Starting 97 Blaster Rebuild

97BlasterNewbie

97BlasterNewbie

Member
Feb 6, 2014
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Hey guys my sons blaster top end blew up today. I decided to pull the engine and am going to go through it Since I have the engine out I am going to paint the frame and redo the plastics. This is going to be a surprise for him for christmas. He is all bummed that the motor took a crap so he will be thrilled when this is completed. I am looking for some info to help me with this build. I was thinking about sen it out to Kor and having some trail porting done. Does this add alot of power to the bike? I was going to put a new wiseco top end kit in the bike is this a good choice? I was also thinking a V force reed cage are they helpful or not worth the money? Sorry for all the questions just trying to decide what direction I want to go. Any input for ideas why I have it apart would be great.

As far as the frame goes should I just clean it really good and paint it? Is there something better to use then paint? The plastics are red now would like to make them green or black. Not sure if I should use paint for this also or if there is something better.

Any ideas help or input is greatly appreciated. He is going to be shocked when I have this all done up for him.

The bike does have a fmf pipe on it and I put in a TORS removal kit and the oil injection has also been removed.

Here are some pics of the engine out of the bike and the plastics off.





 
Those are all good choices, a lot of people say the vforce reeds make the throttle crisper and more responsive, but I just have some dual stage myself. If you can afford the extra cash get everything you can powdercoated, it will last 10x longer than rattle can. Some things can't be done because of the baking process such as the stock a-arms. I used krylon fusion on my plastics and have been pretty happy with it, just don't spill gas on it. Its easy apply, just clean and spray. I'm not sure of his age/size/riding style, but there other things you can do depending on those.
 
kor would be a really good idea....very reliable and extra power with proper maintence..

get the head modded to best bang/best mod for your buck
head (1).jpg
 
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Sounds like all good stuff. Ken's trail port is great, The power delivery after is nothing less than awesome. Like said above, get the head modded. Its a nice cheap upgrade.

If your tearing into this motor this far, have the crank rebuilt, and replace the bearings and seals too. It's good peace of mind to have, especially when your kid is riding on it. :)
 
Not only will Kor porting and head mod "wake up" that motor but You wont sacrifice any reliability. As far as painting the frame that's what I am currently doing. I had to strip all paint right to the frame since the previous owner of the frame painted it I don't know how many times. If it is oem paint I think you should be fine with a sanding an then wiping down with a solvent to remove any grease/ grime etc.... You could powder coat but that's pricey and you would need to send it out. Also if the paint chips or whatever you could easily do touchups, with powder coat you cant simply touch up a scratch, chip etc..
 
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anodized paint looks crazy good but hard to work with,also has to be painted chrome first,unless it is chrome look into it for ha has:) i get it at autozone for like 8 bucks a can
i say get it built up good....regardless of how much you spend,you can always sell at get most of it back,and most importantly have fun while doing it....ps...the head mod will add around 30psi mmmmm good
anodized.jpg
 
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Ok guys heres a update. After work tonight I pulled the head and jig off to see what I am dealing with. Had a blown head gasket and something caused the engine to lean and fried the piston. It looks like I am going to have to have it bored out to start and order a top end kit. The crank seems to be good but it looks like some how there is gear case oil getting into the crank case. Any ideas? I was going to split the case and put and reseal it.

Heres some pics. Any help suggestions as to what you would do if it was your bike is appreciated.





 
Blown head gasket would cause a lean condition. The case oil in the bottom end is from most likely a bad seal on trans side sucking in oil. Was it smoking before this all happened? You should replace both seals, there not expensive and not hard to do. Before tare down you should have leak tested but after you replace seals and gaskets be sure to perform a leak test.
 
If it were mine? Send that top end out, split cases, send crank out to get rebuilt, get new main bearings, and all new seals. Clean, inspect, lap cases. Inspect everything for wear, replace whats needed. reassemble with some allen head case bolts. Leak test, Heatcycle, get jetting on, Ride and enjoy some peace of mind!



Other optional things to consider. Porting, head mod, and shiftstar mod. All good things to get the most out of your blaster.
 
ouch.
did you take the dowel pins off before pic/and or are they on there?
i think i can see one on other side were they belong:)
#16
Image (6).gif
 
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they need to be there, it is easy to overlook they might be there look at the kickstarter side on studs or post a pic or look at a pic...the base gasket holes are cut bigger on that side/and it helps line up the cylinder to cases:)
 
The wear on the piston promotes me to ask some questions.

Are there the same type of wear marks on the other side of the piston?

Do you warm up the engine before you ride?

Has anyone just jumped on the bike, kicked it into life and fanged it cold?

The reason i ask is because that wear pattern will be produced from riding an engine without sufficient warm up!
 
They are there just looked it over.

Blaaster said:
The wear on the piston promotes me to ask some questions.

Are there the same type of wear marks on the other side of the piston?

Do you warm up the engine before you ride?

Has anyone just jumped on the bike, kicked it into life and fanged it cold?

The reason i ask is because that wear pattern will be produced from riding an engine without sufficient warm up!
Click to expand...


I would have my son put the choke on start the bike and let it run with choe on for 2 to 3 min then shut the choke off and go ride. Is this not enough warmup time? The other side of the piston does look the same way with the scaring.
 
Running cold with the choke on for 3 mins is not really going to get heat up enough.

The way I do it is to choke it, kick it into life, idle with Choke on for 10 secs.
Push in choke and idle for 10 seconds.
Give the throttle a few blips and let it idle until I check my tyres are all pumped up.
Give the throttle a few more blips and then oil the chain, or check if there is enough lubricant on it.
Blip throttle again, put on helmet , blip, put on gloves, blip, attach tether, blip, goggles/visor, blip, where I am the engine should be warm enough to trundle out to where I am going to ride.

Warm up time is not important, but warm up heat is. The piston a cylinder should be up to operating temp before riding.

Virtually what I do is start it, do my checks and dress whilst warming it up, it takes no more time, you just have to organise the way things are done.

How sure are you that the engine was not ridden from cold, did your Lad ever forget.
 
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He might have we are pretty good about letting it get warm. The guy I bought it from might not have though and then the blown head gasket created a lean condition that just broke the camels back is what I am thinking. The information you provided is great and I will start having him do thing in that type of order. Good to do all you checks before every ride anyways and let the bike heat up. Thanks for the tips.
 
Quick question some I am jumping into this rebuilt I was wondering about a leak down tester. Looking at the pics of them do you test the crank case only or the top end also? If the top end with do you use to block off the intake. I see the kits come with a freeze plug for the exhaust but nothing for the intake. I want to buy one this week so just making sure I get the correct stuff.
 
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