Stevie’s French '98, Mid-90's WR/YZ/DT (An idiotproof guide to building your own DTR)
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Still on the same piston she came from France with.
All I’ve done is keep her tidy, use decent oil and do regular checks on the plugs, Powervalve and replace a bunch of inline fuel filters. It gets a carb clean once a year but other then that she’s a diamond.I recently bought a fzs 600. Within three days I’d done a ton on it and I thought to myself I wonder if I’ll wanna sell the DT now
https://i.imgur.com/dtWKfQ1.jpg
Then I get her out for a blast, get down to bike night and remember how much I fucking love this thing.
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Hey everyone hope you’re all in good health.
It’s been a while since I’ve been about so it’s nice to hear from you all.Have you ever seen a DTR less out of place?
Life’s been keeping me busy and on top of that I’ve now got the luxury of using the ole DT as a weekend treat.
Luckily summer has granted me quite a few days to get the bike out.
And with miles of years old unexplored public footpaths and by ways accessible to a little two stroke trial bike it’d be a crime not to break a few laws and go on many a excursion with your bike in to the countryside for a little explore. Pro tip: farmers fields usually have ditches at the boundaries so prepare to get your enduro on.
Despite now using the DT as mainly a weekend toy I still don’t shy away from using it as my weapon of choice for a nice little long distance adventure. This is “A house for Essex by Grayson Perry” ft. My dad on his now long gone trusty varadero. The site is actually a beautiful quaint village with plenty of backroads and seafront nearby 10/10 recommend for all of you guys.
Also something a little different… Keeping things true and blue I couldn’t help myself, this is Maureen (in memoir of my nan) my ‘98 FZS600 streetfighter. My first “big bike” and let’s just say she’s an absolute dream to ride. Fairly nippy too.However I must as fast as the Fazer is the DT still puts a smile on my face every time I ride it so despite what anyone has said, it ain’t going anywhere.
And for anyone that’s read this and is genuinely curious she’s running like a champ on the same piston/rings etc she had when she was imported from France 2 years ago.
When she blows up it’ll be Wr200 or Lanza 230 engine time. Got a nice little piggy bank ready and waiting for it. -
Hi guys my bikes still running lumpy with an untunable hanging high idle. After speaking to a couple two stroke gurus and my local bike shop they all believe the same as me the LH crank seal is gone.
I’ve been riding it on and off as it is for a while now and the engines still making good power however I can’t stand it anymore.
To find out for certain if the seal’s gone and to see how the rest of the engine is doing I’ve just bought a Draper leak down kit and compression tester.
I’d like some advice with how to use the compression tester and leak down kit as well as any recommendations for tools that I should get/will need for this and for the future
Also can I remove and refit the LH seal without removing the motor?
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Also update with the build, I might not be able to run standard DTR clocks!
So WR450 speedo cables are the same 11mm size fitment I’ve found as DTR clocks (meaning in theory you should be able to use DTR clocks with, ‘03 WR450 speedo cable and speedo drive assy), however the speedo drive assy is on the opposite side on a WR450 compared to the DTR. This means that because the MPH clock for the DTR is also the opposite side making it so it’s impossible to cleanly route the speedo cable to the clocks without having the cable criss cross all other electronics and controls
I also found some 11mm cable extenders to use on the Rev cable to as the only issue in that department was the cable not being long enough to reach anymore however the first time I attached the cable extender to the Rev cable and then attached it to the clocks, I started the bike up and the cable snapped itself
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You can pull the seal out with a self tapper screw and tap the new one in. Gotta remove the flywheel though
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@SpookDog cheers for the reply bud, I had thought so but I’d thought best to check as Haynes wasn’t too useful
I’ve also got a few different size pic and hooks that might make light work of getting that seal out
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Only thing is that I can’t imagine why the seal would fail unless the bearing has as well. Check for movement with a large flathead screwdriver while the rotor is on. See if there’s play...
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To see if it's the LHS you just need to spray WD40 in the vicinity whilst it's running. If the idles drop then you've temporarily sealed it. Be careful removing the seal with the engine in situe as you don't want to score the crank or the journal.
Personally, it's easy enough to drop the engine and do it properly. No more than an afternoons work. Good opportunity to inspect/clean and replace other items.
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@Calum I’ll get the flywheel off tomorrow to try that and then I’ll get back to you.
