I bought this machine hoping to make a couple dollars and it has totally blown up in my face. I already replaced the flywheel, brake caliper and battery but here are the issues I'm currently facing:

The electric start works and the machine will not fire unless the key is in the "on" position which is normal, but to turn it off I have to shut off the fuel as the key or off switch are completely useless.

This is probably part of the first problem but I also have no lights or any electrical other than the starter.

It starts like a dream, but when I try and get rpm out of it it sputters and backfires constantly. It will not rev out at all.

That's all I have found so far, I imagine there will be more once I actually get the thing moving I will find more issues. What a POS.

 

Check under the front panel that the black wire from the cdi is connected. This is the kill wire. Just check the bulbs could just be blown. They usually do if you or the previous owner had a bad or weak battery before you replaced it with a new one. Plus a simple test of the bulb connectors can tell if you have voltage going to the bulbs. OPT