Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Voices (Continued from page 4) We tried to appeal/protest the results with various AFM personnel and were shuffled from person to person, finally being told to hand the written protest to Jim LaBine, who was by then nowhere to be found. My sponsors and I dropped thousands of dollars trying to win the race and we feel we had done just that. When the time came for some an wers from the officials, no one wanted to help. Their attitude was one of "the results stand, don't make waves." If I hadn't made waves after the 1981 Six-hour we wouldn't have been credited with the third place we earned, behind Team Kawasaki and Team Hammer. My first endurance race was the first AFM endurance race, 10 long years ago. The WERA did a better job of scoring the recent 24-Hour West at Willow than the AFM has ever done scoring the Six-hour. RICK MITCHELL Thousand Oaks, CA The 40mm magnesium Bing carburetor gives the '84 Honda CR250R more power, but there are a few drawbacks. 40mm magnesium Bing carburetor lor '84 CRZSOR Is bigger better? By Kit Palmer It's hard to fault Honda's 1984 CR250R powerplant: It has good low end, strong mid-range and can blow away most of its competition on top. Who could want more? - just about everyone il seems. The people al RD Performance say lhey can give the eR's engine more power in just one 26 simple and relatively inexpensive step, with their 40mm magnesium Bing carburetor kit. The carburetor on the stock Honda is a 38mm Keihin and is made out of cast aluminum. The magnesium Bing, although larger, is considerably lighter than the Keihin. Besides the Bing €arb, the kit contains a Terry throttle cable, an assort, ment of main jets and a longer fuel line (the fuel inlet is on the opposite side, compared to the Keihin). Unfortunately, the 40mm Bing is not simple'to'ilislan;-actually, it is a pain. The hard part is fitting the 40mm Bing into the 38mm intake, and airbox boots. RD Performance say it can be done, so they do not supply the buyer with larger boots. Tools needed include a hair blow dryer, a few wrenches, two blunt-end screwdrivers and at least two people (we recommend three.) The intake manifold will stretch just enough to accept the carburetor's spigot, but where the carb connects to the airbox boot, it is a completely different story. The boot seems way too small, however, RD Performance says the carb will fit if the boot is heated up with the hair dryer. We tried that and it did help, because the boot became more pliable, but the carb still didn't slip rIght in. With The clip-on carburetor cap is trick and easy to use. twO people prying at the boot, we came close, but ended up needing a third person to finish the job. We eventually loosened the bolts to the airbox, while one person pushed the airbox and boot forward on the Bing. The other two had to use screwdrivers to caT~fully slip the boot over the carb's intake. Luckily, in spite of all the prying, the boot did not tear. RD Performance says it won't, even after a long period of time. Nonetheless, we think an intake manifold and airbox boot should be offered in the kit, even if it costs more for the package. The carburetor top on the Bing is trick. Instead of screwing on, the top is secured by two snap clips. The sys, tern is quick and easy to use, .which is a good thing because there isn't much room between the carb and the frame. The Bing has a choke and a tickle button. The choke is activated by lifting a small knob on the right side, and restricts the amount of air into the cylinder when starting the bike cold. The tickle button shoots raw fuel directly into the cylinder and is generally used to make starting cold, big-bore machines easier. Either way, the Bing-equipped Honda always fired by the third kick. The jetting that came set up in the Bing was spot on. After the motor warmed up, we did not experience any blurbing through out the powerband, but we did notice more power. The power is greatly increased from mid-range on up, while some low end is sacrificed. Luckily, theCR has enough low end in the first place, so there was just enough left over to keep us happy. Once the CR came on the pipe, it really hummed. The front end would climb in second through fourth gear, and the motor would pull much longer and harder than it would with the stock carbo One thing we didn't like, though, was the throttle return spring ten, sian. The throttle was very hard to turn, which causes the rider's right arm to" pump up quickly. The 40mm Bing carburetor was worth the time and effort to install, and so is the price. For $127.00 the CR250R can be made even faster, but if you like maximum low end 40mm is not for you. For more information contact Russ Davidson, RD Performance, P.O. Box 33696, Northridge, CA 91344818/366-6914. • Sadness in the desert It is truly sad that a time when environmentalists, ecologists and other sanctimonious organizations are trying to close the desert to our beloved sport, that our own enthusiasts turn on us. I am referring to Marcus Fitzpatrick's letter condemning SCORE and their Barstow/Baja race. I am sure as with any subject, the uninformed are the first to criticize. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated SCORE was run out of Mexico. I wonder by what source his information came. Mr. Fitzpatrick is obviously not aware that SCORE is one of the finest and most conscientious off-road racing organizations putting on o[f-road races today. Also he must not be aware SCORE includes motorcycle racers in most of their events. Danger is an element operating any motor-driven vehicle. It demands awareness, alertness, caution and consideration. Therefore operating such a vehicle starts with each individuaJ controlling its power. Being a CRC and DBRA motorcycle desert racer as well as a SCORE, HDRA and AMSA Class 5 racer, I have seen and heard many an incident. S9me of those people have been right, some of those people have been wrong and some of those people have just been unfortunate. Many of those wrong or unfortunate incidents could have been avoided with a little more concern for what was going on around them. However, Mr. Fitzpatrick must be a person of some humor, otherwise he would not have griped about the dust on the desert. Who would possibly come out to the desert and be serious about complaining of the dust on the desert. This i my home ground. My fam, ily and I will always be willing to share our desert with anyone who enjoys our sport as we do. There is plenty of room out here for aJI of us. Let's get along before its freedom is closed to us forever. MAXINE BATES Hesperia, CA Published letters do not necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News, Inc. Send letters to Voices. Box 498, Long Beach. CA 90801.

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