Another one back from the dead (1997 King Quad 300 LT-FWDX)

[JustRandy]

1 hour ago, Hagbard said:

Water pump on my Tundra just sh** the bed last night, so I currently have a MUCH bigger fish to fry. 

Aw crap.  I was hoping you'd fall into some money and time because I'd like to see you pursue your projects of leisure rather than necessity.  You could do a lot of interesting things when not manacled to surviving.

I've been listening to this USA prepares guy and he expressed the importance of changing antifreeze periodically.  It's been 6 years since I installed a new radiator and was thinking I should probably change the coolant before I have to trash the dash to dig out a heater core.  Changing fluids other than oil is just not anything I'm accustomed to.

How much is the machinist charging?  Hopefully not too much.  I feel bad not being able to help.  If you were here I'd just do it,  but don't think I could save you that much with the shipping and fees for sending money.  And I probably only have one more valve job before I have to replace the cutting teeth.

[Hagbard]

Haven't gotten a quote on the job yet as I've had to shift focus a bit   Hoping it's just the fan clutch , but not entirely optimistic about that possibility. On a positive note, a guy I used to work for has fallen into ill health (that's not the positive part, FYI) and asked me to take over his business, which is essentially the equivalent of your hope for me to fall into some money. We do boat canvas and upholstery (I do powersports seats too, wink wink) and his shop is HUGE compared to mine, plenty of space to park and work on quads, cars, boats, etc. and it abuts a patch of undeveloped land that stretches about a mile back to the banks of the Hudson, and a mile or so in either direction. Nice little patch of dirt and trees to rip through unhindered by authorities or angry landowners.

It's all a balancing act, that's the only thing that's clear to me after nearly fifty years of this Sisyphean existence.

I have just learned to try and roll with the punches and absorb the hits because I know my "luck" will turn around if I don't get too focused on negative sh**. I like quads, I'm enjoying working on them and learning about them, (much thanks to you, BTW) and I'm not sweating the fact that I've blown a good chunk of change on them because I actually enjoy it, and that's a hard thing to come by.  Money is relatively easy, especially taking over a larger shop with higher sales volume.

I'm not so much "on a budget" as I am concerned about spending the money in the most cost effective way possible. I started looking at Neway stuff last night and realized I'm still in way over my head skill-wise LOL.  I'd just as soon pay someone qualified to do that job in lieu of ruining a head myself. The guy working on my truck is actually a former Honda pro MX rider, and he also gave his seal of approval to the machine shop I mentioned, so they must be doing something right.

[JustRandy]

Hey that's awesome, Mr Money Bags lol!  Now we can troll for parts and backup the truck,,, once you get it fixed

21 hours ago, Hagbard said:

I have just learned to try and roll with the punches and absorb the hits because I know my "luck" will turn around if I don't get too focused on negative sh**.

I know that to be true but I still don't do it.  Sometimes I think I like being stressed n depressed 

21 hours ago, Hagbard said:

I started looking at Neway stuff last night and realized I'm still in way over my head skill-wise LOL

If you can assemble an engine properly then you're already doing tasks a few rungs above cutting a seat.  And I'm not sure what sort of training is possible other than just cutting a seat.

Yeah, buying a seat cutter so early in terms of the usual progression of tool acquisition can be daunting, but it's an investment I wish I'd made much earlier on.  But I guess farming the monotonous chore out is just as good.

Anyway that's great news!  I'm happy for ya!  Can't wait to see what unfolds next ☕ (the beer drinking emojis seem to be tapped out )

[Hagbard]

Here’s hoping it all works out. I just spent the last four hours or so cleaning up the garage after working on the LT80 motor again today. Split the case again because I decided to replace the crank bearings and oil seals to be safe. Cleaned up the clutches for the belt drive, and popped the wrist pin out in anticipation of the incoming piston kit. 
 

So I did a little math, and after selling the little China quad yesterday I’m up $25 on the whole kid quad project which entailed buying two LT 80s and two China wheelers, then fixing the China wheeler, and parting out other sh**. Sold a Coolster 110cc yesterday for $50 over asking price somehow ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ And I still have a boatload of spare parts to use or sell. 

