Dwight Williams

So I got around to addressing the rusty front end today, looks like I'm going to be doing some welding. Those control arms weren't held on by much, once I cut the bolts off I realized just how bad it is.

Hey, I'll chime in real quick, I just went through the same thing on the same bike. I have two machines and I could take the CDI from the good bike and put it on the bad bike, no spark, I could take the bad bike's cdi and put it on the good bike and it would run, therefore I thought my CDI was good. I swapped everything else, including the flywheel, I got it to spark with a flywheel from a newer one but when i ordered the exact same flywheel - no spark. I finally bought a cheapo chinese CDI from ebay and it now runs. All I can think is that there is a tolerance stack up where something on that bike is just weak enough that an older cdi unit just won't fire. Anyway, for what it's worth.., my .02. Good luck! I have three of these quads presently and they all run, two have the older electrical system and one is the newer style. Let me know if you want me to check anything for you.

Ok, so it still went into reverse without the lever so I took the right side cover off and found the cam stopper was worn so bad that it would roll off the edge and go into reverse all by itself. I welded the worn spot on the cam and ground it back down to a shape somewhat resembling square and put it back together - all good now. I noticed the clutch disks were pretty worn as well so I just ordered a new set, as soon as they come in I'll get it put back together. thanks

I adjusted the idle today and it is MUCH better. Thanks Frank, I'll have to look into that reverse cam stopper, maybe that's the issue.

Ya, seat was completely missing, airbox too. I took it for a ride today in the snow just to play around a bit. It's a tank for sure. I feel like bringing this thing back was the right thing to do, even though it'll probably not make me any money if I sell it. I ordered headlights and shift knobs today (they were also missing). I need to start ripping into the front end next to address the heavy rust around the lower control arm mounts.

Update: After going through the carburetor I was able to ride it around a little, the high/low/superlow lever was missing so I couldn't test that, but 2wd and 4wd work fine. One front brake worked, the other locked up, therefore just a short ride around the front yard. I went through the front brakes, they now work. I had to use a hammer and a floor jack to free up the foot brake lever but that now works as well. I sorted out the wiring and it now works as it should. I still have a long way to go, so much rust up front, the CV boots are torn, there are no headlights, but the thing is starting to become somewhat useable. I'm into it a whopping 350 bucks, mostly because it needed a seat ($80) and an airbox (another $80). Other than that, small bits and pieces here and there. I'll post some more pics once I get the plastics fitted back on it.

So, the new flywheel didn't fix it, nor did another flywheel off of another newer quad. Just for fun I ordered a cheap CDI unit from Amazon and bang! Spark again. I can still put the original CDI on the other bike and it runs. I suspect a tolerance stack issue, weak pickup/flywheel matched with a weak CDI. The other bike must have a slightly stronger pickup and/or flywheel so the CDI works with it. Anyway, now that that works I need to find the source of an engine knock. thanks

I have a 99 Kodiak 400 4X4 that I picked up for $300. The previous owner had modified the foot shifter by welding a piece of rebar to it so he could hand shift while plowing. As you can imagine, the allows for much more torque on the shifter than it was designed to have, and he broke the stopper off of the the shift mechanism. No big deal, I ordered the part and put it back together, went through the carburetor and off we go, it runs pretty good. The first thing I noticed is that when I put the shifter all the way down it goes into reverse, I'm supposed to twist a knob to get it to reverse but this seems to be disabled. Also, once in reverse, it's a bugger to get back out. I have to hold the shifter up, then quickly back down and up again to get it to come out. All forward gears work fine, clutch is tight, no problems. The reverse cable and lever are in tact and seem to move freely. My question is this: What does one normally have to do to get this thing into reverse? I assume put it in neutral, twist the knob, kick the shifter down. Does the brake need to be applied? I'm not sure what's going on here, I suspect it's been 'modified' as it goes into reverse without the proper precautions, just not sure if the mods were external on internal. thanks

