Modifications made to my new Viva VX200SX!

[SamM]

No, I haven't got a price yet from Jialing on the engine. I'm not sure they are going to help me much on this. If I get a chance I'll call them tomorrow and report here what they say.

Tonight, I installed the new Hi-Bird tank on the Viva. Everything went well and it bolted right up. I had to make the front mounting holes a little bigger and take the grommets out to get the bolts to line up. When I get longer bolts, I'll put the grommets back in. I have a slight problem with the fuel valve. In the off position, the valve leaks. When I get a chance, I'll pull it apart and see if I can fix it. No biggie!

[fatboy250]

Is that just habit to turn your petcock off? I never mess with mine. Like I had mentioned it stays on reserve. If your float is working correctly in the carb it shouldn't be a problem. I had an old CB550 that had bad floats and would leak if I didn't turn the petcock off overnight. But I only paid $50 for the whole bike, so I wasn't really complaining.

[SamM]

No, it's not a habit. Every owner's manual for every bike ever made, says to turn the valve off when not in operation. Well, not every bike. My 950 has a fuel pump that pressurizes the fuel system and dual carbs. Turning the valves off is not necessary on it. Notice I said valves. It has three. The 950 has dual tanks and a main shutoff. Turning the fuel valve off is SOP on every thumper I have ever had. My Polaris manual also says to shut the valve off. Ever had a cylinder load up with fuel? The plug gets wet and it's a pain to get started again and you have to crank it over to pump the fuel out of the cylinder. Even if the float is working properly it can still happen. The bike could be at an odd angle on the kickstand or something like that. The fuel could expand in the tank due to pressure on a hot day, if the fuel cap vent or on a regular bike the vent line, is plugged you could have problems. The fuel could also leak past the rings and fill the crankcase. The rings aren't made to hold back a thin liquid like fuel. I had this happen once on my Buell S1W. The bike was hydro-locked. If this happens you could bend a connecting rod. This happened to me on a bike that cost over 10k. You can imagine what I needed to do then. It's just a precaution, sure you can get away with not doing it MOST of the time. If you ever have a problem, you'll probably start turning the valve off. I'd rather have an operating valve than a non-operating valve, that's all. :wink: It's cheap insurance for not having problems on the road.

[fatboy250]

Originally Posted by SamM

The bike was hydro-locked. If this happens you could bend a connecting rod. This happened to me on a bike that cost over 10k. You can imagine what I needed to do then. It's just a precaution, sure you can get away with not doing it MOST of the time. If you ever have a problem, you'll probably start turning the valve off.

Man, that sucks. I've never heard of that happening. I guess I would take the time to turn it off too if that had happened to me. In fact, of all the bikes I've ever owned the CB550 was the only one that I did that with, but that was because it would leak through the bowl drain while it was parked if I didn't.

[katoranger]

I have to turn the gas off on my lawnmower otherwise it has hydrolocked before.

I looked as a GS650 at a pawn shop that was hacked and butchered and it was hydrolocked due to the vacuum operated petcock had failed.

I have gotton into the habit of turning mine off, but I probably should.

Allen

[SamM]

My fuel valve for some reason stopped leaking today. I guess I don't have to fiddle with it now.

[fatboy250]

Originally Posted by SamM

My fuel valve for some reason stopped leaking today. I guess I don't have to fiddle with it now.

When I was assembling the new DB-07B for my girlfriend the tank shroud was pushing down on the valve and causing it to leak in the reserve position. Good thing I checked cause it wouldn't even go into the full upright position from the on position. That would suck if you were on the road thinking, well I've always got my reserve when I run out and then not be able to switch over. I was able to take a Drimel and "contour" the plastic so it wouldn't touch. You wouldn't notice unless I pointed it out.

Good thing you got it fixed. Hopefully it won't give you any more problems.

[katoranger]

unless your reserve only gets you about 2 km like mine did. I may need to check the straws inside.

Allen

[SamM]

The fuel valve isn't really the problem anymore. My rear suspension broke Wednesday morning, when I was doing about 50mph on the bike. I never went down but I was close to it. The bike seat absorbed the impact of the mount self-destructing under me. It wasn't anyone's fault but my own and HAS nothing to do with the quality of the bike. It has everything to do with the quality of my weld. The top mount was just temporarily in place and I was just testing the bike. A better mount was in the works before major highway miles were going to be racked up. The mount needed rebuilt and I should have known better. I really thought the mount was ok for now. Apparently, it wasn't! There are many forces at work with even these simple motorcycles. I learned a valuable lesson without paying the price. I am very thankful I wasn't in traffic or going any faster. The bike is still on my trailer from the rescue. Tomorrow, I will get it back in the shop for repairs and next time a professional welder will do the honors welding the new boxed mount on the bike. The XR shock works ok but the shock isn't stiff enough for my 210 lbs.

I never got around to calling Jialing USA about the engine, so I have nothing to report on that.

[Jim]

my kawasaki doesnt have an off, it is vacum controlled or something? it has on reserve and prime, but I shut the lifan off when not in use...

[molypod]

Sam,

good to hear to didn't wipe it when the mount broke..

Petcock :o)

mine is off when not in use(→) and on is either (↓ ↑).

[SamM]

After careful consideration and then reconsideration, I have decided to purchase yet another shock for the Viva and try to get the bike up and ridable again. It's just been sitting in my shop as I figure out which way to go on it. I considered parting it out and even purchasing a new bike to get parts from. The rest of my bikes are up for sale and I'm going to need something to ride soon. The fact is, I really like the Viva and I want to start riding it daily. It was my fault that the last shock mount broke as it was really just mocked up as I tested the shock. The next time I'll have the mount professionally welded. I go to church with a couple of guys that welded on the Alaskan Pipeline. They know what they are doing. Just thought I would update you guys on my project. I just purchased the shock from ScooterParts4Less.com.

Here's the new shock.

[IronFist]

I read about the petcock and so started turning the switch to off when parked. As will happen before too long I start up my bike without switching the gas to on. The bike fires up first time and keeps running. I know the reserve works, all 8 ounces of reserve anyway. But the off position doesn't work at all. I intend to look into it when I get a bigger tank. I'm using the summer to ride, test, fix and find out what to work on this winter.

[katoranger]

N2r, It may shut off works, but it took about 3 minutes for it to run out of gas after I shut it off.

Sam, that shock intended to match your bike?

Allen

[SamM]

No, I bought it because it has double adjustable progressive springs. Most of the dirtbikes don't have linkage rear suspensions. Hopefully, this shock will work perfectly on the Viva. I think it may but... I've been wrong before. Just trying to work out my bike!

The fact that it just happens to be blue... is a side benefit! :wink: