any mention of a rotary gearbox in a Dax prior to the recently released 125 version. So has someone messed with it and installed an aftermarket gear assembly or one from another vehicle? Or am I missing something and it's stock?
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I've had a dax that had a similar gearbox to a Z50m. One up, down down 2nd, down 3rd. It took me a while to figure out. Yours might just be 4dn. Have a play.
You can easily swap the indicator to the left and the hi/lo to the right. I'd definitely run it in that configuration
My z50a's have the indicator switches on the right side. It makes it easier to text with my left and ride with my right
kidding
You can easily swap the indicator to the left and the hi/lo to the right. I'd definitely run it in that configuration
My z50a's have the indicator switches on the right side. It makes it easier to text with my left and ride with my right
kiddingYes, it's a rotary gearshift, the tranny proper remains the same, there's a "shift star" on the outer end of the shift drum, it's likely missing -one- dowel, this is the only difference .
I don't like rotary shifting .
The winkers, you'll get accustomed to them pretty quickly, it's handier as many ride with only one hand......
I don't like rotary shifting .
The winkers, you'll get accustomed to them pretty quickly, it's handier as many ride with only one hand......
Okay, well I know almost nothing about how motorcycle transmissions work but does anyone know if it would it be possible to move the gears around on the shaft to have a more desirable shift pattern? Like 1 N 2 3 4? I would still have the problem of the gearbox being a rotary setup though, would I simply need that dowel to prevent it from shifting past 4th and below 1st? I bought a complete set of gaskets so I'm set up if I want to split the cases. Getting pretty major with the engine mods here (at least compared to what I'm used to 
) but I just know I'm gonna hate that shift pattern after driving it for any length of time. It would be my first time splitting the cases on an engine too, but I'm happy to figure it out and I have the manual to help me.
Edit: After some research it doesn't look possible, the gears do not have symmetry and aren't interchangeable with one another. I've seen a torn up crf50 engine close-ish by so I might buy that and build it up as my ideal engine, and then sell the Dax one. But that will have to wait until I fix the current problems with this bike. And until I have money.
Double edit: Will the AHP 4 speed transmission kit fit in my current engine? It's exactly what I'm after but I thought I saw online that the 4 speed and 3 speed cranks had different ways they connected to the transmisson. - Nevermind, not going to bother, way outside my budget range. Just gotta live with the damn awful transmission.
) but I just know I'm gonna hate that shift pattern after driving it for any length of time. It would be my first time splitting the cases on an engine too, but I'm happy to figure it out and I have the manual to help me.Edit: After some research it doesn't look possible, the gears do not have symmetry and aren't interchangeable with one another. I've seen a torn up crf50 engine close-ish by so I might buy that and build it up as my ideal engine, and then sell the Dax one. But that will have to wait until I fix the current problems with this bike. And until I have money.
Double edit: Will the AHP 4 speed transmission kit fit in my current engine? It's exactly what I'm after but I thought I saw online that the 4 speed and 3 speed cranks had different ways they connected to the transmisson. - Nevermind, not going to bother, way outside my budget range. Just gotta live with the damn awful transmission.
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Good point. I know it's not a serious vehicle, I just wanted it to have a similar setup to my other bikes. I think it will have the same shift pattern as the Hunter 125 which I will ride for work (eventually, when they move me off the c110 I'm riding, the suspension is gone and my butt hurts so bad) so that should help me get used to it. Anyway, can someone tell me which style bar clamp is meant for my bike? Cheers.
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oops, too late 
- the bars I got are ct70 ones so maybe a little taller, because of the manual clutch. They were listed as z50 ones though. If the holder craps out on me it was cheap enough that I will probably go and buy a nice one. If it doesn't, at some point I will strip it, polish it a bit, and get the correct knobs for it. fyi, if it's any difference that image is just from a google search and it isn't the holder I bought. But it is probably from the same manufacturer 
. As for bar size, those bars hit my legs pretty easily but I saw a video of someone riding a z50 with stock style bars, they arched over his legs, hoping that's the case here, but if not, I just have the same problem as before. lol...
Edit: I see what you mean by them being crap @OLD CT , they are different to the original style holders, there is no metal press fit circle on the hand screws, and there is no space for them in the holder if I wanted to buy a pair. I imagine the hand screws will work themselves out over time. It's unfortunate, but oh well. The triangular style bar holder looks the incredibly similar to the original Honda ones though. Even if it's not accurate to my model of bike I would have wanted to buy that one instead if I knew about this. Thankfully, thread locker exists.
- the bars I got are ct70 ones so maybe a little taller, because of the manual clutch. They were listed as z50 ones though. If the holder craps out on me it was cheap enough that I will probably go and buy a nice one. If it doesn't, at some point I will strip it, polish it a bit, and get the correct knobs for it. fyi, if it's any difference that image is just from a google search and it isn't the holder I bought. But it is probably from the same manufacturer . As for bar size, those bars hit my legs pretty easily but I saw a video of someone riding a z50 with stock style bars, they arched over his legs, hoping that's the case here, but if not, I just have the same problem as before. lol...Edit: I see what you mean by them being crap @OLD CT , they are different to the original style holders, there is no metal press fit circle on the hand screws, and there is no space for them in the holder if I wanted to buy a pair. I imagine the hand screws will work themselves out over time. It's unfortunate, but oh well. The triangular style bar holder looks the incredibly similar to the original Honda ones though. Even if it's not accurate to my model of bike I would have wanted to buy that one instead if I knew about this. Thankfully, thread locker exists.
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