New to the Cdale scene. Got an unbelievable deal!

Bring all of your questions about the Cannondale quad here!
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Atvfreestylekid
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#1 Post by Atvfreestylekid »

Well I guess I'll start out with my name's josh. I went to a local motorcycle shop in search of a job and ended up spending money instead rolleyes.gif . Well, the guy was going to show me an old 250r that was broke down, but before we got to it I seen the dale just sitting there in the weeds and junk bikes leaning on it. As soon as I seen 440 on the seat I yelled holy sh$&@ is that a cannondale?! Imidiately walked over to it and kicked the Junkers off of it. After talking to the guy a while, i had him call the owner of the shop to see if he'd sell it to me. Scored it for 150 bucks! Supposedly only needs an injector and the bike owner abandoned it like 5 years ago. It still has some of the nipples on the tires. I can't wait to tear into it and do the updates. I've wanted one of these since I was a kid reading about them in dirt wheels magazine. I even sold my 450r today to help fund the restoration/updates. Called Brad at black widow and we're going to get this thing as good as new in no time! Anyway, I'll shut up and post the pics lol. Tell me what yall think.





After her first bath in years




Tire tread(back still have the bumps where the nipples were)



speedfreek
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#2 Post by speedfreek »

QUOTE (Atvfreestylekid @ Jan 21 2015, 10:13 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Well I guess I'll start out with my name's josh. I went to a local motorcycle shop in search of a job and ended up spending money instead rolleyes.gif . Well, the guy was going to show me an old 250r that was broke down, but before we got to it I seen the dale just sitting there in the weeds and junk bikes leaning on it. As soon as I seen 440 on the seat I yelled holy sh$&@ is that a cannondale?! Imidiately walked over to it and kicked the Junkers off of it. After talking to the guy a while, i had him call the owner of the shop to see if he'd sell it to me. Scored it for 150 bucks! Supposedly only needs an injector and the bike owner abandoned it like 5 years ago. It still has some of the nipples on the tires. I can't wait to tear into it and do the updates. I've wanted one of these since I was a kid reading about them in dirt wheels magazine. I even sold my 450r today to help fund the restoration/updates. Called Brad at black widow and we're going to get this thing as good as new in no time! Anyway, I'll shut up and post the pics lol. Tell me what yall think.





After her first bath in years




Tire tread(back still have the bumps where the nipples were)


bigfoot17
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#3 Post by bigfoot17 »

Welcome to the site.
Nice score. Now update it and ride. smile.gif

ShifT714
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#4 Post by ShifT714 »

Can't go wrong for $150!! Good find!

Atvfreestylekid
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#5 Post by Atvfreestylekid »

Yeah I can't wait. First I have to bypass the ignition since they lost the key. Going to try to do it without having to cut any wires in case brad has some keys. What oil do yall run in these things? I always ran rotella 15-40 in my 450 without problems but idk about these. My plans are to change all fluids and get it to start and then order all updates and needed parts at once. Also, these things need 93 octain fuel or is regular 87 fine? I figure it has higher compression and needs premium. Anyway, thanks for any info.

yamadjs08
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#6 Post by yamadjs08 »

Cool story, the fact that it was sitting in the weeds in the corner and you had to kick some junk bikes off of it to even get at it makes it even better! laugh.gif You got a smoking deal on it! If you look past the faded graphics you can tell its pretty clean and looks like it has low hours on it. cool.gif

The ignition can definitely be bypassed without a key, don't start cutting wires. I'm sure Brad or Dave can set you up with a new ignition and key as well.

If it was just a stuck injector then that is a very easy fix, but I'm sure both injectors are stuck by now.

The valve covers are magnesium and the normal green coolant that was used at the factory is corrosive to magnesium. Eventually it corrodes all the way through and the coolant and oil start mixing. If you feel up to it, pull the water pump cover off and inspect the valve cover. If you choose not to, just drain the oil after it runs for a while to make sure its not mixing. Also drain the green coolant to prevent further corrosion and order a jug of Evans coolant or just run distilled water for now if its warm enough outside. The proper update is to replace the magnesium valve cover with an aluminum one.

Definitely tear it down and replace every fuel line before you even try starting it, the last thing you want is your new machine burning to the ground from a leaking fuel line! But while you are at it you might as well pull the motor and do some updates so it will last. wink.gif

Where are you located at? The manual recommends 10w40 for the engine but Rotella 15w40 would be fine if you are in a warmer climate, I switch to 5w30 in the winter here in Iowa. 1.5 quarts in the engine with a fresh oil filter and .8 quarts in the trans. As for trans fluid, you could just use 15w40 in that as well if you wish, the manual calls for an 80w non hypoid gear oil. Its really a personal preference, I've ran 0w40, 20w50, SAE 50 and 75w90 in the transmission without any issues. As long as the oil is wet clutch compatible it will be fine, make sure it doesn't say "engergy conserving" on the back of the bottle.

Yes run only premium fuel, it would probably be fine with 87 but why risk it? Definitely change the fuel filter when you replace the fuel lines.

I can sense your excitement in your post! They are awesome machines, they have their quirks but once you sort them out they can very reliable.

Atvfreestylekid
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#7 Post by Atvfreestylekid »

Awesome. Thanks for the info. And yes I am super excited about this. I'll be tearing it down tomorrow and can't wait. I live in Texas so it does not get super cold here except every now and then it gets in the upper 20s which is way to cold for me to go riding. So I guess rotella should work ok. Anyone running Lucas oil additive in the motor? I've read that the cams are known to fail and I thought it would help them last. I usually run it in every motor I have except 2-strokes or anything else that it would get to the clutch. ****, I even got it in my mower. Also Is there a way to fix sticking injectors or do I just replace them? Thanks again. -josh.

yamadjs08
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#8 Post by yamadjs08 »

I wouldn't waste the money on the oil additive, just be sure to change the oil often. Isn't Lucas oil stabilizer pretty thick? Either way the cams failing are from a combination of things, I believe some of the later cams are soft and wear prematurely, but sticky buckets seem to be a big cause for cam failure as well.

You can free up sticky injectors, usually. What I've done in the past is let the injector sit in a shallow cup of seafoam overnight, tap on it a few times and re-install them. Look down the intake and you can see whether they are spraying or not. If it still doesn't free up usually a few more taps with screwdriver will do it. If that doesn't work you might be out of luck, fortunately injectors are cheap. Maybe someone else has a sticky injector trick?


Atvfreestylekid
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#9 Post by Atvfreestylekid »

Yeah it's thick but i don't use verry much of it. Like 1/4qt in a 1.5 qt capacity. It mainly makes a film of oil stick everywhere so that there is always oil all over everything instead of all draining back into the bottom of the case. Prevents "dry starts". Anyway, thanks, I'll pull the injectors out and soak em when I get them out. I'm a big sea foam user to. I use it religiously in my 2 ford diesels. Thanks for the great info, I may get it done tomorrow I'm hoping. I'll post updates cool.gif

Atvfreestylekid
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Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:41 pm

#10 Post by Atvfreestylekid »

Well, got a little done today. All plastics removed and just kinda inspected everything. Spent most of the day at the tool store... 200 bucks later got a few new toys including an electric impact cool.gif . I also got some oil, a battery, and cheap transparent fuel line just to get it started and keep an eye on fuel flow until I order all my update and replacement parts from black widow. But tomorrow I'll be hitting it hot and heavy in hopes it'll start tomorrow night.



My tow rig...


I guess all those sad and lonely years just sitting in the heat, the pressure destroyed the top of the fuel cap...


Naked



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