It wouldn’t do me no harm to drop the engine either, an afternoon with the bluetooth speaker and a couple cold ones won’t sort out. If/when I do I’ll let you know if I hit any speed bumps. Any tips or advice when getting it out
@SpookDog that makes sense and I’ll be sure to check that as well.
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@Stevie-Wonder Before you start, see if the swinging arm pivot bolt can be removed. As you will see, this gets seized and may bring your plan to a halt anyway. Always worth removing, regreasing and replacing just for fun.
The other one is the bottom suspension linkage, neither problem I had since engine/parts are like a yo-yo in my bikes anyway
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Update got a sealey comp tester and a few other bits and with the engine luke warm (i spent far too long fucking about trying to get the hose in the spark plug hole, it’s a bit fiddly and burny when your engines red hot
) and got a reading of 95 psi which was goodAlso I got the flywheel side cover off, get her running and sprayed some clutch and break / carb cleaner there expect to see the revs shoot a little and nothing happened if anything they dropped and settled for a short while after
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If you have an air leak the revs should ‘drop and settle’ to normal when you ‘spray block’ the leak. It should be instantaneous, but getting the fluid behind the flywheel into the seal is no mean feat. If it did settle, then I’d bet it’s leaking at the seal...
Have a powder fire extinguisher handy if you’re using brake/clutch cleaner around electricals, please bud!
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Want to hear a joke?
I just spent £200-300 on tools etc and quite a few hours messing about trying to find what was causing that revving issue. (I daily the bike so I’ve had to ride it like that to do my commute)
I then crash the bike (nasty highside, car turned into me doing 40-60 clipping my back wheel) only to start my bike up and have it fixed.
That’s it kids. Crash your bike it’ll fix it.
In all seriousness though be safe out there, don’t ever lose respect for the roads or what you ride.
I was coming home from work and luckily had protective clothing on. Didn’t stop me sliding the length of 4 houses and having two gaping holes in my ankle and elbow though.
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Not for the squeamish…link text
Protective trousers and steel toe shoes capped saved the same thing happening there.
Found the supplier for the indicator as it turned out ver where stopped selling them?
I really like them, rubber stems make them perfect for if you’re clumsy or spend a decent amount of time off-road where they can get knocked and banged.
They’re also bulb, keeping it OG. I feel like they look kinda OEM and slim the look of the bike down without it being tacky.
Fortunately / luckily there was no insurance proceedings either and the damage to the bike was purely cosmetic and the bars, handguards, shift lever rear left panel and indicator/mount on the subframe took the force of it.
You can see what’s left of my rear panel ft birdshit that happened day of the crash. Good luck eh?link text
All of the most important bits I need to replace first.
Perks of swapping out a lot of your OEM original parts is when something bad happens they’re easily replaced.Luckily everything that broke and got damaged was aftermarket and entirely replaceable, I inspected for more serious damage and there wasn’t any. I’m very lucky. I’ve seen many a bike / person come a lot worse.
New bars installed, going gold not silver this time, same 971 Roczen bend. I much prefer them in gold vs silver. New Apico throttle body thrown in there to boot as well. Throttle response is insane now. Very very snappy.
(I have some VForce 4 reeds waiting to go on that would improve that further but then I’d need to rejet and im making sure that’s the last thing I do / I only have to do it once.)Fat bars are tempting me however the cables for my throttle and clutch just aren’t long enough to allow it
To my surprise the bike actually fired up first kick right after the crash and the best bit is that after I’d healed a bit I’d give the bike a through inspection, repaired the damage and everything since I have to say she’s now running just as well as the day I bought her.
Hundred of pounds and hours of my time later but a crash is what got my bike running crisp
You just have to laugh really -
@SpookDog said in Stevie’s French '98, Mid-90's WR/YZ/DT (An idiotproof guide to building your own DTR):
If you have an air leak the revs should ‘drop and settle’ to normal when you ‘spray block’ the leak. It should be instantaneous, but getting the fluid behind the flywheel into the seal is no mean feat. If it did settle, then I’d bet it’s leaking at the seal...
Have a powder fire extinguisher handy if you’re using brake/clutch cleaner around electricals, please bud!
Did I just nearly accidentally set myself and my bike on fire?
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Sounds like you did have a blocked idle jet and the simple act of turning your bike upside down and shaking it cleared it. Think I’ll just take my carb off though!
