Whats needed for a predator engine swap - Please chime in

J

Justpassedu

New Member
#1
#1
Picked up a baja warrior and im pretty sure the engine is shot , it looks like it may have been left outside a few years or maybe under water at some point. Everything is rusted. I have never done a engine swap and would like to try and put a hf predator motor in it at some point. I wanted to know if i remove the engine from the bike now , what parts should i keep to mount and put back on the bike with the predator engine ? Do i need to take the clutch off the old motor bc i plan on most likely picking up a new clutch ? Are there any screws or parts behind the clutch that i need to mount a new 1 ? Do i take the chain tensioner off and the gears next to it ? I will try and buy some rust remover for the sprockets and gears bc they are pretty rusty but a nice little list or pics of what i need to keep would be great help. I will buy new chains they are rusted and on there last life. What chains do i pick up for direct fit with predator motor ? Do i save the whole throttle spring and mechanism attached to the motor ? Sorry for all my questions , trying to do this on a super budget . - thanks

pic of what i have to work with :
 
jdogg

jdogg

#2
#2
The predator should be a close replacement just has more displacement! I would keep the clutch retaining bolt and the predator should come with a new key. Take off the jack shaft plate and swap that to new engine. Im not possitive on the chain size I think they are #41. The predators come with all the throttle linkage you will need and are much easier to hook up than the old clones! You will need to take out the wavy washer on the throttle pivot bolt and tighten the nylock back on just enough to allow the mechanism to move smoothly and not come off! :thumbsup:
 
J

Justpassedu

New Member
#3
#3
Ok well to start , i ordered a Max Torque 3/4' Bore 40 41 pitch Clutch and a 42 link chain and a 90 link chain that says it fits the baja warrior. I will try and get the engine and jack shaft out also when i have time and keep the bolt that holds in the clutch like you stated , i just didnt understand this part - "You will need to take out the wavy washer on the throttle pivot bolt and tighten the nylock back on just enough to allow the mechanism to move smoothly and not come off" any pics to maybe help me ? and also thank you very much
 
jdogg

jdogg

#4
#4
The wavy washer is on the throttle arm pivot to keep the throttle in whatever range you have it set at. These engine are made to be used in irrigation and other situations where the throttle needs to stay at a certain rpm. I will try and find a pict
 
J

Justpassedu

New Member
#8
#8
stay tuned to this thread bc i may need some more help , 1st thing i have to do when i get free time is pull the motor out and than take off all the rusty parts and try and get the rust off. Than i will try and patch or slime the tires bc there not really taking air and i have to check the brakes also to see if they work once its rolling , at the moment its stuck and wont roll. After all that i will grab a predator motor , already have a 25% off coupon for harbor freight.
 
Man Scout

Man Scout

New Member
#9
#9
Justpassedu said:
stay tuned to this thread bc i may need some more help , 1st thing i have to do when i get free time is pull the motor out and than take off all the rusty parts and try and get the rust off. Than i will try and patch or slime the tires bc there not really taking air and i have to check the brakes also to see if they work once its rolling , at the moment its stuck and wont roll. After all that i will grab a predator motor , already have a 25% off coupon for harbor freight.
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The tires if they are not so far gone that they have a big leak may be ok still. What are you using to fill the tires? If you are using a normal pump it may just not be enough to reseat and seal the tires to the hub as they are tubeless. You may want to use an air compressor or what they have at gas stations to fill the tires. On my first riding mower after a long winter the tubless tires were flat and we could not get them to fill with a normal electric car tire air compressor. We bought a harbor freight air compressor and were able to fill them up.
Also if the bike won't roll it could be because everything is seized up from all the rust. Do a dissasembly of the drive system and get the rust off of there dip that chain in oil and get it limbered up again or at the worst go to an agriculture store and get a new chain, some master links along with a chain breaker to shorten it to length.
 
J

Justpassedu

New Member
#11
#11
I saw the engines were on sale for $99 but it was only for the EPA/carb version. I hope they take the 25% off if not I also have a 20%. Man scout I'll give it a try , I was using a crap air compressor that's on 1 of those jump boxes. I did have the harbor freight compressor but gave it to a friend it took way to long to fill my truck tires and I got a beach pass this summer to drive off-road on the sand so I have to air down and up again when I leave that hf 1 wasn't cutting. I picked up a masterflow tsunami compressor , it attaches to my car battery and fills my tires from like 10-40psi in like a minute. I'll try using it. Thanks

Edit : we'll it looks like your right , the engine is $99 with the link you sent it automatically applies the coupon and shipping is only $6 . I'm gonna stop at the store though when I have time I want to try & get the hemi version .
 
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J

Justpassedu

New Member
#12
#12
Ok small update , i got the rusty chains off and the clutch , i also accidentally cut the throttle cable . Is it easy to install a new throttle cable ? , later i will try and get the jackshaft off the bike. The rear tire on the bike will not spin. I sprayed it down with some wd40 and left it over night. I am thinking either the brakes are locked up or the bearings in the wheel may be seized but i am not sure. I will try and get the rear tire off. looks like this bike needs allot more work than i thought.
 
