Aprilia RS50 Replica 2 Stroke Specs and Info

Aprilia Used Spares

2002 Aprilia RS50 Replica Parts….

Aprilia RS50 Replica

A little bit about the Aprilia RS 50 Replica…..

Engine, gearbox and drive stuff
Displacement: 49.7 cc
Engine type: Single cylinder, two-stroke, liquid cooled
Bore and stroke: 40.3mm x 39mm
Compression ratio: 11.5:1
Lubrication: Fully synthetic 2 stroke oil
Clutch: Multi plate wet clutch
Gearbox: Six speed
Gearbox oil: Synthetic 75w90 gear oil
Final drive: Chain drive

Aprilia RS 50 engine

Carb and fuel stuff
Fuel system: Carburettor (Dell Orto carb)
Tank capacity: 13 litres (with a 2.6 litre reserve)
Fuel type: Unleaded petrol
Recommended 2 stroke: Fully synthetic 2T oilNote: Use cheaper/lesser spec 2T oils at your own peril with these bikes!

2002 Aprilia RS50 rear view

Electric stuff
Ignition type: Electric CDI
Starter: Electric start
Electrical system voltage: 12 volts
Generator: 12V – 105W
Battery: Aprilia RS50 battery – YB4L-B / CB4L-B
1999-2000 (Minarelli engine) Spark plug: NGK B8ES
2001-2005 Spark plug: Aprilia RS50 spark plug – NGK BR9ES

Shocks, brakes and wheels
Front tyre size: 90/80-17
Rear tyre size: 110/80-17
Front tyre pressure: 26psi
Rear tyre pressure: 29psi
Front brake: 280mm Hydraulic disc brake (EBC part no: MD672LS)
Front brake pad: EBC FA194
Rear brake: 220mm Hydraulic disc brake (EBC part no: MD664)
Rear brake pad: EBC FA060
Front wheel type: 5 Spoke alloy wheel
Rear wheel type: 5 Spoke alloy wheel
Front Suspension: 35mm diameter stanchion telescopic forks
Rear Suspension: Single monoshock

Frame stuff
Frame type: Die-cast aluminium (2 piece frame bolted together)
Frame number location: Right side of the headstock (right as your sitting on the bike) also has a frame number plate on the left side of the frame

Weights ‘n stuff
Length: 1,920 mm
Width (at the handlebars): 675 mm
Height (at the front fairing): 1,155 mm
Wheelbase: 1,280 mm
Seat height: 810 mm
Dry weight: 89 kg

2002 Aprilia RS50 Replica

Other stuff…..
The Aprilia RS50 Replica was a 50cc, 2 stroke learner sports bike manufactured and sold in the UK between 1999 and 2004.
The RS50′s styling was based on the popular Aprilia RS250 and featured a diecast aluminium frame, 280mm stainless steel front brake disc and 17 inch front and rear wheels.
Aprilia improved the handling from previous models with a larger front wheel (17 inch instead of 16 inch) and by lightening the front end of the RS 50 Replica.
Although the RS50 was usually restricted in the UK to 30mph, unrestricted versions of this bike (mainly imports from countries that didn’t have restrictions) were capable of around 60mph.

Buying advice…..
Although the RS50 is a good and popular learner legal sports bike, this does unfortunately, have a downside :-(
These bikes are very often owned by younger riders who don’t have the money, knowledge or experience to properly maintain them so there are numerous RS50′s out there with botched repairs and piss poor ‘performance modifications’ that any buyer should be wary of.
A general sign is how the bike looks, if it’s scruffy and dirty with panels missing, nearly bald tyres and a drive chain dragging on the floor it will probably need alot of work doing to it….
The other downside to the RS50 is that they don’t wear well, especially in the UK weather.
When the RS was designed and manufactured, Aprilia tried to keep the weight as low as possible (in keeping with the RS’s racing origins) which meant they used lighter and smaller bits in certain areas of the bike. It’s not uncommon for the wheel bearings on higher mileage (30k plus) bikes to fall out due to the wheels being worn out so higher mileage Aprilia RS50′s are best avoided.
As with all Italian performance bikes, make sure the owner has used good quality 2T and gear oils as they don’t like being run on poor quality (i.e. not fully synthetic) oils.
Another thing to consider when your buying these bikes is that this ISN’T a scooter and doesn’t have a scooters running costs! Bear in mind that the Aprilia RS 50 uses motorcycle tyres (instead of cheap scooter tyres), fully synthetic oils and generally more expensive parts! So the RS50 isn’t always ideal for someone on a budget…..

