05 RM125 Project - Finished

liamjumper
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liamjumper
Edited Date/Time 4/27/2016 9:27am
Picked up a 2005 rm125 for $1500 and ready to do some work! Really excited for this build so i thought i would share it with others!



(that is an older photo from the owner from a few years ago so it wasn't as clean as it looks in the photo.

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liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/28/2015 11:06pm
1/28/2015 11:06pm Edited Date/Time 1/28/2015 11:11pm
As soon as I got the bike I stripped it down and gave it a really good clean and took off all the ugly decals.




Put the number plate and front fender from my old rmz250 on for the more modern look.



liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/28/2015 11:13pm
1/28/2015 11:13pm Edited Date/Time 1/28/2015 11:13pm
Just made a huge parts order off of BTO sports, and should have all the parts in this week. Hopefully have the frame painted in a little over a weeks time from now.
#991
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#991 1/29/2015 3:29am
1/29/2015 3:29am Edited Date/Time 4/6/2015 2:38pm
...

The Shop

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Spydee
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Spydee 1/29/2015 3:49am
1/29/2015 3:49am
Sweet, I've just recently started restoring my RM125 '02 also, so will keep an eye on this Cool
#991
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#991 1/29/2015 4:19am
1/29/2015 4:19am Edited Date/Time 4/6/2015 2:39pm
Spydee wrote:
Sweet, I've just recently started restoring my RM125 '02 also, so will keep an eye on this Cool
...
Spydee
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Spydee 1/29/2015 4:29am
1/29/2015 4:29am Edited Date/Time 1/29/2015 4:29am
Looks awesome dude! Really liking that black frame/swingarm combo too, it's quite a subtle touch but works really well with the rest of the bike. Good job!
#991
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#991 1/29/2015 4:34am
1/29/2015 4:34am Edited Date/Time 4/6/2015 2:40pm
Spydee wrote:
Looks awesome dude! Really liking that black frame/swingarm combo too, it's quite a subtle touch but works really well with the rest of the bike. Good...
Looks awesome dude! Really liking that black frame/swingarm combo too, it's quite a subtle touch but works really well with the rest of the bike. Good job!
...
Spydee
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Spydee 1/29/2015 4:55am
1/29/2015 4:55am
Oh yeah, didn't notice the forks, nice touch! How much did the forks set you back? Mine are OEM, so I guess it could be worth me upgrading if there's a vast improvement in the spec.

Don't be afraid to ask DocWob about any specific parts you need as well, I noticed he had a couple of things in his store for other models, and when I got in touch he said he could order in parts to fit my model. Plus he's dirt cheap compared to other sellers.
#991
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#991 1/29/2015 5:11am
1/29/2015 5:11am Edited Date/Time 4/6/2015 2:40pm
Spydee wrote:
Oh yeah, didn't notice the forks, nice touch! How much did the forks set you back? Mine are OEM, so I guess it could be worth...
Oh yeah, didn't notice the forks, nice touch! How much did the forks set you back? Mine are OEM, so I guess it could be worth me upgrading if there's a vast improvement in the spec.

Don't be afraid to ask DocWob about any specific parts you need as well, I noticed he had a couple of things in his store for other models, and when I got in touch he said he could order in parts to fit my model. Plus he's dirt cheap compared to other sellers.
...
liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/29/2015 7:36am
1/29/2015 7:36am
#991 wrote:
...
Bike looks great! I'm going to go with a low gloss black. I was thinking going with a matte black but I've decided to go with a low gloss instead. Im just going to leave the swing arm how it is but give it a nice polish. Im getting excited for my parts to get here so I can get this thing moving again! Laughing
JBlain619
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JBlain619 1/29/2015 8:48am
1/29/2015 8:48am
Spydee wrote:
Sweet, I've just recently started restoring my RM125 '02 also, so will keep an eye on this Cool
#991 wrote:
...
Frame guards are sick! I just finished grinding and polishing out my bottom clamp. Working on getting the cylinder and power valves cleaned up and hope to put the motor back in the frame this weekend.
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JBlain619 1/29/2015 8:54am
1/29/2015 8:54am


The bottom is the stock clamp off a RMZ250 that I grinded and polished out. The top clamp is a RG3 that got got for $50. It was red anodized but something got on it and it was discolored. I used oven cleaner to remove the anodizing and then polished it out too. I don't really like the "chrome" look so I took a scotch bright pad to it to give it a "brushed" look.
liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/29/2015 9:01am
1/29/2015 9:01am Edited Date/Time 1/29/2015 9:12am
JBlain619 wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2015/01/29/78509/s1200_clamp_photo.jpg[/img] The bottom is the stock clamp off a RMZ250 that I grinded and polished out. The top clamp is a RG3 that got got for...


