TDR Project – Strip Down Day 4

Again, I had not been able to make a return visit to the project as soon as I would have liked but I braved the cold and cracked on the day after Boxing Day.  Here’s where I started the day:

Start Of The Day

The plan for the day was to remove the headstock and bottom yoke, remove the engine, drill out the rear brake master cylinder (after rounding a bolt) and removing the frame rubbers.

Removing the headstock and bottom yoke is a very simple job and just requires the removal of the top nut.

Headstock And Bottom Yoke

Upon removal and inspection of the bearings and races, they all looked to be in very good condition with no noticeable wear.  I’m not sure how much of the current steering I will be re-using as I have some parts from a TZR125 Belgarda for the front end.  If I don’t re-use any of the TDR parts then they will find a good home via eBay, along with quite a few other parts.

Headstock And Bottom Yoke Removed

Clean And Unworn Headstock Bearing Race

The longest job of the day was the removal of the carbs.  This took much longer than I had expected due to the choke, throttle and various other tubes and cables that are attached to them.  Some of the removal process required a bit of improvisation as seen below when removing the power valve pulley.

Improvised Power Valve Removal

With the carbs and the two-stroke oil pump removed, the engine was clear to come out of the frame.

Carbs Removed

The engine came out much easier than I had expected and it really feels that I am making progress now it is separated from the frame.

Engine Removed From Frame

The final task was to go back to the frame and remove the rear brake caliper and assorted frame rubbers.

Earlier in the strip-down, one of the rear master cylinder’s bolts had rounded and my metal drill bits were worse than useless.  I had sourced a much more suitable set of drill bits and a tap and die set in the meantime and having the right tools really made a difference.

Rear Master Cylinder Rounded Bolt

Rear Master Cylinder Removed

The thread in the frame will need re-tapping but the master cylinder came out very cleanly in the end.  I will run a tap through all of the threaded frame parts before I send it away for powder coating.

Frame Rubber Removed

There are around half a dozen frame rubbers that needed removal and I have been very careful to record the location of each one as it was removed.  If the rubbers are available as genuine Yamaha parts then I shall order new ones but if needed all the old ones are in a reasonable condition and can be re-used.

Here’s how Mildred looked at the end of Day 4 of this project:

Stripped Frame

Engine Removed

The next job will be to check that everything that can be is removed from the frame and then prepare it for powder coating.