Man Scout

Man Scout

New Member
#13
#13
Just take small baby steps on the project. Whenever I finish a project I miss working on it so nowadays I leave things less than finished so I can add on over time and have more fun.

First of all remove your brakes to check if they are what is hanging up on the wheels. There will be 2 bolts holding the caliper to the frame and the size of the bolts is 10mm.

For the bearings you need to remove the chain then remove the codder pin from the axles and undo the nut that holds the axles on and remove the axle this will free up the wheels so you can remove them. The bearings will be in the middle of the wheels check them out to see if they are the problem. If the bearings are bad you will have to remove them; they will be stuck in there and you will need to carefully punch them out from their perspective opposite sides with a large flathead screw driver and hammer or a bearing puller. You install new bearings by putting them in place and using a dowel about the same size cut to a short length or a socket from a socket wrench set and hammer to pound the bearings into the hub evenly.
I recommend scrapping the OEM bearings they aren't great to start with They are only shielded on one side and corrode easily. I bought new bearings from VXB bearing I like vxb I've used their bearings on other projects and they stock Nachi. The bearing size for a doodlebug is 6201 2RS
I bought 10 for about 20$ so that I have spares.

http://www.amazon.com/Bearing-6201-...earing+6201-2RS+12x32x10+Sealed+Ball+Bearings

Addressing the throttle cable. So the cable is basically bicycle brake cable. You can buy a new OEM doodlebug cable for less work. The throttle twister is really all that is important. You can take apart the throttle twister and see what kind of ends the cable has that interface with that. when you go to get new cable try to get one with the same ends on it. You can also take any old bicycle brake cable and cut it to length with some tools and then use solder, a torch, and a block of wood to make the cable end how you need it to be.
Here is a video of how this is done.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-gY27LTU2c
 
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J

Justpassedu

New Member
#14
#14
Ty Man Scout i will give it a try , i may even have a few bearings that may work from large rc cars , i collected a few over the years but i believe they are rubber sealed. I am still trying to get a few bolts un-frozen as i bought some pb blaster and sprayed them down. There are just a few giving me trouble and i am using some old hand tools as most of my tools are in storage bc i had to move back home bc hurricane sandy destroyed my place. I wish i had all my stuff right now it would make it so much easier for me. As for the throttle cable , i may be able to salvage that as i cut right at the spot where it was screwed in and than accidentally gave it throttle and the wire went into the black hose , i am wondering if i can get it out.
 
Man Scout

Man Scout

New Member
#16
#16
Justpassedu said:
I may be able to salvage that as i cut right at the spot where it was screwed in and than accidentally gave it throttle and the wire went into the black hose , i am wondering if i can get it out.
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Sorry to hear that your home got destroyed and I hope the best for you.
As for the throttle cable that don't sound too bad probably salvageable there is plenty of slack in the throttle cable if I remember correctly. You should be able to twist the throttle back the other way and see what is left of the cable poke out. If not remove the throttle and take it apart so that you can push the line back out. You may have to cut the black insulator tubing back a bit to expose the cable more if it won't reach the throttle lever anymore.

If you go this route cut carefully at the rubber with a sharp knife, pliers, or wire strippers; there will probably be some metal strip spiraling on the inside of the rubber and you will have to cut that with tin snips or pliers.

Rubber sealed bearings will work better than the OEM bearings as long as they are the correct outside diameter and the correct inside diameter (you probably figured that already tho).
 
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5horsebriggs

5horsebriggs

New Member
#18
#18
Justpassedu said:
I did not pay $60 for this. You prob. saw a different ad .

Man Scout , thanks ill give it a try and post my findings. Later today i am going to try and get a few more of the rusted parts off the bike and see if i can pull the engine.
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nah it used the same pics that you had i forget were it was posted i was gunna get it lol
 
J

Justpassedu

New Member
#19
#19
Oh yes that was my add on Craigslist for the motor only for $60 obo if you read it. Not the bike , I just didn't have the motor pulled so I put a pic of the whole bike on cl but wrote motor only, it's still up there actually. Trying to get rid of the motor but got a million emails from people thinking I'm selling the bike. Guess some people just can't read. Anyway pulled the motor today , of course one bolt is frozen holding the jackshaft on so it looks like I'll need to cut it. Also was wondering , there is a gear on the jackshaft , is that supposed to spin freely? Bc mine won't move
 
Man Scout

Man Scout

New Member
#20
#20
Justpassedu said:
Oh yes that was my add on Craigslist for the motor only for $60 obo if you read it. Not the bike , I just didn't have the motor pulled so I put a pic of the whole bike on cl but wrote motor only, it's still up there actually. Trying to get rid of the motor but got a million emails from people thinking I'm selling the bike. Guess some people just can't read. Anyway pulled the motor today , of course one bolt is frozen holding the jackshaft on so it looks like I'll need to cut it. Also was wondering , there is a gear on the jackshaft , is that supposed to spin freely? Bc mine won't move
Click to expand...
You should try putting some aerokroil (pb blaster whatever you use) on the bolt and letting it penetrate for a while. Then put your wrench on the bolt and use a breaker bar, ie length of tubing, to get extra leverage on it to get it free.

Also yes I suppose the gear on the jackshaft should spin freely or else what is it for?
 
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