[Tiggers]

Due to some nerve damage in my legs I can no longer hike for long distances like I used to. To continue my outdoors excursions I have been considering a bike for taking to some of the trails we can ride in the state parks near me and on my own property as well. After some research I've decided that the best option would be a minibike with the following features:

1. Street legal package so I can zip from one trail to another without having to pack it onto and off of my truck
2. Offroad capability (OFC!) but I'm not looking for a mudder or a rock crawler. A simple trail bike to get me to the campsite...and the view!
3. Front and rear suspension (so I'm not saying "Ow! Ow! Ow!" every time the tires are pointed in the general direction of a rock!)
4. Reliability. I'm not looking to spend 12 hours a week maintaining this to ride it once a month. I also don't want to have to rebuild the engine yearly.
5. Affordability. These things are going for $1500 new. Older Honda Monkey Bikes can cost twice as much and no dealers near me so...tack on shipping (whoo hoo!)
6. Electric start. Remember those legs? Kickstarting as a backup is fine, but turning keys is easy on the knees.
7. Weight. I need to be able to lift this onto the back of a Range Rover and either store it inside or on a bike rack. I can lift but choose not to carry 135 lbs. I can lift it that much easier if I have 4 hands, two of them attached to a friend.

For those who are simply interested, the pitbike can be found here:
Mini Rover 125 - Pitster Pro

But I have had issues finding reviews from owners who have used the bike regularly, maybe put it through some abuse. If you've owned one, have you noticed necessary maintenance not mentioned in the Regular Maintenance Chart from Skyteam? Will those bumpy trails beat the snot out of me? What modifications did you make--or attempt--to turn this into an optimal ride?

Of course, if you have a different model that I might be interested in feel free to point me in that direction as well.

Thanks very much for the info in advance!

 

[DSR BLACK DEATH]

You should post this question in the z50 section as its the same thing.
I have the skyteam flashback which is the same bike but with the smaller tank & different seat.
Same engine, frame & suspension if I recall.
I have about 200 miles on mine and it goes 60 mph on flat ground but that's with an exhaust & carb upgrade.
I also re geared it with a larger front sprocket.
I only street ride this bike though, no trail riding, to work mainly, 2.5 miles each way.
The engine is a solid engine other than getting into neutral at times but I've learned it's easier getting into neutral going from 2nd gear than 1st.
Also the stock carb can suck ass. It has limited adjustments & you can't adjust the needle on it.
It idled great, perfect wide open but sucked at cruising speeds under a load.
I swapped out the factory carb with a mikuni 22mm clone carb & it runs sooooo much better over all.
heres mine

 

[HondaFiddyMan]

Own it. Far from stock, but great off the crate too,

-HFM

 

[Tiggers]

Thank you both for your comments. Should I ask a Mod to move this thread?

HondaFiddyMan, I am well aware of your ownership of the 125 after reading most of your Another Street Legal Mini thread. I'm very impressed with the level of work and attention to detail you put into your Mini Rover. I must confess I did not read through all 60+ pages. I almost considered IMing you but at the moment I am still in the lurking stages of this forum and the only comments I can give are "that is so cool" (which is not very constructive). I'm glad to hear these engines are solid. I've read several horror stories about Chinese clones having soft metal.

Reading from your thread and DSR BLACK DEATH's comments the top three I'll need to replace or modify are
Carb
Suspension
Brakes
Oh, and I'll probably buy this after I repaint it. I know you kept it blue HFM but have faith in the Tigger. The Tigger is good.

HFM I know one of your first mods was changing the rear suspension. You had a lot of issues with changing the brakes too. Are there any specific modifications you would suggest for offroad use? Again, I'm not planning to use this to jump hills but there's a lot of ups and downs on these trails, especially in my back yard when you get closer to the river. Pisgah has around 40 miles of trails and I have a few logging roads that I'll use as circuits, closer to 5-6(I'll be staying closer to home to start and probably just goof around back there). Logging roads are rough on the best suspension (and mirrors if you drive a Jeep or Range Rover down them) and the riders around Pisgah...no respect. They beat up the trails and then the trails take their revenge and beat up you.

