74 ts 250 project. need parts!

[lovethosetwins]

Hey everyone. I'm totally new to MZ's. Been a vintage honda fan for a long time. I found this yellow 74 ts250 in all original shape. It even has the tools and everything under the seat, though I don't have the key (removed the door).

Anyhoo, there was some water in the motor which has ruined the bearings inside the case. I'm gonna need the crank pin, connecting rod probably, piston pin and roller bearing. The crank bearings are sealed up pretty good right? It's only got a touch over 300 miles on it, and it seems like an honest number. It's going to need fork tubes and rear shocks as well. The wheels are completely stuck as well, and the gas tank rotten. Hopefully the choke plunger will come unstuck eventually, otherwise the carb is great albeit gooey.

I've got a manual coming from the UK and a 12v conversion kit from australia on its way.

I've looked over the board and found some sources for parts, but most seem pretty absent of parts for my bike. Any suggestions? I'd hate to have to "chop" the bike and put parts from other bikes on it, it's really a pretty cool bike.

Thanks!

[Linegeist]

I've written about his before but it's always worth repeating (IMHO).

When I get my grubby paws on an old machine that I plan to disassemble/restore, and that also has corrosion damage or a seized engine, I'm always wary of weakened studs snapping off and components rust-welded to each other.

So I dump engines, hubs, carbs .... sub assemblies like that, into a 5 gallon tank of diesel fuel. Diesel fuel is one of those light oils that 'creep' - it'll find its way into every crook and nanny ... down inside threads, bearings, oilways ........ and it'll help to free up any seized parts with none of the damage associated with cracking corroded threads or running dry and pitted bearing surfaces moving against each other. It also lubricates and protects.

I got this idea when I once lived in Lincolnshire, home of the Royal Air Force and the centre of many WW2 airfraft restoration projects. These enthusiasts dig up engines that have laid in the ground since 194*-something, dump them in vats of diesel for 6 weeks and, when they haul them back out, they come apart like magic.

[djsbriscoe]

Hi,
Burwin motorcycles in London are the experts on 2T MZ engine rebuilds and spares

http://www.burwin.co.uk/

The MZ riders club is another good source of advice as is the yahoo group

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mz_riders ... =330951138

HTH,

David.

[lovethosetwins]

Wow thanks for the great advice. It's great to find a community of people interested in these bikes. It seems (at least in the states) that knowledge on them is few and far between. Kudos to whoever set up this board.

I too am a fan of the soak. I have a 1 gallon can of carburetor cleaner dip. It actually removes carbon as well as a bunch of other things. It turns brass black for some reason, but doesn't seem to harm it otherwise. Quite nasty on the skin too. It does pretty well but doesn't reach every little crevice behind threads. I have to admit I've never heard of the diesel soak. I'll have to try that. Maybe that will get my hubs apart... I picked up a heat gun today at the insistence of a buddy who works at a euro bike resto shop. He spends his days working on Urals and Zundapps and old Bimmers. He hasn't seen my bike yet, but he says it sounds like a "BMW knockoff". Is there any truth to that?

Also, I ordered a 4 speed MZ clutch puller off ebay from a shop on ebay uk called vintage bits. The 74 ts250 is a 4 speed yeah? That's what I could gather from reading in here.

I'll check out the links and see if I can get the parts. This would be such a neat bike to resto, and very unique here in Texas to boot.

Thanks guys!