2002 Aprilia RS50 Replica Spares….

2002 Aprilia RS50 Replica

Sources:
Speed-sports.com
Motorcycle Breakers – White Dog

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Choosing the right oil: Using car oils in a motorbike engine. Part 2…

It’s WAR in the car oil industry…..

…..And how it can ruin your bike engine!

Car vs bike oil

The recession is hitting some industries hard now and some companies will do ANYTHING to sell their products…..

But how does this affect using car oil in a motorcycle engine?

Well, it’s a price thing. Car oil blenders have been aggressively competing for large car oil contracts (to supply major car manufacturers with oil for their new cars and dealers workshops) for years.

The ‘competing’ is largely done by price, so if you need a fully synthetic 5w40 API SL rated oil for your new, state of the art diesel car, oil blenders will contact you and say they can make the oil for £XX per litre. Then you decide which oil you want to use (in reality it is alot more complicated then that!).
As was pointed out in Using car oils in a motorbike engine. Part 1, what you see on the oil bottle label ISN’T always whats in the bottle!
Things have got so desperate in the car oil industry the the oils often can’t be blended for the price they are being sold to car manufacturers for (basically, the base oil and additive packs cost more then the oil is being sold for!).

While this may seem good as it means cheaper oil for your car (or your motorbike??!!), the reality is that corners are being cut during the blending process to save money and try and squeeze out some kind of minimal profit from the oil which means that while the oil might say (for example) fully synthetic 5w40 oil on the bottle, what is actually in the bottle is a barely semi synthetic 15w50 that will turn to black sludge within 1000 miles!

So why, if the oil in the bottle is different from what it says on the label isn’t something being done?

Honestly? Because nobody cares!
The ‘nobody cares’ theory was tested by an oil blender recently who lost out on a contract to supply car oil due to price (they were more expensive).
After looking at the price the other company offered they came to the conclusion that the oil can’t be blended at that price, so they sent a sample of the other blenders oil off for testing.
The results came back and the oil didn’t even closely match the original manufacturers spec (hence how they were able to supply the oil for a much cheaper price!).

The results were shown to the manufacturer, who didn’t care, other Government bodies (Trading Standards etc) weren’t interested either!

How do I know your not making this up to try and get me to buy motorcycle oil instead of car oil?

Modern car engines are incredibly fussy when it comes to oil (especially diesel engines!).
Next time your on the motorway have a look at the number of later reg (2008 onwards) smokey diesel cars on the road.
You will probably be surprised by the number you see and most of these smokey engines will be due to poor quality car engine oils used…….

At the end of the day, buying a good, quality Motorcycle Oil is cheaper then having the engine rebuilt!

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Using Injector 2T Oil as Premix 2 Stroke Oil

Can you use a motorcycle injector 2 stroke oil as a premix 2T oil (and vice versa)?

2T injector or premix

Differences between 2 stroke premix and injector systems…..

What is a 2T premix system (also known as a Tank Mix system)?
A 2 stroke premix system is where you have to mix the 2 stroke oil and the petrol before you use it (normally in a container or in the fuel tank).

What is a 2T injector system?
A 2 stroke injector system is where you have a separate 2 stroke oil bottle on the bike that you fill with the oil (the system then ‘injects’ the oil into the petrol as it goes to the engine).

Can I use a motorcycle 2 stroke injection oil in a tank mix / premix system?

YES, you can use a 2T injector oil as a premix.
BUT, a specifically designed Pre Mix 2T oil will protect and lubricate your engine better.

Can I use a 2T premix oil in a 2 stroke injector system?