My family is wanting me to get a nice "large" dirtbike and retro it for street. To be honest, I think a few of them expect to kick start it for me and I'll piddle around at walking speed with them in tow. Ye-No. Keeping in mind that I currently walk with a cane, I know from experience that I can't load and unload something that big on my own. As one of the main reasons I'm doing this is to regain some of my freedom, I really don't want to come begging for help every time I need to transport it. This sets up another question: I'm 6'0" with pretty long legs. Can I come up from behind and straddle these little things to get on and off? I can still hitch my leg up as long as I have something to stabilize myself when I do but its...a process. Are there any weight reductions I should consider?

One concern is acquiring parts. Do either of you have reputable dealers you would suggest I research nowadays for online purchasing? I owned a Yamaha YZ100 and a beaten up CR250 in my youth but stopped riding when I could legally drive (I blame girls, what few I had experience with). In those days I got all my parts from local dealers like everyone did. A parts list would be awesome (for a barebones upgrade to start) but suggestions of what dealers to avoid has in the past proven more valuable than a list of who to talk to.

I want to make certain this thing is a joy to ride and not a hassle to own.

 

[HondaFiddyMan]

If this will be a trails (mainly) bike, I would suggest extending the swinger to a TB 1.5 and get some decent 280mm gas units. That will make the rear end symmetrical with the rear fender and give you some additional shock travel and wheelbase length. If you are going to be in rougher terrain, the stock front end isn't going to make you very happy. It's pretty "springy" without mods and you need to at least swap out for a heavier weight oil- otherwise it will shutter and shake like hell over bumps. The brakes are actually pretty decent in stock form. I would just upgrade the rear pads to Kitaco ones and then upgrade the disk up front (mainly for cosmetic reasons). If you want to improve performance, I would suggest getting all the smog plumbing off the motor and install a Geniune Mikuni VM26-606 kit. TBolt has this. Also a big valve head really wakes the 125 up- even if you don't add a BBK or V2 style. Also read back through my build thread about the EGR block off modification and the shift actuator arm fix- it's a must for the bike. You can stick with the stock muffler too if you take all the head pipe packing out. It's really choked down for the emissions system. Otherwise it's a good piece. You can always PM me for help if need be! -HFM

 

[DSR BLACK DEATH]

Where are you buying yours from tiggers?

 

[Tiggers]

Black Death I will probably buy from the PisterPro website linked in the OP and have it shipped to me. No local dealers carry street legal pitbikes but I have--gonna sound weird--a chainsaw repair shop that is confident they can help with engine repair should something happen. They work on ATVs and the owner was a design head for Jonsered USA; helped design their lumber mill. I have some confidence in his skills with small engine repair considering the beatings my chainsaws used to take when I could still use them.

I ran 10w40 in both dirt bikes and airplane grade gasoline in the yz100 (110+ octane; kept it clean and easier to kick start, a must when you're 13 and your feet don't reach the ground). With a street rod I will probably forgo the 110 octane for "high" octane at the local pumps...unless you recommend I avoid any ethanol blends. I have a few sources for "uncut" gas. Should I drop in 10w30 or are we talking sludge?

I found a Mikuni VM26-606 kit online but I'm having trouble finding other parts listed that I am confident would fit. Where do you guys source your parts? Online or locally? There is a Yamaha dealer an hour from where I live and I'll be heading his way this week so will ask about how he can help; maybe I can source these from existing ATV parts from his catalog. There's also a Harley shop, that I don't trust, nearby.

 

[DSR BLACK DEATH]

Tbolt or any sponsor on this site has engine parts for our bikes, depends exactly what your looking for.
there are actually a lot of places to get parts.