1996 CR250

Well I had a big change of heart guys. I decided to part out my 2002 instead. I have a decent bid battle going for my 2002 engine only 30hrs into a 7 day auction! I started looking at all the 1992-1996 250's and really fell in love with them all over again. I am gonna use the forks off of my 2002, the rest will be 1996. Hope you guys don't mind another build thread.

Hey guys, I have the frame at the powder coater right now. I am going to be using 2000 model CR250 Forks, and the 2000 rear shock and swing arm so that I can have the old bike greatness, with modern suspension. My aluminum subframe also came in from ACR racing and it looks pretty nice, I will post a pic of it soon. The cylinder has been sent off to be replated, ported, and set up for race fuel. If anyone needs 1996 OEM suspension, swing arm, wheels/hubs/brakes, let me know.

I looked around on here ( I didn't look very hard) for some info on where to get titanium axles, axle nuts, and also a titanium swingarm bolt/washer/nut and didn't seem to find anything. I am using 2000 model forks 2002 model wheel/brakes/axle, and 2000 model swingarm with a 2002 rear wheel(this is what I had to work with) Can anyone point me in the right direction for these parts on my '96? I have been seriously considering replacing all of the hardware on the bike with titanium. I purchased this bike for $375, and made a killing parting out my 2002 CR250, so I plan on using the monies from the 2002 parts towards my '96 restoration. Thanks guys!

Thanks, I will check them out! Thanks, let me know when you get your carb, I have never sent anything overseas before and I hear that it takes a while.

Hey guys, just wanted to post a small update on what is going on with my rebuild. Thanks to member: Banana_oil, I was able to get two of the seat covers that he has on his '96. He was nice enough to take the time to order them from his dealer, and send them to me all the way in Texas.

Before:

After:


I also ordered all new plastics for it from Dennis Kirk




Also thanks to Banana_oil, he recommended Evo-MX.com to me for OEM replica decals for my shrouds. They are out of England and customer service is 100% satisfactory.

Another thanks to Banana_Oil for sending me a close up shot of his swing arm decal, EVO-MX had not made a swing arm decal for the 1995-1996 bike yet. I sent them the photo he sent to me and they now offer it as well.


I am still waiting to get my frame back from powder coating, and I am also waiting for my Emig Racing triple clamps as well. I can't wait til they arrive.

On my quest to use the 2000 model swing arm, and Showa shock, I learned that the linkage does not mount right up. Here is what I did to resolve the issue.

The "dog bone" on the '96 is much narrower than the "dog bone" of the 2000.

The pivot on the 2000 is much wider than the pivot of the '96


I did not feel comfortable modifying the frame, so I knew that I had to continue using the '96 dog bone in order to connect the linkage to the frame. What I did was took the 2000 model pivot to a local Tool and Die shop and had them narrow it down to the same width of the '96 pivot so that It would mount into the '96 dog bone. After it was narrowed, they also corrected the depth of the shoulder so that I could continue to use the correct seal and bearing kit for the 2000 pivot. It now fits just as well as an OEM piece.

I will have to get the correct die to thread the bolt down far enough so that I can use it for this application. I will then cut off the excess.

Another issue that I had is that the holes in the 2000 model dog bone are 12mm, and the holes in the '96 model dog bone are 15mm aprox. I had the Tool and Die shop bush them down to the correct size.

The last issue with the now narrowed 2000 model pivot is that the inner sleeve is now longer than it needs to be. When my bearing kit comes in I will take the new sleeve to be narrowed to match the correct length.



One last thing to note is that the 2000 model dog bone is 136mm long, from center to center of the bores. The 1996 model dog bone is aprox 140mm long center to center of the bores. I am not sure how much 4mm of extra length is going to effect the rear end height of my bike but if it lowers it slightly that is very fine with me as I am only 5'5" tall. I hope that it doesn't lower it a drastic amount, and I also hope that we can tune the suspension valving to work well with the overall setup.

I feel like I am forgetting to mention a lot of things, so feel free to badger me. My prerogative here was to be able to use the 2000 model swing arm, shock, brakes, and not have to use aftermarket parts.

With so many beautiful Jeremy McGrath replicas already in existence, I felt it would be hard to compete with everyone. My intent is to have a steel framed CR250R that appears very stock-ish, but have the advantages of modern suspension, brakes, and horsepower.

^^Thanks!!

Well not long after I logged off earlier I received a call from the powder coating place that my frame was ready for pickup!

I test fit the newly modified linkage and the 2000 swing arm, and I couldn't resist but to throw the aluminum subframe on as well. Everything fit perfectly!!!


underside view

I now have all my parts in, other than my cylinder, which is still out for plating. I received my Emig Racing lower triple clamp and I can say that the quality is top notch. It is a very nice piece. The only problem is that is was obviously more shiny than anything else on the bike, so I decided to glass bead it in the blasting cabinet in an attempt to make it less bright. This may seem like a crime to most people but I am very happy with the outcome. The upper clamp and lower clamp are close enough in appearance that it suits me. I slid the forks in the clamps and installed the number plate just to get a taste of what to expect. I will post more pictures of the progress soon.






An interesting detail I have not yet mentioned before, is where I got my 2000 model suspension and who the bike once belonged to. I purchased a 2000 CR250 that had no motor, no plastics, not even a tank. It was merely a basket case. It was originally from California, but ended up in Austin, TX. I live about 3.5hrs south of there. Although it has yet to be proven by concrete evidence, it seems highly plausible that the information I was given is truth.

Here is a picture of the signature on the shock, to see if anyone recognizes the name.


My suspension/motor guy (www.hpbikes.com) told me that the forks and shock were valved very stiff and the forks had some neat works parts inside that are now stock in the more recent Showa forks. He went ahead and revalved/resprung everything to my speed and weight.

^^Winner winner

I was assembling my engine and the water pump gear was damaged and cracked. I would like to replace it with a newer model impeller that is a steel gear, instead of the 1996 plastic gear. Does anyone know if the 2000 model steel water pump gear/shaft will fit into the 1996 engine?

Since you figured my hoax out. . .

http://jigzoneshop.com/motocross-jigsaw-puzzle-112-prd1.htm

Due to an unforeseen event, I am not going to be able to go any further on this project. Everything is for sale again. Plastics, seat, decals, frame. Everything.