NO, it’s not advisable to use a 2 stroke premix oil in a bike or scooter with a 2T injection system as a premix oil won’t lubricate the engine properly.

Explanation…..
2 Stroke injector oils are made thinner then 2T premix oils with a bit of kerosene (which also lowers the flash point of the oil).
This means injector oils are more likely to be picked up by the fuel/air mixture as it flows through the port and into the engine and will mix with the fuel and ignite in the engine easier.

A 2 stroke premix oil should have no kerosene in it (so it’s thicker than an injector 2T oil) and sometimes uses a bigger molecule base oil which makes it harder to mix with the fuel. This isn’t a problem in a premix system as the petrol and 2 stroke oil are mixed beforehand, but in an injector system a premix oil wouldn’t mix with the fuel/air vapor properly and wouldn’t protect the engine.

All thrash and BLUE smoke baby!!!

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Yamaha SR250 SE 239cc 4 Stroke Specs and Info

Yamaha Parts and Spares

The Yamaha SR250 SE was a commuter style 4 stroke motorcycle manufactured between 1981 and 1985 (ish!). With styling taken from the Yam SR500 and SR400, the SR 250 was aimed at the popular quarter litre motorbike market (in the UK we used to be able to ride a motorcycle up to 250cc on a car license without the need to take any further motorbike tests).
The SR250SE proved to be (and still is) a popular and reliable commuter bike.

Yamaha SR250-SE

A little bit about the Yamaha SR 250 SE…..

Engine, gearbox and drive stuff

Displacement: 239cc ccm
Engine type: Air cooled, four stroke, single cylinder, SOHC (single overhead cam)
Bore x Stroke: 73.5mm x 56.5mm
Recommended engine oil (4T): Semi Synthetic motorcycle oil
Engine oil capacity: 1.3 litres (1.6 litres if the oil filter is changed as well)
Oil filter: OIF018 / HF145 / X302
Compression Ratio: 8.9:1
Power: 20 bhp at 7700 rpm
Torque: 13.7 ft-lb at 7000 rpm
Top speed: 89 mph….Ish!
Standing ¼ Mile time: 16.3 sec
Cooling system: Air cooled
Gearbox: 5-speed
Final drive: Chain

Yamaha SR 250 engine

Carb and fuel stuff

Carb type: 34mm Mikuni carburetor
Fuel tank capacity: 10.8 Litres
Averge MPG: 70 mpg (miles per gallon

Electric stuff

Ignition type: Electronic CDI
Starter type: Electric starter motor
Battery: YB12A-A / CB12A-A
Spark plug: NGK BP7ES

Shocks, brakes and wheels

Front tyre size: 3.00-18 (300-18)
Rear tyre size: 120/90-16
Front tyre pressure: 28psi
Rear tyre pressure: 32psi
Front brake: Drum (expanding) brake
Rear brake: Drum (expanding) brake
Front wheel type: Spoked wheel
Rear wheel type: Spoked wheel
Front Suspension: 32mm Telescopic forks
Rear Suspension: Twin shock (with preload adjustment)

Weights ‘n stuff

Wet weight (inc oil, petrol, etc): 122 kg

Yam SR250SE

Other stuff…..
Although the SR250 SE was never going to set the motorcycle world alight and wasn’t really all that much to look at, the bike proved very popular with commuters, people looking for their ‘first big bike’, younger riders, city couriers and people looking for a winter hack. Good Yamaha build quality and a fairly bulletproof engine means there are still a fair few around (meaning they are also cheap to pick up now, usually under £500 for a good, road ready example!)

Buying advice…..
As with all Yamaha’s of this age, the electrics can be a bit corroded and problematic (especially in the rain!).
Also, the metal and chrome parts will have seen better days, a bit of rust around the tank, forks and chrome parts is common and nothing to worry about but watch out for bad rot, especially on the exhausts and forks as finding good and none bank account emptying exhausts and forks can be tricky!

