Magician 250 carb issues performance help

[eddiechode]

Hello. New to this forum and new to owning a Magician. I bought a brand new Magician a few weeks ago. I checked out reviews on youtube etc… before I bought it and I knew that it was going to need some adjustments to get it running right. I am to a degree mechanically inclined. I’m not a professional by any means but I know enough to get by.

So after the bike arrived I had some help assembling it. Got everything together and went to put gas in it in order to start it. Suddenly I noticed gas was leaking all over the ground. After tracing the leak it was coming from the overflow on the carb. The floats were stuck. As many of you may know, the carb has tamper proof screws on the bowel, so I had to use a dermal to get them off. Fixed the floats. Got the carb back together and the throttle was sticking. Took some work to get the slide moving again but it still sticks sometimes. Finally after realizing there is a kill switch on the kick stand that prevents the bike from starting in neutral I got the bike started. It ran really rough and took some adjusting on the idle screw to get it somewhat ridable. I took it around the block, put maybe half a mile on it tops, somehow the odometer says I went 3 miles. There is no way I did. After further inspection I noticed the left turn signals do not work. The back break pads stick and there are a number of other small bugs I have to hammer out because right now it runs like shit and it is not safe to drive.

My question is this…. I saw a few videos on replacing the carburetor with an actual Makuni, putting a new jet in. ( ) I also saw some things about replacing the stock exhaust and using air pods instead of the stock air box. How much more of a benefit would this make? I am pretty sure I want to replace the carb, just because it is clear that the stock one is complete garbage. I don’t know about the air filter and exhaust. I know that this bike was going to need some adjustments, but it wasn’t suppose to arrive to me broke and not running. I did not think I was purchasing a brand new project bike. Any one else having similar issues? and thoughts? What is the best size jet to use? I am at about 600 FT above sea level. Does anyone have any recommendations on an aftermarket exhaust for this Magician? How do I fix the odometer?

any help anyone can give me on how to get this thing running better would greatly be appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to read all of this.

[Megadan]

The carb generally used isn't an "actual" mikuni, but a clone. It is a popular upgrade because many people run them, so jetting is fairly easy with so many examples to base your setup on, and pilot jets are able to be changed, unlike the stock carb. That said, there are also Keihin clones out there that offer the same things that the VM26 clone does. Either option is a good one.

All of your questions on the Magician engine tuning are no different than what they are on the Hawk. Same exact engine. A uni or other pod filter or some sort of airbox mod will make a difference. The exhaust mods will make a big difference, and at least one member has posted up pictures of the Magician running the same ebay CRF exhaust that most of us Hawk owners use.

I am not trying to sound rude or condescending so please don't take it this way, but you don't buy these types of bikes without expecting them to be a bit of a project. You spent less than $1500 on a brand new motorcycle. It's not going to be perfect out of the box. They ALL require fine tuning, fixing, and upgrades. If you wanted a trouble free new bike then spend about 4-5 times more on a Japanese 230/250. The budget friendly route you and I opted to take means that you have to pay for that cheapness with imperfections and tweaking.

Also, if you haven't already changed all of the fluids in your bikle, do so now. Completely bleed and flush out the brakes front and rear with good clean new fluid. change the motor oil if you haven't already, and drain the forks and put in actual fork oil. Go over every bolt on the bike and loctite is your friend.

As far as the Odometer issue. If the bike had a warranty on it, that is one route. Otherwise, you can always use the Hawk digital cluster. The location of the speed sensor is on the opposite side of the wheel, but the digital cluster unit can work in both directions and will likely work on the Magician as well.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by eddiechode

Hello. New to this forum and new to owning a Magician. I bought a brand new Magician a few weeks ago. I checked out reviews on youtube etc… before I bought it and I knew that it was going to need some adjustments to get it running right. I am to a degree mechanically inclined. I’m not a professional by any means but I know enough to get by.

