New TS125 owner

[Puffs]

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[Blurredman]

Indeed, I also had the case of a flooded crankcase after rebuilding my ES. I just couldn't get the bar-steward to start at all. Not until I left the spark plug out for a couple of days. Then I attempted to start it and there was a flutter of life.. Later I used a drill to quickly expell (I suppose a bit like using an electric starter on a flooded engine with the sparkies out) the petrol.. After I did this and put the sparky back in, it was still a bit grumbly.. But it started reliably..!

[AndyP66]

Thanks for all the advice guys. Starting to get a little confused with it all as like I said my knowledge is very limited.
The gap on the plug is 0.06 as I fitted the correct plug from new. I am getting a spark as I tested that.
What does BDC mean ?
At the moment I have parked it up at the bottom of the garden and covered her up, not sure if I will continue the fight to get her running. Which is a shame I know.

[Puffs]

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[AndyP66]

On the plug gap: you confirm the value (0.06), but don't mention the unit. 0.06mm is way too little, and NGK plugs come standard with some 0.6mm.

BDC = Bottom Dead Centre. The crankshaft rotates, and there is a big pin in one side of it, called the Big End, and the connecting rod (aka conrod) attaches there, and on the top of that conrod there is another joint, called the small end, which connects to the piston. When the crankshaft rotates, the piston goes up & down. The top position is the Top Dead Centre (TDC), the lowest is BDC.

With the piston in BDC, the overflow ports are opened, as well as the exhaust port, so that there is an open connection from the crankcase to the outside world, allowing evaporation of the excess fuel. But that'll take a while, which is why often other methods are tried, as Blurredman with his drill, kicking on the kickstart, or, for the athletically inclined, push the bike (with the plug out, fuel cock closed & full throttle) in first gear, as hard as you can.

It's a pity you're not closer by.

Thank you for the explanation, I now understand a little more.

I would be good if there was someone nearby. I don’t want some to come and fix it. Just someone to show me how to fix it, so I learn for future reference.

[Gerryman Ts125]

When I bought my first Mz (back in 1986) I didn't even have a Haynes
manual ( didn't even know if they did one). All I had was a handbook that came with it. It was quite comprehensive and a tool roll.
And using my earlier experience on cars and pushbikes. I slowly learnt.And did lots of minor and major maintaince.
Although when the MZ community of Glasgow saw me pass them, they would flag me down to talk or give advice and sometimes parts

And once a full bike (sold it to me) not a runner though as it had seized.
Very communistic crowd the Mz'ers

[mr_luke]

Hi Andy, whereabouts in Tamworth are you? I'm in Dordon which is not a million miles away! I'm by no means an expert, and spare time is limited, but I have resurrected a couple of these beasts in the past and might be able to pop by and offer you a hand at some point?

[AndyP66]

Hi Andy, whereabouts in Tamworth are you? I'm in Dordon which is not a million miles away! I'm by no means an expert, and spare time is limited, but I have resurrected a couple of these beasts in the past and might be able to pop by and offer you a hand at some point?

I live in Kettlebrook, just up from the football ground.

[mr_luke]

Not too far away then! I'm fairly busy over the next week or two, but would be happy to pop over one evening after that if that would be any help? Feel free to drop me a PM

[AndyP66]

So after a few hours in the cold I have the TS running. After a lot of investigation I found the fuel filter blocked and the jet blocked with muck. Looks like at some point soon I need to drain the tank and give it a good clean as there appears to be rust in the bottom. I also gave the air filter a clean while I was at it.

So she is now running and ticking over nicely.
I have a new problem now. When I pull the clutch lever all the way in and engage 1st gear the bike will stall, or if I give it a few more revs on the throttle she will pull away. This is telling me the clutch isn’t engaging correctly. Is this a cable adjustment or something more serious.
Also how to you clean the baffles on the exhaust, as I understand they can’t be removed.