Sources:
Bikez.com
Motorcycle Specs
Motorcycle Breakers – White Dog

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Gearlink Kawasaki Miss the British Supersport Championship Title by One Point

Gearlink Kawasaki Miss the Fuchs-Silkolene Oils British Supersport Championship Title by One Point

Rock Oil sponsored Gearlink KawasakiGearlink Kawasaki

Despite taking a win, second and fourth place in the final three races of the Fuchs Silkolene British Supersport championship at Brands Hatch, it was not enough to secure the title for Rock Oil Motorbike Oil Sponsored Gearlink Kawasaki rider Ben Wilson who lost out by just one championship point to rival Alastair Seeley.
But although Seeley may have won the trophy Wilson has been heralded by the fans as the people’s champion and provided them all with a fantastic display of racing throughout the season.

Going into the final round Wilson (29) trailed Seeley by 14 points and knew he had to win all three races in order to lift the trophy and although a tough challenge Wilson was determined to give it a go and see what unveiled.

Wilson was handed a lifeline in the first race as Seeley crashed leaving Ben to claim all 25 points and go into the final two races with an 11 point advantage over his rival. But with a damp track greeting him on Sunday, Ben made a cautious start in the slippery conditions and was swallowed up in the pack as they rounded the first corner. He recovered well and soon found his way through to fourth place. But Seeley was ahead of him and at the end of the race the advantage was down to just four points meaning Ben would have to win the final event to be sure of the title.

But it wasn’t to be as, although the Lincolnshire ace held the lead for the first four laps he was overhauled by Seeley who went on to take both the win and the title by a margin of just one championship point.

Meanwhile David Jones was unable to add to his points tally at Brands Hatch. He was riding well in the first race and up into the top 10 until he lost the front at Stirling Bend caused him to crash, his race over.

In race two David was circulating in a group of riders all challenging for 15th position. Positions changed at almost every corner and he finally crossed the finish line in 19th position.

The final race resulted in another 19th place. This time David had a lonely ride remaining in 19th to the checkered flag.

2011 Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship race

Quotes from British Supersport Championship racers and team owners……..

Ben Wilson –
“To say I am disappointed is an understatement; I am devastated as I had my heart set on winning the title this year. I managed to get the lead in the last race but made a couple of mistakes and that allowed Seeley to get ahead. Once he got the gap on me it was all over. To be fair the gap didn’t increase but fair play to him, he rode a good race and in the end took the title from under my nose. I want to say a big thank you to everyone at Gearlink Kawasaki, all my sponsors, supporters and also my family who have been behind me all season. I am just sorry we couldn’t have brought the title back for them.”

David Jones –
“I had a good battle in the first race but unfortunately it got the better of me and I went down. But overall we have made huge progress with the bike. Nineteenth was not a good result for me in the last two races, I was hoping to be in the top 10 but it didn’t happen. I was faster than everyone ahead of me in race two but there were damp patches and when you go to overtake you go onto the wet stuff resulting in running wide and having big slides. That ruined that race for me and I went into the final event hoping to do much better. But I think I suffered a bit from lack of confidence from going down on Saturday and then the damp conditions earlier and once we got underway I had a few issues with the bike and I just wanted to bring the bike home safely. I would like to thank Norma and Michael and the Gearlink Kawasaki team for giving me the opportunity of riding for them over the past few races, I have enjoyed the experience immensely.”

Michael de Bidaph – team owner and manager
“We came to Brands Hatch with a big task on our hands to win this championship and we thought we may be able to do it. But Alastair Seeley has upped his game and has been phenomenally quick around here all weekend. But in the first race Ben pushed him into making a mistake and we thought it was all coming back our way. The rain this morning did us no favours whatsoever as Ben had to be careful because the track was so slippery and then in the final race we knew it was always going to be hard to beat Alastair and all I can say is that I am so disappointed, for Ben, myself and the team. I wanted to win for all our sponsors who have been so good to us. It is hard to take this at the moment but we will get over this and look to see what we are to do next year.

David has been chipping away again this weekend but his results haven’t been great perhaps because of the set up which we will look at after the weekend.

