[Gansan]

There will normally be two tubes hanging from C - one from the front and another from the back. They are just breather tubes to aid the flow of petrol - similar to the ones you have on the top of your overhead tank at home!. Also there will be one more screw at the bottom of the carb, with another tube hanging below it. That one is for use if the carb is flooded/blocked. In other geared two strokers, you basically close the fuel tap and then open this screw to drain out all the petrol remaining in the carb. Please check and confirm if it is there or not.

[SAS]

Originally Posted by Gansan

There will normally be two tubes hanging from C - one from the front and another from the back. They are just breather tubes to aid the flow of petrol - similar to the ones you have on the top of your overhead tank at home!. Also there will be one more screw at the bottom of the carb, with another tube hanging below it. That one is for use if the carb is flooded/blocked. In other geared two strokers, you basically close the fuel tap and then open this screw to drain out all the petrol remaining in the carb. Please check and confirm if it is there or not.

Thanks Gansan & ph03n!x.

Yes, I'll adjust the air fuel screw accordingly. Currently I guess it's running lean. What is the setting that you guys keep for best fuel economy? Should I still set it at 1.5 turns after full tight?

Also regarding C, there is no pipe or any other thing on my bike. Should that be of any concern or would it degrade performance in any way?

Again, thanks to you guys for helping me out with this...

[ph03n!x]

A good mechanic should get the carb tuned in 5 min I remember the sweet spot is between 1 to 2 turns from full close, and you gotta go by the engine's sound and how it revs.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by SAS

Thanks Gansan & ph03n!x.

Yes, I'll adjust the air fuel screw accordingly. Currently I guess it's running lean. What is the setting that you guys keep for best fuel economy? Should I still set it at 1.5 turns after full tight?

Also regarding C, there is no pipe or any other thing on my bike. Should that be of any concern or would it degrade performance in any way?

Again, thanks to you guys for helping me out with this...

Better install the tubes. They will prevent any dirt from being sucked inside, and water from entering the carb during service/rains.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by SAS

Thanks Gansan & ph03n!x.

What is the setting that you guys keep for best fuel economy? Should I still set it at 1.5 turns after full tight?

I had a 1998 Model KH till 2008 and was tuning it myself. Ideally I would turn the engine on do as below:

1.Tighten the Idle & Air screw completely.
2. Let the engine Idle for 5 minutes to get heated for proper tuning.
3. Start loosening the Air screw in fraction of half turns and wait for about 30 seconds after every turn (You would normally realise the idling RPM increasing now).
4. Follow step 3 till a point where the engine starts revving freely and the RPM wont increase any further.
5. Start to loosen the Idling screw now and set it to a lower RPM such that the engine doesnt knock while idling.

(And yes, normally if your KH is maintained properly with no carbon deposits in the exhaust and cleaner air filter and proper plug setting, you would see that the max rpm you achieve while the idling screw is fully tight is at about 1.5 turns of the air screw from the tight position)

[SAS]

Thanks Gansan & paragsachania

My Kinetic's got a new lease of life. Since the last couple days I've been taking the bike for a long drive to office and back (around 60km to and fro) and have kept my car at home. I'm absolutely loving the way you can zip around with this through traffic. It's the most effortless way to commute. The only problem is that long journeys take their toll on your back. Mine is paining pretty bad now. Tomorrow it's back to the car..

Does anybody have any experiences with any experiments in spark plug gapping for the kinetic and any best practices to share?

[ph03n!x]

AH, the back pain! I got it while in my 12th class itself - thanks to all the zipping I did with the Kiney! I guess it is not a daily commuter anymore, rather a weekly or monthly pleasure ride through congested roads for the KH.

Spark plugs - am clueless now, though have touched the gap several times. I had a thin strip of metal to check the gap decade ago...

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by SAS

Thanks Gansan & paragsachania

Does anybody have any experiences with any experiments in spark plug gapping for the kinetic and any best practices to share?

This is getting Interesting!! Since I owned and cherished my Kine for at least a lakh kilometers, I would like to add the following:-

During my college days I used to travel daily from Belur - Chikmagalur for 4 years in my good old Kine (Exactly 52 Kms from Home-College-Home). And since my town never had a good mechanic for a Kine and a there was only one in Chikmagalur then, I always used to service the Kine myself in our factory premises which has all the required tools.

Ideally I would do the following during my self servicing:-

1. Remove front wheel, dismantle the pivot assembly and grease the shock and pivot arm bushes.
2. Remove the brake shoes and brush the shoes and drums with sand paper and then lubricate the brake arm and also grease the cables thoroughly.
3. Open the transmission system and lubricate the rollers and clean the clutch and bell covering assembly with sand paper and check for tension in the springs of the clutch. Also check for tension in Belt.
4.Drain out the fuel from from the carburettor (Spell check?) by loosening the drain screw, Open the carb and clean the jets.
5.Remove the spark plug and clean the carbon deposits and check for gaps (Ideally I used MICO then with a setting of 1mm and usually preferred this setting).
6.While the engine is off, hold the throttle at full position and check for the oil intake nozzle/valve setting to the position arrow marked. I remember mechanics used to set this more than the marking which would result in an unusually higher smoke emissions and unwanted deposits and of course higher oil consumption.
7.If there were issues of free revving after setting the carburettor and plug gap while on full throttle, I used to insert a cable at the end of the exhaust pipe while the engine is running and by constant wiping, remove the carbon deposits till I achieved free revving. (As it was a 2 stroke, this practice was usual to me).

