$700 Yamaha Dirt Bike Find (Rare 1984 IT200) 

Looks like the piston was in the wrong way round, normally the holes in the piston skirt line up with carb side.

i dont even know what i just watched 2vintage you are a new man.... lubed the cylinder before kicking it over and went for the carb clean on a 20 year old bike before trying to start it after checking compression. bravo

Piston was in backwards, I'm surprised it even popped off and ran for what little time it did.

When I was a kid I remember my father getting two dirt bikes from the dump 78 yz 80 and a 72 yamaha lt2 100. He ended up taking one of the wrist pin bearing that was ceased a bit and soaking it in Kerosene/diesel fuel for a bout 20-30 min. They all broke free. So he cleaned them up and re-packed them with some sort of grease and away I went. I was the happiest kid in town. That is where my obsession started.

I can't believe you didn't pull off the reed valve and inspect it,.....You were right there. Those 2 strokes are very strange, you can kick thirty times and not even a pop, then out of nowhere they fire. Good vid Bud, Give us a part two.

Nice find!!! It's becoming so hard to find 70s and 80s bikes in Michigan at reasonable prices. I always wanted one, and since your channel is about rare bikes. a short-ish story about my bike. For my 16th b-day my Two uncles gifted me their old 1974 Suzuki TM250. Metal tank, Twin Shocks and Beefy. If anyone reading this knows these bikes, owns one still, or has experience with them you know what I'm talking about. Fast as hell, Scary, & Horrific handling. Talking to older guys, it seems the only other brands as fast as these was Maico/Huskys & depending on the models. But the TMs were Death on wheels. Definatly for the TM400. The bike is NOT stock. Prior to my uncles owning it, a few brothers locally bought it brand new, built and raced it. So it is bored 0.40 over, probably pushing 40+ hp. My uncle has told me stories of Outrunning a Charger 440 six-pack with this bike. It has Won Trophies and championships. But now retired. I did a Budget Resto-mod on it back in 2015-17.

I believe the rings were in backwards causing the gap from the rings to come in contact with the exhaust port.

Never seen a bike kicked over like that ! Wow .

My dad was a motorcycle mechanic for a long time, over 55 years of experience between bikes, planes, and diesel. He always told me, if it doesn’t start in a few kicks, say 20 (even that’s high), there’s something wrong. Save your leg next time brotha! Great video!

Hey Joe ive enjoyed all your videos i watch on our lasses account,i grew up on the bikes you now love and i still love them today.Its great watching you bring these bikes back to life and keeping them around a little longer.You seem like a great guy and its really good to see you getting on with your bit land and property keep up the good work.

I am really enjoying these old 2 strokes your working on recently great to see the new workshop is serving you well! Super unfortunate the previous owner killed it by putting the piston in backwards its still a great candidate for restoration if you can find replacement parts or maybe have the cylinder bored over and new piston.

You can restore the plastics with some sand paper and heat gun. I use 120 drywall sanding screen. Then 240 grit paper, 400 grit, 1000 grit final then heat treat with a heat gun to get the shiny plastic mold look back to it. Some tire shine when the plastic is still hot and it's good as new.

Love the videos on the older bikes !! Makes me feel right at home !!

Loving these retro 2t bikes ATM keep up the good work been subbed for a few years now you've come a long way keep up the great work

Yamaha it , great bikes I raced a it465 harescrambles( yes the white one ) 1981 in 1983 when I wasn't racing mx , what a great machine, remember that bike as in 84 i was racing a Can-Am mx 500 and needed to get the headstock welded so I removed the headlight off my it465 and put my C-A plate on it and raced it in place of my Can-Am, boy those were the days , and another great video Joe !!

Glad you found your problem, Joe... that IT has the same style engine as the 1980 YZ125... a great bike btw. If you are looking for another carb to use with that slide be sure to search for one with the idle speed (not mixrure) adj screw on the right side of the body. Good thinkin pulling the pipe, I've had them come to me filled with fuel. Good work!

oh yeah man! i have picked up a couple of these old ITs, always impressed how well those crusty blue plastics clean up!

Hand protectors on that will polish out shiny and beautiful. Love the old school look! Those IT bikes were gnarly. Fun to ride, pretty easy to work on. Had an IT 200 for a while. Fun monster.

My first dirt bike was a it125 and then I was able to purchase an it-175 from a gentleman in his seventies that he had automatic chain oiler a marshmallow seat once you sat in it it felt like you were on top of a cloud that brings back memories thank you

I got my first dirt bike in 8th grade my grandfather bought me a 76 it400, that bike used to beat the shit out of me but it was so much fun, after a few hours of riding you couldn't even stand. I miss those days, now I just wake up somedays and can't stand

The throttle slide has the groove on one side and the slanted channel on the other side The slanted channel is how the idle screw raises the slide to adjust idle

I have a cherry 1980 IT 425 . What a great machine . All the ITs were bullet proof . Your bike would be nice restored . Do IT !

I once had a IT465 a IT 200 they put a 465 motor in with your last 2 video's made me remember riding it what a hill climber.