[JustRandy]

I didn't know you had a chinese quad refurbishing operation.  What happened to the 80 dirtbike for doing the fences?  How long have I been asleep lol

You split cases and yet you're worried you can't handle a valve seat? 

[Hagbard]

 

this thing was a fun couple hours to figure out. Wouldn’t kick over even though it was getting spark and fuel. Turns out the fuel was red kerosene. Once I replaced that with some good old high octane gasoline, things changed remarkably for the better. Little tweaked the idle and mixture screw, and this little f*cker rips

 

my homebrew case splitter/flywheel puller

I bought the China quads after the first $200 LT80 with the broken case just to get something for him to ride a little bit while I figured out the other thing. Bought them for $100 each, sold one for $500, traded the parts one for a blaster frame and some CRF 250 plastics lol. Then last week I found the second $300 LT 80 that had a good case, but a seized crank. So now I’m on the homestretch with the LT 80, should have it running by next weekend. 

[JustRandy]

And here I thought you were slaving on a water pump.

Any theories on why red kerosene.  I sometimes use kerosene to clean an engine, but not a gas tank.

Yeah I was thinking that's a funny looking lawn mower lol

[Hagbard]

The only thing I can figure out is that this thing was sitting, and whoever discovered it realized that it was varnished or about to be, and dumped the most readily available substance in there to stave off the problem. They have a big tanks of diesel (and Kero in the winter) for the tractors there. 
 

it’s smoked like it had seafoam in it for the first five or 10 minutes 😂

[JustRandy]

You might oughta see what they used for oil.  Did you see any tanks of corn syrup?

[Hagbard]

So just a wee update on the King Quad... Been waiting for the guy to get back to me with the airbox guts and lid, skid plate, and a few other random parts for this thing, and he's dropped off the face of the planet. So I googled the dude, and found his arrest record from last summer for Criminal Possession of Stolen Chainsaws and 6 glassine bags of fentanyl! So I wasn't far off the mark - not a crackhead per se, but a junkie!  Called the cops to make sure I don't have a stolen quad on my hands, and they said "Oh, we're very familiar with Harold, he's a known drug user."  So I'm waiting for a call back after a VIN check. Good times.

[JustRandy]

Dang man your life could be a tabloid lol.  I guess I'd be surprised if Harry the heroin head acquired the quad legitimately.

[Hagbard]

Yeah, same. That's why I called the cops. The ones who actually arrested him were less than helpful, but his hometown boys were ALL too familiar, and willing to help. No reports of it being stolen, they ran the VIN through several databases. Said they'd shake him down for parts for me if they ever ran across him  

[JustRandy]

Probably whoever had it stolen had no idea what the vin was.  Seems more probable that he'd steal it than buy it.

[Hagbard]

I'm thinking it's grandpa's.

[JustRandy]

His grandpa?  Wonder why he didn't liquidate it before resorting to pilfering chainsaws.  I guess junkies don't always do the sensible.

[Hagbard]

Who knows. He had a stack of bills of sale from the previous string of owners, which wouldn't be common for a stolen wheeler. I'm not certain that it's stolen, but his history and disposition made me suspicious. Seems like a relatively smart kid which is a shame.

[JustRandy]

5 Unexpected Downsides of High Intelligence  https://www.cracked.com/article_19174_5-unexpected-downsides-high-intelligence.html

#1 You're More Likely to Be Self-Destructive

Extra-curious people are also extra-likely to be substance abusers.

British scientists published the results of a long-term study showing that smart people were more likely to be drunks. People who fell into the "very bright" category (IQs of 125 or greater) were not only more likely to experiment with alcohol but also were more likely to drink excessively and binge drink than their dimwitted counterparts.
And yeah, they pretty much found the same link between high intelligence and psychoactive drug use. It also turns out that intelligent people are much more likely to indulge in illicit substances such as marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin. The smarter you are, the more likely you are to be tripping balls at any given moment.

