Whats the best way to start the 5 hundie ?

[BDI]

The flywheel can spin and sheer the key and still seem tight. Make sure you use the right puller that screws in the center of the fly wheel. If you use a claw puller you can and will ruin the flywheel by either bending it or streching the rivits that  attach the flywheel hub to the flywheel. P.S. the puller has left handed threads.

[kxdel]

IT'S ALIVE, IT'S ALIVE, IT'S FINALLY ALIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  After about 80 miles of driving today locating tools and parts, the beast started.  It was a sheared flywheel key after all.  I bought 3 keys from 1 bike shop and a puller from another 40 miles east.  I had 5 different bike shops on the phone and visited 3 before I was done.  So a maiden voyage around the house at 35? and raining and twice down the street all in the dark was enough for me.  This bike is going to be a handful, but I'm up for the challenge.  It only took a couple of 250 like kicks and then 1 500 kick all with the choke off before it started.  So hopefully no more sore foot and mass quantities of profanity trying to get it started.  I am greatful for all of the input so keep up the good work.  Thanks, Dan


p.s. if anyone needs a flywheel puller just let me know.   

[BDI]

It's a good fealing isn't it. That flywheel puller fits so many bikes  It's not even funny. I bought mine when I was 14, That was twenty years ago and I still use it all the time. I hope you torqed it to spec and put some thread lock on the nut they can come loose and destroy the crank.

[kxdel]

It's torqued to spec but no threadlock.  Should I use red or blue?  There didn't seem to be any on it when it came apart, but I can put some on now.  While I was out today I also bought a new bike stand that gets the bike up about 3 feet high and makes it a whole lot easier to work on.  It gets rather old sitting on the garage floor or laying on my side to work on these things.  Sitting in a kitchen chair and looking eye to eye with the crankshaft is a wonderful thing.

[BDI]

If it's torqued to spec you should be fine. I put thread lock out of paranoia a drop of red is cheap insurance but probably overkill.

[kxdel]

I am considering putting threadlock on the bolts that hold the body work on.  When i got the bike a bolt on the side panel was missing and the other was loose.  So maybe a little dab of blue just to be sure.

[Friar-Tuck]

 Glad to hear things worked out.
 
Snoop around on the thread in the 500 forum  for KIPS mod. , drop Stewart an email and order up a Top Secret Decoder Kxriders KIPS Bolt. 
  (As an Aside on the flywheel)
   Before, you button things up you might grab some valve lapping compound and lap the flywheel to the crank.
 Spin it about a few minutes and look for high spots.  (tip from Eric Gorr's book)  My friend who also had the key break lapped his three years ago and its still good to go. I don't know if this kept it from breaking again, but when he lapped it in he was surprised to actually see the High/low spots.
 Take Care,
Tuck \o/

[Hillclimb#42]

Don't use threadlock for plastic mounts. Bolts are cheap, but if you have a bolt spin a mount, it screws up all sorts of stuff. Gas tank, radiator shroud to radiator and rear fender bolts thru air box all have deals that I call "body nuts", but no doubt are called something else. Spin a mount in a gas tank, and its time for brand new cuss words. (and a tank) 500's do need lock tite. Mine seems to fling the bolts on a regular basis. The trick is to use it in the right places, Also take note when bolts are hard to withdraw because they are already loaded with it. Double doses may cause the bolt to seize and break.
Congrats on getting it running...

[BDI]

I must agree, I have adopted a new theory on non critical bolts. I would much rather buy a new bolt then have to fix or buy a new part that is striped out. I also keep spare bolts in my riding box and some in my toolbag that I carry. There are some things I would rather thread lock the s**t out of, my flywheel nut is one of them. Never put thread lock on a machine screw unless you never plan on taking it apart again if it is steel or titainium into aluminum use antiseez if it goes into a non critical part like plastics you may try teflon tape but to be honest I dont have a problem with lost fastners on my 500.

[kxdel]

Once again thanks for the input.  I like the teflon tape idea as opposed to locktite.  I guess I'll just buy a handful of bolts and keep them in my toolbox for the ones that get away.  Thanks again.

[martinfan30]

The technique that has work for me for years on all my big bore 2 strokes is, (this is assuming that it is cold) Turn the gas and choke on, next lean the bike over till gas comes out the over flow tube on the carb, then give one slow kick through with no throttle. Then with the kick starter all the way up at the top kick the hell out of it! I have never met a big bore 2 stroke that will start with a wimpy kick. Maybe with the compression release system you could get away with it, but not a KX5. When it is hot I usually just crack the throttle just a touch as I am kicking it. The problem I still have is when it has cooled down for an hour or two and I some times beats me to death before I get it restarted!

Alan

Sorry for the "post mining", but I tried this method today on my KX5, and it was a first time shot! Will use it again to start when cold.

[turtle22]

The technique that has work for me for years on all my big bore 2 strokes is, (this is assuming that it is cold) Turn the gas and choke on, next lean the bike over till gas comes out the over flow tube on the carb, then give one slow kick through with no throttle. Then with the kick starter all the way up at the top kick the hell out of it! I have never met a big bore 2 stroke that will start with a wimpy kick. Maybe with the compression release system you could get away with it, but not a KX5. When it is hot I usually just crack the throttle just a touch as I am kicking it. The problem I still have is when it has cooled down for an hour or two and I some times beats me to death before I get it restarted!

Alan

Sorry for the "post mining", but I tried this method today on my KX5, and it was a first time shot! Will use it again to start when cold.

i do every thing but lean the bike over. i will try this today. i had to learn to kick my '01 by myself,the last owner could not start it(hehehe). i found out that it has to be tdc and kick it like ur mad at it

[martinfan30]

I have really tried to be easy on kicking the beast. The lean over, run through the kicker a couple times and then kick it like a dog works, but I worry I will break the kicker some day.

Is this a legitimate concern?

[Albertan]

I've always used the lean over, gas on, choke on, gas out the overflow tubes and jump on the kickstarter, and I haven't broken a kickstarter on either of my KX500's (1985 and 2000).  And they started.  I can't imagine the engineers wouldn't design the bike knowing it took a really strong kick to turn over a big bore.

[k5abuser]

ooooooooooooooh you will break one so plan ahead and buy an extra one or two .