75 RD 250 - Petunia, the little bike that could

[Keiff Hardcore]

tomorrow i will be picking up this RD 250. this will be my first bike with a title.

Plans are as follows

-make it as light as possible without spending heaps of money and also ridable
-mix/match motocross/tracker/cafe themes

stage I
-remove sissy bar/rack
-inspect heads/cylinders for wear
-fix transmission seal leak
-clean the shit out of it
-re-cover seat

stage II
-chop rear fender and install a new tail light
-find DG racing heads
-add go fast carbs/port job [TBD]
-install CL 350 handle bars and handle bar guards [ aluminium bar style]

 

[DesmoBro]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

Good get ....once you get it....

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

Good get ....once you get it....

at $850 i have been told its a good deal. i always preferred 2 stroke due to power/ weight potential.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

finally have it in my hands. i don't have a metric socket big enough to pull off the heads, but i took liberty of removing the craptastic sissy bar and giving her a look over. nothing seams like it needs attention other than what i have already noticed.

 

[anjin dono]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

sweet. I have a 72' ds7 setting in my garage collecting dust, looking forward to future posts

 

[fury413rb]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

Nice! I have a RD125

 

[JustinLonghorn]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

Nice bike, sir.

And when you are ready, the RD350 top end bolts right on.

 

[VonYinzer]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

Do you mean a deep well socket for the head bolts? $3 at autozone my man.

Glad to see that you picked it up amd got your build thread started. Before trying to run it make sure the carbs are spotless and no oil lines are plugged or broken/disconnected.

These bikes are a blast. Get yourself a set of DG pipes too. Cheap power and about 1/2 the weight of the stock ones.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

started tear down today. did a test for ignition after i charged the battery and no spark.

 

[VonYinzer]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

That could be any number of simple to fix issues.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

i went to take off the contacts and whomever had put them on last decided the screws needed 100 FT/lbs on them. one striped on me even with the proper tight fitting screw bit.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

fiddle with the points some more and it RUNS. cylinders and pistons looked fresh, so i buttoned it back up.

all that's left is

replace seals
clean tank
and find the cause for my turns to not blink.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

Cleaned tank, fixed the electrical gremlins and got her all buttoned back up.

the only thing left for inspection is mirrors. the one that was on it was garbage, so im going to order a cheap set.

Heres a vid of her running.
http://youtu.be/diMDg1PTm5s?hl

 

[Rot1014]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

I have a set of cl350 mirrors that I can let go of real cheap if you are interested.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: RD 250 - fun on the cheap

i just ordered a set of cheap bar end mirrors.

thanks for the offer though.

 

[DesmoBro]

Re: 75 RD 250 - poor mans hooligan/tracker/dual sport Hybrid

Damn runs good ....now i want one

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: 75 RD 250 - poor mans hooligan/tracker/dual sport Hybrid

Damn runs good ....now i want one

if you can deal with the 2 stroke rasp, i cant see why not.

i think the main attraction for me is this is almost a complete 180 from what my dad rides, an HD road king and a 100CI rigid chopper.

 

[Titan performance]

Re: 75 RD 250 - poor mans hooligan/tracker/dual sport Hybrid

I'll have the Yam any day thanks !

Nice find, these were a great little bike back in the 70's.....in fact to 250B was probably the 250 to own. A sweet running one will still be a lot of fun to own even 40 years down the line.
Enjoy !

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: 75 RD 250 - poor mans hooligan/tracker/dual sport Hybrid

Got quit a bit done the last 2 days, but found one of the brake shoes had unlaminated and the wheel bearings are not doing too well. since i had the rear wheel apart i gave the sprocket, the cover the sprocket attaches to and the drum cover a QUICK buff. the rest of the bike is grungy so i wasn’t going to get them perfect, but they look a lot better. hopefully my wheel bearings get here tomorrow and ill be able TO FINALLY get her inspected.

 

[Keiff Hardcore]

Re: 75 RD 250 - poor mans hooligan/tracker/dual sport Hybrid

finally DONE. just needs an inspection.

as far as mods, i have the following planned.

-RD400 tank
-"made in japan" mil. surp. aluminum canteen re purposed as oil tank.
-minor chop to rear fender
-modify grab bar to follow line of the seat and de tab it
- modify RD400 tail light assembly to fit chopped rear fender