This is really the tale of two motorcycles, a 1973 TS250 and a 1980 TS250/1 Supa 5. My love affair with MZs began in 1979. I had been riding a Yam YG1 for a year after six years absence from riding since selling my Sunbeam S8. The YG1 was a very nice machine in the engine and handling departments, but for commuting down unlit country lanes the 15 watt headlamp left something to be desired; rather than replace the light I decided to replace the bike.
I read a write up in MCN about the TS125 which applauded its 45 watt headlamp which it shared with its larger brother. This, allied with the fact that I preferred two strokes and that TS250s can be picked up very cheaply, started me thinking about buying one. A little later, whilst in Edinburgh on holiday, I saw a group of 250s heavily loaded with camping gear, wearing Berlin number plates; their owners were obviously full of faith and confidence in MZ reliability.
My first T8250 came along shortly afterwards. For an initial outlay of £120 (which I immediately recouped by selling my Yamaha) I found myself the, er, proud owner of a very scruffy, rattly, red TS250.
When I bought it, the odometer read 12000 miles, and when I stopped riding it that had risen to 32000. I was told that the original owner had seized it in a big way and promptly sold it to the next owner who freed the piston by using brute force. The result was that it had dreadful piston slap. However, as long as I used Silkolene Super-2 40, the noise was bearable. I never did manage to get round to having the engine rebored.
That machine was reliability itself. During the six years I rode it, it only let me down three times. The first time was when the gear lever return spring broke, the second was ten miles after replacing the above spring when the kickstart spring went in sympathy. The third problem occurred when the voltage regulator packed up. There were other trivial annoyances, for example the fuse box is actually an open double fuse holder secured to the back of the battery compartment, consequently every few thousand miles the contacts corrode and the engine won’t run with the lights on. Still, when you know about it...
In 1985, the four Speeder developed severe bottom end knocking noises in addition to all the top end rattling. A change of address meant that the daily commuting toll increased to 38 miles, thus I decided to look for a newer machine. I found a Supa 5 with 12000 miles on the clock which now has 32000 miles on it, funnily enough.
With the Supa 5 l have experienced more mechanical failures than on the older bike, but overall the day-to-day reliability is still there.
The first failure happened after 1000 miles, whilst on the way to work the clutch centre came loose on the end of the crankshaft for the second time (the previous owner had lightly passed over a similar occurrence when telling me of its history) and I drove 15 miles further to work under the false impression that the plates were merely slipping.
Needless to say the clutch centre was useless. However, no great problem as the one off the old bike was cannibalised. That lasted for a further 3000 miles until I stripped the engine (not for the last time) to replace the main bearings (not for the last time). I took the opportunity to replace the damaged clutch centre (£18).
The next 6000 miles were pretty uneventful, except for replacing the tyre (the same life as for the old bike) and fitting a new chain at 20760 miles (thank goodness for enclosed rear chains). But at 22500 miles I again fell foul of East European bearings when the output shaft bearing in the gearbox went in a big way - luckily whilst travelling in a straight line. This time it was all new gearbox bearings and a new sliding second pinion and selector fork.
All was well for another 4000 miles when it was the turn of the big-end to seize solid on the way to work. Yet another engine strip and rebuild! Luckily the MZ engine is very simple for the home mechanic to work on, the only special tool needed is a clutch extractor. While I had the motor apart that time I replaced the main bearings and gear selector return spring as precautions before putting it all back together. That was 6000 miles ago.
As you can see I've had a few problems with the bike but with the low cost of spares and the use of the old bike as a source of cheap bits (complete exhaust, voltage regulator, chain hoses, amongst others), they have never been very serious despite the need to strip the engine.
The Supa 5 never returns less than 73mpg, typically doing 78mpg at 55 to 60mph. I always use Silkolene oil which has left the piston and bore in perfect condition. Most of the problems have been caused by poor quality bearings fitted as original equipment and all replacements have been good quality British or French equivalents.
Both bikes have been used as much as possible in all conditions and I’ve found the handling to be reassuring even in black ice conditions, recovering from slides surprisingly well and having a very secure feel that belies it commuter status. I look forward to moving on to the ETZ300, but not until my Supa 5 stops giving me cheap, reliable and safe riding - it inspires that kind of loyalty despite the problems.
Patrick Hickey