Another Penton in the garage - 1973 Jackpiner 175

[johnbowman]

I hope that everyone is doing well despite the Coronavirus troubles.

I was just starting to work on my second 72 Six Day when a friend sent me info on a Jackpiner for sale. Looks like I'm going to have to change AHRMA classes from Classic to Sportsman 200. That way I can run either the Jackpiner or Six Day on any given day.

The Jackpiner VIN number is 21159125. Am I right in assuming this would be a 1973 model made in November of 1972 after the holiday (vacation) break?

All of you Jackpiner enduro racers, please feel free to give me your advice on set-up. That greatly helped in the set up of the Six Day. I'm specifically looking for advice on gearing for cross country racing/woods, jetting and size for a Mikuni (that's what's on the bike), and tire selection for cross country racing. If the fluids are different from the Six Day, that would be nice to know also. Is it better to run the 520 or 530 chain?

Looks like Al is going to be a little closer to retirement after he opens this morning!

Best wishes,

John

[Larry Perkins]

Congrats John!  It is a 73. One mod in thought but I am certainly not a 175 expert is the change to the larger kicker.

Larry P

[johnbowman]

quote:Originally posted by Larry Perkins

Congrats John!  It is a 73. One mod in thought but I am certainly not a 175 expert is the change to the larger kicker.

Larry P

Larry,

Good morning. I hope that you are still recovering well. Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.

Stay safe!

John

[Dennis DeGonia]

That bike is 85 serial numbers after the one I am working on. Does it have the tube type kickstand or the one that is located with a tab on the side of the swingarm? Just curious. D

[rob brown]

Hi John. How is that 250 project coming along? I believe you said a buddy was going to take it on. It did need a lot of tlc. It seems as you are diving headfirst into Pentons! Good for you! I just picked up a decent project 73 Jackpiner: May 0f 73 build.  I had one in the past, but had to let all my Pentons go during the Great Recession. A very fine gentleman bought the JP at VMD. His son raced it there and won. I am looking forward to this one as a keeper.  Good luck with your racing!

[johnbowman]

quote:Originally posted by Dennis DeGonia

That bike is 85 serial numbers after the one I am working on. Does it have the tube type kickstand or the one that is located with a tab on the side of the swingarm? Just curious. D

Dennis,

Good morning. I hope that you are doing well. This bike has the tab mount side stand.

John

[johnbowman]

quote:Originally posted by rob brown

Hi John. How is that 250 project coming along? I believe you said a buddy was going to take it on. It did need a lot of tlc. It seems as you are diving headfirst into Pentons! Good for you! I just picked up a decent project 73 Jackpiner: May 0f 73 build.  I had one in the past, but had to let all my Pentons go during the Great Recession. A very fine gentleman bought the JP at VMD. His son raced it there and won. I am looking forward to this one as a keeper.  Good luck with your racing!

Rob,

Good morning. I hope that you're doing well. Looks like everyone has caught the Jackpiner bug.

Last year, I didn't own a Penton. Now, I have a small collection. My wife tells me that I need to put up a divider between the bikes because they are multiplying. I told her that we couldn't be so lucky.

Sounds like your bike has some good history. I wish that I knew the history of my bikes. I'll bet that they would have some stories to tell.

My buddy, Ken Pulley, has the HS 250 at his house. He has been having serious problems trying to get his IT250 running again in hopes that we actually get to race this year. That poor HS 250 needs a lot of love. Thanks for being honest with me and giving me a good deal. We'll end up putting a pretty good amount into it to get it going again. If it was a patient, it would be on life support. He wants to race it in AHRMA cross country next year. Luckily, God blessed me with a good case of stubbornness and didn't give me enough common sense to know when to quit. We'll see. When we get it going, I'll send you some pictures or post a link here.

There's something about these Pentons. They just get into your blood. I'm still amazed at how well the little Six Day did at the last race. It was a blast seeing all the Penton owners with a smile on their faces. Everyone was really nice and helpful.

Lori and I were talking last night about how to keep interest in the bikes going once I get too old (hopefully, a long, long way off). All my kids ride (twin boys and two girls). They are in their late twenties and early thirties. I have three grandsons. They all ride dirt bikes. I might have to start some Penton projects with them. We could meet at the races for family time.

It's just a shame that families don't do stuff like that together anymore. Kids have their nose stuck up against a smartphone or tablet all day now. Wouldn't hurt them to get out and get some dirt and grease on them. Makes them grow.

I'll climb down off my soap box now. Have a good one!

John

[johnbowman]

quote:Originally posted by Dennis DeGonia

That bike is 85 serial numbers after the one I am working on. Does it have the tube type kickstand or the one that is located with a tab on the side of the swingarm? Just curious. D

Dennis, sorry, told you the wrong thing on the side stand. It is tube mounted.

John