Well, I got the top end put back together yesterday and it fired briefly. Today I sorted out the starter solenoid (bad ground) so I could manually choke it and hold the starter button - the choke lever is missing and the cable is broken, the throttle cable is also broken so I tied a string to the linkage for now. Anyway, I held my hand over the carb long enough to get it to fire and it actually took off and ran! I don't know how long it's been sitting but wow did stuff fly out of the exhaust - soot, dust, sparks, you name it. Anyway, I adjusted the idle (the adjuster is broken too) and it idles ok, sputters and pops a bit but it also has no air box and the carb hasn't been rebuilt yet, I just went through it and made sure all the passages were open. I'll get some time later in the week to shore up the wiring enough to actually put it in gear and drive around the yard a bit. Oil is milky again so I'll have to do another purge. So far so good, I'm into this thing less than a hundred bucks and it looks like there may be hope. I'm not sure it won't smoke though, the cylinder was pretty crusty from all the water sitting in it. I honed it out but that's about it. I have a new (used) throttle cable here that i can slap on, front brakes work but rear pedal is locked up. The wiring is twisted/clipped/taped together right now so I'll have to start working on that, the previous owner cut the fuses and stuff all out, lost some connectors too. I tried to attach a video, not sure if it'll work though. IMG_0540.MOV

Thanks, I'm watching a few on Ebay as well, I appreciate you keeping an eye out though. I've got a few parts here and there too, let me know what you're looking for. I was planning on putting tires on it but it looks like I need a wheel now as well, it's pretty bent. I agree about the OE carbs, I'll always take one, crusty or not. Once cleaned up they run like they were made for it (hmmmmm).

I didn't break a banjo bolt, I cracked it, as in 'crack it a bit' to see if it spit oil, and it did. Sorry if I wasn't clear on that. Anyway, the kid I bought this from threw parts at it, a starter and solenoid (he wired the solenoid wrong so the starter spun backward), and a carburetor. Turns out the original carb was in pieces in a bag with bolts, etc that he gave me. I put the carb back together and it fired up and ran perfect. I adjusted the idle again and took it for another ride. It runs fantastic, and when I got back, no smoke and no clutch rattle! I assume the clutch just needed to be wet again after sitting. I can't believe how good it runs, just perfect. I'm starting to feel that my $250 investment wasn't so crazy. The brakes however, are terrible, and one back wheel is on backward and bent. It pulls pretty hard to one side because the back tires are different sizes. I still have plenty of work to do but this last ride made my day. Onward and upward.

So I got this all put back together, runs great, idles poorly (chinese carburetor). I should be able to get that adjusted out. Anyway, I've got a little smoke from the tail pipe when I rev it up. Also quite a bit of smoke from the base of the exhaust where is comes out of the cylinder, like it's leaking somewhere? I cracked a banjo bolt up top and the oil pump seems to be working fine, no rattles from the top either. It's got maybe 5 minutes of run time on it. How long should I give it before I'm concerned? I know the cylinder had a few scratches but it was at 120-125 psi before I tore it down, so I figured it couldn't be all that bad. Also there is quite a bit of chatter from the right side when I put it in gear, I'm assuming the clutch has some issues so I'll be tearing into that. This thing has had a rough life but it sure seems to run strong now.

Ya, I plan on draining the front diff as well. Good point on the battery causing the corrosion. I looked inside the best I could, I don't see any rust down low - I hope that, although water and oil separate, there was enough dilution in the water to prevent corrosion. The upper end took the worst of it, cylinder and piston as there was no oil to protect them and the rings allowed the water to sit there. I hope all will be good, I'm waiting on the new rings to get here to put it back together and test drive it. thanks

It's a 300, technically 280. I just ordered gaskets and rings. Oh, and a throttle cable. I'm a bit concerned about the front end, it looks like it was dunked in salt water or something (We live 10 minutes from Puget Sound in Washington). Anyway the whole things a little rusty but the bottom bits of the front end are really bad, lots of scale. I'll start chipping away at it to see if I can determine the structural integrity of things. I think the mounts for the control arms are the worst parts. It's weird because everything on the rest of the machine is typical, a bit rusty here and there from sitting but nothing like the front. Anyway, I can't wait to get it back together to see if it'll move. Most of the money I think I'll spend on it will be ordering the parts that are missing. Seat, racks, shifter knobs, headlights etc.

Here are a couple of pics, I have the plastic taken off but it's still a glorious beast.