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I am a keen and frankly **** mountain biker. Looking to learn about trials as my son is keen. He has the talent I would have loved, but he struggles in life

Thanks for your reply I bought them from a well known Montesa specialist, not my dealer, so I expected to receive some decent quality but I'm affraid you're right. What is a good brand? I don't have any experience in this matter. I think I can get them in a useable shape but it will take some time

I definitely would file them off If I was going to use them , but they sound like they are cheap rubbish from how you described them. Perhaps a better brand of product may be worth the extra expense.

I think I can read on the scales that the new tyre is about 2.5 pounds heavier than the old tyre. Some of that will be rubber loss but not that much. Maybe they stiffened the design. Old IRCs are notoriously "flexible" and require the air pressure to be spot on. I would be very happy to be able to buy new IRCs, even if they are a bit heavier than they used to be. How old is the used one? They have the manufacturing date on them. The wear pattern on the used tyre looks nothing like my worn IRCs. Was it used for trials riding?

Results James Cup 2026-3.pdf

Report Ken O'Brien. A clear but cold and sunny morning greeted a classy entry of 83 riders for the 80th running of the James Challenge and Thistle Anderson Cups incorporating a round of the Meteor Group Championship. The James Challenge Cup itself was presented to Ixion in 1946 by the ' The James Cycle Company of Birmingham ' and this prestigious Open to Centre event in the past has been won by such great riders as John Avery Sammy Miller Don Smith Brian Devereux Bill Faulkner Pat Lamper Ray and Graham Haslam Freddie Mayes John Bull John Lee and in the later years Chris Koch ( 7 ) Steve Reece Rob Warner the Cowley brothers Tony and John to name but a few. The event was staged at Howe Wood Watlington where ten sections were plotted and ridden four times on the chalky Flinted hills of the Chiltern range. Two cups were up for grabs today the James Cup for best Expert riding the hard route and the Thistle Anderson Cup for the best adult performance on the middle route. Gus Oblein was using maximum power on the Gasser 300 TXT as there were many long steep rooted banks to tackle on the way to victory in the Expert class taking the premiere award with a loss of zero. Four cleans on section nine sealed the win for Gus as Harry Coleman 300 GP Gasser had to take a steadying dab his only mark lost on his first lap to maintain forward motion, it was a pretty severe section a tight drop over roots with an equally steep climb before lining up for the big rooty outcrop maybe 30 feet or so of continuous slick bank from a grip-less leafy base and then a double banked climb to finish. Gus got off-line on section ten first lap also a tricky rooted cambered job but managed to ' hold it ' and from there on it was plain sailing with three perfect circuits. The Intermediate 50/50 ( hard - middle ) was competitive today but it was aced up with a superb controlled ride by Darren Haines 300 Beta parting with a miserly 2 marks with the offending sections being one and four. It was the top sector of section four that took one of Darren's dabs a slick chalky climb then a very loose loamy camber before a hop over a couple of fallen trees then a rooty off-set camber and drop to the ends. On the yellow middle route there was much known in the trade as ' Gardening ' going on and another superb ride was put in by Ixion club member Adrian Steele piloting the 250 Beta around for tally of Nil Point lost. Steele needed Nerves of Steel as he watched avidly at section six ' The Pine Tree Climb ' where it all looked fairly innocuous under foot, but if you were unlucky enough to follow a rider footing his way up the undulating path you were in for a loose stony time of it . Adrian produced his well timed run at exactly the right moment to save the day and go on to take the very apt Victory and the Thistle Anderson Cup. Last Years Thistle Anderson winner Matthew Larkin 300 Beta also finished clean but was unable to retain his pot as the tie-break rule of smaller CC engine was brought into play. Yet another clean ride performance on the middle route was recorded by 250 Beamish Suzuki rider Graham Haslam, as always in control and inch perfect taking the best Twinshock Award from Peter Cook on the little 200 Fantic. James Bannister also had a go at the middle yellow route but on his classic BSA C15 parting with 14, section seven proving the hard one for most of the entry and was James most testing hazard on the Banger. A bottom gear climb over a fallen tree then a drop into deep leaf mould before a very tricky camber then an acute-angled left handed turn up over a short sharp climb where exposed flints were making the going somewhat awkward. Jack Pettit 125 Beta was best in class Youth A with a narrow victory over Riley Middlehurst both going well on the Big Hills of section four. Charlie Scott Howlett also 125 Beta was having a great time with a Youth B class win for his troubles. The 50/50 easy - middle route was always going to be a close call with a high class Veteran status entry and the gathered crowd weren't disappointed as John Hawthorne put in a superb performance on the BSA Bantam parting with a very impressive 1 mark lost. Simon Dowling and Jessie Basford taking the minor places, both showing skill and determination at section one a combination of rooty banks and cambers although not as easy as it looked with many marks being recorded throughout the proceedings. On the White Eased course yet another faultless performance was put in, this time by Paul Heron 300 Vertigo ahead of Ixion veteran Gordon Pusey 290 Beta on 3 marks lost. Section three a newly formed sub due the Winter storms dropping three large trees in exactly the positions required for a bit of log hopping, this did not deter or bother the above named riders although a fair scattering of marks were recoded here by half of the entry. Some lovely kit was on show today in the Pre65 class , BSA Triumph Ariel but it was the immaculately turned out BSA 185cc Bantam of David Clarkson that took the honours on 6 marks lost which included a very soft five when a cold engine was the problem after sitting patiently in the queue waiting for the whistle to blow. Keith Baty also Bantam of standard 175cc took runner-up and was excellent at section two were at least a foot of summer leaves had formed to make for a difficult approach to the climb up around a large Oak before lining up for an attack on the last steep sector. Freddie Middlehurst 125 Beta was best in class for Youth C from Leonardo Bianchini 80 Beta with Isla Crabtree having to call it a day after engine failure. Many thanks to all who helped on the day. Our next Trial is the Norton Trophy at Beckley on Remembrance Saturday November the 7th ( All classes welcome but no Hard Route ).