The bottom is the stock clamp off a RMZ250 that I grinded and polished out. The top clamp is a RG3 that got got for $50. It was red anodized but something got on it and it was discolored. I used oven cleaner to remove the anodizing and then polished it out too. I don't really like the "chrome" look so I took a scotch bright pad to it to give it a "brushed" look.
I've been thinking of ordering a triple clamp, but I'm wondering if I should go with the 22mm offset rather than the stock offset. Anyone have any knowledge on that, if it improves handling much, or is it best to keep it with the stock offset? If the 125 handles anywhere near the new Suzuki 4 strokes handle I wouldn't want to change anything at all.
liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/29/2015 9:04am
1/29/2015 9:04am
JBlain619 wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2015/01/29/78509/s1200_clamp_photo.jpg[/img] The bottom is the stock clamp off a RMZ250 that I grinded and polished out. The top clamp is a RG3 that got got for...


The bottom is the stock clamp off a RMZ250 that I grinded and polished out. The top clamp is a RG3 that got got for $50. It was red anodized but something got on it and it was discolored. I used oven cleaner to remove the anodizing and then polished it out too. I don't really like the "chrome" look so I took a scotch bright pad to it to give it a "brushed" look.
I've been thinking of ordering a triple clamp, but I'm wondering if I should go with the 22mm offset rather than the stock offset. Anyone have any knowledge on that, if it improves handling much, or is it best to keep it with the stock offset? If the 125 handles anywhere near the new Suzuki 4 strokes handle I wouldn't want to change anything at all. Woohoo
liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/29/2015 10:00pm
1/29/2015 10:00pm Edited Date/Time 1/29/2015 10:01pm
Just finished up some more work on the bike, as you can see in the first photo of the frame the brake and bottom triple clamp were still on the bike due to stripped bolts and seized bearings so I managed to get those off. Will be bringing the frame in to get painted this weekend, along with the wheels, stator cover, and clutch cover.



(sorry for the terrible quality photos, the lens broke on my phone but I'll start using a better camera)
liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/29/2015 10:05pm
1/29/2015 10:05pm Edited Date/Time 1/29/2015 10:06pm
Also managed to do some heavy cleaning on the engine. I gave it a good spray with engine degreaser and let it sit over night and then went at it with some SOS pads and paper towels, once it was relatively clean I took the dremel to it to polish it, but didn't get as far as I would have liked because the piece wore out.

(Before, sorta cleaned it on a different occasion but not well )


(After)





liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/29/2015 10:09pm
1/29/2015 10:09pm
As soon as my parts get here I'm going to take the motor in to get rebuilt, and then when I get it back I will finish giving it a good polish. My first main focus is getting a nice, clean, solid rolling chassis, which I will be assembling as soon as the frame and wheels are done being painted.

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JBlain619
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JBlain619 1/30/2015 7:58am
1/30/2015 7:58am
liamjumper wrote:
Also managed to do some heavy cleaning on the engine. I gave it a good spray with engine degreaser and let it sit over night and...
Also managed to do some heavy cleaning on the engine. I gave it a good spray with engine degreaser and let it sit over night and then went at it with some SOS pads and paper towels, once it was relatively clean I took the dremel to it to polish it, but didn't get as far as I would have liked because the piece wore out.

(Before, sorta cleaned it on a different occasion but not well )


(After)





Good job! I did the same thing to mine. What piece did you use on your dremel? I used the metal brush and it worked really well. I went through 3 of them. How did your cylinder and power valves look??? Im taking the valves to get them blasted tomorrow so I can reassemble before the Superbowl Sunday. They are horrible!
liamjumper
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liamjumper 1/30/2015 8:02am
1/30/2015 8:02am
Same as you. I only had one of them so I didn't ever finish. I'm gunna go out and get some more of them and get the engine looking the best I can! Whistling
liamjumper
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liamjumper 2/3/2015 5:34pm
2/3/2015 5:34pm
Parts have been received! Time to get the engine in for the rebuild now.



