KX125 2000 Cylinder Question

Ish
Profile picture for user Ish
Posts
109
Joined
9/30/2011
Location
San Clemente, CA US
Ish
Edited Date/Time 1/20/2015 4:25pm
I was wondering if anyone recommends cylinder work to be done here?

The whole cylinder is smooth and only has a blemish at the top that you can see on the pictures.

The bike ran with very little power because the piston and rings wore out.

I was also curious as to what type of piston kit i should order. I see some really cheap kits online for $64.00 on ebay.













|
Paw Paw 271
Profile picture for user Paw Paw 271
Posts
3632
Joined
4/3/2013
Location
Benton, LA US
Paw Paw 271 1/13/2015 6:13pm
1/13/2015 6:13pm
It looks like that cylinder needs replating, based on the upper part of it in the photos.

Paw Paw
Matt Fisher 1/13/2015 6:17pm
1/13/2015 6:17pm
If there's no crosshatching left it may be time to replace the cylinder or have the nicasil plating re-done. Scrub it down with a scotchbrite pad- be aggressive, it won't hurt the coating.

As for pistons- from personal experience I'd suggest avoiding Namura products like a bad case of Syphilis.
Ish
Profile picture for user Ish
Posts
109
Joined
9/30/2011
Location
San Clemente, CA US
Ish 1/14/2015 9:54am
1/14/2015 9:54am
Matt Fisher wrote:
If there's no crosshatching left it may be time to replace the cylinder or have the nicasil plating re-done. Scrub it down with a scotchbrite pad-...
If there's no crosshatching left it may be time to replace the cylinder or have the nicasil plating re-done. Scrub it down with a scotchbrite pad- be aggressive, it won't hurt the coating.

As for pistons- from personal experience I'd suggest avoiding Namura products like a bad case of Syphilis.
Thanks

There's no crosshatching left at all.

Can't the cylinder be re-honed so there's crosshatching?

Scrubbing it down with the scotchbrite pad once i get a chance,
simmons97
Profile picture for user simmons97
Posts
32
Joined
10/20/2014
Location
Lewiston, ID US
simmons97 1/14/2015 10:06am
1/14/2015 10:06am
Some types of plating are to not to be honed except with a diamond hone. I think this may be one, either way its worn out. I would send it to be re-plated. Cheaper than a new cylinder, also will perform slightly better, but its quite the wait this time of year. For a piston and ring combo, I would go with ProX, Wiseco, or even OEM if you can find one. I've always had the best luck with OEM, but never had any real problems with any of the others. Plus I can order individual rings when I go OEM, that way I just re-ring the piston every 5-10 hours and run the same piston till its worn out (generally 35-50 hours if I stay on top of re-ringing)

The Shop

See All »
Dragoo168
Profile picture for user Dragoo168
Posts
239
Joined
4/14/2014
Location
NV US
Dragoo168 1/14/2015 10:22am
1/14/2015 10:22am
If you know how to use one properly, and have access to one, run a ball hone through it for about 10 seconds, and then clean it up and inspect it. the plating looks bad, so plan on ordering a piston (I use ProX or Vertex), and sending it with the cylinder to be repaired.
Matt Fisher 1/14/2015 4:28pm
1/14/2015 4:28pm
Matt Fisher wrote:
If there's no crosshatching left it may be time to replace the cylinder or have the nicasil plating re-done. Scrub it down with a scotchbrite pad-...
If there's no crosshatching left it may be time to replace the cylinder or have the nicasil plating re-done. Scrub it down with a scotchbrite pad- be aggressive, it won't hurt the coating.

As for pistons- from personal experience I'd suggest avoiding Namura products like a bad case of Syphilis.
Ish wrote:
Thanks There's no crosshatching left at all. Can't the cylinder be re-honed so there's crosshatching? Scrubbing it down with the scotchbrite pad once i get a...
Thanks

There's no crosshatching left at all.

Can't the cylinder be re-honed so there's crosshatching?

Scrubbing it down with the scotchbrite pad once i get a chance,
If the crosshatching is gone, it's because the cylinder plating has been worn down that much. Likely it would be out of spec if you measured it in several places in the bore. If the rings won't seat right, you'll never get it to run right.

Have the nicasil redone, buy a new Kawasaki cylinder (I think it interchanges up to 2002??), or roll the dice on an eBay used cylinder.
Bruce372
Profile picture for user Bruce372
Posts
6329
Joined
4/1/2008
Location
US
Bruce372 1/15/2015 7:14pm
1/15/2015 7:14pm
that cylinder is worn out. you can put a new piston in, but it will wear out very quickly from slapping around and could shatter the piston and ruin the engine.

call up a reputable cylinder plater, and buy the piston kit from them. They should have a good price since they get the volume, and they can also match the cylinder with your new piston.

i recommend millennium, they might even have a core cylinder they can swap out, or even a big bore kit ready to trade up.

of course there is a wait time, so the quick option is to buy a new one. Kawasakis were renowned for poor plating, so a used one of ebay is as likely to be worn also

good luck!



Ish
Profile picture for user Ish
Posts
109
Joined
9/30/2011
Location
San Clemente, CA US
Ish 1/20/2015 4:25pm
1/20/2015 4:25pm
Bruce372 wrote:
that cylinder is worn out. you can put a new piston in, but it will wear out very quickly from slapping around and could shatter the...
that cylinder is worn out. you can put a new piston in, but it will wear out very quickly from slapping around and could shatter the piston and ruin the engine.

call up a reputable cylinder plater, and buy the piston kit from them. They should have a good price since they get the volume, and they can also match the cylinder with your new piston.

i recommend millennium, they might even have a core cylinder they can swap out, or even a big bore kit ready to trade up.

of course there is a wait time, so the quick option is to buy a new one. Kawasakis were renowned for poor plating, so a used one of ebay is as likely to be worn also

good luck!



Thanks! After researching it sounds like Kawasaki didn't do a good job plating like you said and I will go get this re-platted.

Post a reply to: KX125 2000 Cylinder Question