Hi,

All sorted now, bought a kickstart assembly for an RD250, discard the lever and its a perfect fit, £23

Thanks everyone

That 583-15621 boss on ebay must have been mislabeled or something... it's the same part that fits the RD250 so if the boss from the used RD250 lever fit, the new one should have. Probably a seller mistake of some kind... guessing at the fitment or an open package where parts had been mixed up at some time.

Anyway, Congratulations! And thank you very much for updating us! I'm sure others will find it helpful that you've verified a more common replacement for that elusive kick boss!

Hi,

Yep, they more or less said they weren't sure which models it would fit, anyway its being returned without fuss, so all is well in the end.

So grateful for all the help from the guys on here, its much appreciated

Stay Safe folks

Yep, just highlights one of my "soapbox" subjects! That is, if you can find out exactly what your part looks like, and perhaps its dimensions, then you can a) avoid buying parts that don't fit and b) pick up the occasional bargain!

I bought a KS aftermarket Kickstart lever from a Yamaha XS 750 from 1977 - 1979 for about 30 Euro on Ebay. Perfect match, the boss is identical with the DT 250 - 400 boss. My OEM DT arm lever fits perfect onto the Boss.
Now i will see, if is solid enough to bare some kick-backs.

I think I have a couple of new (NOS) ones.

Hi Guys
I know this is an old topic but it has helped me for when I need to source new parts, my boss has not snapped but I have a lot of play on my kick lever to boss connection. I also have an issue with the boss I think, I can move the boss back and forth on the splined shaft but the boss bolt is fully nipped up and no gap in the boss joint, so im thinking the boss may not be original, or the metal has stretched closing the gap over the years.
the kick lever is also catching the footrest mount and has worn it quite badly (the footrest mount) not the lever (previous owners)
I am uncertain that the kick lever is correct if you can take a look at the pics and suggest a fix as I feel the boss will soon break with having all that side force on it when hitting the footrest mount. I owned the bike since August and it started its live is California but now resides in the UK 1975 DT 400B
when you look at the pics the boss looks newer than the kick lever, you can also see the wear on the footrest mount were it has been hitting it   

GARYDEAN,

I'm not quite clear on what you're asking/expecting...  impossible to see the "looseness" in your photos...  doesn't sound good though.

As far as the peg mount wear, I'd have to say that might be mostly "technique"?  Like the old joke where the guy tells his doctor "it hurts when I do this" and the doctor says "then don't do that". 

Starter lever is not going to clear the peg...  best way to avoid is not kick it through that far/hard.

Forgive me if the above and especially the following is offensive...  I don't know what you know so I'm being very basic. 

Best method is to bring piston up on compression stroke with slow partial kicks...  then reset lever to top and give it a nice kick through. 

If it doesn't start, repeat the entire procedure

The damage I've usually seen to either kick parts (or legs/feet/ankles) is when someone flails away at the starter lever as hard and fast as they can.  

First video I came across you can ignore most of what he says but pay attention to how he brings it up on compression and then after it doesn't start, he patiently does the same thing again for the second kick attempt. 



Maybe you can post a video to YouTube and link it here or take some other pictures of the lever wearing on peg you're concerned about? 

Of course. I might just be dense and what you're asking is clear to others...  if so, hopefully they'll comment. 

Just to be clear, the "wear" in pictures I see is on the peg. 

 

If kickstarter is rubbing somewhere else on peg mount, hard to see in pics. 

Your starter lever bend doesn't look right to me...  there are other pics in thread and articles/manuals in Tech Library with good pictures of kick lever.  Yours looks a little different.  Not sure that's a problem but could be if rubbing somewhere else.

 

Hi Guys
I will get some better pictures, mean while the rubbing is indicated in green on this pic