I would like to say a massive thank you to all our sponsors; I can’t name them all but they all know who they are. We couldn’t have done it without them and I appreciate what they have done for us.”

Disappointment for Gearlink Kawasaki

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2011 Supermoto of Nations – Team GB news from Spain

2011 Supermoto of Nations – Team GB (almost) Reign in Spain

Rock Oil sponsored Supermoto of Nations

Under cloudless skies the 6th Supermoto of Nations took place at the awesome Motorland race complex in Aragon Spain. Against all the odds Team GB achieved their best ever result finishing 2nd behind the favorites France. The Junior under 21 team also put in a strong performance winning the B final to qualify for the main race.

The Rock Oil Motorbike Oil supported British team (Team GB) was as strong as possible but with only British rider currently contesting the GP’s, Wigan’s Matt Winstanley (SHR Honda), Team Manager David Dearden knew that it was going to be a tough task for his other two riders, Cumbrian Chris Hodgson (Skyzone KTM) and Barnsley veteran James Addy (MWR KTM). Hodgson & Addy are placed one and two in both domestic championships but competing on the world scene is a different ball game, the tracks are tougher with more off-road bias, the races twice as long and the competition much much harder. Probably the biggest hurdle is the different tyres used Goldentyre are the control tyre for World events, whilst Michelin are used exclusively in the UK.

The under 21’s also looked strong on paper, Swanley’s Ben Robb (Drilltec KTM) and Lee Williams from Bootle (DCR KTM) are both 3rd in their respective British Championships and making his Nations debut was 16 year old Malachi Mitchell-Thomas (SHR Honda), the youngest British rider to compete at this event. Their first objective was to qualify for the main event, a goal that had eluded the Juniors in 2010.

Timed practice on Saturday determined the grid positions for the qualifying races later that afternoon and gave the riders a chance to get to grips with the technical track. Featuring a long off road section and tarmac whoops and table top, the circuit was unlike anything we have in the UK. Things went well for most of the British riders in their respective sessions; Matt was 4th, Chris 10th and James 16th although the latter was struggling to get his new KTM handling. The Juniors did equally well with Ben 10th, Lee 18th and Mal an impressive 13th.

The qualification races see all 25 teams send their number 1 rider out in race 1, number 2 in race 2 and number 3 in race 3. The two best scores count towards the overall qualification position. Race 1 had Matt Winstanley running in 5th until a slow fall in the dirt relegated him to 7th before he fought back to 6th. Ben Robb did a great job for the Juniors holding 10th for most of the race he got passed on the last lap to finish a great 11th. Race 2 and it was Chris Hodgson and Lee Williams chance to shine. Chris was also brought off in the first lap carnage but he got his head down and battled through the field to finish a fine 11th. Passing was proving very difficult on this technical track. Lee Williams made a great start hitting 5th on lap 1 eventually hanging on to finish a creditable 14th. Race 3 brought James Addy to the track, his team had completely rebuilt his suspension so he was entering the unknown, a great start saw him hit 10th place but yet another slow speed fall relegated him to 15th. He then put in a fantastic effort to pass 8 riders to end up in a brilliant 7th place. Malachi also had the British curse; he got rammed in the dirt on lap 1 and ended up dead last, ¾ of a lap down on the field. The 16 year old from Bolton then produced the ride of the day to reach 13th place and a few raised eyebrows amongst the British contingent.

Confidence was high in the Team GB camp as it seemed that both teams would qualify well but the strength in depth of the large field made working out actual positions quite hard. When the final positions came though it was a disappointment to find the seniors in 8th and the Juniors failing to qualify automatically in 16th place. All was not lost though as the winner of Sundays B final took the last place on the grid. The Juniors had it all to do.

