I just took over my fathers 85' 250R.. He hasn't ridden it for several years (maybe 15). After cleaning it up and taking it over to the local riding area (prarie city - Sacramento, CA) It has a few problems, and I need some advice please.

I noticed after riding that the front suspension is very mushy. Is it common to have to replace the springs (I assume this is the problem) after sitting for so long? I changed the fork oil, but it made no difference. The rear suspension seems fine, as I'm a lightweight. But my heavier buddy thinks it is way too soft, even with the preload adjustment maxed out. Does this have anything to do with the nitrogen canister being empty? Can this be re-filled? Is it expensive?

One more thing - Brakes. After adjusting the parking brake, it sticks until I pull on the adjuster to loosen it. I asssume this means that the cable is binding up, is there anything available to lube the cables with, or do I have to buy new cables? I'm a college student on a college student's budget..

The engine seems fine, no leaks anywhere, starts up on the second kick almost every time. I think this will be a great toy for pismo over labor day, provided I can these items fixed. Too bad I only have turf-tamers.. Thank you!

-------------------------
Wayne Rodrigue
-1985 ATC 250R

 

I cant help you much but what is the riding like in prairie city . I live in lodi and would love a ridding spot that close.

 

Well, the riding at prarie city sucks.

Good place for testing your bike, doing tune-ups, etc. But my dad's 20 acres seems bigger. There are some rocks, hills, etc. But you can only open it up for maybe 30 seconds before hitting a fence or going over a cliff. I've only been there 3 or 4 times.. Sand mountain is much better, or the riding up near clear lake is nice. There are lots of "little" riding spots around the sacramento area, but not like down south.. The mojave desert or something. There we can ride a full tank out and just get to I-40.. Or was it a six-pack? I have to remember now....

 

I wouldnt see why the spring would be bad. Those things are pretty much made to last forever. Id bet on the seals being bad though, and it not holding pressure. As for the rear shock, I cant honeslty say around your area how much it costs to recharge it. Honeslty, I wouldnt worry about messing with it, if its not affecting you at all. Mine rear shock is shot, and I still jump mine. It doesnt bottom out or tear anything up. As for your parking brake problem, I couldnt help you there. Every trike I have, I take those things off.

 

Silicon spray works well on cables - just disconnect it up at the bar, and patiently
spray, wait for gravity to draw it down, then spray a little more, repeat. . .
WD40 only works temporarily.

What weight fork oil were you using on the front forks ? I'm not sure what you
meant by mushiness, but it sounds like they might be too slow to rebound
(excessive rebound damping ), which can be due to fork oil that is too thick -
too high viscosity. Higher weight oil does not equal better performance - if
you are running thicker than stock ( and aren't a heavy rider, and aren't running race
conditions ), try the stock weight oil.