First Post

[rookieraj]

Hello everyone,

I'm Rajvijay Rai, friends call me Raj. I'm a new member here, hence this introduction.

I've been around since 1975. I am in the profession of arms, like two generations of my forefathers. I am a post graduate. Work experience - four years of intense training in Pune and Dehradun and almost sixteen years of foot-slogging in service to the nation. I've been to most corners of the country and am presently at Delhi. Married with twin sons.

I own a KB125 (my first bike) and a Pulsar 150 KS in addition to a car. Motorbikes have always interested me since an early age, it's only recently that the focus has shifted from riding to tinkering with the machines. Music and reading are my other interests. Photography was another interest till film cameras became extinct (well, almost).

I'm here to learn, therefore, the prefix 'rookie'. I am currently rebuilding my KB125, a DIY project, and it has been one steep learning curve. I would like to acknowledge the help of some members of this forum who have been forthcoming with spares and most importantly - sane advice - in my rebuild.

So that is the long and short of me. I look forward to contributing with whatever little I know and learning much more from the collective wisdom of this forum.

Cheers.

[PhantomLord]

Welcome Raj, though most of discussions here are RX based, there are some KB discussion too. Good luck with your build.

[Pistonpassion350]

Hi Raj,tell me what you are looking for

[rookieraj]

Welcome Raj, though most of discussions here are RX based, there are some KB discussion too. Good luck with your build.

thanks PhantomLord. the KBs are the poor cousins of the RXs, no surprise therefore that the Yams corner more attention.

Hi Raj,tell me what you are looking for

a cylinder kit will be nice to start off with. then there is the gear assembly, gasket kit, tail lamp, etc etc. let me clarify though that this is a wishlist. i have almost all spares for the rebuild but am keen to stock up the spares for the future. if you can help it'll be great, but do it in your free time - nothing urgent. thanks anyway.

[rtz]

finally youre here sir, why am i not surprised

[rookieraj]

finally youre here sir, why am i not surprised

the quest for knowledge drives one to distant shores. and Sir,may i remind you of my request...please

[rtz]

ok ok

[chinoy]

welcome.
Armed services back ground here. (My Dad is served in the Air Force. and is a decorated ware hero). But I too have been all over India 30 transfers in 32 years of service.

[rookieraj]

Thanks Ron,

I had an idea of your background when you mentioned Subroto Park in one of your posts - was it the one in which you posted a dated snap of yours with one of your girl friends?

War veterans are our heroes. I assume you were talking about Gp Capt DP Chinoy, VSM.

Since joining this forum, i've been reading the threads - oldest first. While it takes a little time to get to grips with the technical stuff (me being an absolute layman), the range of issues discussed and the passion of fellow members is amazing. The lessons are, however, pretty clear:-

1. If you care for your mobike, become bit of a wrench-turner yourself (at least the basics).

2. Performance need not necessarily mean top speed. It is the ease with which the machine consistently churns out its top speed.

3. While everyone's free to decide what is best for his ride, every modification should serve a purpose.

These are my observations in the short time that i've been here. I look forward to starting a thread on the DIY rebuild of my KB125 soon.

Cheers

[chinoy]

All the best.
The KB is a fun bike we have a few die hard fans here.
Good gains are to be had by playing with the Intake Disc.

[Pistonpassion350]

I dont think we have a problem with the bore,of course it will be rebored.Gaskets are difficult.Tail lamp yes.Let me know when you want them and I could get them.I used to have a KB 100,nothing to beat the balance and the feeling of a big bike in its class.

[rtz]

you cant rebore the kb125 bore its chrome plated

[rookieraj]

I dont think we have a problem with the bore,of course it will be rebored.Gaskets are difficult.Tail lamp yes.Let me know when you want them and I could get them.I used to have a KB 100,nothing to beat the balance and the feeling of a big bike in its class.

Thanks for offering help Pistonpassion350. As rtz pointed out, the piston block can't be re-bored as it is chrome-coated. That is the major difference in design from the KB100, the others being a heavier crank and consequently wider crankcase and no resonator. I did manage to get two sets of gaskets from Indore earlier this year but the tail lamp I got was an after market spare - one with a plastic base plate instead of the metal one which came in the original.

I am in the process of chronicling my rebuild in a new thread. We can carry this discussion forward there.

Cheers

[gurjinder]

you cant rebore the kb125 bore its chrome plated

Is it a sleeveless plated bore?

If it has a sleeve and it supports a re-bore , then re-boring shouldn't be an issue. Just a suitable piston is required. You'll just lose the plating.

That is, if a rebore is required in the first place.

[rtz]

yup its sleeveless

[Prd]

You can get a KB barrel honed if you're going with oversize pistons but then there're very few people who can do a good job. And situation with parts is worse than the other two-strokes. But I did see some non-OEM plastics and cosmetic bits in a shop in B'lore the other day. Having good rapport with you local junkyard dealer also helps a whole lot.

There is a RDD-built KB100 that was built for Rags a long time ago. It was a street bike with a simple port job and refurbished cycle parts like a Pulsar suspension and brakes and the bike was fun around the city and yes, the handling was excellent. Rags still has the bike and there're posts still lying in the Two-Stroke forum about the bike. Look it up if you're interested.

[rookieraj]

You can get a KB barrel honed if you're going with oversize pistons but then there're very few people who can do a good job.

I assume you're talking about the KB100.

And situation with parts is worse than the other two-strokes.

Very true. The situation is so bad that at times when I enquired for parts with a Bajaj Autorised Service Centre, I was told that Bajaj made no such bike.

There is a RDD-built KB100 that was built for Rags a long time ago. It was a street bike with a simple port job and refurbished cycle parts like a Pulsar suspension and brakes and the bike was fun around the city and yes, the handling was excellent. Rags still has the bike and there're posts still lying in the Two-Stroke forum about the bike. Look it up if you're interested.

I've read that one post by post. I guess its the same thread in which Ron promised never to touch another KB because his bits got screwed during the re-bore of the cast iron block. It would be nice if Rags posted a picture of that bike.

[Prd]

Well... I am sure you know this, but the KB125 barrel is aluminium like all other bikes except instead of an iron cylinder liner, it has nikasil plated bores which by itself was pretty high-tech considering the day and age when Bajaj decided to roll it out. We did not see this tech in India in bikes again, till the R15 came along.

Ron's tool bits were ruined when he ported the cast-iron block of the KB100. He wasn't too happy about it but we were kicked with the way the bike moved. So yes, a KB100/125 barrel can be honed when replacing pistons but only in expert hands otherwise they'll either ruin the barrels or the honing tool or both.

Rags is still around here, I'll ask him post an update and a more recent pic just for kicks.

[rookieraj]

Well... I am sure you know this, but the KB125 barrel is aluminium like all other bikes except instead of an iron cylinder liner, it has nikasil plated bores which by itself was pretty high-tech considering the day and age when Bajaj decided to roll it out. We did not see this tech in India in bikes again, till the R15 came along.

No...I didn't know it was nikasil. I always thought it to be chrome plated and therefore beyond any kind of honing. I've been told that the flaking of the lining in the KB125 barrel was one of the more frequent complaints - a trademark of chrome plated bores.

Ron's tool bits were ruined when he ported the cast-iron block of the KB100. He wasn't too happy about it but we were kicked with the way the bike moved.

I'm sure it would have been a treat to ride this bike. If i'm not wrong, the timings too were altered by changing the dimensions of the intake window of the rotary disc valve.

Rags is still around here, I'll ask him post an update and a more recent pic just for kicks.

That would sure be nice.