[Andy_C]

Great that you have it running

When I pull the clutch lever all the way in and engage 1st gear the bike will stall, or if I give it a few more revs on the throttle she will pull away. This is telling me the clutch isn’t engaging correctly. Is this a cable adjustment or something more serious.

Could be cable adjustment, so take a look to see it is adjusted correctly. If the wrong grade of oil has been used in the gearbox which also lubricates the clutch it will cause it to drag when you try and disengage it, personally I would drain the oil and put some fresh oil of the correct grade in, also if the bike has been standing for any time some of the plates may be stuck together. They do tend to "jump" sometimes when you engage first when the engine is cold, but as it warms up and the oil thins a bit it usually goes away. I would change the oil and put some miles on it and see if things improve.


Also how to you clean the baffles on the exhaust, as I understand they can’t be removed.

Use Caustic soda - take the exhaust off, plug the outlet (I use a piece of cork) pour in your caustic soda and water mix and leave overnight and pour away the next day. Be very careful handling caustic soda, make sure that you follow the warnings on the packaging.

[Blurredman]

Hi,

Yes it's likely the clutch could simply be stuck together from non-use.. with some throttle and clutch (and brakes) applied, does the bike stop moving when in gear? When I first got my 251 the clutch plates were stuck together- the best way to clear that out of the way was simply to bump start the bike in 2nd (a hill is handy), and keep slowing down and speeding up with the brakes with the clutch depressed. Eventually it will break free. Some people but the front wheel towards a wall, but I think it's easiest and a far less 'shocking' to the engine to do the prior.

Additionally, as Andy has said- you could have put the wrong oil in? If you've put in 80 or 90w gear oil in you must make sure it doesn't say 'GL-5' on the bottle. It has to be GL-3 or GL-4 for MZ application. Additionally however you might find it easier and cheaper to use 40w motor oil anyway?


I have used the Caustic Soda process Andy has mentioned- it works nicely! - indeed on my 251 exhaust I could see chunks of carbon fall out as I hit the end on the ground - Satisfying! But only if your exhaust is rust hole free. I tend to stick a potato on the inlet, and leave the pipe then on it's end. Though, the caustic soda has to be done multiple times sometimes, and it does need a good 12-24 hours. It won't work simply giving it half an hour. But, after doing so, you should probably put the pipe straight onto the engine and get it running as soon as you get to get that hot air flowing through it and the condensation and water removed to prevent rusting. The thing is though, my 251 pipe had 45,000 miles on it at the time- how many miles are on your pipe? You may not really even need to do it...



As for rubbish in the tank and fuel line- you can try your best to get it out, but it depends on what 'technology' you have. Some people use electrolosys, but then sometimes doing that emerges holes in the tank where there were no holes before, if it is really bad. My 251 is REALLY bad, but I used used some vinigar and nuts and bolts and shook it all around when I first got it. After that, the tap itself used to get clogged up occasionally, mainly in the reserve position where the hole is just open to all sedement (I didn't have a filter tube on it at the time), but did have an inline fuel filter. Years later, the tap itself was replaced with one with a first stage filter (on the tube inside the tank), and when I last took it off there was still a bit of rust sedement clinging on at the bottom, but for the most part nothing to speak of. For better or worse I just decided to run it as it was for the most part (and I intend to do so with my ES250/2 project). Now I don't use an inline filter, and the cheap tap doesn't have a 2nd phase filter built in (inside the plastic bowl thingy). But after almost 6 years and 18,000 miles I don't have a problem with clogging taps, or rusty fuel interfering with the carb jets (I never actually had that problem with the use of an inline filter).

[Puffs]

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[AndyP66]

Here is a picture of the bike. Overall in very good condition.

Thanks for all the advise lads. I haven’t changed the gearbox oil since I brought the bike so I will do that first. Then I will clean the exhaust which as you can see is in good condition.then I will look at the tank.

[Blurredman]

That looks in fine condition! It even has a Honda front brake drum (probably the whole wheel TBH).