Jump to content

cleanorbust

Members
  • Posts

    1,110
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by cleanorbust
 
 
  1. cleanorbust

    Ncbw

    Looking at the Dunlop website they still do a large range of protective/reinforced wellies, not quite in the 70s trials style but they do have a nice blue which would go with your Bulto very well.
  2. Probably a question that's been done to death at some point in the past but has anyone experiences good or bad of using a rear tubeless IRC or Michelin tyre with a tube on a twinshock (mine's an SWM). I've read that grinding some rubber off the bead helps the tyre to seat properly in the rim.
  3. too good for trialing?? the better the job you make of doing it the better trials bike it ll be. ... if you can bear to scratch it after all that work.
  4. Looking forward to seeing the finished article. Will you be trialling it, or is it too good for that?
  5. Big John will undoubtedly have the info to hand about riding numbers in the 1960s, perhaps when he is back home after this year's event. That's quite a collection to be sorted out, there's loads of history in that shed!
  6. There was something to be said for the old days of tapping the cylinder head and fitting a decompressor - instant, 100% reliable method of killing a revving engine and also useful for descending snotty bankings in full control, even if some thought it to be "cheating" when we really should be using the brakes with the required level of skill.
  7. Probably best to steer clear of a Honda TLM (their two stroke twinshocker), from what I remember they were a bit of a challenge, finding a lack of grip where no lack existed. Of course, Peter Gaunt does OK on his 65cc version but then he would wouldn't he. Funny you don't see many around...
  8. To improve forearm strength: try fixing some rope to a broom handle, tie the other end to a half brick or similar. Stand holding broom handle horizontally in front of you and wind the weight up to the point where it touches the broomstick using a twistgrip action with both hands, then slowly lower to the floor. Repeat for 15 minutes daily and you'll soon find a difference in your wrist/arm staying power.
  9. cleanorbust

    Cota 348

    I believe the 348 was made from 1976 to 1978, being replaced by the 349 in 1979. If the price is right it could be worth a punt, but there don't seem to be many good ones left these days, other than over-priced restoration specials. It was a good bike in its day, on the sections of the time, but could be a bit of a "lump" these days. Time, and twinshocks, moved on quite a bit after the 348.
  10. some clips of the stream down in our woods. thanks for watching! ben Wow, you did well to get permission to ride on private ground with a nice stream on it. Was it difficult?
  11. Well done on getting the tyre swapped - it's all too easy to pinch the tube with the levers if you're inexperienced. On the clutch problem, probably the plates are just stuck together. If you've got some space available, knock the bike into gear and hold the clutch lever in as you change up through the gears. The torque of the engine should break the "stiction" between the plates by the time you get into 4th or 5th gear. The bike will then operate normally if this is the problem.
  12. I would think motocross tyres are substantialy different from trials tyres in their ratio of tread block size to inter-block space. Also I think the regulation you have quoted states that absence of an E-mark on motocross type tyres does not necessarily mean the tyre should fail an MOT.
  13. I have come across a Vehicle Certification Agency fact sheet which seems to state that only powered two wheelers sold as a new design after 17 June 1999 are subject to European Type Approval requirements. No doubt this is an area which would stand some further research on the 'net to establish the true position.
  14. Yes, practice can help. On the other hand, I've been trying to solve this problem for the past 40 years.
  15. I've found the Xpeed trials helmet to be up to the job at a reasonable price (you can get them for £25 on eBay). Also there's a Nitro X526 trials helmet at only £19.99! You're right about there being a profusion of makes at the low end of the price scale these days. As ever it'll be best if your pal can get to a shop to try on first.as helmets are such a personal-preference item.
  16. In fact, employees of the Scott motorcycle company rode watercooled bikes in the original Scott trial, circa 1914.
  17. I can recommend a Fiat Doblo - bike fits in without need to remove seats, just fold them up, in fact can get away with folding only single rear seat leaving room for three passengers. 1.9 diesel economical enough (55-60mpg in gentle running around).
  18. This was highlighted on Trialscentral three months ago. Surprising it hasn't been snapped up yet...
  19. An OSET would not be classed as an Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle, due to the lack of pedals. However quiet or inoffensive a powered two wheeler may be, and even if its use is generally accepted by other users of land on which you take it, its use on common land/waste land or public leisure areas is almost certainly illegal, unless the local Borough Council has designated the land for such use. Section 38 of the Road Traffic Act applies. Warwickshire police have produced a useful leaflet for parents of youngsters aiming to use powered two wheelers off road. The essence of this is: don't bother trying. See www.warwickshire.police.uk/crimeprevention/Comsafty/motorbikeleaflet for a helpful list of Q and A's on the subject.
  20. Not cheap, but could the price be a reasonable reflection of what a new RTL cost in 1980s money, plus a wee bit for the once in a lifetime opportunity it represents? (Not that I imagine it will ever be used in anger even if it sells).
  21. I'm afraid the equally quick reply is that it would be illegal to ride on pavements, public parks, common land, waste land, etc.
  22. As well as knowing the rules, it is probably advisable to get a feel for the local culture in how they are applied. As a rider I see competitors get away with all sorts of things which if I was observing would be a five. This seems to work because everyone "knows" what is generally acceptable, although it may not accord with what the rule book says. I've even got observers to correct the score they were going to give me on a couple of occasions as, where I'd fived a section about three times over in one attempt, they were going to give me a three because I'd "tried so hard" and eventually got my wheel spindle past the ends cards. Observing at the Scottish would be great, I'm sure you'd have a ball. However, if I was doing it I'd probably risk being "relieved of my duties" as for me a stop is a stop and gets five marks in the observers book. Having said all that I do recognise that observers do an invaluable job and it's probably me at fault if I object to them being a bit "kind" on occasion, especially if they do the same for everyone else.
 
×
  • Create New...