Hello Everyone,

Sometime ago (Nov 2019) I bought an NSR250 at a live on-line auction. I really didn't mean to. I had previously bid on two RZ500's and a KR-1S and missed out and this was the second last bike of the collection and I clearly got too excited ended up bidding too high and won. What didn't help was the auctioneer shouting "Come on- this is a $10,000 motorcycle!" Whoever he was, he had no clue and clearly misrepresented the bike he was selling and I'll always begrudge him for that- but my fault for falling for it. And then I got nailed on three different taxes, auction commission and the cost of actually getting it to my house. I should've tried to bail out of it but I've always tried to do the right thing and stick to my word. Very expensive being honest...or is it stupid? In other words...read the small print before you launch into anything like an online live auction.

But what about the bike?
Despite the fact that the rear of the bodywork is ziptied together to hold it on....the bike looks fantastic with what seems like brand new replica Rothmans Honda clothing, but I took that off and, yes, it's a dog in sheep's clothing, and worse, according to the engine number it's an MC16 in an MC18 frame.



Everything that could rust, did rust...


Hoping these power valves are still good


Top end gasket set, full set of oil seals at top of shopping list...at the least



First flatslide carbs I've ever witnessed.


Having restored a couple of LC's and some 750 H2's I'm up for a bit of a two stroke challenge rebuild, but this might be more than I bargained for, the motor is certainly a lot more complicated than anything I have every worked on, not to mention I'm in the US where they were never imported so access to spares is already a different process.

But in my mind, I've been preparing myself to shop as far away as Thailand and go full Tyga, upgrading it to an NSR300 with their spectacular looking bodywork, pipes, rearsets, everything....but knowing it's an MC16 with unknown mileage...and may not handle the extra power....I'm not so sure what to do with it now.

On the positive side, a while back I started it and ran it up the street and back...so at least it's not seized.









Last edited by Hudtm60 on Sun Mar 07, 2021 6:48 pm; edited 1 time in total

Hi Hudtm60, and welcome to NSR-WORLD!

Don't be so down on yourself... for a start, it's not as bad as you think. What you have there is a 1988 NSR250R MC18 R2J! (Not that an MC16 is bad!)

So, as well as having the later 6-spoke wheels, you also have the bigger 41mm forks, updated 4-pot calipers and 276mm semi floating discs, 32mm carbs, and an easily delimited PGM-I ignition. You also have a rather rare set of Ethos Design race expansion chambers too, and once it's all cleaned up and sorted, you're looking at a quick little bike there. You never know, you might even pull the float bowls off and find an HRC jet kit in there!

It clearly needs a good going over, but it looks like it's all (mostly) there.

A couple of other notes from your photos:

1. If you're wondering if the dipstick is broken.... no, it's supposed to be like that!
   
   
   
   
2. The RC Valves (powervalves) rarely "wear out", but when servicing them BEWARE, the nut is LEFT HAND THREAD.
   

You can confirm your frame and engine numbers in the Technical Resources section of the main site.

Looking forwards to seeing your progress.
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Last edited by Andy on Thu Jan 02, 2025 1:02 pm; edited 1 time in total

Let me know if you find an HRC jet kit in the carbs when you get to that point. I've got some needles and a main jet holder that you might want. I bought a bag full of stuff for my MC28 and the seller included them to my surprise. They've been in my jet kit box for years waiting for a home. I'm in Texas so you want get charged an import tax or an arm/leg for shipping!

Andy,

this is great information. Thank you! Especially happy that you ID'd the pipes. I've been wondering what they were. I'm also very interested to see what carbs are on it and if they are the ones that came with the MC16 or not- AND re: de-restriction what loom is on it-will be curious to see does it have a black/blue wire or an orange/blue wire

Eric- thanks for the note- I will let you know what I find in the carbs. Hope the cold isn't killing you.

Starting the hunt for parts.

I see PJMC in Wolverhampton (https://www.pjme.co.uk) from whom I've purchased an LC crank had them do a rebore- great work, have a full gasket kit and Sudco hoses. Also like the look of Performance Engineering and might consider sending the crank to them.

That diagram on the mini-dipstick looks informative. Even though the engine rebuild on the site looks fantastic and I will no doubt be following it, it made me realize I need a manual too. I found this service...anyone used it? http://www.servicerepairmanualonline.com/5071/honda-nsr250r-nsr250-nsr-250-manual/

I found the parts catalogue on the site which looks great but in looking for the rear panel that covers the rear light lens for the seat cowl I couldn't get the diagram and the part number list to match up.... 24 is supposed to be the rear panel but........

First off, that's a 1988 MC18 R2J, so (within reason) everything's going to be R2J. The likelihood of someone fitting MC16 carbs to is almost zero. Even fitting the set of HRC MC16 carbs I have would be a backwards step compared to the MC18 items, let alone fitting a standard set. It is of course possible, but it's highly unlikely. Don't over think things. A quick and easy way to tell is to check if there's a T.P.S. (throttle position sensor) attached to the RHS of the carbs. The MC16 carbs don't have a T.P.S.

The MC16E stamped on the motor is stamped on all but the HRC cases. MC16E is the type ID for all NSR250R engines.

If you click the Members Content at the top of the page you will see a link to our English Workshop Manual that has been officially authorised by Honda Motor Company. ANY English manual you see elsewhere online has been stolen from us, and I would politely urge you not to support them. We do not sell the manual however, by agreement with Honda. The same goes for the English Online Parts Manual.

