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I am hearing a nasty screeching sound when the engine is on 'overrun' but as long as the engine is under load, all is quiet.
I've checked the drive sprocket wondering if I'd feel any looseness if the bearing had gone (?) but there's no sign of any.
All seems OK under the clutch cover, but facilities are limited here - just a few basic tools.
Not much to go on I know, but any advice would be very welcome.

jimmigrant.

Jim,
I had the same thing , I thought it was the flywheel rubbing the crankcase or a out of line chain/sprocket thing. It was fine underload, but off the throttle a bag of spanners, the sound coming somewhere from the engine..
In my case It turned out to be the nylon chain guide on top of the swingarm, the chain had sawn it's way through and was clattering on the exposed retaining screw when it was running a bit slack ( off the throttle). I baulked at the price of a replacement and decided to make one out of a block of nylon.. Big mistake and not a thing of beauty I confess.
Better to buy one from NLM!
While I was at it I replaced the nylon chain wheel underneath with a nice bearing mounted one (£7 ebay ) and changed the chain and sprockets.
What a difference.
Mileage on the bike was around 27.000 k

Just had my first look under the chain guard, and very glad I did. Not the cause of the trouble unfortunately, but another potential problem looming with the top chain guide. It should last out the month (if I get mobile). I have fitted a cheap version of the bottom roller, but I'll get both bits when I get back.
Glad you mentioned that - thank you Haboola72.

jimmigrant.

Another possible clue is that there's a slight tapping in the clutch cover on tickover, only when the lever is pulled in.
Any ace mechanics out there ....?

jimmigrant.

It's possible that the clutch is contacting the outer cover. The primary drive gears are helical, so the clutch moves in and out depending on load.

Sorted. With my helmet off, I could tell that the noise was further back. The unbelievably diabolical racket is actually coming from the cheap bottom roller fitted by the local agricultural machinery shop. It's making the frame resonate like a tuning fork in a spin drier. Coupled with 16 year old tyres that make the bike skitter over the tarmac like a greased piglet, the riding experience is yet to be perfected. New tyres have arrived from Valencia, and will go on today.
I've ordered both chain guides from NLM (Whom the Gods preserve), and they may arrive before I go back up north.
The other Morinista in town offered me his spare engine before we got the fault diagnosed, people really seem to help each other out here in the mountains - another reason to find a house here. I'm on it.
I've noticed that the best way to start the bike is to kick it over and twist the throttle at the same time - this seems to work reliably and reminds me of starting my old Lambretta.
There the similarity ends.

jimmigrant.

jimmigrant wrote:... the riding experience is yet to be perfected. ...
jimmigrant.

Keep on 'perfecting' - in my experience the off-roaders (well, Kanguros anyway), are really comfortable bikes and handle well, too.
If I could find a good electric-start one I'd snap it up.

Cheers Ming - this perfecting business is an ongoing delight. The back half of the bracket which holds the lower chain guide has now broken away from the rest of the frame, no doubt due to the excessive vibration. It does look as if the bracket was only welded on one side (underneath), allowing it to flex and then crack predictably along the edge of the weld when it falls into the eager hands of a novice who fails to realise the existence of that little wheel, never mind its importance, until things got really pear-shaped.

Fortunately my fellow Morinista across the valley has a welding kit which I can borrow, so I hope to weld both sides of the bracket and perhaps add a bit of extra support while I'm there.
I agree about the comfort factor, I might try some thinner fluid in the forks and back off the tension on the rear shock a touch, but potholes are no bother, and it handled the road from Orgiva to Canar which is a series of steep hairpins mile after mile, really well considering the antique tyres (and rider).
I gather that Kanguros come up for sale quite often in Spain, and quite cheap too, though many have had a hard life. Certainly when I find a place to live here, I should be able to get a few spares together. There's a massive amount of off-road riding to be done here, donkey tracks, riverbeds, and mountain trails - and the Kanguro is in it's element.

jimmigrant.

I totally agree with Ming I have a x3 which has been chopped about a bit, but what a comfortable easy to ride bike, pulls like a train and handles like a dream, I have wound the rear shock right out and run the front forks quite soft it glides over the pot holes on the back lanes around here.
Regards Pete.