[Hagbard]

While I kind of feel bad for him, I want my friggin skid plate. I found a bunch of his family on Facebook, but I’m not gonna bother them. I’m sure he’s been enough of a burden. Also, using OSINT to find ATV parts seems kinda stalker-y. 😂
 

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

[JustRandy]

Reminds me of me after I found a pizza box with name and number in a bag of trash dumped on my property and the cops wouldn't do anything.

I think I welded some stainless plate to the bottom of the quads.  The corrugated sheet metal that comes stock doesn't do much.

[Hagbard]

Still no word about the truck, so I was forced to acquire a dirt cheap KFX80 barn find that came with a parts pile. Guy was nice enough to even load it all off and drop it at my house, seeing as I had no truck to back up and all... 

Not bad from the 10-foot view

Another frame, exhaust, a couple wheels, miscellaneous parts, that spare center case is cracked =(  I bet someone clever could TIG it back into shape. 

 

 

[Hagbard]

I get into the KFX80 last night, thinking it’ll be a quick carb clean and air filter change, put a fresh battery in it and fire it up! 
 

I swear I’ll never learn.

 

while I was pulling the spark plug out, I noticed a little bit of pink fluff. This peaked my curiosity, and I pulled off a couple of the air induction boots to find more pink fluff. Pulled off the engine cowling… lots more pink fluff and a treasure trove of turds at the bottom. Packed all around the magneto. Cleaned that all out, found the magneto and stater and surprisingly shiny good condition, unchewed. Put the cowling all back together, and noticed that hose that goes from the cowling thru to the clutch cover. They say a mouse can fit through the hole a little bit smaller than a dime, and the idea of that hose is about the size of a quarter.  I decided that out of due diligence I needed to take the clutch cover off to be sure.

that turned out to be a fortuitous decision, yet a costly one in terms of time invested in the project lol

this thing was a mouse condominium, worse than the previous one I had found, yet not nearly as badly degraded internally. Ended up taking both the clutches off and cleaning up the driven faces replacing the belt, and buttoning it all back together after a good cleaning. 
 

 

this is my driveway this morning

[JustRandy]

The most amazing thing is that mouse carried all the insulation piece by piece probably from across the barn and under the noses of 10 cats.  At least that's how it goes down around here.  If I don't ride in a while I usually have a nest under the seat made with something way up on a shelf that would have made a better location for a nest anyway.

So, did you check the tank for kerosene?  Never know LOL

[Hagbard]

https://imgur.com/gallery/tQbxDhv

https://imgur.com/gallery/xo6Bvq9

Edited October 11, 2021 by Hagbard

[Hagbard]

I’m not sure if it’s installed in this one, or if he just had it in the box of parts but there is a Wiseco pistons box and a little velvet baggie that came with it.

And there was a nice ported and polished head along with it, and a fairly new set of Maxxis rears. So I have some more fun little parts to work with in my build.
 

Just posted a boatload of parts on the marketplace and Craigslist, we’ll see what sort of interesting creatures that draws out 😂

 

Going to do some quick part swapping tomorrow once the rest of my eBay parts get here, hopefully finish up the LT80 and put the KFX80 up for sale. Flip it like a pancake. 🥞

[JustRandy]

Well the piston is for that quad so it's probably in it, but I don't know where the ported head fits in with a 2-stroke.

So how much are you raking in with the pancake flipping?  A buddy and I tried to do it years ago but our first venture had a bad rod bearing and nothing can be done about that so we felt lucky to break even.  I think it was a 400 4x4 for $800.

[Hagbard]

We'll see. I'm going to button up my LT80 tomorrow and make sure to swap all the choice parts onto it from the green machine and make sure it runs before I sell anything.  Working on tracking down the paperwork for the dirt bike, and have a harness to install in the Frankenquad. Plus I have to sew a couple of boat covers somewhere in there so I can pay off whatever the mechanic needs for my truck. 