... I mean the bike should have come with PGM-Fi instead of a being saddled with a CV carburetor, then it would be at least as good as a Montesa in performance and reliability.

Hello Mine has the same issue, it seems typical for the Montesa Honda Reason to try dimpled plates but I have raised a question about it because I doubt the quality of what I have received

I had one a few years ago, probably about a 2014. I liked it. It had the typical Beta issues of clutch cold stick (the salesman nearly put it through the showroom window when I went to view it! 🤣) and an air filter that can hoover up mud and leaves from 100 yards away. I don't know what Lemur means about the carb rotting. It is a swine to remove and fit though, but it does go when you've found the knack. The 4T sounds lovely. I reckon it's just as good a bike as a Montesa and much cheaper secondhand.

It's hard to read your scales. What are you saying? Tubed is heavier than tubeless? Or the other way around?

I bought a set of dimple plates for my 2026 Montesa 260 4RT I expected to see smooth plates with dimples in it but to my surprise every dimple is surrounded by a tiny edge which lays above the surface of the plate. It seems to me as if it has been forgotten to grind them flush. I can feel them real good so I doubt if this will work. I am affraid it will destroy the clutch in no time. Anyone with experience can give me advise in this? Shouldn't I grind this flush and smooth?

Hello all, I'm from the Netherlands I am riding a trial bike for a year and a half now and I love it. Bought a new Montesa 260 4RT 2 months ago.

Nice bike but the carburetor rots.

I'm looking at a 2019 EVO 300 4t, any comments on the machine Guy

Hi folks, Bought a Honda TLR200 Japanese import project bike a while ago, cleaned up the rear drum fitted new shoes but the lever arm on the brake plate travels a long way befor the brake engages, the cam is near 90deg..so the feel is horrible and it does not like to return easily at the angle. the drum inside is within spec. Maybe shoes with much thicker brake material would help? The wheel rims are totally corroded, where are you folks buying rims? are there other rimes I could fit from other bikes? taa

What year of TY is it? Asking to find out if it has a magneto ignition like my old 1974 model has. I don't know if newer models have cdi/breakerless ignitions or not. Did it just suddenly stop on you, or just won't start after sitting for awhile? Having said that, it's never a bad idea to check and clean all the ground contacts (to earth). If it has a points ignition, take the ignition side cover off and have a look under there. Sometimes condensation can be the problem there. Be sure wiring looks good, points are opening and closing, and etc. Lemur's suggestion to check the plug cap is a good one. You can do a lot of electrical checks with a cheap DVOM (Digital Volt/Ohm Meter) on that cap, the coil, and wiring and such. (Added after re-reading your post, Andy-Walt): I think Lemur is on to something. If you can get spark without a plug cap, a new spark plug cap may be in your future. Personally, for my bikes, I've never worried about having a resistor style cap or even resistor spark plugs in my bikes with a CDI ignition. And spark plug caps are cheap to buy and try........ Jimmie

Hello, Today I had a test ride on a Montesa 4Ride 2017. Overall, I love the bike. The only thing I could not get used to was the clutch. Compared to the KTM Freeride 250 or Ossa Explorer, where the clutch is buttery-smooth and I can modulate it very smoothly, the 4Ride clutch seemed rather on/off, which made it difficult to get moving while balancing. Also, the clutch is much heavier to pull compared to KTM/Ossa, even though it's hydraulic. Is it normal on Montesas? Or was it just the test bike having issues? Thanks!

Did you test or replace the 5k resistor spark plug cap?

I'm a bit surprised Beta kept the six fiber plate clutch pack. The one advantage of the diaphragm spring is its non-linear transfer curve. If the actuator is in the correct part of the curve the static holding pressure on the pack can be greater than the pressure needed to pull the clutch in. That's why the other bikes with diaphragm clutches use three fiber plates. And three plates means a lot less hydraulic drag. But Beta does like to milk parts inventory so maybe a three plate design will come in a few years.

Hi all bit off a problem here,,,,,, i have a ty 250. now we have power to the end off the HT lead but no spark. this is confusing the hell out of me. Has anybody out there any idea what it may be please

Installed a 9v as suggested in the thread. Bike started on the third kick cold after sitting for several weeks!

To make a complete set of wheels. Same base as the rear, Akront rim on a lightweight AJP hub with 36 spokes. After cleaning the hub, a pair of new bearings. The spokes and nipples are new (A joy to assemble!) And finally, a lightweight rotor.

Lol yeah had to drop the swing arm bout out and leave the lower bolt in so it came towards. Didn't have a lath just a mirror and 400 wet n dry and figure of 8 trees up the head. It was a weird warp as it was domed so the edges were high. Back together now but snaped the front lower ending mount. I do t think the 50nm torque is correct

This thread died a couple of years ago, but I'm starting to suspect that my starting issues are related to the OHTOKC CDI. The wiring diagram that was provided with the unit didn't match all of the wire colors on the unit. What did you find out? I'd also love to see the detail of the cold joints. Thanks!

SSDMC Trial 111026.pdf