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Grizz 2/3/2015 5:50pm
2/3/2015 5:50pm
liamjumper wrote:
Parts have been received! Time to get the engine in for the rebuild now. [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2015/02/03/79168/s1200_Screen_Shot_2015_02_03_at_5.34.06_PM.jpg[/img]
Parts have been received! Time to get the engine in for the rebuild now.



Ohhhh gotta love a box full of new parts. But I gotta ask, why go with the pillow tops on the twin-walls?
liamjumper
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liamjumper 2/3/2015 6:07pm
2/3/2015 6:07pm
Grizz wrote:
Ohhhh gotta love a box full of new parts. But I gotta ask, why go with the pillow tops on the twin-walls?
haha i thought about that, but I much prefer pillow tops over any other grips.
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/3/2015 6:27pm
2/3/2015 6:27pm
did you get an aftermarket gear shifter??? i havent been able to find one, but i would be interested to see how well it fits.....lots of people have had shifting issues on RM125s, only to find they had it 1 spline off and the interference with the frame was causing the issues.

on the fork offset, in 2005 suzuki changed the offset to the same as the 2004 rm250 250 (the offset on the 2003 250 was different also), and it worked better so i would stick with that. Just be careful mixing top and bottom clamps over the different years....i see so many people list parts as fitting 01-08 and often its not the case.

the 2005 really was a great bike, after that the changes were few and far between
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/3/2015 6:29pm
2/3/2015 6:29pm
also, i think the Boyesen ignition and clutch covers look really good, its just a shame the Boyesen clutch cover uses a gasket rather than an O-ring like OEM. I guy on here did a really good job of etching the OEM magnesium covers.

good luck with the rebuild!
liamjumper
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liamjumper 2/3/2015 7:44pm
2/3/2015 7:44pm
Bruce372 wrote:
did you get an aftermarket gear shifter??? i havent been able to find one, but i would be interested to see how well it fits.....lots of...
did you get an aftermarket gear shifter??? i havent been able to find one, but i would be interested to see how well it fits.....lots of people have had shifting issues on RM125s, only to find they had it 1 spline off and the interference with the frame was causing the issues.

on the fork offset, in 2005 suzuki changed the offset to the same as the 2004 rm250 250 (the offset on the 2003 250 was different also), and it worked better so i would stick with that. Just be careful mixing top and bottom clamps over the different years....i see so many people list parts as fitting 01-08 and often its not the case.

the 2005 really was a great bike, after that the changes were few and far between
I couldn't find an aftermarket shifter. I looked everywhere! If anyone knows where you can find one, let me know please! As far as ignition covers go I don't see the point in spending that kind of money on ignition covers when I can just get them painted and they will look just as good.
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Bruce372 2/3/2015 7:59pm
2/3/2015 7:59pm Edited Date/Time 2/3/2015 8:00pm
yep, ive not found one either...other than 1996 thru 2008, LOL.

just get a low hours replacement from ebay.....seriously, ive seen a couple of people with RM125 shifting issues, and it as because the shifter was 1 spline off.

my brake pedal was very well worn, the only aftermarket one i found was AS3 from the UK.

Also, the torc1 voltage footpegs for my 2015 rmz450 didnt fit well, so i filed down the stoppers slightly and they mounted up to the 125 well

liamjumper
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liamjumper 2/3/2015 8:06pm
2/3/2015 8:06pm Edited Date/Time 2/3/2015 9:57pm
Bruce372 wrote:
yep, ive not found one either...other than 1996 thru 2008, LOL. just get a low hours replacement from ebay.....seriously, ive seen a couple of people with...
yep, ive not found one either...other than 1996 thru 2008, LOL.

just get a low hours replacement from ebay.....seriously, ive seen a couple of people with RM125 shifting issues, and it as because the shifter was 1 spline off.

my brake pedal was very well worn, the only aftermarket one i found was AS3 from the UK.

Also, the torc1 voltage footpegs for my 2015 rmz450 didnt fit well, so i filed down the stoppers slightly and they mounted up to the 125 well

Thanks for the tips! Although I'm not too concerned about foot pegs and brake pedals/shifters right now, but the time will come!
Bruce372
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Bruce372 2/3/2015 8:09pm
2/3/2015 8:09pm
yep, my brake pedal was very, very worn, and i couldnt bring myself to buy a new OEM
liamjumper
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liamjumper 2/3/2015 8:17pm
2/3/2015 8:17pm Edited Date/Time 2/3/2015 9:56pm
Yeah, I believe suzuki OEM parts or more expensive than others. If I purchased new OEM brake pedal and shifter it would be over $350 CAD

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