Triumphrat

texjj · 11-19-2009, 09:56 PM

Ok, I'll take the blame. My perfectly good 1968 650 Trophy was covered and stored in various garages for the past 27 years. Yeah, I know, what a waste!

The good news is that it did really well. Almost no new rust including the gas tank. Now I'll get it back in shape. History:
- Purchased in 1980 from roommate who never rode it
> It wouldn't start so he sold it for $200-$400
> He was the 2nd owner, and the first owner hardly rode it
- The "fix" was a carb rebuild and points tuneup
- 1980-1982 put ~10k miles on it
- Less than 20k miles on the bike
- Stored from 1982-2009

Accomplished so far (after the pics):
- fluids changed (engine, primary, gearbox, forks)
- pressure washed off filth and underside
- gas tank cleaned by adding sheet metal screws and giving it
the shakes. Hardly any rust but some small particles came off.
- external gas tank buffed and waxed by hand
- petcocks rebuilt, but reserve side still leaking while closed
- the single Amal carburetor detail cleaned in and out

The forks were leaking pretty bad when it got parked in 1982. I have replacement seals from 1982, but have not done forks before. I do have the parts manual and the repair manual.

The tires also need replacing if I want to do more than 10mph. The front tire is the original from 1968!

...Jeff

GrandPaulZ · 11-19-2009, 11:03 PM

Excellent!

Here's what it can look like-

texjj · 11-20-2009, 02:21 AM

Whoa - that is a truly stellar rebuild/refurbed Trophy. I don't think the aluminum on mine was ever that shiney.

My next step is to fire it up in the next two days - gotta keep the excitement up. I recall it used to backfire a bit during kickstart and it sprained the heck out of my ankle once. But that was 45 pounds ago - so maybe there is something to be said for not being skinny.

GrandPaulZ · 11-20-2009, 11:18 AM

Kickback on starting is an ignition timing issue, VERY easily solved by strobe timing your ignition.

texjj · 11-20-2009, 12:43 PM

Thanks Paul. If I didn't fix it 27 years ago, it will get properly timed this time around. Appreciate the tip!

texjj · 11-23-2009, 03:01 AM

Got some progress done today.

Cleaned up the valve rocker oil supply line. To ensure flow I applied a small vacuum on it to prime the line. ...Okay, I sucked it, blech.

I adjusted the valves. The left side was too tight (no clearance). Must have been some lazy kid 27 years ago...HEY that was me! Anyhow they are spot on now.

I also cleaned up the right side a bit. Lots of hand rubbing. Some of the chrome has pinhole spots but is generally in good shape.

Oil supply line

Right side of bike

Webby · 11-23-2009, 12:06 PM

Nice bike texjj

Keep up the good work

Webby

texjj · 11-23-2009, 06:27 PM

Thanks Webby. I am lucky compared to others - this bike is still in real good shape after all those years. I am finding it is not that hard to work on. Similar to my old Hondas and Kawasakis this is a pretty accessible bike.

There are some oddball design items though. The external tappet oil line - now why would someone think that is a good design? Other engines had internal oilways for tappets!

texjj · 11-25-2009, 01:59 AM

Pretty amazing. I spent about 5 minutes today getting gas into the tank and kicking it over. Then the baby started and I ran it for 5 minutes!

How is that after storing it for 27 years??? All I did to prep was a few hours of normal maintenance:
- change the 3 oils (crank, primary, gear)
- rebuild (clean) the carb
- clean the gas tank and petcocks
- adjust the valve clearances
- gap the plugs
- quick sandpaper on the points

Tomorrow I'll re-time the points so they are accurate (after 27 years). She was running rough. But no odd noises.

There was too much oil coming out the crankcase breather. I'm going to redrain the crankcase. I must have primed it with too much oil in my zeal to ensure enough startup lubrication. There are a lot of good threads on crankcase breather issues covering this.

I hope the crankcase breather tube never gets cracked. That tube originates up behind the engine between the cases.

You probably have to pull the gear case to get to it.

Anyhow....one happy day!

GrandPaulZ · 11-25-2009, 10:43 AM

CONGRATS!!!

You can get to the crankcase breather spigot by laying the bike on it's side, use a mattress covered with rags, or tip it over carefully onto some blocking at the handlebars and seat areas.

You will then need a pair of long-nose pliers to push the new tube into place.