The usual loss of acceleration and power even at higher revs always meant a worn out clucth and by the time I sold, I had replaced this thrice.

When I finished my college and got the Kine to Bangy, it had run 84K on the ODO (with a considerable run when the speedo was non functional for a while). I went in for a complete bore/piston/rings kit (As it just costed 1000/- then).

[jinojohnt]

We sold Dad's 1992 kinetic honda in 2005 for 5000 Rs, mainly because nobody was using it.

These are the things I remember about this bike:
1. We replaced the clutch 5 times, I think mainly due to Dad's driving style (always below 20 km/hr).
2. Mileage varied greatly depending on driving style. Dad used to get 30 km/liter in city, but I used to manage 40+
3. If you keep the handle locked and somebody lifts the handle to shift your bike, some 'connector' between the wheels and the handle bar used to get messed up, and needed expensive repair (don't remember exact details).
4. Pick up was great, but braking was a nightmare above 50 km/hr - I wonder whether it's the same with other bikes too.

[(Alok)]

Friends how to know the clutch condition of Kinetic Honda?
Have any one faced the front tyre alignment (actually it is a problem in handle with tends one side wear of front tyre) issue?

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by (Alok)

Friends how to know the clutch condition of Kinetic Honda?
Have any one faced the front tyre alignment (actually it is a problem in handle with tends one side wear of front tyre) issue?

Clutch:
Start the kine and while standstill (resting on its wheels), keep both your legs on the ground firmly such that you prevent the kine from moving further while you rev the throttle (without applying the brakes of course!!) - For the resistance you offer, if the clucth is healthy the kine should take off easily and if the engine keeps revving without moving against your resistance, its time to change the clucth. A slower initial pick up in stop and go traffic where the engine is revving but the vehicle hardly moving is also a sign of a bad clutch.

Wheel Alignment:

Front: There is a known issue where the wheel will be brushing against the fork for which mechanics compensated putting in a washer between the wheel and the fork which resulted in uneven tire wear. The usual culprit is the suspension and the pivot arm bushes. Replace them after checking by resting the kine on a center stand and shaking the wheel holding it up and down.

Rear:Usually, this happens due to a worn out engine bedding bush that holds the whole engine assembly (the other support is the single shock on the LHs). Due to a worn out bush, the assembly will not be in a straight line and even this can be checked by resting the kine on the center stand and shaking the whole rear wheel assembly and if you experience a considerable left-right shake, it is most probably the Engine bedding bush. A weaker rear shock absorber can also cause the assembly to bend a little on the left hand side, thus causing mis-alignment.
The last option I can think of is the Chasis itself which can be bent too (Especially the seat holding part is not centrally aligned with the rest of the chasis)

[(Alok)]

Thank you Parag for a well explained reply.
What is approx expenditure for clutch (Plates & labour)?

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by (Alok)

Thank you Parag for a well explained reply.
What is approx expenditure for clutch (Plates & labour)?

Clutch of ASK make (Usually recommended) should cst anything from 275-350 INR depending on where you buy. Find a good mechanic who is well versed with Activa and he should fix the new clutch for 100 bucks. Remember to check that when you buy the clucth, it includes 3 springs and the cushioning (Like a rubber button on which clutch wings are seated) , if not you will have to buy them separately which should cost about 25-30/-

[SAS]

@paragsachania, thanks for the amazing tips. This thread is now probably one of the best resources for those having a KH and needing some good maintenance tips

Here's a tip from my side: I found the headlight to be inadequate. So I changed it to an Osram morotcycle 35w/35w halogen lamp. Significant improvement in the headlight brightness as well as the beam (significantly longer throw). It takes just a few minutes to change the bulb)

Also my headlight's plastic became dull over the years. I installed a new unit from Fiem. Now it's nice and bright and night riding is significantly safer.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by SAS

@paragsachania, thanks for the amazing tips. This thread is now probably one of the best resources for those having a KH and needing some good maintenance tips

Here's a tip from my side: I found the headlight to be inadequate. So I changed it to an Osram morotcycle 35w/35w halogen lamp. Significant improvement in the headlight brightness as well as the beam (significantly longer throw). It takes just a few minutes to change the bulb)

Also my headlight's plastic became dull over the years. I installed a new unit from Fiem. Now it's nice and bright and night riding is significantly safer.

Yes, you are quite right about the headlight. The OE bulb is quite ineffective and I too had changed over to MICO Halogen then. I had replaced the Fiem unit twice too.
As a matter of fact, I had experimented this way:

1. Installed a 2 way switch where power at one end was sourced from Dynamo and the other from the +ve of the battery. (The +ve 12V was not directly pulled from the battery but was taken from the Ignition Key connector which meant that power was sourced to the bulb only when the Ignition is on)
2. I then sourced a common wire from this custom switch to the main turn on/off swicth for the head lamp.

During my evening journeys, whenever there was incessant rain the potholes became difficult to identify, I swicthed over to Battery power for the headlamp and still use the High and the Low beams in this power mode too. I primarly did this since the intensity of the beam was bad at low revs and since it was a gearless scooter, revving like how one does in neutral/engaged clutch on geared bikes to gain better beam wasn't possible and also meant premature wearing of clutch.
Whenever I was riding normally, I changed over to dynamo/alternator power for the headlight.

Since my journey was Inter town with 26 Kms one way, It was usually at good speeds 60-70kmph and hence the fear of battery getting drained due to load was ruled out. The higher, constant and adequate RPM meant good charging for the battery.The same setting is definitely not advised for city commute.