What Do I Have?

Picked up what was claimed to be a 1980 Husqvarna CR250. This is my first vintage Husky i've had that i was planning to race a couple vintage races this year...

After getting it home, i checked the #'s on the motor & frame and confirmed it's a 1981. Not a huge deal, just would have been nice to be advertised as such especially with how far i drove to grab it.

Carb & Gas tank was leaking gas after i got it home so i pulled the tank to swap it out and rebuilt the carb. That's when i noticed, the tank isn't right and looks to be a earlier tank most likely. Has the hook at the back of the tank versus the 2 below that uses a band to connect. This tank currently has slight interference with the seat making it hard to install the seat.



Reason I went with wanting an 80 over an 81 was to get the smaller tank than the 81+.
What options/years/models, if any, do I have to get to keep a small tank but gain the under side strap i need?

Each time i poke around on this bike, I find something else wrong. Looks like finding any definitive details on the 81 is a bit more difficult. Plenty out there on the 80 and 82's, but struggling to come up with anything concrete on some of my questions.

Another couple questions I have:
- Is an 81 supposed to have the shocks mounted to the side of the swing arm or the top? This has it on the side, however, i've seen swing arms labeled as 81's that have the mounting on the top. I see it both ways online.
- Does the exhaust side number plate only supposed to mount to the shock bolt and then clip under the frame? Some years look to have a second mounting hole.

As i tear into this more and more, i'm finding i over paid and this is bike was a polished turd. It's for the most part complete, so it makes things a little easier to work with just would have freed up cash for the project if i knew i was buying a bike requiring an entire rebuild.

Anyways, plan is to start tearing her down in the next couple months (don't tell the wife...) and it be a winter long project. My wife and I are restoring a 83 YZ125 now as a joint project, project isn't too far from done one the suspension gets back. Hoping to have it mostly wrapped up before starting on this one.

Welcome to the world of Husqvarna where different components from different years end up on a bike they just bought. Sooner or later some will pipe in and tell you what belongs on your bike and where what does not came from

first get onto HVA Factory website and down load the free parts manuals. this should help clarify some issues. good source of knowledge here so most q's will be answered. also this era husky's had the potential for instant production line alterations so some run out bikes from 1 year can have parts / mods for the next year. being small operation, husky engineers could literally ring the shop floor and make changes. this also lets "PO's" mix and match bits making bastard bikes out of cheap lots....visiteur 1948 is a good source of knowledge on these year models. search the forum also will bring up lots of pics and advice.. welcome to husky world