Two speed kickstarter slipping very badly

[Erik]

Hi!

This weekend my two speeder was finally ready. On Sunday I took her out for a first spin, quite an experience I must say… On a short stop after 3 km I lost the pin that holds the kickstarter arm to the kickstarter pedal (forgot the cotter pin……). Gladly I could find it back on the tarmac behind me.
Then it started raining….at least I thought. In fact it was cooling water squirting through a vent hole in the radiator filling cap. Of course this hole should not be there in the first place but it left me and the bike covered in water…
At that moment I was quite fed up with it and I went home (it was getting dark too). In general the bike went well and stopped badly, both as to be expected. And it left quite an oil trail.. I seriously wonder if any of the oil that is supposed to go to the two speed gear actually gets there…

But enough “moaning” (I absolutely adore the bike!). The kickstarter on the two speeder slips in a very bad way. Out of every 20 attempts one goes. I have set the ratchet according to the book so that it is just clear of the teeth on the gearbox. It also is wel lubricated. On starting it just rattles against those teeth but almost never catches. The spring is OK and seems to have enough tension.

Any ideas/hints anyone?

Cheers,
Erik

[Graham]

I bought my 2 speed Scott about 7 months ago. At first it had lots of niggling little problems, more than you have, but by tackling them one at a time it now runs nicely and the water does not boil, the 2 speed gear does not leave an oil slick and the kickstarter ratchet never slips.

Please take the time to find out just how the kick starter works, and exactly what is going on, rather than trying to fix it…. The ratchet should immediately drop into full engagement, not occasionally catch. Putting it up on the rear stand, resting the spark plugs on the engine to earth them and then operating the starter by hand should show exactly what is happening. The solution will then be apparent.

I have found that the 2 speed gear needs very little oil, gradully reduce the supply each time you go out. I drive at least 5 miles before operating the pump and switch the supply off before the end of the journey.

The water spray is probably due to a leak in the system, likely at a hose joint, first losing water followed by the boiling. Excess water should exit by the overflow, not from the radiator cap so the overflow pipe may be blocked…….

Graham

[Erik]

Thanks Graham for your reply (and the Binks manual!)

@Graham wrote:

Please take the time to find out just how the kick starter works, and exactly what is going on, rather than trying to fix it….

Will try that. I am sure the solution is obvious.. But nevertheless, the teeth on the ratchet look pretty worn out…

I have found that the 2 speed gear needs very little oil, gradully reduce the supply each time you go out. I drive at least 5 miles before operating the pump and switch the supply off before the end of the journey.

Will try that too. So far I have used the pump once but this was without the engine running. I guess your method might work better

The water spray is probably due to a leak in the system, likely at a hose joint, first losing water followed by the boiling. Excess water should exit by the overflow, not from the radiator cap so the overflow pipe may be blocked…….

No, it is definitly the little hole in the cap. I knew I slightly overfilled the radiator but did not worry as normally this excess goes through the overflow pipe (that is not blocked, checked that). But this time the water simply chose the closest exit…

I am sure I will work it all out!

Cheers,
Erik

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