I have never, and will never use non-OEM gaskets/seals, so someone else will need to pipe up regarding their experience with any aftermarket gasket kits. One thing I would strongly advise personally though, is to use genuine Honda base gaskets (and preferably head gaskets) as aftermarket items often don't "crush" the same as genuine items. Although this isn't as critical on a stock motor, once you start modifying it becomes increasingly more important. The NSR motor is very susceptible to compression changes, and reacts very negatively to increased compression.
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Andy.
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Andy,

again, great information, thank you. As you stated, the frame and engine numbers confirm the bike is R2J and in fact the carbs are what they should be:
FRAME: MC181004427
ENGINE: MC16E1035537
CARBS: TA20AA



It's a great relief that I was wrong in thinking that the original engine had been replaced with an older version, like you and the website Frame and Number Reference Chart itself shows- all motors start with 16E. Phew.

Also using the information on this site I was able to confirm that this bike has not been de-restricted which I think is great and interesting that someone would put on some performance pipes yet not de-restrict it...but then again perhaps it was simply a law abiding previous owner in Japan. The auction I got this bike from was selling a collection of a deceased Florida resident, a multi-millionaire who had 200+ bikes and I think he imported this and never got round to doing anything with it.

https://www.roadracingworld.com/news/jerry-woods-j-wood-company-auctioning-off-the-late-charlie-mavros-incredible-motorcycle-collection/

Blue/black wire still in place.


I appreciate and support the advice on sticking to OEM parts- if they can be found- which I am sure they can-I just don't know where to start. I need to start collecting the basics such as carb, brake caliper rebuild kits, fork seals etc- I would be grateful if anyone could point me in the right direction as the only creditable supplier of parts I've found is Tyga, they have a lot, but not sure they have everything.

MUCH appreciate pointing me in the right direction for the Manual. It's fantastic.

Relatively low mileage on the clock.....11,335km


Yet worn out peg rubbers.....hmmm.


New case needed

That looks a good basis for a resto,and I like it in the rothmans colours, good luck with it.
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Proud Father of , 05 ktm 400exc supermoto 2018 honda crf rx supermoto

Does it start and run, or have you not tried yet?

Looks mostly like it needs a bloody good degrease and clean, and all the fastners and fixing replated. The main thing is it's all there (or appears to be), so as Les says, a great base to start from.

Performance Engineering can supply genuine parts if you do send them the crank for rebuild (if it needs it), and TYGA as you say, carry just about everything you could need. Forum members often use CMSNL and David Silver Spares for NOS parts, and then of course there's Yahoo! Auctions in Japan for any odd parts you may need that you can't source either through the Classifieds section here, or eBay. Of course you'll need a proxy bidding service or an agent to use Yahoo! Auctions.
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Andy.
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Thanks Andy...it's taken a while but I'm back to working on the NSR. Yes the motor did run. I only ran it up and down the alley at the back of my garage tho'. I didn't think it was wise to do much more than that, but happy it ran. Seems like in every case wherever more than two fasteners are required there's only one. Likely it was quickly thrown together for the auction.

Beginning to dismantle, it's such a small bike!


So far have ordered:
Front and rear brake rebuild kits from powerhouse-uk
front and rear pads (Sumo) from an e-bay seller
fork seals, carb rebuild kits, rear brake master cyl rebuild kit air filter and all the appropriate OEM gaskets & seals they had in stock from Tyga Performance

Will order a top end rebuild kit once I discover which barrels & heads I have.

Switchgear super deteriorated or is this an odd finish I have not seen before? Searching for replacements but so far they've been in the $200 range and....in much the same condition...

There's plenty of good switch gear on Yahoo Auctions (via Jauce) https://www.jauce.com/auction/r474252716
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Why do things simply when you can complicate them

David Silvers has a US site. They can have a few items that can be cheaper than Honda dealers https://www.davidsilverspares.com/NSR250R2J-MC18-1988-JAPANESE/
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Why do things simply when you can complicate them

Rob- thank you- these are virtual Aladdins caves containing everything I need, although it looks like on Yahoo Japan no one wants to ship internationally. there must be a way around that. Silvers site is great too. much appreciated. UPDATE: I appear to have worked out how to bid on JAUCE or Yahoo Japan and currently bidding for a bunch of fasteners (which I would aim to get replated) rear mounting plates for the bodywork and a good looking kill switch. Indebted to the info. Cheers Robh.

Many parts are common across models. For example the handlebar switches. You just need to do some digging.


Last edited by ericandchi on Thu Mar 11, 2021 2:09 pm; edited 1 time in total

Moving on.....

Removed the speedo cable to find the joint is broken...probably still worked while it was incarcerated within the case but need a new one....did some digging (thanks ericandchi for the tip and beautiful MC28SP) noticed it shares the piece with the legendary NR750.


tried partizilla over here but...no....however CMS have one....


This is wired up to the bike, thinking maybe the OEM temp gauge might not be functioning...funnily enough it's set to Tokyo time


Got all the original Honda parts that tyga-performance had in stock


drained radiator....needs a good clean and hopefully it will be able to handle a paint strip down to the metal...


As long as I have the patience to strip, clean, prep, mask and paint these....this will be a good before picture ....otherwise I might cheat and find some better examples on Yahoo Japan...not going to take the wavy rotor option.

Got the carbs off. There's a lot to them. I'm realizing now that this restoration is going to take a long time. There will be many hours spent bringing these carbs up to snuff...sad you won't be able to see them!



What I find fascinating is not only do the two carbs look different in terms of the coloring left by the fuel but...


...also the slow or pilot jet sizes are so different in size that it's obvious by the naked eye- is this correct? Main jets might also be different but have to clean them up a bit first to see. Also erichandchi is there any evidence of an HRC jetkit seen here?

right carb


left carb


quite a bit of plumbing


leaky