TheBlackadder wrote:hmm, i am not sure. the engine has not been started for years - 10+? so maybe the plates got stuck - will hopefully get it to run soon

What you describe above is exactly what happened to mine after being rebuilt with no use for 2 yrs
I warmed the engine up and then cable tied the clutch lever in

Left it in 2nd gear and on a paddock stand and over the next two weeks regularly rotated the back wheel by hand until one day it broke free - lazy fix I know but time was a easier and cheaper currency than pulling the engine apart
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Nick

Rebuild project NSR250 MC18 R4J