Glad you and the bike are copacetic!
Other people eh?! 🤨
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@SpookDog nah it deffo wasn’t the jets, I’d checked them and cleaned the carb (ive also had this issue in the past so I know what it feels like), I’d done a compression test and it had about 95psi cold + holds compression really well too.
I couldn’t find any air leaks at all either. The only thing I’d done different since that problem occurred was fiddled with my idle screw whilst riding one time, having eliminated everything else it had to be carb related ?Photos to come too
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I have nothing against against the Portugal replicas but I can’t tell you how annoying it is that the battery cover isn't black, it’s good to have the originals on. I’m just glad I took them off ASAP as that could’ve been them smashed to pieces.
Not long after she was loaded up and taken on an adventure. You’d be surprised what you can carry on that luggage rack with just some bungees, a cargo net and a lot of faith.
I don’t remember taking this photo but as you can see the rally is in full swing
Being at bike rally surrounded by street fighters, HD’s and customs I thought it’s be funny to enter my bike into the Backstreet Heroes Show and well, I didn’t win any prizes (not that I expected too, I hadn’t even cleaned it since I’d last been in some fields and crashed) and in all honesty no one even really looked it at it.
However I did catch these guys smiling having a little moment reminiscing of their days being yoof’s and owning a DT themselves. never gets old does it?
I honestly love this bike so much. She just looks right.
Happy with how she sits, and the skimmer profile now I’ve pulled that headlight down.
I have plans for a custom graphic for the headlight to match the rest of the graphics and to spray the headlight white. What do you think would look better?
You’d also be surprised how tall this bike is, knobblies, 19” rear wheel + wr450 front end have made her impossible to ride if you’re vertically challenged
Sorry about the video I asked some random older dude to take a photo, apparently he doesn’t know how to use an iPhoneLoading up second time around was a piece of piss and I managed to get everything packed up a lot more efficiently leaving more room for extra gear on other adventures.
Even sat on the motorway she didn’t miss a beat either, never ceases to amaze me how good these bikes are.
Overall great rally, first one after 10+ years. I got loads of photos of the bike show so I’ll upload them at some point -
Update she’s currently out of service.
I left the petrol station one evening got half way up the road then lots of spluttering, engine coughing, limping and dying followed by plumes of a very toxic smelling smoke pouring out my exhaust so much so it was hard to see the car behind me.Aka all the signs your right side crank seal just gave up on you. Now as this means it’s a split the cases Jobby I’m going to rebuild the whole engine, get her fresh, get the trail tech dash wired up and see just how many miles I’m putting on her.
Not knowing your miles your doing isn’t bad until it’s time to maintain the bike or do routine check ups.
Plus I still don’t have a speedo so it’d be nice to get that sorted.I also have another bike on the road meaning I don’t have to rely on the DT so unlike before I can take my time and enjoy building the bike.
First thing is sorting the engine out.
I have 3 frame of minds with this
- give the engine to someone one to fix. It’s convenient and you know it’ll be done right first time, albeit costly.
- I leave the engine as it is and very very slowly acquire the parts needed to build a wr200 3XP / DT hybrid.
- get all the tools etc needed and have a proper go at rebuilding the engine myself whilst changing as little to the engine as possible.
First options convenient but being honest here I can’t afford to pay someone, I’m too tied into other things.
I also feel like I’m cheating myself doing that and I really need to learn and get comfortable rebuilding two strokes, so if not now then when.Second option with the WR200 setup is my ultimate goal for the bike eventually so it makes sense just to leave everything alone and work towards that. However that means losing many hours of seat time and tearing around in dirt.
Third option. The one I’m most in favour off and will most likely do. I really want to make a thing of restoring bikes and working with two strokes in the future so it feels like the right time to have a crack at it.
I think if i can successfully rebuild the DT then I’ll venture out more but until then I’d just be beyond chuffed to have rebuilt her myself. -
Assuming that I am going to rebuild the engine myself could anyone give me a checklist of tools I’d need, parts to order as well as any tips or ticks you’ve picked up yourself.
Also any books or anything like that that teach you proper engine building procedure and etiquette. it matters a lot to me that I pick up the right habits, understand the function of each part properly and that I do the job as professional and proper as can be.
I’m honestly like a sponge and have been obsessed with stuff like this recently but I don’t think I’ve found the right stuff to feed that obsession.