So... whether or not the KFX has a Wiseco in it... I just found another one in the parts on my shelf. had to clean it off, but sure enough I found 673M05000 stamped on it, which is a Wiseco standard bore 50.00mm piston. Pretty sure this is what came out of the broken motor from the first LT80 I got, and has been sitting on the shelf this whole time... 

Saw a video about clutch tuning these little buggers, and I'm tempted to do it while it's all apart.

 

 

[JustRandy]

Oh I see: you have a mechanic on the truck.  I was wondering what happened with the truck.  So much going on I can't keep up lol

I'm confused on the piston.  Both quads take the same piston?  You had the piston on the shelf before getting the KFX?

Buddy did a clutch mod to his 700 and it effectively geared it down.  Not sure if it affected the top speed since no one is really brave enough to find out.  I won't ride it because the caster is the wrong way and he refuses to fix it.  If I turn and slow down at the same time it locks the handle bars requiring all my strength to free it and then it locks the other way.  It's a death trap.

[Hagbard]

3 hours ago, JustRandy said:

Oh I see: you have a mechanic on the truck.  I was wondering what happened with the truck.  So much going on I can't keep up lol

I'm confused on the piston.  Both quads take the same piston?  You had the piston on the shelf before getting the KFX?

Buddy did a clutch mod to his 700 and it effectively geared it down.  Not sure if it affected the top speed since no one is really brave enough to find out.  I won't ride it because the caster is the wrong way and he refuses to fix it.  If I turn and slow down at the same time it locks the handle bars requiring all my strength to free it and then it locks the other way.  It's a death trap.

Truck needs a radiator. One is on the way, and I can at least go get groceries and stuff close to home.  Charged me .5 hours for diag, got out of there for under $60 after the governor's cut.  

The piston on the shelf was from the LT80 I bought for $200 that had a broken case. I never really looked that closely at it, but I did recall seeing some dot matrix numbers stamped on the top of it, and when I looked up the part number on that Wiseco box, the picture sparked something in the lizard brain and I saw the old piston in my mind's eye LOL.  Grabbed it and cleaned it off, and sure enough, same numbers on it.  

700cc just seems fukn GARGANTUAN for something without a steering wheel and seatbelts.  

My first intro to dirtbikes was on a buddy's CR500 2 stroke, so I'm naturally wary of bikes with motors that weigh more than I do.

[JustRandy]

Changed my radiator 5-6 years ago and added an electric fan.  Tried cleaning it out several times over the years but it was too plugged up.  Finally got tired of the overheating so I slapped in a new radiator and it solved the problem.  Now I have to remember to change the coolant before I start repeating history.

What's amazing about that 700 is that something so big would get up n go so fast.  The clutch mod just made it faster.  I'm not so scared of fast things unless those things are also uncontrollable and 800lbs of as* with the front caster turned backwards certainly qualifies. (If you don't know what caster is then imagine shopping cart front wheel turned backwards).  They do that so when the front wheels are pulling in 4x4 they don't get squirrely, but it makes a death trap when trying to stop on a curve.

A CR500 is an accident waiting to happen.  You have to have grown up on bikes to ever graduate to one of those.  I always wanted a 500 zilla, but I guess it wasn't meant to be and now I'm too old to get injured that badly lol.  I may look into a raptor one day though.

[Hagbard]

Just got back from running some overdue errands to find my mailbox stuffed to the gills. Piston kit, wrist pin bearing, throttle cable, and a bunch of stickers from DG.  Did I tell you about the SASE project I did with my 5 year old? We sent emails and snail mails with self addressed stamped envelopes to a list of about 50 powersports manu's, telling them how much he likes his newfound hobby of 4-wheeling and it's been raining stickers here ever since. A couple nice folks sent cool stuff like a hat, t-shirt, keychain, and some sent print catalogs if they have them.  His little LT80 is going to be at least 40% stickers by weight I think.

Anywho. Off to go build a really big chainsaw motor. I'll be sure to bug you with trivial updates. Or forget entirely and just make another picture dump after it's done. Six of one, half dozen of the other, eh?