If anything the weather on Sunday was even better, cloudless skies with a light breeze, the B final saw the 8 non-qualified teams line all 3 riders on the grid, the best two scores to count. Team Managers can place the riders on any of the 3 allocated grids; David Dearden put Robb on 2, Mitchell-Thomas on 10 and Lee Williams on 18. Robb got a great start before being overhauled by the Finnish Junior rider. With 5 laps to go Britain was level pegging with Finland but with the Finnish rider leading the race they would get the overall on the tie-breaker, Ben moved over to give the faster Malachi space to pass and he duly set about passing the Brazilian GP rider Fonseca to hit second spot. Ben made it absolutely certain on the last lap with a fantastic pass to take third and Lee Williams had a great ride from the back to get 8th. The Juniors had won one of the most exciting Supermoto races anyone could recall & spirits were sky high.

The first race consisted of Riders 1 & 2 from each country so Winstanley, Hodgson, Robb and Williams lined up. Both teams had inside rows on the grid which was the worst position to get through turn 1 and into the dirt safely. Winstanley had a solid race to fourth spot and Hodgson battled well from 24th on the grid to finish a strong 12th. The Juniors fared much worse though, mid-race saw Robb and Williams running well inside the top 20 before Robb lost the front end and then Williams was taken out by another competitor. Robb remounted to 26th but Lee had to retire with a damaged radiator.
Overall Great Britain was 3rd with the Junior team 15th.

2011 Supermoto of Nations racing

Race two had Riders 2 and 3 take to the track, Hodgson was placed on grid 8 and Addy 24, Williams on 16 and Mitchell-Thomas on 32. As the riders came under the starters orders further drama occurred, Lee Williams was taken from the grid with a loose silencer, damaged in his first race crash it had broken during the warm up lap. Instead of going to the pit lane for repairs Lee went back to the team truck to repair the bike thereby forfeiting his race. From the start Hodgson was on the pace briefly holding third before settling in to run with the world’s best in a great 5th place. Addy also had a fantastic start; the gritty Yorkshireman was involved in a 6 bike scrap for the entire 19 laps, constantly passing and being passed he finished 13th, totally exhausted but thoroughly exhilarated. Young Mitchell-Thomas continued to impress starting on the last grid position he fought tooth and nail to a brilliant 16th with a faster lap time than either of his senior colleagues. The overall standings saw Team GB move up to second place behind France and in front of Finland.

The final Race had Riders 1 and 3 from each team. Winstanley was on grid 8, Addy 24, Mitchell-Thomas 16 and Robb 32. More drama as Addy was refused entry to the grid. His mechanics had put the tyre homologation sticker on the wrong side of the tyre, with all his allocation of 8 stickers used he couldn’t put another on. The rigid officials wouldn’t bend and so the wheel was removed and the tyre turned on the rim whilst the grid was being formed. With seconds to spare he was ready, surely not in the best frame of mind to race! On the warm up lap Robb also appeared to have a problem, he came close to the pit wall where one of the mechanics lent over and pointed to the fuel tap which was turned half off. Ben quickly turned it on and carried on. The race itself was intense, with the British supporters willing the team on. The riders were anxious to press hard but knew one fall could destroy all hopes of a podium finish.

Winstanley was coolness personified holding a strong third place he sensibly yielded to the hard charging Hermunen and came home in an untroubled 4th. All eyes were now on Addy; the Yorkshireman was again battling hard in a big group of riders but held it together to cross the line in 12th. Great Britain had done it, a historic second place behind the impressive French team of Chereyre, Bidart and Boris Chambon and in front of the flying Finn’s. The Juniors had taken 14th place overall at least for a few minutes anyway, as the official results came out they showed Ben Robb had been excluded for outside assistance but in the euphoria of the occasion no one noticed until after the 30 minute protest period had elapsed.

In the end it was one of the best days in British Supermoto racing for many years, all the riders, mechanics and organisers put on a professional effort, the riders gave it their all and lady luck shone as well. Supermoto at its best is an exciting intoxicating sport, spectacular and colourful; The 2011 Supermoto of Nations was certainly all of that and more.

Fittingly the last words come from James Addy during the press conference “chuffing ‘eck that was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life and tomorrow morning I’ll be mending a roof in Barnsley. I can’t wait for next year!” he said to a bemused gathering of press and TV

Watch out for Team GB in Portimao, Portugal in 2012!

2011 Supermoto of Nations podium!

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