Four Wheel Forum

Consider the rate of inflation pushed $2.75 to about $4.25 here in 2026... and fuel being at about 5.50 means that the total price has gone UP 23% since 2009 comparably. Ahhhhh... it could be worse. All the stuff going on in the middle East isn't really encouraging. Time will tell etc etc... =]

How's the bike coming along?

Just to update this thread. I swapped out my engine for another one while he was replacing the piston rings in the engine. He had another Mille that needed an engine so I let him put that engine in the other bike on permanent loan. It runs just like it should in the other bike now. Glad to see it ...

Very good. All the older Hondas are SO easy to ride. They make a perfect tool for learning to ride and work the controls and such.

About the turn signals... when I was about 15 I used to ride around a 1969 CL70 a lot. I would ride all over some ranch property and backroads all over the area. It is ...

Hi Ron, it sure sounds like you have been putting a lot of work into that little bike! When Honda made them I'm sure they put the bare minimum electronics on the thing just to make them street legal. Back in the day there were far fewer drivers, slower vehicles and people weren't in such a hurry ...

It's super easy for people that understand engines. I recommend buying the Honda Service manual for these bikes. They aren't like modern manuals... they have so much more information than you might think. There is one on Ebay for $50 right now. I suggest you get it. You would be wise to understand ...

Here is another shot of the rim. It's a product made in Norway and they are pretty proud of their work even putting a neat Made In Norway sticker on them. Too bad they turned out to be prone to cracking and are known to fail early. I'll keep using the classic style rims until they give out.

http ...

Here are a few more pics just to show some more things that need attention in the upcoming KTM 540 build. The original sprockets are definitely showing some fatigue but hey it's a 60+ hp engine. It's just amazing that it still has only the original sprockets and chain. This bike has hardly been used ...

Just pop the cam gear/ chain off and pull the cylinder head off. See what it looks like. I rebuilt old Honda's with no money as a kid and was successful. Find an old hone tool and a drill to clean up the cylinder and put new rings in it. Gaskets are cheap and I even made my own from scratch when I ...

This bike has a monster cylinder. And the right hand drive hub is interesting as well. Supposedly the engine was for sidecars in Europe. The American distributor at the time demanded KTM use that engine in a dirtbike because we crazy Americans wanted CR500 and KX500 type crazy machines. Thank you ...

You can always tell how used or abused a dirt bike it by checking underneath it. If you see dented frame tubing or scratches and marks on the engine cases then you know the bike has been ridden pretty hard.

http://fourwheelperformance.com/ktm/ktm_540_02s.jpg

You can't be too picky with older ...

Yeap it's been a while. I'm back with another project bike that I'm sure some people will find interesting. I met a very good dirt bike rider that was riding a KTM 550 dirt bike and I was amazed at what he could do with it. The bike was neglected but you couldn't tell once he was riding that beast ...

Exactly. Those pesky heat sinks are critical to their lifespan. I might be able to stop and pick one up today to play with it.

Awesome. Old exhuast joint gaskets and manifold gaskets are the lowest technology on any motorcycle up until the 90's. Very frustrating.

I saw an LED conversion lightbulb at a friends shop the other day. It came with adapters that were in the form of removable collars around the bulb. You could use that same bulb with the adapters to fit different bulb socket types. I will be picking up a couple of these for my truck.