Dude, I'm 49, still ride just as hard as when I was 15 and my woods budy had the IT175, I think I was on a 79 DT250, first year for monoshock or maybe 2nd. Anyway the IT'S are and we're one of favorites, enjoy that bike man, she deserves your care and beating at the same time. Bad ass bike

Bummer on the cylinder damage. Hope you can find another maybe try to open up that port to eliminate the damage and hone it out

$700 = Very good deal imo ! These were very good bikes in their day!!

i never rode one of those, but my fav ride of all time was probably a kdx 200. man i cant believe yamaha put those colors on those, but it was the 80s, everything had colors like that

I had a 1983 IT250, fabulous bike, could not kill it. The one cool thing about these air cooled two strokes, is that you could switch a head and cylinder easily and they were quite cheap.

i raced a 1984 IT490 at blackwater a bunch back in the day, love those old ITs I had a couple 465's and 490s

The carb slide cutaway is for easier idle. It should still rev out since it’ll clear the throat when open. It just won’t idle right unless you adjust the idle screw in more.

Love these retro bikes. Awesome find. I love how these barn find bikes look after sitting all the years. The 70's-80's bikes just look so amazing. True definition of a dirt bike. Any time a bike lands in you possession, it's always a good thing knowing that it will be resurrected and and brought back to running condition with good quality mechanical skills. Great video bub. 👏.

had one and they have some nice power and fun to ride,one of the first enduro bikes

Nice find. Love those 200s. I've been looking for one for quite some time.

I had an all original 1984 IT175 that I was holding onto to rebuild. 4 years I had it needing a cylinder, head, piston, etc. I looked on e-bay after many attempts after many years and saw a complete top end. $350. It was 11pm at night and I was tired, so I decided to buy it in the morning. I woke up in the morning to buy, and it was gone. I was gutted. Gutted so much that I sold it the next day and have been sad ever since. The problem with these bikes is the orientation of the chain. Being on that side, they are very rare. Even trying to get another engine to fit, is difficult, because of where the chain is. Too bad, I miss it. I owned an IT200 as well, but traded that for a boat. Mistakes made. hahaha.

I wanted an IT 175 when they first came out in 1977, they just seemed to be the best all around bike you could ride on the road, but still be able to go serious trail riding…

I rember a buddy getting one like that fresh out of the crate, dealer built it of course...seems like yesterday.

Best friend and racing buddy's dad made the first set of Bark Busters here in the late 70 out of round SS in the Machine shop of the local Mill.

u are a inspiration for me n my step son he jus bought a ninga 200 I think 4 in not running right have to carb but I'd like meet u with my step son miller n tanner all way from huntington West Virginia I been watching u since u started n got my son in watching u to we your biggest fans with with knowledge but not alote monet thank u

Awesome! I'm sitting here looking at my 1985 IT 200 that was in a little better condition than yours but I've been restoring it for 6 months now and it's getting there. Runs great tho. Yamaha calls that box a "boost bottle" just fyi.

Hey Joe, I have a few Blaster cylinders that I'm porting for some folks and I can tell you, that cylinder, piston/rings are the same. You can buy some cheap Amazon special and have it up and running in a few days. I'd offer to loan you a fully ported cylinder and piston but I'd need it back and I would have to do the tuning with my carb and jets. ;) Pops

Super light simple bike and great motor ! Got one , do not sell . Iconic last run ItS

Your picking up some cool bikes lately! Loving it

Great bike. A friend of mine had one of these many years ago. Was big fun for such a small bike. It wasn't all that happy up around timberline, a bit under powered. I had its big brother, an IT490. What a beast. That 200 was a whole lot easier to get out from under when it fell on you..... Still sorry I sold that 490.

That is the most important thing to check when you install a new piston in a 2-Stroke. That was the the problem. That was a huge mistake to make.. lol

Cool Bike, Joe. I’ve many hours logged on a 175IT, but have never seen a 200 IRL

the IT 465 was a beast the only thing I didn't like about it was the self mixer but after bypassing it and mixing it myself the bike ran great. wish Yamaha would bring them back in a special limited series it would be great seller for Yamaha especially in a 250 or 500 class bike.

I just picked up a non running 87 yz250 for $200 and had it running in 30 minutes. Love you cheap bikes

Such a sick bike! Lookin into picking up a 86 IT200 to restore

Like other comments have said, the piston ports need to face the intake, that's how it draws fuel in the case and lubricates the top rod brg.

The ring pops out in the port because the piston is in backwards. The piston ports don't point to the exhaust but to the intake. That's your problem and caused the engine damage.

Good video joe hope you get the parts to fix it take care man 🔧🔧🔧👍👌👌

Love the it 200 great all-rounder I think Another great find joe 👍

My 1st 2 cycle Yamaha.. Wayne's cycle shop.. Waynesboro va.. I was so happy.. This was a good bike.. Out ran the police in vesuvius, VA.. Hahaha

they are not rare at all. glad to see someone was able to fix this. i bet no one could.