So after the bike arrived I had some help assembling it. Got everything together and went to put gas in it in order to start it. Suddenly I noticed gas was leaking all over the ground. After tracing the leak it was coming from the overflow on the carb. The floats were stuck. As many of you may know, the carb has tamper proof screws on the bowel, so I had to use a dermal to get them off. Fixed the floats. Got the carb back together and the throttle was sticking. Took some work to get the slide moving again but it still sticks sometimes. Finally after realizing there is a kill switch on the kick stand that prevents the bike from starting in neutral I got the bike started. It ran really rough and took some adjusting on the idle screw to get it somewhat ridable. I took it around the block, put maybe half a mile on it tops, somehow the odometer says I went 3 miles. There is no way I did. After further inspection I noticed the left turn signals do not work. The back break pads stick and there are a number of other small bugs I have to hammer out because right now it runs like shit and it is not safe to drive.

My question is this…. I saw a few videos on replacing the carburetor with an actual Makuni, putting a new jet in. ( ) I also saw some things about replacing the stock exhaust and using air pods instead of the stock air box. How much more of a benefit would this make? I am pretty sure I want to replace the carb, just because it is clear that the stock one is complete garbage. I don’t know about the air filter and exhaust. I know that this bike was going to need some adjustments, but it wasn’t suppose to arrive to me broke and not running. I did not think I was purchasing a brand new project bike. Any one else having similar issues? and thoughts? What is the best size jet to use? I am at about 600 FT above sea level. Does anyone have any recommendations on an aftermarket exhaust for this Magician? How do I fix the odometer?

any help anyone can give me on how to get this thing running better would greatly be appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to read all of this.

Well, maybe I can help you out a little bit. As far as the rear brake pads sticking is concerned, usually that has two possible causes. Too much fluid in the rear master cylinder. Or air in the fluid. Try reducing the amount of fluid in the rear master cylinder down to the full line first. If that doesn't fix it, go to the store and buy a new can of DOT 3 brake fluid, and bleed the brakes. Since you bought a new can of fluid, I would recommend that you keep bleeding until all traces of that brown brake fluid that came in the bike is gone. Then finish the job up, and see if it is fixed. You did clean the rotors with brake cleaner when you put the bike together, right? I would change to a Mikuni carb because the jets are easier to find. It is possible to find Keihin jets, but they are not easy to get....ARH

[wamey]

Check out Motocheez's mods list for the magician. He also has done a ton of youtube videos that show how to mod it:

https://sites.google.com/site/motoch...s-magician-250

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfs...sZwINrc4KSbAlQ

[culcune]

The speedos are generally running KPH vs. MPH, even if it states 'MPH' on it. I think the odometers are in kilometers vs. miles, as well. Someone suggested the digital cluster, but that might not be optimal for the Magician since it was made for the Hawk and the Hawk and Magician are two completely different bikes besides the engine.

[linemanxxlog]

Before you get too crazy with mods try adjusting the valves. It seems like most magicians valves were far too tight from the factory and the result makes it run like a bike with a horribly tuned carb

[Dz]

On my first Magician I had trouble with the carb I just purchased a new one for $22 and no problems after that, on my second Magician I did not have to do any thing to it started right up. Are your back brakes sticking or locking up because the bolt on the lever used to adjust the height of your brake lever caused mine to want to lock up when ridding so I backed off the bolt and that did the trick but a new master brake cylinder for the Magician is $45 at therps.net, they just quoted me one

[clark]

My Magician, aside from the kickstand kill switch "gotcha", has been relatively trouble free. I made a minor adjustment to the hand-brake switch (see other post.) I do have minor issues with the carb. Starts a bit difficult, requiring some throttle. Once warm, idle is too high. At some point I will take the time to sort this carb issue out via adjustment or carb swap. Mega has a good suggestion with total fluid change, but so far I have only changed the motor oil. Waiting for the cooler Florida winter months to start tinkering in the garage.

[Megadan]

Originally Posted by culcune

Someone suggested the digital cluster, but that might not be optimal for the Magician since it was made for the Hawk and the Hawk and Magician are two completely different bikes besides the engine.

