Pre-65 Bikes

Question. I've had a question from a guy who has a Sprite trials bike in basically standard condition with an iron barreled Villiers 32A motor. He wanted to know if the Sprite was eligable for Pre65 events. Now i thought that Sprites were made from 65 onwards so they are most definately NOT eligable for Pre65 events. Not a problem to ride in our events as we dont have a Pre65 class any longer as i felt it was too much of a minefield so the class has been changed to British Bike but he was concerned taht his bike is or is not eligable for Pre65. Roy Bacons book seems to infer that as i said they are not eligable but canb anybody here give me a categorical answer?

I am interested in building a B40 on a new frame and don't really fancy the Miller 'Hi-boy'. Does anyone know of another frame maker other than Cheney? I have a lovely Cub with a hand built frame that I believe was by Roy Burgess - is he still making frames does anyone know and how to get hold of him? Any help and advice appreciated!

I have a long term project on the go at the moment a C15. Was up the shed tonight and done a dry build on the rolling chassis,seems like I will have to increase the ground clearance as its quite low about 9",not very good.The frame is standard, front forks are standard,What is the best length of rear shockers to fit to help with the ground clearance.As I said its a long term project as I'm enjoying riding my 250 Scorpa and learning every trial I do.Any other advice would be much appreciated. cheers the noo Brian

Getting this off my chest. I do not expect any support in my post. I just wanted to say it and share it. I am a returning rider after a long lay off. I rode extensively in the North and mostly Cumbria. I managed to get to Intermediate standard which was hard to do. You had to win a Novice trial. Very hard 'upt North'. Once up a level you could not ride at a lower level. ie, No more Novice events or results. I now live in Suffolk and ride twin shock and Pre 70 bikes. I am 67 years old and ride the white routes. Here is my first gripe, why do those with far greater ability ride white routes? In some trials you ride as Expert and 50/50 but when it suits you ride the wh…

Hi Guys, I know this sound stupid but GOV132. is lost. I thought it was still at the National Motor Museum, No reference. Sammy Miller Museum, No reference. National Motorcycle Museum. No reference. The last time I saw "The legend" was in the spring at the Classic show at Malvern. Where is it Now, Has Colin Dommett got it back? Scott was garding it at the show. PS, Did'nt a young man named, ? Clarke own it at one time too. PS<PS Just found a picture of Mick Clarke riding GOV 132, in ORR number 38, will post it when I have zaped it on to my site. Regards. Charlie.

Hi Guys. I have decided to build an exact replica of Scott Ellis's last works BSA C15 F. I have several photos of the bike with Scott riding it, but only one picture of the bike from a side view, in Don Morley's book. Has any one out there got any side view shots of the bike, or does any one know where the bike BOK228C is. It is still registered at the DVLA as a BSA 250. ( this is the frame that the copy is now reffered to as an Otter). Regards Charlie.

Hi all, can anyone give me some advice on the drawbacks of purchasing a Drayton Bantam? I've been given the opportunity to purchase one at a good price but heard that they aren't accepted at many of the pre65 British bike type trials? I'm thinking I may have a problem getting in at BMCA events and I guess the Scottish should I ever decide to have a go. Is this generally the case? Will I be limited? Do they hold their value as well as the purer versions as far as the investment goes? Many thanks, Stewart

I did a silly thing today, I totalled up how much I have spent on my engine rebuild (a Villiers 32a) Including the buying the engine its cost just over £900 and I still haven’t got an ignition yet! I didn’t expect it to cost so much, the last time I rebuilt a complete engine it cost less than £300!

I currently have my 350 Ajay motor in bits for a full rebuild,tis in a bit of a state after doing a lot of hard work.I also plan to rebuild my HT motor as a short stroke 500 as soon as the Ajay is back running. I want both motors to run as well as possible,be reliable and long lasting.So as much care as possible will be taken in building them... So my question is,what balance factor is best to use,Don Moreley suggests using a factor of 60%, is this still the sensible number ? Both bikes will be used for road based trials,but I'm not worried about vibration at higher engine speeds on the road,I'm happy just to pootle along between groups of sections and enjoy a smooth a…

Hi Guys. Here

Just a quick note to let you all know that the entries for the Kinlochleven Pre-65 in May are now open...you'll find the forms on the SSDT website if you're interested. Update : The website address is www.ssdt.org!

Have a look at this old comerfords ad from June 1965 They have a 1964 Sprite 250cc for sale (cheap too)

Does anybody know who makes the mick andrews james replicas you see at pre 65 trials

Those who know me fairly well know I have a thing about older Italian bikes especially the lightweights in addition to my thing about Spanish strokers. Looking for inspiration to get back into my 55 Morini 175 project I discovered these beauties. Most of course fairly "developed" This one I may have seen before Is it just me that likes this stuff here?

Hello all, Been having a nosey round this awesome corner of the forum for some inspiration and advice. As a direct result of my mate Petorius' purchase of a Tiger Cub project i am now the proud owner of a Bantam project. I'm not new to the world of bikes (i'm on 6 and counting) and projects but i am somewhat new to the world of trials and in particular pre 65. The sorry looking pile of parts currently consists of a D3 1956 swingarm frame, a 1959 D7 engine, a chrome tank, and not a lot else. One thing i have found is a casting on the underside of the head "GT100B", i was led to believe that the engine had a Todd centre plug head, i was wondering if this casting corres…

Hi there my dad is looking to ride the Scottish Pre65 in 2015 but he needs to sort out the forks on the bantam, can anyone tell me what forks to use or what forks you turn down to fit Triumph 3TA fork bottoms and what yokes to use. cheers

What is the best carb choice for a tiger cub 200 for Pre-65 events. is there a restriction on tyre choice, ie X1 michelins allowed ?

entered a national event in 4 weeks time but last time out my bike was pinking a bit.Reading up on the internet it seems like one of the causes could be build up of carbon. I also read about a tuner in the states that gas flows heads using a sandblaster. So i thought i could kill two birds with one stone (epecially as it is so tricky to get the push rods back in). This afternoon I took the air filter out and the silencer off, fired the bike up, held it at about 3000 rpm and throw hand fulls of sand into the airbox. most of the sand seems to have come out so I put it all back together again. Problem is now that it runs really rough. I reckon it so well gas flowed I need…

I recently purchased a cub to convert into trials trim. I am trying to decide what is the best route to go with for the front end. The bike I have has the heavyweight front end on it. I have read about putting modern internals into the heavyweight forks. I think this may be the way I would like to go with the bike so it looks period correct anyhow. Does anybody have any idea of which parts I neeed to source to make this conversion or a idea how to do it. I have a very good machinist down the street so maching down the legs should not be a problem. Maybe there is someone in the USA doing this conversion? Cheers matt

I have just finished building my dream Armac Cub but am slightly frustrated at not being able to stop a minor oil leak from the gearbox side. I cured the clutch side by fitting a belt drive primary and diaphragm clutch I had a spare gearbox cover, a lathe and a mill so decided to try the Armac conversion and do away with the outer cover, however, I only have a photo to work from. I don't have access to ally welding equipment so am trying to avoid welding if possible. I have machined the flanges off the edges of the side cover, modified the case for a clutch lightener (I'll be using my original Armac clutch lightener on the bike), machined the selector ho…