I had been on the lookout for another bike that would serve as a bike for Alexander to use when he is down from Limoges, but also for guests to use and local running about. I didn’t have anything very specific in mind – cheap, simple, manageable – and then my mate Phil mentioned he had a DR350S for sale. This is a 1990 bike (30 years old) and is a bit of a classic “Japanese Trail Bike” – it is relatively simple compared to modern machines, being air cooled and kickstart only. It was also cheap, but there was a catch – it didn’t work !
Phil had bought it as a non-runner/project and spent some time and money trying to sort it out but without success. The main problem was that it was “an absolute pig to start” – it seemed to run fine once it was going (usually by bump starting) but was impossible to start by kicking. The deal was done just before lockdown so it was 3 months later that I eventually collected the DR. And Phil was right, it is a PIG to start – it took me two days of trying to eventually start it for the first time ! I discovered that the cable to the decompression lever was slightly out of adjustment, but really it just came down to having the right technique and it now starts up in a couple of kicks (usually).
The starting issue really boils down to the gearing of the kickstart lever – in order to make it easy to kick it is very low geared which means that even a healthy kick barely takes the engine through one revolution. This means that the engine has to be in EXACTLY the right position before starting the kick. Fortunately the decompression lever can be used to get the engine to the right place, more or less. But when you are tired, hot and sweaty half way up a rocky hillside it is easy to forget the right technique.
Other than the starting issue the bike seemed to be in pretty good shape, although there were a few jobs I decided to do…
- Replace the fork gaiters – old ones were split
- Replace a bush in the rear suspension linkage to eliminate the slight play
- Change the footrests – the originals were very small and rather bent
- Fit some tougher hand guards – on the basis the bike would probably be dropped a few times… Had a set left over from the Scorpa T-ride which were just the job.
- New grips to replace the crumbing old ones – actually used the old grips off the KTM
- When replacing the fork gaiters I realised one of the fork seals had been leaking so took the forks to PCG Racing in Cahors who stripped and rebuilt them with new oil and seals for 95 Euros the pair.
- Tyres – the originals were “full knobby” motocross tyres but also rather old and as hard as wood. So they were replaced with the Trials tyres I had spare from previous bikes.
Alexander was keen to try the bike out and came down for a visit – first time since the lockdown – it didn’t go well…
He doesn’t have a lot of bike experience and is shorter than me so the tall seat height and heavy bike (he was used to a scooter) made it quite a handful. He must have fallen off half a dozen times or more – mostly at low speed round the garden – but not having any protective gear (apart from gloves and helmet) doesn’t help with confidence. After he had done a fair bit of practise we went out for a short trail ride – I took the Montesa trials so no risk of going fast…
So although he enjoyed the experience it seemed the bike was just too big and heavy for him – anyone want to buy a DR ?
However, I did a bit of research and discovered that it was possible to buy a lowering linkage for the rear suspension and we could raise the front forks to lower the bike at the front. The next time he came to visit it all got a lot better…
This is the “valley hill climb” in the valley below the house which is quite steep, loose and tricky to get up…
The next video is the “waterfall” which is just below the house – not so steep but lots of rocks and tree roots to avoid. There are two rock steps that you have to get up and the second has a fallen tree across it, which means you have to duck at the same time as trying to get up the step – tricky…
He seems to have got the hang of it now – or maybe just getting carried away with youthful enthusiasm…
The bike had a bit of an oil leak that I decided to try and fix. In the event it turned out to be three oil leaks.
- Drive shaft sprocket seal – got a new one and fitted it
- Oil drain plug – was only nipped up rather than being tight – an easy fix
- Clutch cover gasket – replaced with a new one
Alexander getting more confidence – still not much protective gear although he managed to borrow some boots from Susan. I did a search on Le Bon Coin and managed to find some second hand boots and armour so for his next visit he was fully equipped…
So on this visit we did a trail ride into Cahors and back which is about 80Km and nearly all off-road. Both bike and rider did really well and tackled all of the varied trails on the Cahors route…. Until we were nearly back at the house and had to get up the waterfall again…
This was another attept at the waterfall – but already being hot and tired it probably wasn’t such a good idea….
WARNING BAD LANGUAGE !
Even managed a bit of site seeing….
Looks like Alexander won’t be down for a while now, so I changed the DR suspension back to standard settings and had a go myself. Compared to the KTM it feels very sluggish and tractor-like – the steering response is slow, the throttle response is also quite lazy (it has a CV carb) and the cable operated clutch is rather vague. These are probably all helpful characteristics for a beginner as it is less likely to get you into trouble (says the person who managed to loop the KTM on a hill climb soon after I got it !). But I’m now more used to the snappy response of the KTM throttle and clutch and the super-quick steering – so the DR just felt slow and vague to me. I think Alexander did really well on it. Here is my attempt at getting along the rock garden and up the waterfall on the DR – note the tree across the second rock step part way up the waterfall. Also tried some figure of 8s on the terrace but the limited steering rock and vague clutch response make them quite tricky…