found a motor opinions wanted

[toomanytoys2]

Craig's List is going to be my downfall. I just found a complete Honda 250 TRX (fourtrax) engine that runs for $100. It is a manual clutch 5-speed with reverse. However, the down side is that it is a kick start model. Has anyone on here used a kick start motor on their buggies? I keep thinking that it is a great deal, but I also envision bruised shins. any thoughts on this?

[Masteryota]

Oooh, kick start may be a bad idea, unless you plan on off setting the engine to the right to be able to get to the kicker. I thought about a kick start engine after I bought my 200s engine, and although all I have is a pull rope, at least it faces the drivers side.

On the positive, the TRX engines are very stout, and can be modded safely to make decent hp. The ATC engines were the predecessors to the TRX line.

[x-bird]

I could imagine setting up a linkage to move the kick pedal to hang straight off the rear of the buggy. downside though is that if you stall or shut it down you have to get out and restart ....

[rocko]

I have two Trx250's , one is running in the bike and the others motor is locked up and is a parts bike , the TRX250 is electric start and kick start , I also have 2 TRX 200SX 's , 1 is running in the bike and the other runs and I am putting it into a Crossfire 150 , all are 1986 bikes and all are 5 speed automatic shift with reverse , the 200sx are electric and pull start with chain drive , the TWX250 is shaft drive ---------I think you may be talking of aTRX250R or X which I believe where both chain driven and more of a racing sports bike where the straight 250 with no letter disignation is a utility bike

[toomanytoys2]

I found another quad for cheap. It is a Polaris 250 Trail boss. It has a 250cc 2 stroke engine that is supposed to put out 22hp. It is electric start, has a CVT belt and a Forward, Neutral, Reverse box. Anyone have any experience with this motor?

It does sound like a nice setup, especially if you use part of the ATV frame in the buggy. XBird, is this where you got your box from? Any experience with the motor?

[x-bird]

the trailboss i picked up didn't have an engine with it, just the box, which is still sitting in the corner in the garage. same yard had one with an engine, someone had a "claim" on it before i got there and finally picked it up 4 months later. if you need any electrical bits lmk. these were mid 80s, I think they're one reason suzuki dropped the engine i have in favor of the 230 -- the trailbosses were quicker with a higher top speed--but also lighter and built not so utility-like as the quadrunners were. i've always been a 4-stroke person, just not a fan of the mixing, engine sound and smoke.

[toomanytoys2]

Thanks X-bird

I am probably going to get it today. I am kind of the opposite, I grew up on 2 strokes (dirt bikes). I tried to embrace the modern 4 stroke era in dirt bikes, but it just doesn't fit me. However, that being said, I can imagine that the TB has a very 4 stroke like power band. Even back in the 70s, 250 dirt bike were putting out mid 30s HP. So I figure that 22 HP 250 would have a very linear power band and a decent torque curve. Plus they very cheap to rebuild, since I always do at least a top end rebuild on any new motor I get

[Masteryota]

I had an Explorer 300 when I was a kid, also a 2 stroke CVT, and it did pretty well for a 300 getting the snot kicked out of it on a daily basis, and the push-button 4wd was awesome. It wouldn't pull houses down, or pick up the front wheels, but it did ok, and in the quad, topped out around 40mph. This model also had separate tanks for the oil and fuel, which was nice, since the gas station was between the trails and my house.

I am like X, I never liked mixing the fuel, the sound of the exhaust, and the smoke, but I now realize why certain people love them, they are simple, light weight, and easier to rebuild the top ends than a 4 stroke, but I like the torque and the thump the 4 strokes have.

I think it should make a fine donor for ya.

[toomanytoys2]

Well I pulled the trigger and bought it. I is a 1990 250cc 4 X 4. It is a really slick setup. It is electric start as well as pull start. The trans has a low range, neutral, reverse and a high range. I like that combination. In my mind I can see low range for hill climbing and high for cruising. It doesn't run, (no spark), but for me that is not a biggie. I already found the official service manual for it on line and I teach electronics / electricity so it is just a little patience and wire tracing. My only concern is that I could not test the trans, but since I got it for $100, I can afford to spend some money on it.

I am REALLY itching to start my build, but I have to get a few more home projects out of the way first. Maybe after I replace the struts and tie rods on my wife's Passat, I can get started. I do plan on playing with the ATV today and tomorrow though. I really want to get it to fire, so I know what other issues I may be facing.

[2SlickNick]

Sounds awesome! can't wait to see the progress.

[toomanytoys2]

Well got some progress today. Once I got the plastics, covers and everything else out of the way, I hit it with engine degreaser and the pressure washer. During the disassembly process, I learned that a rat or something had been living in the air box and the CVT cover . Once I got it clean, it was one of those open mouth insert foot moments. Not only had the varmint been living there, it had also been sampling the wires for a snack .

This thing has a wiring from hell. It has switches for all of the gear selections, a reverse speed reduction circuit, with an over ride switch, a throttle safety switch and it all feeds into a junction box and splits from there.

So today I spent most of my time fixing what the varmint had chewed through and trying to get a grasp on the wiring as a whole. It had a key switch (no key) so I had to spend some time figuring the wiring for that, plus the other switches (start, kill etc) were all corroded and had to be cleaned so they would work. I just got back from Auto Zone, because the starter solenoid was bad. A solenoid is a solenoid, so instead of spending the $ for a Polaris part, I just got one for a Ford truck for $14.

However, it turned out to be a good day. When I pull the pull starter I have spark. . So tomorrow, I will check into getting the starter to work, clean the carb and hopefully get the engine to light. Also I will try and get you pictures of the beast .

[Masteryota]

LOL, talk of the reverse over ride brings back memories of my xplorer. That was the bane of my trail riding existence, trying to back out of a tight trail and have to keep that dang button pushed the entire time or it would do exactly .5 mph, and if you got into some slippery stuff, you weren't going anywhere. I'm glad you were able to fix the wiring and get some spark, I was not so lucky my endeavor, and honestly, I still don't know if I have spark, but it can't be more than 2 components causing it, and they are both cheap to replace.

[toomanytoys2]

It runs, and everything checks out good . It was definitely a chore and I had to go through most of the systems, but now I know that I have a good working engine and transmission for my build. Once I got a new solenoid on it, I discovered that the starter wouldn’t turn. However, to get the starter off, I had to pull off both CVT clutches and the backing plate. The problem was that both of the clutches need a puller to get them off. Luckily, I was able to find the dimensions for the pullers off of another forum, so I was able to make the pullers myself.

Once I got the starter off, I discovered the problem. On one end of the starter it had a bushing. On the other end, it had a sealed bearing. The sealed bearing had frozen up from lack of use. I was able to get the seals off of the bearing, then I let it soak with penetrating oil. I worked the bearing with a set of pliers and was able to get it to spin free. I then repacked it with grease, and now it works fine. I will probably replace the starter in the future, but for now it served its purpose.

The carburetor was another story. I have rebuilt quite a few carbs in my time, but this one was about the worst that I have run across. It was so full of gunk and the main jet screw (bolt) in the carb base even had a hole in it from water sitting in it. I considered buying one off of eBay, but they are kind of pricey. So I took the carb apart and let it sit in a can of Berrymans for a day. Then cleaned it up and put it in an ultra-sonic cleaner. Luckily there is a motorcycle salvage yard in town and I was able to get the main jet bolt. Surprisingly I was able to clean out all of the carb passages and will be getting a rebuild kit in the future.

I then bolted everything up and tried to start it. With a 2 stroke that has sat, you never know what type of gunk has built up in the crankcase. So I left the muffler off and just ran the header section. The engine wouldn’t fire at first, so I tried some starting fluid. It then fired and proceeded to kill every mosquito within a ¼ mile. Plus it blew crap all over the quad and my driveway.

Once the smoke cleared out, I was able to do some checking. The Variator worked like it was supposed to, the transmission seems to work in all gears without grinding, and the electrical system is charging the battery .

[Masteryota]

Good deal. I can't wait to see the swap.