The piston looks like it was backwards. That's probably why it blew up. Who ever did the top end last wasn't paying attention or barely knew what they were doing

you had a mint one of these a while back that blew flames out the pipe. this one will clean up all that mould scrapes off the plastic. not a fan of the 200 but 175 riders really rate them as a good all rounder

I've watched your videos for years but I've never seen you rebuild forks on A dirt bike

I had a Yamaha twin the slides were in backwards and exactly like that. That motor sounds very unhappy inside . A good it starts 2-3 kicks

those handguards are for woods racing, trees really do come outa nowhere

Classic case of backwards piston lmao. I love when dudes say they built the motor. That means it's time for me to tear it down without even starting it haha

Hey Nice! I just picked up a 1979 IT400. Looks like that one's big brother. I got a lot of work to do on it though. It is a lot rougher than yours.

Joe it's an ace bike,never seen one before!Looks like a collectors item to me?🤔👍💪💪💪

Considering the age the cylinder sleeve is probably a cast iron insert instead of nika seal. You could probably resleeve it easily

Love the videos bud!

I hope the guy who installed the piston is watching! New liner required? $700! You may be able to still make some back, (it is quite original) depending on how the plastic and rolling chassis responds to revival attempts.

is that an xr400r i see in the background?? i really hope so, love to see a video of that! the one i had along with all my other bikes burned up in a fire recently.

I bet thats a really nice bike once its all fixed up. I've always wanted one like that.

To save time and trouble juggling spark plugs, solder a large alligator clip to a spare plug and clip it to a fin or other ground source.

You put a bunch of oil down the cylinder where did think it was going to end up lol

Now that’s vintage!!

I always liked those ITs.My buddy had the 490? it was a beast!!!

Joe please do an update video on your 1998 cr250 it’s been years I own one myself in my opinion one of the best if not the best dirtbike ever made

so sketch how the gas tank nearly sits on the exhaust. Those expansion chambers get stupid hot. I still have "FMF" branded in to my calf from when I was young lol

OMG! I owned one of these when I was 19 - 20 ! It was a beast!!

That is a really nice bike you will never go wrong with that bike Weathers I T490 or 250 or 125 those were bulletproof

Excellent video Joe.

Look into getting a new sleeve if it can be pressed out

I just got one of these today for free. mint seat. etc. faded plastics. but water got into it and when it froze, it split the carb!! the motor is seized so guessing its a total loss and scrap lol

Some squid installed the piston backwards... Also mix fuel / oil ratio to 20:1 or at least 32:1 if you want your rod bearings to last.

The oil in a 2 stoke is only for the trans, so it isn't nearly as critical as it is in a 4 stroke.

Nice workout. Thinking there maybe broken parts in the oil.

The two I work on are bout same cosmetic conditions. Tons of trail miles on em.

I had one of these in the 90s that caught fire in the woods and burned up on me, that was a long walk home lol

wonder if a blaster top end will work on that they look close from the vid and there cheap

That "Canister" is called a 'Boost Bottle', a Yamaha exclusive that seldom if ever worked. Back then they (Yamaha) messed around with boost bottles, and sometimes they worked, most times they didn't do anything...

Not much info on those, worked on a couple, guy here local has set of em 1984s. Seem to be pretty nice rigs. Enjoy.

Looks like the same motor a Yamaha blaster has cool bike nice find

If you ever need to find out the size of a blank jet. Use a slide needle and see how far up it goes compared to some stamped ones you have laying about

Amazing videos 😁

That plastic box is the early version of a boost bottle to even out the reed pressure

You can have that cylinder bored ,and chamfer the exhaust port , and run it. Been there done that.

Have u ever worked on a 87 tt225 just bought one and missing a few parts and didn’t know what will work on it and what won’t

Got that same bike in a partial trade for another bike. It's engine was completely taken apart and laying in several boxes. Damned engine case halves were warped. I put it together and had to do it all over again after the transmission oil was sucked into the crankcase. Thought I f-cked up sealing the case halves, so I re did it. Didn't work. Had to buy some machinist's blocks so I could check the trueness of the case halves. Dang bike cost me more money and time than it was worth. Hated that bike then and still do.

This, in my opinion is the best era for Yamer'har.... I rode the IT200 one summer and did enjoy it. about 10 -15 yrs later I bought a Yamer'har 250... Ill never buy another... Kawasaki or Suzuki. Unfortunately it looks like it was sitting outside

Peep that little Honda I always wanted to get one but in hawaii it’s hard to find and if they sell it it’s crazy

Its on the the 1980 kdx175 you had the same issue with the carborator. I have the same bike as the kdx175 and was wondering what did you do with that bike? Im trying to find parts for mine.

You can get iron on transfers for the seat YAMAHA. UFO do them front fenders XT DT IT YZ some aren't too bad anyway. I bet they'd sand out heatgun & polish

I have a 1986 and was wondering what kind of oil goes into the crankcase and how much

When I get something this crunchy I submerge the seals inside too and I dump it out when the engine gets smoother

After about 10 kick's you should be able to take the plug out look at it and figure out why it's not starting