The frames are different yes, but a lot of the small parts are pretty much close to the same. The only real unknown with the Magician as far as the cluster goes is the bolt pattern on the stock speedometer housing. And the speedo drive itself - which aside from its location on the opposite side of the wheel, which shouldn't matter because the Digital clusters electronic speed sensor works in both directions, only has the unknown as far as how the drive is setup/used. If it uses the same basic drive flange, then it will work. I wouldn't be surprised if they used the same or very similar wiring harness.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by Megadan

The frames are different yes, but a lot of the small parts are pretty much close to the same. The only real unknown with the Magician as far as the cluster goes is the bolt pattern on the stock speedometer housing. And the speedo drive itself - which aside from its location on the opposite side of the wheel, which shouldn't matter because the Digital clusters electronic speed sensor works in both directions, only has the unknown as far as how the drive is setup/used. If it uses the same basic drive flange, then it will work. I wouldn't be surprised if they used the same or very similar wiring harness.

I guess I'd have to know the outside diameter of the the 21inch Hawk front wheel vs. the outside diameter of the Magician'
s front wheel before I could venture an opinion...ARH

[jimwildman]

Originally Posted by Megadan

The frames are different yes, but a lot of the small parts are pretty much close to the same. The only real unknown with the Magician as far as the cluster goes is the bolt pattern on the stock speedometer housing. And the speedo drive itself - which aside from its location on the opposite side of the wheel, which shouldn't matter because the Digital clusters electronic speed sensor works in both directions, only has the unknown as far as how the drive is setup/used. If it uses the same basic drive flange, then it will work. I wouldn't be surprised if they used the same or very similar wiring harness.

engines and some parts are the same but the Magician was based on the Yamaha tricker, its sort of a trials bike, it is weighted so and has the footpegs mounted further back, shifting the riders weight back, low seat height, etc.

Was the tricker much of a trials bike?

has anyone owned one? id love to hear/read a comparison.

[pete]

Originally Posted by jimwildman

Was the tricker much of a trials bike

NO......
You will never see one at a trials event.....
They were designed as a stunt bike..
hense the name "Trickster"


..

[Megadan]

Originally Posted by jimwildman

engines and some parts are the same but the Magician was based on the Yamaha tricker, its sort of a trials bike, it is weighted so and has the footpegs mounted further back, shifting the riders weight back, low seat height, etc.

Was the tricker much of a trials bike?

has anyone owned one? id love to hear/read a comparison.

I think we should clear something important up here.

The only thing based on the Tricker would be the look of the bike. One thing I have learned is that, aside from the basic frame (including suspension parts) and body panel differences, most of the rest of the bike will use pretty much the same parts as many other China bikes. Heck, it has a Honda clone engine. I almost confident that the speedo drive on the Magician and the Hawk are the same unit. Without having one on hand to compare that makes it hard, but if a Magician owner wants to humor me and take the time to yank their front wheel off so we can compare the two then I am more than willing to take pictures, find part numbers, and take measurements. From everything I have seen of the speedo drive, it looks the same as the Hawk one, just flipped to the other side. I would love to get more detailed images of one just to clear up some of the mystery.

Most people won't take a gamble with $95 on something that may or may not work. I am willing to take the time to get measurements of bolt patterns, and do comparisons to the basic parts. Will the wiring be the same, maybe or maybe not. I know that all of the same basic circuits exist between the two. The factory Hawk cluster doesn't have a gear indicator like the Magician, but the Digital Tach cluster does, and it gets added on with a simple addition of adding pins to a pre-existing connector that were simply left blank.

Simply put, if we can confirm that the speedo drives are functionally the same, and that the gauge clusters have the same bolt pattern, then the Hawk tach cluster could be made to work on the Magician, and that would open up a door for a lot of people. You can even select different wheel diameters in the cluster, so adjusting to the smaller Magician front wheel is not a problem.

[JerryHawk250]

Originally Posted by Ariel Red Hunter

I guess I'd have to know the outside diameter of the the 21inch Hawk front wheel vs. the outside diameter of the Magician'
s front wheel before I could venture an opinion...ARH

The Magician has a 19" front wheel. The Digital cluster can be set for a 21" or 19" wheel. So if the sending unit fit it will work.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by JerryHawk250

The Magician has a 19" front wheel. The Digital cluster can be set for a 21" or 19" wheel. So if the sending unit fit it will work.

OK, that's cool to know....ARH